Spring is the main sowing window across most of Australia. Your last frost and warming soil set the real start, not the calendar.
In cool and temperate gardens, begin warm-season seeds undercover and wait for the frost to pass before planting out. In warmer zones, sow directly as the soil holds its heat, though tropical gardens follow the dry-season calendar. Sow in small, staggered batches so the harvest arrives as a steady trickle rather than all at once.
Spring does not arrive on a single morning. It creeps in through warmer soil, twitchy seed packets, and the first weeds that suddenly look far too pleased with themselves. It moves up the country and across the zones, and every garden keeps its own timetable. A Hobart gardener and a Darwin gardener can both be planting in spring and be doing almost nothing alike.
The trick is to read your own patch: the last frost, the warmth in the soil, and the season your zone is actually in. Get that right and the rest of the calendar falls into place.
When does spring planting really start?
It starts once your last frost has passed and the soil has warmed, which can sit weeks away from the calendar date. Seeds sown into cold, wet ground often sulk or rot, so soil warmth matters more than the month on the wall.
A simple cue is the soil feeling pleasant to a bare hand in the morning, and weeds beginning to run. Warm-season crops such as tomatoes, capsicum and basil want that steadier heat, while hardy leafy greens and peas tolerate the cooler edges of the season. If you are unsure of your local frost dates, check the Bureau of Meteorology. Their regional frost maps are worth a look before planting anything tender out.
The seed packet might be keen, but the soil gets the final vote. If the bed still feels like a cold sponge in the morning, make a cuppa and wait a little longer.
What to sow in early spring
Spring is when the warm-season crops go in, started undercover in cooler zones and direct in warmer ones. A simple way to sort the season:
- Start undercover now: tomatoes, capsicum, chilli, eggplant and basil, ready to plant out once the frost risk has gone.
- Sow for quick picking: lettuce, rocket, radish, spring onion and Asian greens germinate readily in mild spring weather and bridge the gap before the summer crops hit their stride.
- Wait for warmer soil: beans, cucumber, zucchini and pumpkin resent a cold check, so sow them once the soil holds its heat.
Pick one crop for now, one for a fortnight from now, and one to hold back for warmer soil. That is calmer than turning the whole seed tin upside down on Saturday morning.
Seed potatoes also go in across many gardens through spring.
When you are matching crops to the weeks ahead, browse our vegetable seeds for what suits your zone. A glance at the season where you live helps you line up the first sowings.
Spring, zone by zone
This weekend’s job: Choose three packets only. Start one undercover, sow one quick crop direct, and leave one warmth-lover for later. Spring planting feels much easier when the whole plan fits in your hand.
Spring planting windows shift sharply by climate zone, so a single date means very different jobs in different gardens. Here is how the season tends to unfold:
- Tropical (Darwin, Cairns, Townsville): heat and humidity build towards the wet, so favour heat-tolerant crops and keep the dry-season calendar in mind; the dry season is the main growing window.
- Subtropical (Brisbane, Sunshine Coast, Coffs Harbour): a generous spring for many warm-season crops, with airflow and steady watering mattering more as the humidity climbs.
- Arid and semi-arid (Alice Springs, Mildura, Kalgoorlie): warm days and cold nights early on, and a wetting agent can help where the soil turns water-repellent.
- Temperate (Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra): start undercover and plant out after the last frost, which can run well into spring in Canberra and the cooler suburbs.
- Mediterranean (Perth and southern WA, and Adelaide): mild and bright, ideal for a long spring sowing before the dry summer; steady watering and mulch pay off.
- Cool and alpine (Tasmanian highlands, Ballarat, Orange, the southern tablelands): slowest to warm, so wait for the frost to lift and lean on undercover starts.
Sow little and often
Sowing smaller batches every two to three weeks can keep the kitchen supplied more steadily and reduce the chance of a sudden pile-up. It also softens the risk of a late cold snap. The calendar is really about rhythm, not heroics, and a glut staring at you from the bench is its own kind of pressure.
If one sowing gets caught out by late cold, the next is not far behind. A bag of spare seedlings can be a very good peace offering for a neighbour, too, especially once the garden gets ahead of dinner.
Give spring seedlings a good start
Healthy soil does most of the work, so feed it before you lean on the plants. A bed topped up with compost and a little aged chook manure can give seedlings a settled start. A gentle drink of seaweed solution can also help them through transplant shock.
Mulch as the weather warms to hold moisture and keep the bed from turning into a biscuit. This matters most in Mediterranean and arid zones where the dry comes on fast. Keep water steady rather than heavy, since young roots prefer a moist bed to a flooded one. For herbs, go easy on feeding, because over-feeding reduces the essential oils that give them their flavour and aroma.
A spring calendar is less a fixed schedule than a way of reading your own garden. Get the rhythm right now and the season feels less like a rush, and more like a steady walk out to the garden with a basket. For the warmer months ahead, our guide to keeping the summer harvest coming picks up where this leaves off.
Frequently asked questions
When does spring planting start in Australia?
It begins once your last frost has passed and the soil has warmed, which varies by zone and microclimate. In warm areas that can be early spring; in cool and alpine gardens it may be late spring. Soil warmth is a better guide than the calendar date.
What vegetables can I plant in spring?
Warm-season crops such as tomatoes, capsicum, beans, cucumber and zucchini, plus quick crops like lettuce, rocket and radish. Start tender crops undercover in cooler zones and plant them out after frost. Sow the heat-lovers direct once the soil holds its warmth.
Should I start seeds undercover or sow direct?
Both have a place. Tomatoes, capsicum and basil benefit from an undercover start in cooler zones, while beans, cucurbits and root crops prefer to be sown straight into warm soil. The colder your zone, the more an undercover start helps.
How do I avoid a glut?
Sow little and often. Smaller batches every two to three weeks spread the harvest and reduce the risk if a late cold snap sets one sowing back. It keeps the kitchen supplied without a sudden pile-up.
Do I need to worry about frost in spring?
In many gardens, yes, particularly temperate, cool and alpine zones where frost can linger. Keep tender seedlings protected or undercover until the risk has passed, and check local frost timing before planting out.
What about gardeners in Perth and southern WA?
Mediterranean zones enjoy a mild, bright spring that suits a long sowing window before the dry summer, and steady watering with mulch helps the beds hold moisture. One practical note for WA gardeners: due to quarantine restrictions and our shipping policy, we cannot send seed potatoes to Western Australia, Tasmania or Kangaroo Island.
Related growing guides
- Succession planting: how to harvest continuously, not all at once
- What to grow in winter: cool-season vegetables across Australia
- When the heat sets in: vegetables that thrive in an Australian summer
Ready to plant? Browse our Vegetable Seeds.