What to plant and do in the Melbourne garden this month

October is a magnificent time to get into the veggie patch.  The soil is warming up and it’s time to get those summer seedlings in!

What to plant…

= sow seeds in ground

cloche/greenhouse = sow seeds in cloche / greenhouse

= plant in ground

Veggies

  • basil  cloche/greenhouse
  • eggplant  cloche/greenhouse
  • capsicum  cloche/greenhouse
  • corn
  • cucumber   cloche/greenhouse
  • zucchini  cloche/greenhouse
  • pumpkin  cloche/greenhouse
  • melons  cloche/greenhouse
  • beans
  • lettuce cloche/greenhouse
  • Chinese brassicas (wombok, bok choi etc.)   cloche/greenhouse
  • cabbages cloche/greenhouse
  • silverbeet  cloche/greenhouse
  • beetroot cloche/greenhouse
  • potatoes 
  • sunflowers  cloche/greenhouse
  • And it’s finally becoming time to think about planting tomatoes! cloche/greenhouse

A gardener sharing their homegrown tomatoes with a friend

I say ‘tomato’, you say ‘wait until Cup Day’
Is it time to plant tomatoes yet? If you’re in a cool microclimate, yes it can pay to wait until the tradition of planting after Melbourne Cup Day (the first Tuesday of November), as there’s still the chance of a late frost, and even if we’re lucky, the soil can be too cold for these tropical babies to thrive. However, if you’re in a spot with plenty of sun and a frost-free microclimate, you can get started sooner. The closer you are to the bay or the city, generally the warmer your nights are. Proximity to north facing walls can help too! As long as you’re planting tomatoes, why not mix it up and plant plenty of heirloom varieties for an adventure in flavour, colour and form!

Veggie patch flowers and companion plants

Bring some colour to your patch and attract beneficial insects with

  • french marigolds   cloche/greenhouse
  • calendula   cloche/greenhouse
  • yarrow   cloche/greenhouse
  • alyssum  cloche/greenhouse

Fertilising, mulching and watering

  • If you had allowed your soil to be exposed to the sun to help it warm up, now’s the time to start thinking about covering it again with mulch.
  • Before you put in all those wonderful spring planted vegetables, prepare your beds.  Everything will appreciate some well made compost, a dash of dynamic lifter, finished off of course with some straw mulch.

Plan your future garden

If you want to grow food for spring and summer but haven’t got your own garden yet, now is a great time to install and plant a garden. Not sure where to start? We can help you with customised DIY sustainable timber raised garden bed and wicking bed kits to suit your garden, or we can install any of these options for you.

building a wicking bed
Laurie building a VEG wicking bed