One almanac per growing zone, published every month. Pick your zone and month below for the full picture: what to plant now, what should be coming ready to harvest, the moon planting calendar, sunrise and sunset for your zone, and the climate averages you can expect from Bureau of Meteorology records.

Past months are free for everyone, so you can read back and judge the almanac for yourself. The current month and everything ahead of it is for GardenBuddy members.

July 2026 Farmers Almanac

Planting, moon and climate guide for the Mediterranean zone

Updated 14 Aug 2026

2026 ENSO Update: We’re sitting in ENSO-neutral, with climate models pointing to El Niño by late winter 2026. Inigo Jones cycle, Bruckner year 20 (dry phase), Jupiter year 7 (declining wet), reads near-normal to below-normal rainfall. If El Niño develops as the models have it, eastern Australia usually turns drier and warmer through spring and summer.

Climate Overview

Zone	Max	Min	Rainfall	Conditions
Mediterranean	14-16°C	6-9°C	70-100mm	Cold and wet. Peak winter rainfall. Regular frost.

Astronomical Events

Southern Delta Aquariids Meteor Shower – peak around Jul 29-30: A steady southern shower, best after midnight.

Moon Phases

🌗

Last Quarter

Jul 8

🌑

New Moon

Jul 14

🌓

First Quarter

Jul 21

🌕

Full Moon

Jul 29

Sunrise / Sunset

Days are getting longer again post-solstice. Here’s the welcome change across the month:

City	1st	15th	Last	Daylight change
Perth (AWST)	7:17am – 5:23pm (10h 05m)	7:15am – 5:30pm (10h 14m)	7:06am – 5:39pm (10h 33m)	+28 min

Trend: Days lengthening – Melbourne gains over half an hour. Spring is coming.

Planting Guide

Mediterranean Zone

Planting windows from the GardenBuddy zone planting master (102 crops tracked for this zone). The harvest list is calculated: crops whose typical days to maturity land this month when planted inside their zone window.

Plant Now

Apple (transplant)
Beetroot (seed tray)
Blueberry (transplant)
Broad Beans (sow direct, seed tray, transplant)
Fig (transplant)
Kohlrabi (seed tray)
Leeks (seed tray)
Lettuce (sow direct, seed tray, transplant)
Mulberry (transplant)
Onion (sow direct, seed tray, transplant)
Parsley (sow direct, seed tray, transplant)
Peach (transplant)
Pear (transplant)
Peas (sow direct, seed tray, transplant)
Pecan (transplant)
Persimmon (transplant)
Plum (transplant)
Pomegranate (transplant)
Potato (sow direct)
Radish (sow direct)
Raspberry (transplant)
Silverbeet (seed tray)
Snow Peas (sow direct, seed tray, transplant)
Spinach (sow direct, seed tray, transplant)
Spring Onion (seed tray, transplant)
Squash (seed tray)
Strawberries (seed tray)
Walnut (transplant)

Harvest

Artichokes
Blueberry
Broad Beans
Broccoli
Chives
Daikon
Endive
Fennel
Ginger
Leeks
Lemon
Lemongrass
Lettuce
Lime
Luffa
Mandarin
Mizuna
Mustard greens
Parsley
Passionfruit
Peas
Pecan
Radish
Rutabaga
Salsify
Snow Peas
Spinach
Spring Onion
Turnip
Walnut
Yacon
Yam/Oca

Moon Planting Calendar

Phase	Dates	Best for
Waning (Full to Last Quarter)	Jul 1-8	Root vegetables, garlic, onions, bulbs. Pruning.
Waning (Last Quarter to New)	Jul 8-14	Soil preparation, composting, pest control. Rest period.
Waxing (New to First Quarter)	Jul 14-21	Leafy greens and herbs. Sow above-ground crops that fruit outside the plant.
Waxing (First Quarter to Full)	Jul 21-29	Fruiting crops – tomatoes, beans, cucurbits. Strongest above-ground planting energy.
Waning (Full to Last Quarter)	Jul 29-31	Root vegetables, garlic, onions, bulbs. Pruning.

Livestock Guide

Late pregnancy management matters this month. Birth season is coming up fast.

Cattle

Mid-winter care
Supplementation critical for pregnant cows
Monitor for cold stress
Prepare calving areas

Sheep & Goats

Late pregnancy
Vaccinate for clostridial diseases
Lambing/kidding preparation
Shelter critical

Poultry

Production at annual low
Continue supplemental lighting
Warm water essential – prevent freezing
Order spring chicks

Bees

Minimal intervention
Check hive weight for stores
Emergency feeding if needed
Don't open on cold days

Self-Sufficiency Focus

Planning Season

This is actually the perfect time to plan your spring and summer gardens. The catalogues are out, the days are quiet, and you’ve got time to think about what worked and what didn’t last year. Order seeds now before popular varieties sell out.

Energy Management

Heating demand continues but solar output is slowly improving. By late July you’ll notice a slight uptick in daily generation. This is often the peak month for firewood consumption. Check your stores and source more if needed.

Priority now Order seeds, plan spring garden

Start indoors late month Tomatoes, capsicum, eggplant

Harvest focus Citrus, Brussels sprouts, roots

Key Takeaways

Coldest month: Heavy frost in most zones – protect sensitive plants
Day length increasing: Noticeable by mid-month post-solstice
Start seedlings indoors: Tomatoes, capsicum, eggplant late month
Order seeds: Popular varieties sell out – don’t wait
Birth prep: Lambing and kidding season approaching
Brussels sprouts: At their best after frost

Methodology: Climate figures for the Mediterranean zone are Bureau of Meteorology 30 year averages. Astronomical times are computed with Skyfield and the NASA JPL DE421 ephemeris for Perth (Perth time). Planting and harvest windows come from the GardenBuddy zone planting master.