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Farmers almanac

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.

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September 2026 Farmers Almanac

Planting, moon and climate guide for the Tropical zone

Updated 11 Oct 2026

2026 ENSO Update: El Niño is likely developing. Most climate models now forecast tropical Pacific warming right through spring and summer. That usually means below-average rainfall, above-average temperatures, and higher fire risk across eastern Australia. The Inigo Jones cycle (Bruckner dry phase) backs the drier read. Plan for drier conditions and higher fire danger.

Climate Overview

Zone	Max	Min	Rainfall	Conditions
Tropical	32-34°C	21-24°C	20-35mm	Build-up beginning. Hot, humidity rising. Storms developing.

Astronomical Events

Spring Equinox – September 23: The Spring Equinox lands on September 23 at 10:05am AEST, one of the four major turning points of the solar year.

Moon Phases

🌗

Last Quarter

Sep 4

🌑

New Moon

Sep 11

🌓

First Quarter

Sep 19

🌕

Full Moon

Sep 27

Sunrise / Sunset

Days lengthening rapidly toward the equinox. Here’s the change across the month:

City	1st	15th	Last	Daylight change
Cairns (AEST)	6:23am – 6:10pm (11h 46m)	6:12am – 6:12pm (11h 59m)	6:00am – 6:13pm (12h 13m)	+27 min

Trend: Nearly an hour gained in all cities. The equinox (Sep 23) brings equal day and night.

Planting Guide

Tropical Zone

Planting windows from the GardenBuddy zone planting master (109 crops tracked for this zone). Harvest months are the verified zone harvest window where we have one, otherwise calculated from typical days to maturity.

Plant Now

Amaranth (sow direct, transplant)
Basil (seed tray, transplant)
Cabbage (transplant)
Collards (transplant)
Cucumber (transplant)
Ginger (rhizomes)
Lemongrass (divisions)
Luffa (sow direct, seed tray)
Mint (cuttings or divisions)
Mizuna (transplant)
Mustard greens (sow direct, seed tray, transplant)
Okra (sow direct, transplant)
Papaya (potted seedlings)
Passionfruit (grafted vine)
Pineapple (suckers or tops)
Pumpkin (sow direct, seed tray, transplant)
Spring Onion (sow direct)
Squash (sow direct, seed tray, transplant)
Sunflower (transplant)
Sweet Corn (sow direct)
Sweet Potato (slips)
Winter squash (sow direct, seed tray, transplant)
Yam (tubers)
Zucchini (sow direct, seed tray, transplant)

Harvest

Amaranth
Asparagus
Asparagus Pea
Banana
Basil
Beans – climbing
Beans – dwarf
Beetroot
Borage
Broccoli
Cabbage
Cape Gooseberry
Capsicum
Carrot
Celeriac
Chilli peppers
Chinese cabbage
Chives
Collards
Coriander
Cucumber
Daikon
Dill
Eggplant
Endive
Fennel
Fig
Garlic
Grapefruit
Jerusalem Artichokes
Kale
Kohlrabi
Leeks
Lemon Balm
Lemongrass
Lettuce
Mango
Mint
Mizuna
Mulberry
Mustard greens
NZ Spinach
Okra
Onion
Oregano
Pak Choy
Papaya
Parsley
Peanut
Potato
Pumpkin
Rocket
Rockmelon
Rosemary
Sage
Salsify
Savory – summer savory
Savory – winter savory
Silverbeet
Snow Peas
Spinach
Spring Onion
Squash
Strawberries
Sunflower
Sweet Corn
Sweet Marjoram
Sweet Potato
Thyme
Tomatillo
Tomato
Watermelon
Winter squash
Zucchini

Moon Planting Calendar

Phase	Dates	Best for
Waning (Full to Last Quarter)	Sep 1-4	Root vegetables, garlic, onions, bulbs. Pruning.
Waning (Last Quarter to New)	Sep 4-11	Soil preparation, composting, pest control. Rest period.
Waxing (New to First Quarter)	Sep 11-19	Leafy greens and herbs. Sow above-ground crops that fruit outside the plant.
Waxing (First Quarter to Full)	Sep 19-27	Fruiting crops – tomatoes, beans, cucurbits. Strongest above-ground planting energy.
Waning (Full to Last Quarter)	Sep 27-30	Root vegetables, garlic, onions, bulbs. Pruning.

Livestock Guide

Lambing and calving are peaking. This is the busiest stretch of the year for anyone running stock.

Cattle

Calving season peak
Close monitoring required
Pasture at best condition
Parasite treatment

Sheep & Goats

Lambing/kidding peak
Intensive monitoring
Marking and tagging
Mothering up

Poultry

Peak breeding season
Excellent hatch rates
Production strong
Free range ideal

Bees

Peak activity
Swarm prevention critical
Spring honey flow
Super management

Self-Sufficiency Focus

The Spring Gap

This is the “spring gap” – the tail end of the hungry period between winter and summer abundance. Food prices are often at their peak. If you’ve preserved well, you’re nearly through it. Fresh asparagus and early strawberries signal better times ahead.

Energy Excellence

This is one of the best months for energy balance. Solar output is excellent, and you need neither heating nor cooling most days. If you’ve got batteries, you’re probably building up credits. Enjoy it while it lasts.

Priority planting All summer vegetables

Starting to harvest Asparagus, early strawberries

Energy outlook Solar excellent, minimal heating/cooling

Key Takeaways

Spring Equinox: September 23 – major Gann date, equal day and night
Peak planting: All summer vegetables can go in now
Lambing peak: Intensive livestock management period
Spring gap ending: Fresh produce returning, prices starting to ease
Energy good window: Solar excellent, minimal heating/cooling

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