When to Plant Collards in Alice Springs, Arid / Semi-Arid Guide
Sow March to August. Right now in October it is out of season. The next sowing month is March.
Grow Collards in your space
- Planting window
- March-August. Avoid summer heat. Requires consistent irrigation.
- Days to harvest
- 60 days
- Sunlight
- Full sun (6+ hours). Tolerates part shade, especially in warmer zones. Minimum 3 hours direct sun.
- Water needs
- Deep watering 2-3 times per week. Consistent moisture produces tender leaves. Drought...
- Spacing
- 60cm apart, 75cm between rows
- Soil pH
- 6.0-6.8
Published · Last reviewed · By GardenBuddy.au
Growing advice is reviewed by hand. Planting dates, current conditions and prices on this page update daily.
This Collards guide is written for the Arid / Semi-Arid zone, which takes in Alice Springs, Broken Hill and Port Augusta. Somewhere else? Your postcode picks the right one.
Not your zone? Cairns Brisbane Sydney Melbourne Canberra Perth
Also handy: will it frost this week? and what grows in shade.
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
Collards (also called collard greens or borekale) are a non-heading brassica producing large, flat, dark green leaves on sturdy stems. More heat-tolerant than cabbage and kale, and equally cold-hardy, making them one of the most versatile brassica greens for Australian gardens. The flavour is mild and slightly sweet, improving after frost exposure. Underutilised in Australia but gaining popularity.
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Planting Calendar for Arid / Semi-Arid
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| - | - | S/D | S/T/D | S/T/D | T/D | T | T | - | - | - | - |
S = Seed Tray T = Transplant D = Direct Sow
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Current Growing Conditions
Soil temperature: 24.4°C (optimal range: 8–30°C) ✓ Ready to plant
Modelled from Open-Meteo forecast (Alice Springs), not a live sensor.
What this month normally looks like
In October the Arid / Semi-Arid zone normally runs 32°C by day and 16°C overnight, with about 19 mm of rain over 2 or 3 wet days. The coldest October night on record across the zone was 1.9°C, so a late frost is not out of the question. Averages 1991 to 2026, 10 postcodes, SILO.
How to Grow Collards in Arid / Semi-Arid Australia
When to Plant
March-August. Avoid summer heat. Requires consistent irrigation.
- Soil
- Rich, well-drained soil amended with plenty of compost and aged manure. Tolerates heavier clay soils better than most brassicas.
- pH Range
- 6.0-6.8
- Sunlight
- Full sun (6+ hours). Tolerates part shade, especially in warmer zones. Minimum 3 hours direct sun.
- Spacing
- 60cm apart, 75cm between rows
- Watering
- Deep watering 2-3 times per week. Consistent moisture produces tender leaves. Drought stress toughens leaves and may trigger bolting. Drip irrigation ideal.
Companion plants: Onion, Garlic, Celery, Dill, Chamomile, Nasturtium (trap crop)
Avoid planting near: Strawberry, Tomato, Other brassicas in succession (disease buildup)
Grow before, grow after
Collards belong with the brassicas, the leafy greens and brassicas turn of a four turn bed rotation.
- Grow before it
- Legumes (Beans - Dwarf, Peas, Broad Beans)
- Grow after it
- Fruiting crops (Tomato, Capsicum, Zucchini)
Give the bed 3 turns before brassicas go back in. The cabbage family is hungry for nitrogen and shares club root and other soil diseases.
Arid / Semi-Arid Growing Tips for Collards
Recommended Varieties
- Georgia Southern (most heat tolerant)
- Vates
Key Challenges
- Water demand
- Extreme heat still stresses even heat-tolerant collards
Pro Tips
- Shade cloth (30-50%) extends growing season
- Drip irrigation essential
- Mulch heavily to conserve moisture
Harvesting Collards
When ready: Leaves are large (20-30cm), dark green, and firm. Harvest from the bottom of the plant upwards. Leaves should snap cleanly when bent.
How to harvest: Cut-and-come-again: snap or cut lower leaves, leaving the growing tip and upper leaves to continue producing. Never harvest more than 1/3 of leaves at once.
Preserving: pressure canning
1 tested pressure-canning recipe for Collards: 1 where it is the crop being canned. Each one comes from published home canning guidelines. The conversion to Australian units is ours, with psi beside every kPa. Always follow your pressure canner's manual.
Where to next
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Open the planting dashboard Join GardenBuddy.auCommon Questions About Collards
When do you plant collards in Australia?
It depends on your climate zone, not the calendar month alone. Planting months by zone:
- Tropical (Cairns): Apr to Sep
- Subtropical (Brisbane): Feb to Jul
- Warm Temperate (Sydney): Feb to Jun, Aug to Nov
- Cool Temperate (Melbourne): Jan to Mar, Aug to Dec
- Cold / Highland (Canberra): Jan to Apr
- Arid / Semi-Arid (Alice Springs): Mar to Aug
- Mediterranean (Perth): Feb to May, Aug to Oct
Does collards grow all year round in Alice Springs?
No. In the Arid / Semi-Arid zone the planting months are Mar to Aug. Outside that window it either bolts, sulks or gets cut down by the weather.
Which zone am I in?
Type your postcode into the box under the heading and the page tells you, and links this crop in your own zone if it differs. Or look it up on the grow zone map. This page is the Arid / Semi-Arid zone, Alice Springs is its reference city.