When to Plant Mushroom Plant in Cairns, Tropical Guide
What this month normally looks like in Tropical
In October the Tropical zone normally runs 34°C by day and 23°C overnight, with about 53 mm of rain over 5 or 6 wet days. Averages 1991 to 2026, 37 postcodes, SILO.
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This Mushroom Plant guide is written for the Tropical zone, which takes in Cairns, Townsville and Darwin. Somewhere else? Your postcode picks the right one.
Not your zone? Brisbane Sydney Melbourne Canberra Alice Springs Perth
Also handy: will it frost this week? and what grows in shade.
- Planting window
- Nov to Mar
- Days to harvest
- about 26 weeks
- Sun
- Full sun to part shade
- Water
- Moderate
- Spacing
- 60 cm apart
The mushroom plant is a low, clumping evergreen herb from the New Guinea highlands with glossy leaves that taste of mushroom (Green Harvest).
Published · By GardenBuddy.au
Planting dates, current conditions and prices on this page update daily.
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
Best Planting Window for Tropical
- Jan P
- Feb P
- Mar P
- Apr -
- May -
- Jun -
- Jul -
- Aug -
- Sep -
- Oct -
- Nov P
- Dec P
P = Planting window
Daleys lists it for the tropics and Green Harvest says propagate from cuttings in the wet season. Plant 15 to 20 cm cuttings, 3 or 4 to a hole with half the stem buried, 60 cm apart in moist loam in part shade (Green Harvest). Daleys gives harvest February to December.
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How to Grow Mushroom Plant in Tropical Australia
- Soil
- Moderate to rich loam that does not waterlog (Green Harvest).
- Salt
- Moderately sensitive. Copes with a little salt, but the harvest drops on salty bore water.
- Sunlight
- Full sun to medium shade (Green Harvest); part sun or shade (Daleys); part shade (Herb Cottage).
- Spacing
- 60cm apart, 60cm between rows
- Watering
- Moderate water (Daleys); tolerates dry but grows better watered (Herb Cottage).
- Grow before it
- Legumes (Beans - Dwarf, Peas, Broad Beans)
- Grow after it
- Fruiting crops (Tomato, Capsicum, Zucchini)
Give the bed 3 turns before leafy greens go back in. Leaf crops want the nitrogen the legumes left behind.
Tropical Growing Tips for Mushroom Plant
Key Challenges
- Waterlogging
Pro Tips
- Plant cuttings in the wet season
- Use it as an edible ground cover (Green Harvest)
Pests and problems for Mushroom Plant in Tropical
Harvesting Mushroom Plant
When ready: Clumps with plenty of glossy leaves; harvest within the first year (Daleys).
How to harvest: Pick leaf tips and young stems; the plant re-shoots from the roots (Green Harvest).
Storing and preserving mushroom plant
How to keep it
- Freezing. Blanch, cool, bag flat (NCHFP). Keeps: 6 months.
- Fresh. Damp cloth in a bag in the crisper. Keeps: 3 to 5 days.
What members get
- Soil and weather from your nearest station
- An email when it's time to sow
- Your own garden plan, including planning from a photo
- Price history and price alerts
- Pest risk alerts for your area
- Full salt and canning detail
Common Questions About Mushroom Plant
When do you plant mushroom plant in Australia?
It depends on your climate zone, not the calendar month alone. Planting months by zone:
- Tropical (Cairns): Jan to Mar, Nov to Dec
- Subtropical (Brisbane): Jan to Feb, Sep to Dec
- Warm Temperate (Sydney): Sep to Nov
- Cool Temperate (Melbourne): Oct to Nov
- Cold / Highland (Canberra): not recommended
- Arid / Semi-Arid (Alice Springs): Sep to Oct
- Mediterranean (Perth): Sep to Nov
When should I plant Mushroom Plant in Cairns?
Daleys lists it for the tropics and Green Harvest says propagate from cuttings in the wet season. Plant 15 to 20 cm cuttings, 3 or 4 to a hole with half the stem buried, 60 cm apart in moist loam in part shade (Green Harvest). Daleys gives harvest February to December.
How do I know when Mushroom Plant are ready to harvest?
Clumps with plenty of glossy leaves; harvest within the first year (Daleys).
Are mushroom plant salt tolerant?
Only a little. Mushroom plant are moderately sensitive to salt, so the harvest drops on salty bore water. Mix salty water with rainwater, and mulch the bed.
Which zone am I in?
Type your postcode into the box near the top of the page and it 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 Tropical zone, Cairns is its reference city.