When to Plant Sugar Apple 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 Sugar Apple 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
- Sun
- Full sun
- Soil pH
- 6.6–7.3
Sugar apple, also called sweetsop, is a small partly deciduous tree of 2 to 5 m for tropical and subtropical gardens, with knobbly sweet fruit eaten raw and chilled (Daleys).
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 sugar apple for the tropics with harvest March to July; Big Eyes also crops July to December. Optimum 23 to 34 degrees (IFAS). It grows wild in dry parts of North Queensland (Morton), so it copes with the dry season. Planting months are our estimate: the start of the wet season.
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How to Grow Sugar Apple in Tropical Australia
- Soil
- Well drained soil; flooding for 7 to 10 days kills the tree (IFAS). Shallow rooted (Morton).
- Salt
- Sensitive. Struggles with salty bore water or salty soil. Give it rainwater if you can.
- pH Range
- 6.6-7.3
- Sunlight
- Full sun (Daleys).
- Keep away from
- Frost pockets, Wet ground (IFAS), Bushland edges where seed could escape (Morton)
Tropical Growing Tips for Sugar Apple
Recommended Varieties
- Sweetsop seedling (Daleys)
- Big Eyes, large fruit, two crops (Daleys)
- Purple sugar apple (Daleys)
Key Challenges
- Mealybugs
- Fruit fly
- Wet season waterlogging
Pro Tips
- Plant on a mound at the start of the wet
- Pick when colour shows between segments (Morton)
Pests and problems for Sugar Apple in Tropical
Harvesting Sugar Apple
When ready: Pick when the skin colour shows between the segments and they start to separate (Morton).
How to harvest: Clip with a short stem; ripe fruit lasts 2 to 4 days (IFAS). Chilling injury at 4 degrees, so do not refrigerate unripe fruit (Morton).
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 Sugar Apple
When do you plant sugar apple 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): Oct to Nov
- Cool Temperate (Melbourne): not recommended
- Cold / Highland (Canberra): not recommended
- Arid / Semi-Arid (Alice Springs): Sep to Nov
- Mediterranean (Perth): not recommended
When should I plant Sugar Apple in Cairns?
Daleys lists sugar apple for the tropics with harvest March to July; Big Eyes also crops July to December. Optimum 23 to 34 degrees (IFAS). It grows wild in dry parts of North Queensland (Morton), so it copes with the dry season. Planting months are our estimate: the start of the wet season.
How do I know when Sugar Apple are ready to harvest?
Pick when the skin colour shows between the segments and they start to separate (Morton).
What are the best Sugar Apple varieties for Cairns?
Recommended varieties for the Tropical zone include: Sweetsop seedling (Daleys), Big Eyes, large fruit, two crops (Daleys), Purple sugar apple (Daleys).
Are sugar apple salt tolerant?
No. Sugar apple are salt-sensitive, one of the more sensitive veggies. Use rainwater if your bore water is salty, or grow them in a raised bed of fresh mix if your soil is.
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.