When to Plant Turnip in Cairns, Tropical Guide
Soil temperature is modelled from Open-Meteo forecast (Cairns), not a live sensor.
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 Turnip 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
- Apr to Jun
- Days to harvest
- 40 days
- Sun
- Full sun to part shade
- Water
- Regular
- Spacing
- 12 cm apart
- Soil pH
- 6.0–7.5
- Shop price
- $7.50/kg at one shop
Turnips are a fast-growing, cool-season root crop that matures in 6-10 weeks. Both the root and the nutritious leafy tops (turnip greens) are edible.
Published · By GardenBuddy.au
Planting dates, current conditions and prices on this page update daily.
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
Planting Calendar for Tropical
- Jan -
- Feb -
- Mar -
- Apr D
- May D
- Jun D
- Jul -
- Aug -
- Sep -
- Oct -
- Nov -
- Dec -
S = Seed Tray T = Transplant D = Direct Sow
Want a nudge when it is sowing time?
One email a week with what is worth planting in the Tropical zone right now, Turnip included, plus which veg has jumped in price at the supermarket. Free, and you can stop it in one click.
How to Grow Turnip in Tropical Australia
- Soil
- Well-drained, fertile loam with good moisture retention. Avoid heavy clay or compacted soil which causes misshapen roots. Prepare with well-rotted compost.
- Salt
- Moderately sensitive. Copes with a little salt, but the harvest drops on salty bore water.
- pH Range
- 6.0-7.5
- Sunlight
- Full sun to light shade
- Spacing
- 12cm apart, 30cm between rows
- Watering
- Consistent, even moisture is critical. Irregular watering produces woody, pithy, bitter roots. Water deeply 2-3 times per week in dry conditions.
- Good companions
- Nasturtium (trap crop for aphids), Dwarf Beans, Onion, Carrot, Chives
- Keep away from
- Strawberry
- 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.
Tropical Growing Tips for Turnip
Recommended Varieties
- Purple Top Milan (fast)
- Tokyo Cross (heat-tolerant)
- Hakurei (Japanese salad type)
Key Challenges
- Rapid bolting in heat
- Caterpillar pressure
- Roots become woody quickly in warmth
Pro Tips
- Plant in the coolest months only
- Harvest young (6-8 weeks) before heat causes bolting
- Japanese salad types (Hakurei, Tokyo Cross) are more heat-tolerant
Pests and problems for Turnip in Tropical
- Diamondback Moth Watch
- Cabbage White Butterfly Watch
- Downy Mildew Watch
- Clubroot Maintain soil pH above 6.5-7.0 with lime. Improve drainage. 7+ year rotation for brassicas. Use raised beds with imported clean soil if... Watch
- Black Rot Use disease-free seed (hot water treat seed at 50C for 25 minutes). 4-year brassica rotation. Avoid overhead watering. Remove crop debris... Watch
- Caterpillar pressure Caterpillar pressure Watch
Harvesting Turnip
When ready: Roots are 5-8cm diameter (golf ball to tennis ball size) for best flavour. Shoulder visible at soil level. Harvest EARLY - turnips become woody, pithy, and bitter if left too long.
How to harvest: Grasp foliage near crown and pull. Water bed beforehand if soil is dry. For larger winter types, loosen soil with a fork first.
Storing and preserving turnip
How to keep it
- Refrigerator Storage. Remove tops (they draw moisture from roots). Store unwashed roots in a plastic bag in the crisper drawer. Keeps: 2-4 weeks.
- Root Cellar / Sand Storage. Twist off tops. Layer in damp sand in boxes. Store at 1-4C in dark conditions. Keeps: 2-4 months.
- Freezing. Peel and dice into 2cm cubes. Blanch 3 minutes. Ice bath, drain. Freeze on trays then bag. Turnip greens: wash, blanch 2 minutes, ice bath, squeeze dry, freeze in portions. Keeps: 10-12 months.
- Fermenting (Lacto-fermented). Peel and cut into chunks or grate. Pack into jar with 2% salt brine. Submerge with weight. Ferment at room temperature 5-7 days. Refrigerate. Keeps: 3-6 months refrigerated.
- Pickling. Peel and slice or cube. Pack into sterilised jars. Cover with boiling pickling vinegar with spices. Lebanese-style: slice thinly, pack with beetroot slices for pink colour, cover with vinegar brine. Keeps: 6-12 months sealed; 4 weeks once opened.
Canning safety. Low-acid vegetables like turnip must be pressure canned, never water-bath canned.
Grow vs buy
A 2.4 m × 1.2 m bed fits 46 plants, about $69 worth at today’s Coles prices, checked today.
That is roughly 9 kg at $7.50 a kilo.
Draw your turnip bed → No account needed.
What turnip costs in the shops right now, retailer by retailer, updated daily.
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 Turnip
When do you plant turnip in Australia?
It depends on your climate zone, not the calendar month alone. Planting months by zone:
- Tropical (Cairns): Apr to Jun
- Subtropical (Brisbane): Feb to Aug
- Warm Temperate (Sydney): Jan to May, Aug to Dec
- Cool Temperate (Melbourne): Jan to Apr, Sep to Dec
- Cold / Highland (Canberra): Jan to Apr, Sep to Dec
- Arid / Semi-Arid (Alice Springs): Feb to Aug
- Mediterranean (Perth): Feb to Sep
Can you grow turnip all year round in Cairns?
No. In the Tropical zone the planting months are Apr to Jun. Outside that window it either bolts, sulks or gets cut down by the weather.
When should I plant Turnip in Cairns?
Sow direct from April to June in the cool dry season. Turnips bolt quickly in tropical heat, so choose fast-maturing varieties and harvest young.
What soil temperature do Turnip need?
Turnip germinate best when soil temperature is between 7°C and 30°C.
How do I know when Turnip are ready to harvest?
Roots are 5-8cm diameter (golf ball to tennis ball size) for best flavour. Shoulder visible at soil level. Harvest EARLY - turnips become woody, pithy, and bitter if left too long.
What are the best Turnip varieties for Cairns?
Recommended varieties for the Tropical zone include: Purple Top Milan (fast), Tokyo Cross (heat-tolerant), Hakurei (Japanese salad type).
What grows well with Turnip?
Good companion plants for Turnip include: Nasturtium, Dwarf Beans, Onion, Carrot, Chives.
Are turnip salt tolerant?
Only a little. Turnip 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.