🌱 Gardening in April: Making Way for Winter

April brings cooler mornings and shorter days, reminding us it's time to wind down summer crops and focus on planting and preparing for the months ahead. Here’s what to sow, plant, and care for this month.

🌿 What to Sow

Direct Sow into garden beds:

Keep feeding the soil and your family by sowing:

• Mustard greens (greencrop)

• Beetroot

• Broad beans

• Carrots

• Parsnips

• Peas

• Radish

• Rocket

• Parsley

• Spinach

• Silverbeet

• Calendula (great for pollinators and companion planting)

Sow in trays for transplanting later:

• Cabbage

• Broccoli

• Lettuce

• Leeks

• Shallots

• Onions

• Brussels sprouts

• Coriander

Tip: Stagger your sowing every few weeks for a continuous harvest through winter and early spring.

🌱 Planting

• Clear out any spent summer crops to make space for new plantings.

• Get your brassicas (cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, kale) in now—they need a good head start before winter sets in.

• Cover seedlings with fine mesh or netting to keep white butterflies and their hungry caterpillars at bay.

  

🍋 Fruit & Tree Care

• Citrus trees are developing fruit now, so keep an eye on soil moisture. Nutrients can’t be absorbed properly in dry soil.

• When conditions are right, feed citrus with a good quality organic fertiliser—and add a couple of handfuls of MyNoke vermicast to citrus, persimmon, and any winter-fruiting trees.

• For young citrus trees, remove any fruit to help the plant put energy into building a strong frame and root system.

• Mulch around trees to protect roots and retain moisture—especially important as rainfall can be patchy this time of year.

🛠️ Garden Chores

• Chop and drop: Cut sunflowers, corn, and beans at the base and leave roots in the ground. The decomposing roots improve soil structure and microbial health.

• Compost the stalks or dry and store them as future mulch—especially great under citrus or avocado trees.

• Harvest:

  • Pumpkins and squash once the stalks have dried

  • Potatoes once the tops have completely died back

• Relocate worm farms to a warmer, sheltered spot for winter.

• Save seeds from your best summer performers—label them clearly with the variety and date for next season or to share.

  

🌾 Final Thoughts

April is about tidying, transitioning, and preparing. The work you do now will set you up for a productive winter garden and healthy fruit trees. Keep feeding your soil, sowing thoughtfully, and tending your perennials—it all adds up to resilience and abundance down the line.