When to plant Corn Salad in Temperate Australia

Temperate zone — applies to Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Perth, Newcastle and similar areas. Growing elsewhere? Cool · Subtropical · Tropical · Arid.

Sow corn salad direct from March to May and again in September and October, scattering seed 5 mm deep into a cool, moist bed. This hardy little salad green (also called mâche) germinates in 7–14 days and reaches picking size in 45–60 days, so it happily fills the shoulder seasons when lettuce sulks. Thin seedlings to 10–15 cm apart, with rows 20–25 cm apart, and keep the soil damp while the small seed establishes. In milder spells around Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide it will sit in the ground for weeks, letting you harvest a few rosettes at a time rather than all at once.

Sowing calendar — temperate zone

Green months are your sowing window: March to May and September to October.

Growing notes

Corn salad is one of the easiest cool-season greens in a temperate garden, but it does best when you respect its dislike of heat. Sowings made too late in spring bolt to seed the moment warm weather arrives, leaving you with bitter, straggly plants instead of tender rosettes. If you want a spring crop around Melbourne or Adelaide, get seed in the ground early and pick young.

The most common failure is poor, patchy germination. The seed is small and needs consistent moisture in the top centimetre of soil; a bed that dries out between waterings will give you a thin, gappy stand. Cover fresh sowings with a light board or shadecloth until seedlings appear, then remove it promptly so they get light.

Slugs and snails love the soft leaves, especially in a wet autumn. Hand-pick in the evening, or ring beds with a barrier. Because the plants are shallow-rooted, mulch lightly around them to hold moisture without burying the crowns.

Harvest by cutting whole rosettes at the base, or pick outer leaves and let the centre keep growing. Corn salad self-sows readily, so leave a couple of plants to flower and you will often get a free autumn crop the following year.

Corn Salad at a glance

Common questions

when to sow corn salad in Melbourne

In temperate Melbourne, sow from March to May for an autumn and winter crop, and again in September and October for spring. Avoid summer sowings, as heat makes the plants bolt quickly. Autumn is the most reliable window because the cool, damp soil suits germination.

why won't my corn salad seeds germinate

Corn salad seed is small and needs steady moisture in the top centimetre of soil to sprout within 7–14 days. Patchy germination almost always comes from the bed drying out. Keep it consistently damp, and cover the sowing with a board or shadecloth until seedlings emerge.

does corn salad regrow after cutting

Yes, if you pick only the outer leaves the central rosette keeps producing. Cutting the whole rosette at the base ends that plant, but it will often resprout weakly. Leaving a few plants to flower lets them self-sow for a free crop next season.

is corn salad frost hardy

Very. Corn salad is genuinely hardy and shrugs off temperate-zone frosts, which is why it is prized as a winter salad. Cold weather actually improves its flavour, keeping leaves sweet and tender rather than bitter.

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