When to plant Turnip in Tropical Australia

Tropical zone — applies to Darwin, Cairns, Townsville, Broome, Mackay and similar areas. Growing elsewhere? Temperate · Cool · Subtropical · Arid.

Turnips are one of the easier temperate roots for the tropics: sow direct from March to August, 10 mm deep, and you can be pulling roots in as little as 50 days, or up to 90 for full size. Thin to 7–15 cm between plants with rows 20–40 cm apart. That quick turnaround is the crop's real advantage in Darwin or Broome — it fits entirely inside the dry season with room for two or three succession sowings. Keep water steady from germination to harvest: a turnip grown fast and even is sweet and crisp, while a checked one turns woody and harsh.

Sowing calendar — tropical zone

Green months are your sowing window: March to August.

Growing notes

Treat turnips as a repeating dry-season crop rather than a single planting. A fresh row every three to four weeks from March through August gives a continuous supply, and small, quick batches suit the tropics far better than one large sowing that matures — and goes woody — all at once. Early March sowings can cop a last burst of monsoon rain around Darwin, so use a free-draining or raised bed; from May onward the job flips to irrigation, and this is where most tropical turnips fail. Any stretch of dry soil makes roots woody, harshly pungent and prone to splitting when water returns. The fix is boring and effective: mulch the row, water deeply every couple of days, and harvest early — golf-ball to tennis-ball size is the sweet spot, well short of the 90-day outer limit.

Flea beetles peppering seedling leaves with shot-holes are the other common setback; well-watered plants usually outgrow the damage, and a light insect mesh solves it outright. Don't waste the tops either — turnip greens come on quicker than the roots and stand up well to Broome's dry-season heat as a cooked green. Pull anything still in the ground when the build-up arrives in October, because heat turns even well-grown roots hot and fibrous.

Turnip at a glance

Common questions

When can I plant turnips in Darwin?

Sow direct from March to August, through the dry season. Succession sowing every three to four weeks gives a continuous harvest, since roots are ready in 50–90 days.

Why are my turnips woody and bitter?

Uneven watering and heat stress are the usual causes. Mulch, water deeply every couple of days, and harvest at golf-ball to tennis-ball size rather than leaving roots to sit.

How long do turnips take to grow in the tropics?

Fast ones are ready in about 50 days; full-sized roots take up to 90. Picking on the early side gives the sweetest, crispest result in warm climates.

Can you eat turnip leaves?

Yes — the tops are excellent as a cooked green and are ready before the roots. Take a few outer leaves per plant so the root keeps developing.

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