IN THE TROPICS

Plant to take advantage of the cooler conditions and lower humidity of the dry season. Sow seeds or plant seedlings of beetroot, carrot, chinese cabbage, herbs, lettuce, silverbeet, spring onions and tomatoes

Enjoy colourful owers from potted gerbera, pansy and snapdragon

Prevent bolting (that is, owering and seeding prematurely) by paying careful attention to your leafy crops each day. Coriander, basil and lettuce will bolt to ower and seed when water stressed

Give potatoes a shot. Now is a good time to put in a crop of potatoes that can be harvested before the wet season returns.

Try them in a large, well-drained container

Harvest banana, dragon fruit, custard apple, jaboticaba, passionfruit and pawpaw. Citrus are also ripening and ready to harvest

Feed productive or owering plants with organic fertiliser, then mulch them using well-rotted manure. Add some liquid fertiliser for an instant boost

Extend avocado harvest by planting a late-maturing variety, such as Hass, which crops from winter to spring. In small gardens, look for dwarf plants that take up little space but still provide a useful crop

Allow chooks to forage among any fallen fruit under trees, or rake up the debris to add to the compost heap

Grow rockmelons on a trellis or in a raised bed to keep them from invading the garden. Sow seed now

Lift and divide clumping perennials, which include ginger