Plants & Flowers
Published
July 15, 2026
Author
The Searles Gardening Team
If you’ve been wondering what to plant in your garden right now, you’re not alone. The cooler months are one of the best times to get growing in Australia, and Searles Gardening has everything you need to set your herbs and vegetables up to flourish. Whether you’re working with raised beds, pots on a balcony, or a full backyard plot, the right plant selection paired with quality soil and fertiliser makes all the difference.
Autumn and winter bring milder temperatures, lower pest pressure, and more manageable watering routines, all of which create ideal conditions for growing herbs and vegetables. Plants like rocket, parsley, spinach, silverbeet, spring onion, cauliflower, and thyme all love the cool. They establish quickly, produce well, and can handle a light frost in most parts of the country.
Getting the foundation right, starting with quality soil, is the key to making the most of this growing window.
Eye-catching and incredibly productive, rainbow silverbeet is one of the best picks for the cooler months. With its vibrant stems in red, yellow, and orange, it doubles as an ornamental plant and a reliable kitchen staple. Silverbeet is a cut-and-come-again crop, so regular harvesting actually encourages more growth. Plant in a spot with at least half a day of sun and keep up with feeding to keep the leaves large and tender.
Rocket is one of the fastest-growing salad greens you can plant, going from seed to harvest in as little as four weeks. It loves cooler weather and can turn bitter quickly in heat, so winter is its prime time. Grow it in rows directly in the ground or in a pot on a sunny windowsill. Sow successive batches every few weeks to keep a continuous supply going.
A garden favourite for good reason, thyme is low-maintenance, drought-tolerant once established, and incredibly versatile in the kitchen. It flourishes in well-drained soil and a sunny position, making it ideal for pots, raised beds or planted along garden edges. While thyme grows slowly, it is a reliable perennial that will return year after year with minimal care. The Faustino variety is an excellent choice for compact gardens. If your plant produces more than you can use fresh, excess thyme can be easily dried and stored, allowing you to enjoy its flavour long after the growing season has passed.
Parsley is a must-have in any edible garden. Both flat-leaf and curly varieties do well in cooler conditions, and parsley is one of those herbs that truly earns its place, used fresh in salads, stirred through sauces, or scattered over roasted vegetables. It grows best in a rich, moisture-retentive soil and appreciates a regular liquid feed to keep the leaves coming. To encourage ongoing leaf production, remove any flower stems as they appear and avoid letting the plant bolt or set seed.
Round out your winter garden with a few reliable workhorses. Spring onions are one of the easiest crops to grow from punnets and can be harvested within weeks. Cauliflower takes a little more patience, but rewards you with a beautiful, hearty head perfect for roasting or mashing. Spinach, including Brazilian spinach and Malabar spinach, flourishes in the cooler months and is packed with nutrients, making it one of the most rewarding things you can grow at home.
The plants you choose are only part of the equation. To get the best results, you need to start with the right growing medium. Searles Herb and Vegetable Specialty Mix is professionally designed to provide quality yields for vegetables and herbs, whether you’re planting in containers, raised beds, or directly in the ground. It delivers the nutrients, drainage, and moisture retention your edible plants need from day one.
If you’re growing from seed, reach for Searles Seed Raising Specialty Mix. It provides the fine, free-draining texture seeds need to germinate reliably and get off to a strong start before transplanting.
Once your plants are in the ground, keep them well-fed with Searles Flourish Soluble Plant Food - Tomato & Vegetable. Apply it as part of your regular watering routine for lush leaf growth, strong root development, and an abundant harvest that keeps coming all season long.
There’s no better time to start than right now. Whether you’re planting your first herb or expanding an established edible garden, Searles Gardening has the products to help every plant flourish. To find where to buy Searles products near you, visit your nearest stockist today.
Parsley, thyme, coriander, and chives all do very well in cooler temperatures. They grow more slowly than in summer, but tend to be more flavourful and less prone to bolting (going to seed). These herbs are well suited to pots or garden beds and require minimal maintenance through the cooler months.
Absolutely. Many herbs and vegetables actually perform exceptionally well in containers. The key is to use a quality potting mix designed for edible plants, like Searles Herb and Vegetable Specialty Mix, and to ensure your pots have good drainage. Feed regularly with a soluble plant food and water consistently for the best results.
For actively growing plants, a fortnightly application of Searles Flourish Soluble Plant Food - Tomato, Vegetable & Herb will keep them producing well. During the cooler, slower-growing months you can reduce feeding to once a month. Always follow the application instructions on the pack.
They’re related but different. Silverbeet (also called Swiss chard) has large, thick leaves with colourful stalks, while spinach has smaller, softer leaves. Both are nutritious and versatile in the kitchen, but they have slightly different flavours and textures. Both grow well in cool weather and can be harvested leaf by leaf as a cut-and-come-again crop.
Yes, and it’s very rewarding. Starting from seed is more economical and gives you a wider variety to choose from. Use Searles Seed Raising Specialty Mix for best germination results. Rocket, spring onion, and spinach sow particularly well directly into the ground or into trays for later transplanting.
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