By April, New Zealand's cool/mountain gardens have already crossed into autumn proper. Frost risk began last month — the zone's frost period runs March through November — so unlike temperate gardens, there's no last-call scramble to pick basil, courgette, tomato or yacon: those windows all closed in March here. What's left is a tidy cool-season list, and one crop that warmer gardeners are planting now but cool/mountain gardeners should hold off on.

That crop is garlic. In temperate zones April is the month garlic goes in the ground; in this colder zone its sowing window doesn't open until May. So April here is about the roots and hardy greens that shrug off frost, not the big autumn garlic planting.

Quick answer: what to sow now

April is a sowing month in cool/mountain gardens for:

  • Beetroot
  • Carrot
  • Pak choy
  • Radish — last sowing month this season
  • Silverbeet

Every one of these is frost-tolerant or quick enough to matter now that cold nights are the norm rather than the exception.

The sowings that still make sense

Beetroot sows from August through May and harvests from October through July. It tolerates light frost, so April sits comfortably in its range. Direct sow and thin seedlings to around 10cm — beetroot resents being moved, so skip the trays.

Carrot sows from September through May and harvests from December through August. Direct sow only, and keep the seedbed evenly moist until germination. In April, cooler air slows evaporation, but the soil surface can still crust over a shallow sowing, so a light cover and steady watering matter.

Silverbeet sows from August through May and harvests from October through July. Of everything on this list it best earns the bed space now: it stands through a cool/mountain winter and keeps cropping as long as you take the outer stalks and leave the crown to push new growth. Sow it straight into the ground, or start it in trays and drop seedlings into the space summer crops have just vacated. Growing Silverbeet Year-Round in NZ covers getting it through the cold months.

Pak choy sows from August through May and harvests from September through June. April's cool nights suit it well — the heat that makes it bolt in summer is long gone, so it's an easy, fast green this month.

Radish sows from August through April, which makes April its final sowing month before the winter break. It harvests from October through June and is quick enough to sow in a short row now for one last pull of roots before the ground gets too cold to bother.

Why garlic waits here

If you garden in a warmer part of the country, April is garlic-planting month. In the cool/mountain zone it isn't: garlic's sowing window here runs May through June, a month later than the temperate zone's April–May. The extra wait matches the colder soil — there's no advantage to getting cloves in before the ground has cooled to the point garlic wants for root establishment. Use April to clear a bed and work in compost so it's ready when the garlic window opens next month.

What's still cropping

The summer harvest is done in this zone, so April's picking list is shorter and firmly cool-season:

  • Beans (climbing) and peas both crop through to May — keep picking regularly. If your peas are healthy but flowering poorly, Why Are My Peas Not Flowering in NZ Cool/Mountain? runs through the likely causes.
  • Cucumber (harvest to April) and spinach (harvest to April) are both in their final harvest month. Cucumber is frost-tender, so a hard frost may end it before the month is out — pick what's ready.
  • Beetroot and carrot are mid-window and unbothered by frost; keep pulling as they size up.
  • Pumpkin harvests through June — leave fruit until the skin resists a thumbnail, then cure it in the sun before storing.
  • Jerusalem artichoke is the exception to everything else: its harvest opened in March and runs to August, and the winter cold actually improves the tubers. Dig as needed — they keep in the ground through the frosts.

Timing notes for cool/mountain gardens

April's job is consolidation, not expansion. The frost-tender crops are already gone, so there's nothing to race against — commit to the frost-hardy roots and greens above, get the last radish and pak choy sowings in early in the month while there's still some soil warmth, and spend the rest of your effort on beds.

Clearing spent summer crops and digging in compost now pays off twice: it keeps disease down over winter, and it means the garlic beds are ready the moment May arrives.

Recommended cultivars

  • Beetroot: both Bulls Blood (Kings Seeds NZ) and Bull's Blood (Koanga Institute) take an autumn sowing in their stride, with the bonus of dark red leaves you can pick young for salads.
  • Carrot: Amsterdam Sprint (Kings Seeds NZ) is the quick, dependable choice; Akaroa Long Red (Koanga Institute) is a heritage long-root worth the effort if your soil is deep and free of stones.
  • Silverbeet: Ford Hook Giant (Kings Seeds NZ) if you want sheer volume of leaf; Bright Yellow (Kings Seeds NZ) if you'd rather the stems earned their keep as well.

Know your zone? Explore the full NZ Cool/Mountain Planting Calendar for month-by-month sowing and harvest timing.