November is when the rest of New Zealand catches up with the far north. Frost season ends this month through most of the country, and the frost-tender summer crops — courgette, pumpkin, climbing beans — finally open for sowing outside. Northland and Auckland have been sowing them since September, and their first courgettes and eggplants are ready to pick. Several crops make their last call this month, and the garlic harvest begins.

Quick Answer: Plant These Anywhere in NZ

Eighteen crops are inside their planting window in every NZ growing zone this November.

Opening in the temperate and cool/mountain zones (open since September in the sub-tropical zone):

  • Courgette (sow November–February)
  • Pumpkin (sow November–January)
  • Climbing beans (sow November–February)

Last month to sow or plant:

  • Broccoli (August–November)
  • Coriander (July–November)
  • Feijoa and lime (September–November), as potted nursery stock

Still open: basil, beetroot, carrot, cucumber, lettuce, mizuna, pak choy, peas, radish, silverbeet and spinach.

The planting-window notes are specific about the new warm-season crops:

  • Courgette — grow at least two plants, a metre apart, for reliable pollination.
  • Pumpkin — a long-season sprawler at roughly 100–160 days. Sow it where it will grow, with room to spread.
  • Climbing beans — put the support up at sowing time, as they gain height fast.

All three are frost-tender. Sow them after your own last frost, not on the first day of the month.

Broccoli closes this month. Raise it in trays and net it against white butterfly at transplanting. Coriander sown now is a gamble, because it bolts fast as the weather warms.

On the harvest side, kale (November–January), mustard greens (November–December), lettuce (November–May) and spinach (November–April) all open in every zone. Turnip finishes, so pull what's left before the heat turns it woody. Lemon and orange are in their final harvest month. For peas still going in, see Best Peas for NZ Spring.

Not sure which zone you're in? The NZ frost dates guide covers it by town.

Sub-Tropical: Northland, Auckland and Coastal Taranaki

The far north has been frost-free since September, so November here is about last calls and the start of the summer harvest.

Last month to sow: pumpkin (September–November), cucumber (August–November) and passionfruit (September–November). November is also the end of the tamarillo transplant window. Tamarillo seed can still be sown until December, its only sowing window of the year. See the tamarillo growing guide.

Harvest:

  • Garlic planted in March finishes its harvest window this month (October–November), about seven months from clove to bulb.
  • Courgette, eggplant and basil all open their harvest windows (November–May), and cucumber starts cropping (November–February). Eggplant is the first fruit from trays sown back in June.
  • Tomato has been cropping since October.
  • Tamarillo finishes its long April–November harvest.

Temperate: Most of the Country

Frost season here runs until the end of November, so this is its last month. That's why so much opens at once. As well as courgette, pumpkin and climbing beans, two perennial tuber crops open:

  • Jerusalem artichoke and yacon (both November–December) go in as tubers or crown divisions once the soil has warmed, not as seed. Choose a semi-permanent spot for Jerusalem artichoke, since any tuber left behind regrows.

Koanga Institute is the only supplier with planting data for either crop. The exact November–December boundaries are our own frost-anchored estimate, so treat them as a guide.

This is also the last month to sow tomato, capsicum and eggplant (August–November). If you haven't started seed yet, buy seedlings instead. Basil and cucumber seedlings can now be transplanted (November–February), and tomato, capsicum and eggplant transplanting continues until December. November is the last month to plant out Brussels sprouts, kale and mustard greens.

Garlic planted in April and May opens its harvest window (November–December).

Cool/Mountain: Central Otago, Queenstown and the Central Plateau

Cool/mountain gardens open the same crops as the temperate zone, including Jerusalem artichoke and yacon. November is also their last frost month. But high-country gardens can still catch a frost in the last week of November, so watch the forecast and soil temperature rather than the date. A cloche gets courgette and pumpkin started safely.

Autumn frost returns as early as March here, so every warm-season crop sown now has a shorter season. Courgette harvests January–March here, against January–April in the temperate zone. Sow promptly, at the front of each window. For courgettes, see Growing Courgettes in NZ's Cool/Mountain Zone.

The two tuber crops meet the cold very differently:

  • Jerusalem artichoke is hardy, and cold winters improve its tubers. Leave them in the ground and dig through winter.
  • Yacon is frost-tender and marginal here. The planting-window notes call this zone's season short and marginal for it, with a single harvest month (March). Plant crown divisions about 40cm apart in rich soil, and lift tubers as soon as frost blackens the foliage.

Recommended Cultivars

These cultivar picks for November's sowings come from NZ suppliers:

  • Courgette — Costata Romanesco (Kings Seeds NZ); Cocozelle Bush, Long Green Bush Marrow (Koanga Institute)
  • Pumpkin — New England Pie, Small Sugar (Kings Seeds NZ); Iron Bark (Koanga Institute)
  • Climbing beans — Blue Lake (Kings Seeds NZ); Market Wonder, Henry's Climbing Butter (AKA Yellow Pole) (Koanga Institute)
  • Cucumber — Amira F1, Crunchy F1, Crystal Apple (Kings Seeds NZ)
  • Basil — Lettuce Leaf, Primo Genovese (Kings Seeds NZ)
  • Broccoli — Sprouting Tasty Stems F1, Sprouting Summer Purple (Kings Seeds NZ)
  • Peas — Bohemian Sugar, Henry's Dwarf Sugar Snap (Koanga Institute)
  • Carrot — Black Nebula, Amsterdam Sprint (Kings Seeds NZ)
  • Tomato — Roma, Costoluto Fiorentino (Kings Seeds NZ)

There are no approved cultivar picks yet for Jerusalem artichoke, yacon, tamarillo, passionfruit or the fruit trees.

November Garden Jobs, Anywhere in NZ

These are general late-spring jobs, not zone-sourced planting data:

  • Mark out space for sprawlers. Pumpkin and courgette need room to spread — clear it now, not around established plants.
  • Harden off basil and cucumber before transplanting.
  • Watch for a late frost. The frost season ending on the calendar doesn't rule out a cold night in early December inland.
  • Mulch and water new transplants as the days heat up.

Next Steps

For month-by-month sowing and harvest timing in your area, see the full planting calendar for your zone: