What's in Season in September in Australia

September is asparagus. It starts in Victoria and New South Wales this month, Victoria goes straight to its peak, and for a lot of people it is the only reliable sign at a market that spring has arrived.

Everything else in the south is still mostly winter. That contrast is what makes the first bunch worth the fuss.

Harvest months, when growers are picking.

Asparagus, and the peas behind it

Asparagus is one of the shortest and most clearly seasonal vegetables in the country. Victoria grows nearly all of it, and the peak runs September to November. Buy it early and often. By January it is gone.

Peas start in Victoria, along with celery. Fresh snow peas and sugar snaps are a spring crop, and they are at their peak in Victoria in October and November.

What is still winter

Broccoli, cabbage, leeks and potatoes are at their peak in Victoria, with cauliflower, carrots and parsnips still being picked. Fennel and globe artichokes finish.

South Australia is closing its winter down: Brussels sprouts, cabbage, leeks, parsnips and oranges all end there this month. Tasmania has just five crops.

Citrus winds down

Oranges are at their peak in Victoria, New South Wales and South Australia, and finish in Western Australia and South Australia. Mandarins end in New South Wales and Queensland. Grapefruit ends in Victoria and New South Wales.

Victoria's oranges have one more month. After that, Victorian citrus is finished until autumn.

Berries at their peak

Blueberries are at their peak in New South Wales, Queensland and Western Australia all at once. Strawberries are in their last peak month in Queensland and Western Australia. Victoria and South Australia start theirs in October, so the handover is close.

Mangoes begin

Mangoes start in Western Australia, a month after the Northern Territory. Queensland follows in October. It is early, and the peak is a long way off, but the season that ends next March starts here.

Avocados reach their peak in Western Australia as Queensland finishes.

Queensland turns over

Queensland has 31 crops in September. Sweet corn, rockmelon, garlic, celery and lettuce all start, while avocados, mandarins, carrots, parsnips and sweet potato finish. Pineapples and papaya are at their peak.

Asparagus does not wait

Asparagus has about four days. Stand the bunch upright in a jar of water in the fridge, or wrap the ends of the stalks in damp paper and put it in a bag. Either way, buy it for this week, not next.

Peas are similar, at three to four days in the fridge in a container or bag. Celery is the patient one of the three new crops, keeping two weeks in an airtight wrap.

Blueberries last around ten days in a vented container. Strawberries last one to two, so they are a same-day purchase. An early mango ripens uncovered on the bench and then keeps up to a week in the fridge.

Oranges, still at their peak, keep for a month.

Storage times here are from the City of Darebin's food storage chart, a Victorian council guide.

October

Strawberries and raspberries start in Victoria. Queensland picks its first mangoes.

Each state has a page of its own: Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland, Western Australia, South Australia or Tasmania. The season lookup shows any month, and August is the guide before this one.