Growing guide

Best time to plant capsicum in Australia

Capsicum annuum

Also called bell pepper, sweet pepper

In Australia capsicum means the mild fruit known elsewhere as bell or sweet pepper, from a nightshade plant native to the Americas. Fruit is eaten raw or cooked and ripens from green to red, yellow, orange or chocolate depending on variety. Hot forms of the same species, Capsicum annuum, appear here under chilli.

On a shared plot: suits a plot

Finishes in a season and stays within its space, so it suits most plots.

When to sow

ZoneMonthsHow well checked
CoolSep to NovMatches local guides
TemperateAug to DecMatches local guides
SubtropicalAug to MarMatches local guides
TropicalAll yearBroadly matches local guides, with some differences
AridSep to MayMatches local guides

Your local conditions can shift any months shown here, so treat them as a guide.

Growing details

How to start
Raise seedlings, then transplant
Sowing depth
5mm
Plant spacing
45cm
Row spacing
100cm
Height
50cm
Germination
5-21 days
Time to harvest
70 days
Frost
Frost tender
Sun
Full sun
Life cycle
perennial, grown as an annual in cool climates

These are typical figures, and varieties differ. Your seed packet takes priority.

Further reading on this plant