Mumbai’s tropical climate allows year-round farm production. However, it is important to choose suitable plants (See: What to Grow?) and respect the natural cycle of seasons to optimize growth and prevent plant disease. You could join our group to access Mumbai’s Herb & Veggie Planting Calendar, or read on for some general tips:
HERBS & FRUIT: Most herbs and all fruit are perennials. Plant saplings year long, though the monsoon humidity (if your saplings are sheltered from the force of rains and flooding) is particularly good.
VEGGIES: Most veggies are seasonal. There are three types of veggies – fruiting (tomatoes, okra, gourds etc), leafing (spinach, amaranth, dill etc) and rooting (potato, ginger, radish etc). Read on for info on the most suitable season to grow these veggie types in Mumbai:
SEASON I – FIRST SUMMER – Early February to end May
- FRUIT VEGGIES – Excellent. The strong heat of summer will bring fullness to fruit, with peas and beans (barring gavar) being exceptions.
- ROOT VEGGIES – Not good. The heat will prevent/stunt growth for most, with sweet potato as an exception.
- LEAF VEGGIES – Good. Amaranth, fenugreek/methi and Malabar spinach will do well, but not lettuce. Spinach will be fine till March, after which the heat will make its leaves bitter.
SEASON II – MONSOONS + SECOND SUMMER – Early June to end October
- FRUIT VEGGIES – Good for gourds and cucumbers that grow fat and heavy in the rain. However, excessive rain could destroy flowers and prevent pollination. Other fruit veggies tend to suffer as the excessive humidity leads to fungus on plants.
- ROOT VEGGIES – Not good for most. Sweet potato, ginger and turmeric are exceptions that thrive through the monsoons, and despite the heat of October.
- LEAF VEGGIES – Moderate. Will work if your plants are protected from flooding. Again, choose amaranth, fenugreek and Malabar spinach as they grow through this season.
*** This season is also excellent for germinating/transplanting HERBS & FRUIT.
SEASON III – WINTER – Early November to end January
- FRUIT VEGGIES – Moderate. The season is good until end November after which production tends to dip slightly during the cooler months. The exceptions are peas and beans which thrive during Mumbai’s winter.
- ROOT VEGGIES – Excellent. This is the best time of year for root veggies like radish, potato, turnip, and onion.
- LEAF VEGGIES – Excellent for all leaf veggies, especially spinach and lettuce as the cooler temperatures help retain sweetness in leaf.
Propagation: If you plan to grow from seed, you would need a two week head start to take your sapling to true-leaf stage (See: How to Grow? and Growing from Seed)
Other related links: What to Grow? and Plantopedia
© Mumbai Farmer 2013. Do not copy in part or whole without prior written permission from the author. Infringement of copyright will render you liable for legal action.
Mumbai Farmer 
Hi Mandy,
I wanted to appreciate your amazing work for urban farming in Mumbai. I am a student of B.Arch and I am working on my thesis project which is based on the urban farming concept. I found the information on this website very useful and want to use it for my project. I wanted to ask for your permission to do so.
Kindly help me out and let me know if you are fine with me using the information.
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Hi Sangeet, Happy to know you found this website useful! I would be delighted if you could share this information and have no objection as long as you credit the source at Mumbai Farmer. Thank you for checking with me! Good luck on your project!
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Really want to know growing calendar of mumbai. If u can help pl. Thanks
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Hi Geeta, thanks for writing in. You will find our Growing Calendar on the Files section of the Mumbai Farmers Group on facebook. We also announce new workshops on that group page, as and when they happen. Do stay connected with us!
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Am keen on short term workshop on gardening. Pl do keep me informed. Thanks
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I am a student of B.Arch and I am working on my thesis project which is based on the urban farming concept. I found the information on this website very useful and want to use it for my project. I wanted to ask for your permission to do so.
Kindly help me out and let me know if you are fine with me using the information.
I will give credits to your website.
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Hello Anonymous…Glad to know the info on this website is useful for you. I’d be happy if you can use it with acknowledgments of course, and btw, let me know who you are too, thanks!
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Shami Karandikar
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Amazing post! I want to start planting now(beginning of October), can you suggest what to grow?
Thank you.
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I am planning a home vegetable garden. Your inputs have been really helpful.
I was planning to grow
Tori
Tomato
Turmeric
Sweet potato
Amaranth
Methi
spinach
I am a little lost where, what potsize, and source of seeds is concerned
Could you help?
Thanks
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Hi Suman, thanks for writing in. Glad you found the inputs useful! There’s a lot of free information on this website (mumbaifarmer.com) and you can also access the Mumbai Planting Calendar for free when you join our facebook group Mumbai Farmers. For any other inputs, you could book a telephonic consult or buy starter plants at http://www.mandysfarmindia.com
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Loved your content sir, woukd be useful if you could provide some help or information regarding flowers growing in mumbai !
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Hi Deep, sure I will! Thanks for the suggestion. I will also be adding flowering plants to my nursery next month, so be sure to check it out 🙂
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Hello, I would like to collaborate with you on a project I’m developing related to farming around the world. Please write to me if you are interested in being featured there. Thanks a lot.
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I would request more info on the project please, Probably Green, before deciding on whether to collaborate 🙂
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Hi
Good evening. I am from mumbai and wanted to know which are the flower seeds that I can sow season wise or month wise. Your site explains well for vegetables. Same way where can I find information for flowering seeds in pots. Would appreciate a reply. Thanks
Shankar
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Hi Shankar, thanks for writing in! Glad you liked the info on veggies and herbs, on my blogsite 🙂 Re flowers though, I am right at the bottom of the learning curve myself, and have much knowledge and experience to acquire before I can create reliable content for others. There is really so much to learn with Nature, and we keep growing in our appreciation of its vastness and beauty, as we keep growing her wonderful creations. So, in time, in time ….:-)
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Hi, I am looking to grow Neem from seeds in Mumbai. Could you please recommend me a place where I could get them? Thanks.
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Sorry, I have no idea who would sell neem seeds in Mumbai. Neem is grown plentifully in Nashik region. You may be better off inquiring with folks there.
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