Chengdu in September: what to plant
Over the last 5 years, September in Chengdu has run 20.4–27.8°C with about 131 mm of rain across the month. Here is what weather like that will carry to harvest.
Everything above is a five-year average. In the game it is this — the weather Chengdu is actually having, today.
Grow one in Chengdu's weather right now →❄️ No sub-zero nights in September in the last 5 years — frost is not the limiting factor here.
🗓️ This month sits inside the frost-free window. Average last spring frost around Feb 7, first autumn frost around Dec 16 — roughly 313 frost-free days. Sow tender crops after the last frost date and make sure they finish before the first.
☀️ About 7.1 h of sunshine a day this month. Within the month it cools by about 2.6°C from the first ten days to the last — the window for autumn sowings is opening.
Sow this month — when would you harvest?
Assuming you sow in mid-September, then adding up the warmth Chengdu usually gets, one day at a time — which is why some of these run past the end of the month.
| Crop | Days | Harvest around |
|---|---|---|
| 🌿 Garlic chives | 62 | Nov 15 |
| 🧅 Onion | 105 | Dec 28 |
| 🥕 Carrot | 66 | Nov 19 |
| 🥬 Bok Choy | 27 | Oct 11 |
| 🌿 Amaranth greens | 63 | Nov 16 |
| 🥬 Swiss chard | 42 | Oct 26 |
| 🏵️ Marigold | 46 | Oct 30 |
⏳ Too late this month: Okra, Chili Pepper, Luffa, Tomato, Sunflower would still be in the ground when the first frost arrives (around Dec 16). Sow them earlier in the year, or grow them under cover.
Best crops to sow now
They are all ideal for this month — the only real difference is how long each one takes, so pick whatever you want to eat.
- 🌶️ Okra about 83 days to harvest Recent mean 24.1°C — right in the sweet spot
- 🌶️ Chili Pepper about 103 days to harvest Recent mean 24.1°C — right in the sweet spot
- 🥒 Luffa about 101 days to harvest Recent mean 24.1°C — right in the sweet spot
- 🍅 Tomato about 93 days to harvest Recent mean 24.1°C — right in the sweet spot
- 🌿 Garlic chives about 45 days to harvest Recent mean 24.1°C — right in the sweet spot
- 🧅 Onion about 55 days to harvest Recent mean 24.1°C — right in the sweet spot
- 🥕 Carrot about 48 days to harvest Recent mean 24.1°C — right in the sweet spot
- 🥬 Bok Choy about 24 days to harvest Recent mean 24.1°C — right in the sweet spot
- 🌿 Amaranth greens about 39 days to harvest Recent mean 24.1°C — right in the sweet spot
- 🥬 Swiss chard about 34 days to harvest Recent mean 24.1°C — right in the sweet spot
- 🌻 Sunflower about 63 days to harvest Recent mean 24.1°C — right in the sweet spot
- 🏵️ Marigold about 36 days to harvest Recent mean 24.1°C — right in the sweet spot
Leave these for another month
- 🌿 Coriander — Recent mean 24.1°C is too hot (ideal 8–24°C)
- 🫘 Broad bean — Recent mean 24.1°C is too hot (ideal 6–22°C)
- 🥕 Parsnip — Recent mean 24.1°C is too hot (ideal 6–22°C)
Other months in Chengdu
📍 Somewhere else? Look up your own city →
Temperature and rainfall come from Open-Meteo's historical observations for Chengdu, averaged day by day over the last 5 years. Whether a crop finishes in time is worked out from its own starting temperature and heat requirement — those numbers are listed on each crop page if you want to check them.