How to grow Dill in Australia

Where to plant

Grow dill in a warm, sunny, sheltered spot with fertile, free-draining soil. It dislikes cold, soggy ground. The tall, hollow stems are easily flattened by strong wind, so a spot beside a fence or among taller plants helps. Gardening Australia notes that leafy annual herbs such as dill do well where they get morning sun, which also suits warmer areas, as afternoon heat speeds up bolting.

Dill has a taproot and does not like being moved, so sow it where it will grow.

• South East Queensland, the Northern Rivers, Sydney, Adelaide and Perth: sow from March to September. Summer sowings bolt within weeks.
• Melbourne and Canberra: sow from March to September. The cool climate gives a long leaf season; in Canberra it often self-seeds.
• Hobart: sow from September to January. Mild summers give a long leaf season before the plants seed.
• North Queensland and Darwin: sow in the dry season, May to September, as dill bolts quickly in tropical heat.

How to plant

1. Weed the bed, fork it over and rake it to a fine surface.
2. Sow seed thinly in shallow drills about 1 cm deep, in rows about 30 cm apart, and barely cover it.
3. Keep the soil moist until seedlings appear, usually in one to two weeks. In cool weather, water deeply at sowing and then lightly each day until they emerge.
4. Thin seedlings to about 20 to 25 cm apart.
5. Sow a short row every three to four weeks for a constant supply of young leaves.
6. If you raise seedlings in punnets, plant them out young, within about four weeks of sowing, before the taproot gets long.

Watering and feeding

Keep the soil evenly moist, and water more in dry, warm spells. Dill that dries out bolts early and stops making leaves. Potted dill dries out quickly, so check it often.

Dill needs little feeding. A light liquid feed every few weeks is plenty. Rich soil and heavy feeding give soft, floppy growth.

Pruning and care through the year

• Pick leaves regularly, which keeps the plant bushy and delays flowering.
• Stake tall plants or tie them loosely to a cane in windy spots.
• Let a few plants flower. The flat yellow umbels draw bees, hoverflies and tiny parasitic wasps, which help control aphids and caterpillars in the vegetable garden.
• Dill self-seeds readily if seed heads are left to drop. Pull unwanted seedlings while small.
• Dill and fennel are close relatives. Keep them apart if you save seed, as they can cross when they flower together.

Harvesting

Start picking leaves about six to eight weeks after sowing, once plants are leafy and about 30 to 40 cm tall. Snip from the top and outside, and always leave at least a third of the plant. The leaves wilt quickly once cut, so use them fresh.

For seed, let the flower heads ripen until the seeds turn brown. Cut the whole stem, put the head in a paper bag and hang it upside down until the seeds dry and drop. Store dry seed in an airtight jar for pickling and cooking.

Growing in pots

Dill grows well in a pot at least 25 cm deep, which gives the taproot room. Sow directly into the pot in a quality potting mix, keep it in a sunny, sheltered spot, and water often, as pots dry out fast and dry dill bolts.