As summer is heating our hemisphere up again we see a change in behavior from our plants. cool weather plants such as your brassica, and lettuce are bolting and going to seed, some plants get mighty droopy and just dry up such as celery, while others stick their sprouts out of the dirt to start showing off their beauty such as amaranth and okra. Below are some suggestions to make the transition to summer a little easier for your plants that are a little finnicky

Add shade

Many vegetables love a little shade and some can even get sunburned!

  • You can plan your vegetable garden in a shady spot but that would leave your sun loving plants out of the light too.
  • You can use shade cloths to shade some of your garden or
  • You can use tall vegetables or plant a trellis with a vining variety that loves heat to create shady spots in your yard. And then plant lower plants so the moisture is retained. A very popular method is three sister gardening with corn, beans, and squash.
  • You can plant a tree or banana plants to create a more permanent canopy
  • Temporary canopies such as a sun umbrella work well too

Your Plants are Thirsty!

Please note that in addition to sunburn, plants can cook and dry out when it gets too hot.

Make sure you water your plants deep – meaning, soak the soil and monitor this soil so the soil is moist an inch below the surface.

Remember to not get the plant leaves wet because this can cause fungal issues.

Add compost or straw to top your soil, it will help keep in moisture.

Keep a close eye on your potted plants as these can dry out faster and thus if you can, move them to the shade during the hot part of the day.

And finally, make sure you plant the right crops at the right time! Cool weather plants just will not do well at all in the heat. They will go to seed and they will just wilt.

Tomatoes stop producing when temps are over 85F, and while this is quite tolerant, my suggestion really is to keep them shaded in places such as Florida where you experience extreme heat. I have grown tomatoes successfully in the shade in these places. Cherry tomatoes are your best best in hot summer areas.

Some example of plants that absolutely love heat are: okra, squash, beans, cucumbers, peppers, and Sweet potato.

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