What to grow for 100 degree summers?

Our first gardening experience has not gone to well. We have 14 half wine barrels on our side yard. We planted tomatoes, strawberries, carrots, mint, zuchinni, cucumber, bell pepper, chives, soy beans and a few others I am sure I am forgetting. Some of what we planted died due to unexpected frost. We are now looking to replant and don't want to plant the wrong thing. We are currently having lows in the mid-high 30's, but day time highs have been anywhere from 65-101! This season has been very unpredictable. Anyway, we have very hot summers~ our normal highs are in the mid 90's to low 100's. What would you recommend planting?? Oh- we live in zone 9 if that's helpful.

THANKS!!!!

Hi jlem,

I live in Tucson and we have very similar climates. Here are some summer crops:

Squash
Watermelon
All melons
Peppers (all varieties -- though anaheims and other chili peppers perform best)
Basil, marjoram and mint
Okra
Cucumber

I have grown most of these vegetables successfully.

There is an invaluable book you should buy that helped me immensely. It is a Desert Gardener's Companion by Kim Nelson. She walks you through everything you are supposed to do month by month including when to plant and harvest fruit and veg.

Here is a link: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1887896201?ie=UTF8&%2AVersion%2A=1&%2Aentries%2A=0

How was your carrot harvest. They don't mind frost.

I have a watermelon variety that performed well for me last year. I have a lot of seeds. Would you like me to send you some? Here is an article I wrote about it: http://davesgarden.com/guides/articles/view/1457/

I live in Phoenix and we get 100+ for months - lol. Tomatoes won't set fruit once the temps get too hot and stay there. Things that grow here in the summer (the heat lovers) are peppers, eggplant, any type of melon, pumpkins, etc. Corn and cukes as well, more so the Armenian cukes. They handle the heat better than the English varieties. I also have to shade my gardens when it gets above 90 and stays there or the plants will fry in the desert sun.

This planting calendar gives planting dates for the low desert. This might give you a good idea of what you can plant and when if your growing seasons are similar to mine.

http://www.urbanfarm.org/Planting_Calendar.pdf

Hope this helps!!

Kelly

Edited to say too funny, Benny. We were typing at the same time - lol!!

This message was edited Apr 28, 2009 5:07 PM

Thank you both so much for your help! I will check out the book Benny's Place mentioned as well as the website locakelly listed.

Locakelly~ How do you shade your garden? Is it something you put up and leave all the time or do you have to put it up and take it down often? What material do you recommend using to shade the garden? Do you have a picture of your garden with the shade up?

Thanks again for all your help!!!

Jaime

Hi, Jaime.

The planting calendar is great - check it out.

Once my shade goes up, it stays up until the temps come down in the fall. We used to shade a few things individually in what I like to call "ghetto chic" - old sheers and such are great for this and cheap or free. This year we are doing it a little differently. My husband built a metal frame and we ordered a 40% Aluminet custom shade cloth from International Greenhouse Company. Here's the link to give you an idea of what is available:

http://www.igcusa.com/greenhouse-shade-cloth.html

You can also but shade cloth at nurseries or Home Depot, but they usually have standard sized (like 6' x 15')or bulk. We have raised beds and needed a custom size.

I think in most areas of the country you can get by with a 30% shade cloth (light in color), but we went for the Aluminet as it gets miserably hot here. Plus, it has reflective properties. Since it is our first time using it, I'll report back on how it works once we get it up and summer arrives. I'll also post some pictures once it's up. It is due to arrive in a few days and should be up within the next week or so as our temps are hitting 90 and looks like they'll stay there. Without any shade, nothing would live through the summer;o)

Kelly

P.S. I think I have some photos of just the structure; if not I'll try to take some tomorrow and post the photos for you.

Great advice Kelly. ^_^

I too would like to see your shade structure.

I don't really offer my summer veg shade. I have a couple large shrubs which offers some afternoon relief but that's it. We are a tad cooler than you all in Phoenix though.

I have entertained the idea of creating four pillars with shade cloth going across for my patio area. What a lovely micro climate that would create!

Benny - I wish I had some shrubs or trees large enough to shade the veggies. We have a BIG backyard that was nothing but dirt and concrete. We have planted an orange and a lemon tree, but they are still babies. The house is on the north side of the property, so the veggie gardens are in full sun. I lived in Tucson for 7 years and absolutely loved it there. You're right that the weather is a bit cooler, and you also get real monsoons. In Phoenix it is hit or miss with the rain sometimes. The shade will help my veggies make it through the summer I'm hoping.

Kelly

P.S. I looked and I don't have any pics that show the shade structure that well, so I'll try and take some after work tomorrow and post them for you. Hopefully I can figure out how to post the pictures - lol.

This message was edited Apr 28, 2009 10:02 PM

I'm in the high desert (5,000ft) and the sun cooks things here as well. With summers in the 90's and sometimes 100's tomatoes are pretty much a lost cause in july and august due to the heat. I've had no problem growing hot peppers, melons, cucumbers, basil, oregano, parsley, corn, and squash in the summer. Hot peppers in particular seem to enjoy the heat, can't say how sweet peppers do... I have no desire to grow them. Haven't tried much else. I have giant cottonwood trees surrounding me so they offer filtered mid-day sun which probably helps me more than it hurts. Otherwise I'd probably have to put up something to provide a little relief.

Don't forget yard long beans. They are pretty easy and shrug off the heat. You just need to trellis them...on the slant is best so you can better see the beans to pick them.

At our old house, we had a shade cloth shading our hot tub. It is in our garage no longer being used. It is black and a 90% shade cloth. Would this work to shade the garden, or is that to much shade? The garden is on the west side of our house, so will get the brunt of the afternoon sun.

Thanks again for your help!

Hi, Jaime.

The 90% is probably too much shade for the veggies if it is overhead, but you can always try it and maybe use it to shade just the afternoon (western) sun somehow. That way they still get sun most of the day (if that is the case in your yard) but not that afternoon sun, which can do a garden in rather quickly.

A lighter color is also better as it reflects light.

I'm going to try to take the pictures after work today and post them (of the shade structure).

Kelly

This message was edited Apr 29, 2009 3:04 PM

We've not shaded vegetables & they don't seem the worse for it - okra, squash, melons, tomatoes ('course tomato fruits are on vacation mid-Jul thru mid-Sept, but the plants do well).

Frank

(edited for typo)

This message was edited Apr 30, 2009 5:35 PM

OK - Jaime & Benny - here are some photos of the shade structure I told you about. We bought all the material for the structure at a fence company. HD & Lowes sell them, but they are more expensive. The hubby knows all the specs, but the general size is 12' x 20' and it's just over 6' high. You can see the 2 new beds we're adding.

I may have to post the photos in separate posts, so here goes . . .

Kelly

another one . . .

one more

and again

four down, two to go . . .

finally, the last one!!

OK - so the fed ex guy delivered my shade cloth a short while ago - yeah!! As soon as we get it up, I will post some more photos of it.

Kelly

Kelly- It looks great! Can't wait to see the updated picture with the shade cloth on it. I'm curious, why pipe instead of wood? Was it more cost effective? Easier to build? Or is this a structure you will have up during the summer, but take down the rest of the year?

Jaime

Hi, Jaime.

Thanks. We did get the cloth put up and I did take some photos, so need to download them and post them. You can definitely tell the difference in light coming through and temp under the cloth.

We used the fencing posts mostly for strength (and because that's how the hubby wanted to do it - lol). We didn't really price it to do it in wood, but I think to do it in something rot resistant it would have cost considerably more than the fencing posts did. The posts are in the ground about 2 ft in concrete. We get some pretty nasty winds here in Phoenix. I'll actually post a pic of my block wall that blew down in March. You can see in these pics where the top row of the wall in still unfinished (more important stuff to do first - lol). We had 60+ mph wind gusts and it took out about a 40 ft section of my block wall - lol. The poles will also last longer than wood.

The structure will stay up all year - just the cloth will come down for the fall/winter. I can also wrap it in plastic (think greenhouse) for my winter crops, but most likely will build mini cold frames for the individual beds with PVC pipe. We'll have to wait and see how much we decide to plant for the fall/winter crop.

We also are planning to shade the west side of the beds about 4 ft down from the top to block more of the afternoon sun.

Kelly

What kinds of things do you plant in winter? We get into the low 30's high 20's in the winter-lots of frost. I would love to be able to grow stuff year round.

Tell me more about the mini cold frames you are thinking of building.

Jaime

Jaime -

Here's a link to a planting calendar for the low desert. It gives cold hardiness temps as well which should help you determine what might grow with or without frost protection.

http://www.urbanfarm.org/Planting_Calendar.pdf

Nor sure what zone you are in, but your low temps seem like you could grow some things with protection. Your local Agricultural Extension for your county may have a similar planting calendar. Mostly your greens (chard, lettuce, etc) and brassicas and peas and such love the cool weather. Depending on how cold it gets, some things will grow more slowly than if the temps were optimal for the crop. We're lucky in Phoenix that we can grow something pretty much year round, the most challenging time being the summer, where for most people it's the cold that presents the challenge - lol.

We hardly ever get a true frost, but we get pretty close. The cold frames I am thinking about building basically use PVC pipe bent over the beds and secured inside the wooded bed frame, sort of like a hoop. You can then attach your plastic over the PVC and anchor it down. It can offer substantial frost protection. You can use plastic or they actually sell frost cloth. You can also cover it with blankets at night if needed for extra protection. Last winter we had a couple of cold nights and one of my friends actually put small candles inside her cold frames to help raise the temp. Some people string those old Christmas lights inside for warmth, the ones with the big 'ol bulbs that get hot.

How much protection you will need really depends on your weather and what you decide to grow. Hope this helps . . .

Kelly

Hey Kelly you better get those pictures up with the shade on. We are all waiting to see what it looks like!

OK - as promised, here are some pics of the shade cloth installed.

and another one . . .

here's another view . . .

two to go . . .

last one . . . took these in a hurry to post, so hope they are OK. Kelly

That looks great Kelly

Very nice Kelly, make sure you keep us up on what you plant and how it's doing. You know my setup is very close to yours and I want to know what you have success with ok....
Cheers..

Thanks, rtl8nomore (neighbor) and RATFOOD. I'll post some more pics of the veggies and what they are when I get over being lazy about downloading my pics. Heaven knows I've taken a thousand - lol.

Kelly

Wow- It looks wonderful. Very jealous. My husband is in the middle of building us a shed at the moment, so I don't know if we will get some shade up this summer or not. When the time comes, I will refer back to your great design!

Thanks, Jaime!! I'll let the hubby know you like it^_^

When it comes time to build yours, let me know if you want specifics and I can get all that for you from the hubby. I envisioned the design, but he is the builder and I'm the planter- lol. That's out of the area of my expertise.

A shed??? Hmmmmmm . . .

Maybe I have a new project for the hubby after all!!

Happy Gardening!!

Kelly

Hi Jaime, as an ex-Atascadero resident to another, welcome! You have a D-mail.

Hello Ben, I told you we follow you around. You can't get away, you are being stalked I believe. ^_^ By the way, Atascadero is 18 miles more or less from the Pacific Ocean. Not at all like the desert areas here in AZ. Probably more like your area.

Laughing! I am going to be replying to the other post you left on my article. You are such a delight. It is rather fun to be stalked. Smiles.

I am stalking you too Ben.

Hi Marie! What a lucky guy I am! ^_^

Kelly, that structure is awesome. Once I get a decent plot of land, I am going to install a huge structure like that and recreate the shaded garden from my favorite nursery.

As the Beatles once said, I think I'm gonna be sad.

It is not supposed to hit 100 yet! I rolled the dice and I lost with my tomatoes. Ahh well, live and learn.

Thanks, Benny.

I bet you have a beautiful garden already, but it's always nice to dream. I have big plans (all in my head right now of course) for my front yard some day some way - lol.

Looking at all the wonderful gardens you SW folks have has my wheels turning!! Thanks for the inspiration.

Looks like 100 or near to it all week in Phoenix - arrgggggghhhhhhhh!!!!!! Here's to hoping that shade helps as I have a couple of tomatoes I planted out late (sort of an experiment). They are full of blossoms, so hoping they get some fruit set before it stays hot. Ah, the life of a desert dweller . . .

P.S. Maybe I need to start stalking Benny, too. I've read some of your articles, Benny - good stuff.

This weather is craptacular so far. 90 here when "average" is 75 this time of year. If it keeps it up at this pace we'll be around 500 in July/August. Good thing I mostly grow hot peppers, which tolerate the heat here well.