Gardening in Hot Weather

A nice garden can produce lovely blooms or nutritious veggies for a number of months a year. Summer arrives, we expect a bountiful harvest or glorious display of color … but for some reason, the garden has gone dormant. What gives? Gardening in hot weather takes a bit of extra work, but is well worth the effort. A healthy, productive garden begins long before mid-summer, and the roots for that garden – pardon the pun – begin in the soil. Summer-proof your garden now and enjoy the fruits of your labor later.

1.Compost. Before even planting, till your soil and work a high quality compost into your soil. A compost rich in organic material is the best, and if you make it yourself you will have far more control over what goes into it.

2. Test. Get your soil tested to determine what nutrients it needs and which it has in abundance. This is an easy step to miss, but if your soil is lacking, you may never know it and chalk up your garden’s failure to a terrible brown thumb.

3. Mulch. Using flattened cardboard boxes or shredded newspaper as a mulch not only is a greener mulching option and simple way to repurpose unnecessary paper goods, it also increases the water content of your garden. Your hot weather garden will retain more valuable moisture and the soil temperature will remain more stable.

4. Plant. If you live in a drought-prone or area that consistently sees extremely high temperatures, research plants that do well in such environments. Using native plants will greatly reduce the strain on your hot weather garden and the stress of keeping that garden happy and healthy.

5. Space. When planting, ensure that you have left the optimum amount of space between seeds, guaranteeing they will have room to grow and there will be less competition for water and nutrients during peak growing season.

6. Shade. When planting, pay close attention to whether the plant needs full sun, shade, partial shade, etc. and plant accordingly. Some plants will flourish in your hot weather garden, but others will require more nurture – those are the ones that will need a bit of shade. Move your pots to a shadier spot or plant in the shade of a tree or outside wall. Use netting to protect outdoor plants that are already planted.

7. Water. Every hot weather garden needs water. Water first thing in the morning and water evenly. Use a mulch to retain moisture in the soil and around the plants as much as possible.

8. Replant. Plants that have grown too big for their pots may become pot bound – i.e., their roots take up all the space in the pots and they are unable to get nutrients or water. Further stress from heat or poor environmental factors can eventually kill them. Re-pot such plants to keep them safe during your hot weather gardening.

9. Be gentle. The heat is a big enough stress on your garden. Don’t get into a frenzy of pruning or removing leaves, thinking that your garden will produce better. It won’t. Just as you conserve energy during the hottest months by lounging poolside with icy lemonade, your hot weather garden conserves energy by being equally lazy. Dead head the browned flowers and pick fruit, but leave the rest alone.

10. Be green. Avoid using chemical sprays during the heat of the day. Instead, use vinegar early in the morning, directly sprayed on weeds, to eliminate plant pests. Use a high pressure spray to remove bugs or pick them off by hand. Don’t add fertilizer simply because you think it’s under producing – again, your hot weather garden is going to be conserving energy during this time of the season.

Gardening in hot weather may seem overwhelming, particularly when the temperatures soar over 100 and the humidity rises to the point you are breathing water, but if you stick it out, you’ll have a rich harvest or display once the sweltering heat lets up.