Hot And Dry Weather

greyfurball
greyfurball Posts: 591 ✭✭✭✭
edited October 2020 in Vegetables

To all of you hot weather climate individuals... I live in a 4 seasons climate and we have been hit really hard with excessively high temps for us this summer. Included in that is a lack of rain. So I am having loads of problems with sun wilt on my plants every single day. It is stressing these plants out so bad I am having tons of problems with pest and diseases also which is not normal for my garden. Therefore my harvest levels are being affected immensely.

I am watering consistently, about every third day (or less if needed) in the early morning so it is not for lack of moisture. The plants just can not tolerate these high temps every single day. It's usually around triple digits or more.

I finally broke down this week and installed some sun shades over the top of many of the beds but there is some which did not get them so I am wrapping those in insect row cover to kind of give them some relief from the bright hot sun.

So hot weather climate individuals, what is your best suggestions how you get your crops thru the hottest part of the year?

Comments

  • shllnzl
    shllnzl Posts: 1,820 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Shade cloth is the best solution so you are on the right track. Note that bees will not pollinate in very hot sun, so you will need to hand pollinate plants like squash. Tomato plants will dry up for awhile, but come back.

  • JodieDownUnder
    JodieDownUnder Posts: 1,483 admin

    I'm with @shllnzl on this one, shadecloth or the like. Seems you're on to it, good luck. Yep some plants just shut down when it gets too hot, nature's way I guess. What about a liquid fertilizer to help them along, early in the morning.

  • greyfurball
    greyfurball Posts: 591 ✭✭✭✭

    @shllnzl and @jodienancarrow

    Yes, it is so obvious my pollinators have been lost this past month as it got so hot. I do have a bird bath in my garden with small stones that I keep filled with some water and I see more insects in there than I do in the actual garden plants. Even they are looking for relief.

    As for the fertilizer, I was doing it twice a month instead of every 4 weeks at 1/2 strength. Since these plants are so stressed I was hoping the 1/2 strength would give them a little "food" but reduce some of the stress on the stressed out plants.

    All I have really learned from this experience, I will NEVER move to a desert! Give me a good old snow storm any day!

  • judsoncarroll4
    judsoncarroll4 Posts: 5,490 admin

    Mine is hot and wet... that doesn't sound right... But, we are getting up to nearly 100 F every day, with very strong thunderstorms every night and constant high humidity. It is miserable, dangerous and exhausting.

  • shllnzl
    shllnzl Posts: 1,820 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @greyfurball Actually, the experts tell you to reduce fertilizer during hot weather, essentially letting the plants have a break while they are so stressed.

    I often think of my plants when I rush into the air conditioning and they have their feet (roots) stuck in the soil, forced to tough things out.

  • seeker.nancy - Central Texas
    seeker.nancy - Central Texas Posts: 795 ✭✭✭✭

    I hang shade for mine as well - it really helps. My curly leaf and dinosaur kale are growing again and have good color. Cannot say the same for the ones not under some shade. I use row cover some but mostly old sheets. Our wind here comes in strong with big gusts so it takes out everything else I've tried. I did get a shade cloth for garden purposes a couple of years ago. It had a bound edge and decent size metal grommets. A grommet tore loose while we were hanging it. So much for that lol.

  • lmrebert
    lmrebert Posts: 363 ✭✭✭✭

    I understand, I'm in southern California and if we leave for a soccer tournament or camping and a heat wave hits we suffer great losses!! 2 years ago we were in a soccer tournament in Coronada, which is so beautiful.. a little peninsula off of San Diego area and the temps we wonderful in the 80's. We did not realize that it had hit about 118 at home and it was a severe blow, to almost everything except my lavender and rosemary. This year so many people are camping because everything is closed that we cannot get a site to save our lives and the state parks are closed so that narrows the options to private campgrounds etc. Soccer is not allow now so we've been home. My husband waters in the AM and PM at roots and puts up shades. We just watch everything as close as possible. We do put up with all the heat and diseases, I think we are the only organic growers in the area so all the bugs whistle to their friends to come to our yard. We are expecting 106 this weekend so we will be on guard! Good luck!!