The problem with extreme weather

Summer can be a time of extreme weather, both heat and rain, as well as wind. When temperatures reach 40 degrees it is important to water in the cool of the morning to provide plants with the moisture they need to get through an extreme day. Wind dries plants out even more and makes this doubly important. It can help to install 30% shadecloth over veggie beds in the heat of Summer. Plants like tomatoes will stop fruiting in hot temperatures as the blossom gets damaged, and leafy plants can be burnt. 

Heavy rain can also be a problem as it spilts fruit, slows flowering, encourages fungal diseases and washes away soil on slopes that isn't covered by mulch. It can even cause mature zucchini plants to snap. 

Other Summer jobs

Due to the fast rate of growth, dead-heading or picking flowers regularly is important to encourage more blooms. Other veggies also grow fast and can exhaust themselves, so succession planting of crops like zucchini, cucumber, corn, beans and lettuce is important too. Fertilising during Summer is a good idea to support growth but makes sure to water in well, and pull back mulch before adding fertiliser onto the soil surface and replacing mulch. 

Also, don't forget to plan your Winter veggie garden and get seedlings and seed in the ground in late February and March for a Winter harvest. 

What not to do

Don't do a big prune in Summer as the resulting tender new growth can be easily burnt by the sun. One exception to this is salvias, which often will benefit from a cut back on a cooler day and respond with a repeat flush of flowers in Autumn. 

Summer is also a good time to observe plants and record what stood up to the extreme conditions well so you can plant more of this next year, and less of what didn't work. 

Still to come

Next time I will talk about planning your Winter harvest. 

This week's recipe links

Easy Asian Cucumber Salad from Farah J Eats.

Tomato Basil Bruschetta with Balsamic Drizzle from Cookie & Kate. 

Stuffed Capsicum (Bharwa Shimla Mirch) from Dassana's Veg Recipes. 

Mexican Vegetarain Stuffed Peppers from All Recipes. 

More info

To read more about what's happening on our local organic farm this week as we grow and care for veggies for our box delivery, check out this week's newsletter here.