The vegetable garden is struggling this year. We are dealing with an unprecedented drought this spring and now temperatures have hit 105 for the past two days. Fortunately my tomatoes set fruit months earlier and are now ripening. I’ve opted to pick these as soon they blush to get them out of the heat and away from the birds. It does not effect the taste or quality of the tomato. This topic was covered in the Urban Harvest vegetable series class which I took last year. From my experience, this is true. So I pick them as soon as I see a tinge of pink.
My Chelsea Prize cucumbers produced very well even in the heat. The leaves tend to droop in the afternoon, but they perk back up in the early evening. I’ve been running the soaker hose to keep them hydrated. Haven’t gotten this month’s water bill yet, but I expect it to be high.
Golden Summer bell peppers are doing fine and are just about ripe.
I started a few Zucchini from seeds about two weeks ago and have resorted to unsophisticated shading methods to provide them with light but without the blazing direct Texas sun. The seeds germinated and it appears they are going to make it. I’ve heard that starting them later in the season when the Squash vine borers are not so active may yield better results. Nothing as sad as seeing your healthy and blooming squash plants, suddenly die, when vine borers eat the stem from the inside out.
