High heat and growing veggies

Is anyone here growing a veg garden in real high temps? Like above 100?
I'm in the sonoran desert. My tomatoes won't set fruit. Everything looks like shit. Its all wilting and I water enough I know I do. I just hate what I'm seeing. I used to think I was good at this but not this year. Not in this heat. I'm considering bagging the veg garden foe this summer and starting again in September. Maybe later. We don't have a freeze here. Well almost never.
Any advice will be appreciated.
DB

I'm right on the edge of the desert here in socal, the heat is a bitch. I got a late start on my pumpkins, and with the triple digits we've had, all the fruits are aborting before the flowers even open. My cukes were struggling and have been chopped down. Tomatoes are carrying on pretty good, but I'm not sure I've had any recent fruit set so I'll probably just finish out the current set and cut them.

I've just been cutting plants down if they're not producing. Honestly, that may be your best bet...chop them down and get a fresh start when the temps fall back a bit.

I don't think it's down to your gardening ability, that can only take you so far when the weather doesn't play nice.

i imagine you could use a shade cloth, they use them for giant pumpkins, however i have no experience with this

my tomatoes were in 95F sunny weather. I misted them with the garden nozzle, that was more for me pretending it would cool them than it helped the plant

i did notice however, but am yet to understand the exact mechanism behind it, that sugar+molasses water perked them up and they stayed looking good.
Feeds microbe activity sure.. but i am convinced it also effects rate of absorbtion from the roots.
it is as if the plant stops transpiring too much.
I'm sure I'll dig up the facts on this later.

I managed a very heft garden in Shasta County this summer and temps were over 110 for almost a month and 100+ the rest of the summer. We watered lightly in the am at twilight dawn and again lightly in the afternoon and on 110 days we hit them with light water at sunset. Lots of straw mulch and we ran a 70% UV shade cloth. Dedication to my Earth is ultimately what succeeded us this year, but nonetheless its like canna, what do you want from your harvest, and are you willing to do what it takes to get it? Namas'te.

Used to garden in Texas. For what it's worth, I suspect that the heat cause the skins of tomatoes and eggplants to become too tough to chew. The rest of the fruit tasted and chewed just fine but the skins were like plastic bags.

dannyboy602 said:

Is anyone here growing a veg garden in real high temps? Like above 100?
I'm in the sonoran desert. My tomatoes won't set fruit. Everything looks like shit. Its all wilting and I water enough I know I do. I just hate what I'm seeing. I used to think I was good at this but not this year. Not in this heat. I'm considering bagging the veg garden foe this summer and starting again in September. Maybe later. We don't have a freeze here. Well almost never.
Any advice will be appreciated.
DB

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i live in australia were 45c is the norm shade cloth is ur best friend also early morning watering

rob333 said:

i live in australia were 45c is the norm shade cloth is ur best friend also early morning watering

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Are there some plants you can't grow?

Theres a white shade cloth specially made for vegies, & its cheap , it will block those harmfull UV rays that burn , but lets more light in, to stop the stretch
im able to pull it over when the temp goes above 34-35.....or even really hot days let the plants have a few hours of morning sun , then drag it over a frame I have, & when the temps are going to be around 33-34 don't use it
I have no trouble with any type of burning
I find it a lot better than the green & brown cloths , & if you are in constant 38C & up temps , you can grow under it full time , its also 1/2 the price of normal cloth & twice as wide , its designed for this purpose

dannyboy602 said:

Are there some plants you can't grow?

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i can pretty much get away with anything mate if i toss i far bit of sugar cain mulch about 2 inches high on the ground 2nd is the 65% shade cloth mulch helps as it keeps the ground cool and th water in

yes mulch is very important, it also stops the weeds , I just use straw from barley stubble, but lawn clippings work well
but don't mulch he ground to early , as your summer vegies need a soil temp of 12-14C before they start to move , because the soil temp starts the sap flow , in the plants , which feeds them , so if you mulch before your soil has warmed , it will keep soil temp down ,& take a lot longer for things to get movin
soil temp is a very over looked important factor , when it comes to the summer garden , that's why you can plant say a zucchini early & it just sits there , coz the soil temp is to low for the plants sap to start flowing , & that's why pots work well coz the soil temp will rise a lot quicker , especially if there near a tin fence or brick wall were the sun can bounce of , generally facing north

Poontanger said:

yes mulch is very important, it also stops the weeds , I just use straw from barley stubble, but lawn clippings work well
but don't mulch he ground to early , as your summer vegies need a soil temp of 12-14C before they start to move , because the soil temp starts the sap flow , in the plants , which feeds them , so if you mulch before your soil has warmed , it will keep soil temp down ,& take a lot longer for things to get movin
soil temp is a very over looked important factor , when it comes to the summer garden , that's why you can plant say a zucchini early & it just sits there , coz the soil temp is to low for the plants sap to start flowing , & that's why pots work well coz the soil temp will rise a lot quicker , especially if there near a tin fence or brick wall were the sun can bounce of , generally facing north

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I have that problem frequently. I'm always in too much of a hurry to get the garden going that I plant too soon. It doesn't pay off and sometimes it stunts the plant and it never really recovers. I have raised beds but I cover them with black plastic to help heat them up.

Yes xtsho………..I see it a lot , the answer (IMO) is pots, if you can put your tommies , for example into small pots & place them were they get nice morning sun , preferably against a wall facing north , you will get good growth, & when a frost is coming put them undercover , then back out , of coarse this all takes time , but the results are very good , a little flat trolley of some type works well, so wheel em in & out when needed until the garden soils have warmed
In my area were in the frosty nights & warm days period at the moment , but I have all sorts of summer veg , in pots now

cucumber, tommies ,zucchini,, pumpkin, eggplant, basil, all grown from heirloom seed I have collected , but they were germinated, inside & quickly put out for natural light, so they don't go stretchy , the 1 thing about getting your summer veg going early , is you need a 2nd planting in a few months time , to maintain a good supply all summer, which all takes time & area

As for planting say a tommie in the ground & putting a tree guard around it , that wont work coz of soil temp , all that does is stop a light frost...…...its the old saying …...you get out what you put in

I'm in the Sacramento valley and it gets over 100 quite often. My tomatoes end up pausing production when the temps are up, I read somewhere it prevents pollination because the flowers are too dry and the pollen can't do it's job. I should get some shade cloth, but usually the temps don't stay over 100 for more than a week. There are years though when our savior, the delta breeze, won't show up to cool us off for weeks.

That's partly correct raratt……….high temps , actually burn the new flower arms , those little arms are only a few days old when they open , so there basically melted ……….yes shade cloth is the answer , & the white cloth , is very good (imo)
Every tomato flower carries its own pollen & fruit , so they basically pollinate themselves , unlike a zucchini or pumpkin which has male & female flowers , so protection from high temps are a must , if you want good production , another tip , is to prune the flower arms , back to 3 flowers , instead of 5-7 flowers , this makes it a lot easier on the plant to do its job , some truss tommies will have flower arms with 9 flowers on them , I get the scissors & cut the back to 3-4 flowers , this also gives you better sized fruit & promotes more flowering

Poontanger said:

That's partly correct raratt……….high temps , actually burn the new flower arms , those little arms are only a few days old when they open , so there basically melted ……….yes shade cloth is the answer , & the white cloth , is very good (imo)
Every tomato flower carries its own pollen & fruit , so they basically pollinate themselves , unlike a zucchini or pumpkin which has male & female flowers , so protection from high temps are a must , if you want good production , another tip , is to prune the flower arms , back to 3 flowers , instead of 5-7 flowers , this makes it a lot easier on the plant to do its job , some truss tommies will have flower arms with 9 flowers on them , I get the scissors & cut the back to 3-4 flowers , this also gives you better sized fruit & promotes more flowering

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My tomato plants get huge, I had to make my own cages with hog fencing that is 4' tall and they usually grow over the top and hang back to the ground. I usually let them do what they do without fussing on them much. I still get enough tomatoes to eat and to give to the neighbors most of the summer, and green tomatoes in fall to fry up or make relish with. They seem to recover quickly from a hot spell. I have a bunch on now that I am waiting for them to ripen.

Well your lucky & theres an old saying , if its not broke don't fix it
Unfortunately were I live it's a lot harder, we can go from 44C to 20C in a few hours , & winds up to 100K's, not to mention those sap sucking bugs which will kill tommies...…..all the best to your garden

We

Poontanger said:

Well your lucky & theres an old saying , if its not broke don't fix it
Unfortunately were I live it's a lot harder, we can go from 44C to 20C in a few hours , & winds up to 100K's, not to mention those sap sucking bugs which will kill tommies...…..all the best to your garden

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We have summer from about May to October in NorCal. No rain, not much wind, temps will stay in the 90's F most of the summer with lows in the 60's to low 70's, but can get up to 115-118 F at times, luckily not that often. I put in a drip system with micro valves so I can move the plants to different locations each year in the soil.

it isn't essential to grow tommies in a different area each year If....1 you don't have disease issues & 2 , after you pull the old plants out, grow a winter blocking crop , like , cabbage , broccoli, cauliflower , garlic , those plants will take the left over nutes your tommies dint use , & sort of cleanse the soil ……….I have grown tommies in the same ground for 5 years running without issues , but if U can use fresh ground , that's all the better

I amend my soil with compost and manure usually once a year. I have a clay soil so if I let it go too long it turns into concrete. I mostly move the tomatoes to a different location when I grow green beans so the beans are not being shaded by them. I grew some corn this year also. I grew garlic last winter and it was a great success, ended up with 60 heads of garlic. Turnips also grow well here in the winter. I put in red clover once for a green compost and to fortify the soil. I haven't tried any other winter crops yet.

When it gets hot sometimes you have to pollinate the tomatoes by hand, either lightly tapping the flowers or paintbrush