It's Beginning to Feel a lot like the Tropics

I just can't quite get a handle on the weather lately. One week I'm covering my delicate garden vegetation in fear of them freezing to death (rip one each cucumber and broccoli plants) and the next (today) I'm looking out into a squishy yard with overcast skies and a high temperature in the 80's anticipated. All I can think is, "Thank goodness for central air. Bring it on!"

I've neglected writing for some time and have much to catch up on so today we'll talk about my garden plans for this season and maybe give you a few hints/tips for your own. Please note: if you haven't begun yours yet you're not too late. Most seasoned gardeners warn against planting anything until after Mother's Day. With the unseasonably warm/hot weather we've had here in PA I got a bit ahead of things but no worries. It may be a bit late to start from seed but plants are available anywhere from Sam's Club to Dan Schantz to Somerset Nursery.

I started my garden adventure back in January. Yes, January. I found a website where you could plot out your garden. I loved the idea and went to work adding in tomatoes, corn, cucumbers, peppers, spinach, onions and beans. I based starting seeds on the frost dates (which turned out to be wrong) and had my list all written out:

2/5 Start pepper seeds inside
2/26 Start tomato seeds inside
3/4 Start spinach seeds outside
3/15 Start bean seeds outside and plant onion sets
3/18 Start sweet and Indian corns inside
3/25 Start cucumber seeds inside
4/5 Start bean seeds inside for second batch and plant second batch of onion sets
4/15 Start second batch of cucumber seeds inside
5/20 Plant herbs

Well all of that went out the window with the weather as it's been. I did start the seeds inside but all of them...I was petrified to start the beans out there and the onions...yep, never even got them.

I currently have all corn, 1 bean, 5 broccoli, 3 cucumber and my rosemary in the garden and it's doing well. I hope to transplant tomatoes and peppers in a week or two but I need to make the garden a bit bigger since as usual I ran out of room. Yes, I plotted and used that website but when I was out getting the garden set up I realized I really needed to leave paths to walk around out there and had to replan a bit. No worries as it's a big hill with plenty of possibilities and plenty of vegetation to tackle so I can extend the garden area. Every year I say that it's big enough and every year it grows. My original 5 ft garden is now 4 times that size and will be even larger by the end of the season. Just think of all those fresh veggies though! YUM!

Photos to come of both the garden and what comes out of it. Spinach is starting to come up (yum again) and hopefully soon the other plants will take off and grow like crazy. All this rain will certainly help!

Temps Rise and Leaves Wilt - Protecting your outside investment

All is not lost when temps rise and the garden is out in the elements. The sight of all those fruits and veggies wilting in the sun is painful but there are ways to help them hold on. . .

1. Water - It's an obvious one but every morning before the sun hits the garden and every evening when it's setting you need to give those plants a drink. You need to get them a drink before the ground is dry and the water just runs off - that doesn't do much good.You need to be sure plants will dry before night comes to eliminate the chance of any fungus developing - I water with diluted milk at night which supposedly helps eliminate this problem...but I also do it leaving plenty of time for the plants to dry before the sun completely sets. I pour the water right at the bottom of the plants where they need it most so it soaks in.

2. Mulch - You can buy hay and straw for this purpose or do what I do - grab those 'free' grass clippings. I actually did this when I transplanted my tomatoes and the darn things are doing great so far in this current heat wave. Okay, one is looking very sad but I believe that to be my fault as when I was hammering the garden stakes in I think I damaged its roots. I gave it an extra drink and it's fighting so we'll see but in general approximately 5 inches of something to help lock in moisture will do wonders. You still need to water more in these high temps but the mulch will help lesson the amount that evaporates.

3. Snip off those flowers - Basil forms those pretty white flowers and mint has purple. Sure, they're nice to look at but they also take energy away from the plant. Snip them and you'll have healthier plants. I always do this with my basil so I have more yummy basil rather than some basil topped with flowers.

4. Weeds - You normally pick the weeds out anyway but when the temps rise there's even more reason - they're stealing water from your fruits and veggies! Try to do this early morning or early evening when it isn't as hot, drink fluids, wear sunscreen and take breaks if it's an intense job. I try to weed almost daily so it's not a huge endeavor but when it's a 'hot one' out there I get a little more into it trying to get rid of anything that would steal a drop of that precious moisture from my plants.

5. Shade - IF you have the ability to put up a tarp or canopy to help shade your area go for it. Some plants like tomatoes can handle it better than say, cucumbers (speaking from personal experience). Just be sure to remove it when/if it does finally rain so they get a good drink. I'm also guessing  you should at night so you're not trapping too much moisture as that may result in plant fungus growth.

More gardening tips from my Frugal Family column on Patch.com.