Garden Chatter – How’s your Garden Growing?

Garden challenges

Gardening in my Zone 5 zone has always been challenging, especially since I like to grow plants that push my growing range like tropical flowers and gourds with long growing season requirements. The weather has also changed in the last 10 years with later spring weather and longer falls.

This year has been more unpredictable than ever with above average temperatures and dry weather in April and cooler nights and a cross between no rain and too much rain in May. It has made gardening challenging but I just pull out my bag of tricks and go with what’s handed out.

Here are a few helpful tips that I use for unpredictable weather

• Clear milk jugs filled with water that will act like a solar heat collector. I place these in clod frames and under plastic near plants for tomato plants, pepper plants, and other warmth loving plants.  It’s amazing how this sun-heated water will take the nip out of cold air and help a plant to stay warm.
• Cold frames
• Plastic covers over raised beds. I build my raised beds with holders on the sides for plastic tubing that I bend over the beds in a u-shape. This will warm the air around new plants when you hit a cold spell, keep too much rain off your plants and cam act as a sun protestant for new tender plants
• Black plastic will keep the soil warmer in the spring. This is particularly helpful for tomato plants and pepper plants that need warm soil to grow well.

Hoe is your garden growing? Do you have a favorite tip to share for those troubling garden problems?

Tags: Garden chatter, gardening challenges, weather challenges, how does your garden grow? gardening tips