The last of the spring cool fronts make their way through our area in early May, so the intense heat of summer is right around the corner.
Warm-season vegetables planted in late February, March and April should be looking great right now. You may be harvesting snap beans, squash, cucumbers, bell peppers, tomatoes and eggplants — or soon will be. You may even still be harvesting a few cool-season vegetables like broccoli, Swiss chard, turnips or onions.
As we move into summer, high temperatures can reduce the vigor and production of many vegetables. For some vegetables, though, the hotter it is the better they like it. As the last of the cool-season crops are removed in May, or plantings of early summer vegetables finish up in June or July, these hot-weather vegetables are great choices to plant in your garden.
OKRA: You can’t really have a garden in the South without okra. Native to tropical Africa, it never gets too hot for okra to thrive here. Plant seeds now into well-prepared beds, spacing the seeds 4 to 6 inches apart. Water frequently, and when the seeds come up, thin the seedlings to about 12 inches apart.
Okra is in the same plant family as the hibiscus and so makes lovely flowers, like these.
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Direct seeded into the garden now, okra will come into production this summer and produce until the weather cools in late October or early November. The All-America Selection Cajun Delight produces an excellent crop on relatively compact plants. Other reliable cultivars include Clemson Spineless, Louisiana Green Velvet, Annie Oakley, Emerald, Burgundy and Cowhorn.
When the plants are about knee- to waist-high, they begin to produce pale yellow, hibiscus-like flowers. At that time, sidedress the plants with a nitrogen containing fertilizer like calcium nitrate or ammonium sulfate. Harvest the pods frequently while they are small and tender, and snap off the tip of the plant when you bend the fruit stem.
Black-eyed peas produce abundant crops during the summer.
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SOUTHERN PEAS: Southern peas are easy, productive and delicious. Excellent varieties include Mississippi Silver, Purple Hull, Whippoorwill, Black-eyed and Elite. They grow on relatively short vines and generally do not require trellises. I like to grow Purple Hull peas because when the pods are ready to pick, they turn purple (great for a novice grower unsure of when to harvest) and the flavor of the peas is excellent.
YARDLONG BEANS: One of my favorite summer vegetables, the yardlong bean is closely related to Southern peas. This vegetable originated in southern Asia and deserves to be planted more commonly in home gardens here. The unique beans, harvested in the immature stage and snapped like green beans, grow on a vine with twining stems that reach about 7 feet.
Yardlong beans are easy to grow and undemanding. Choose a site in full sun. Loosen the soil to a depth of 8 to 10 inches and mix in compost or composted manure. Yardlong bean vines must be provided with something to climb on. Tripods or row trellising with poles and string or netting are effective.
Excellent hot-weather vegetables include eggplant.
John McCusker
It’s time to harvest when the bean pods are still smaller than the diameter of a pencil, before the seeds have filled out and when the pods still snap when bent, generally when they’re about 12 to 18 inches long. You may need to harvest daily because continuous picking keeps the plants producing.
They are a delicious substitute for snap beans when temperatures are too high for snap beans to thrive.
SWEET POTATOES: Many home gardeners do not consider planting sweet potatoes, but they should. This vegetable is easy to grow and can be planted now through early July. You must plant rooted cuttings called slips.
One way to do this is to purchase a sweet potato in the supermarket. Plant it upright in a container of potting soil covering the lower one-half of the potato and water enough to keep the soil moist. (Remember doing this with toothpicks and a jar of water as kids?) Place the pot outside. When the sweet potato starts to sprout, make sure it receives sun for most of the day.
Watermelons and canteloupes are ready for sale.
STAFF PHOTO BY TRAVIS SPRADLING
When the shoots are about 6 to 8 inches long, break them off and place them with the lower half of the stem down in a container of water to root. When they have rooted, plant the slips into a well-prepared garden bed, spacing them about 2 feet apart.
Sweet potato vines do need some room to grow; allow each plant an area to grow about 3 by 3 feet (they will grow larger). Harvest late October or early November.
OTHER SUMMER VEGETABLES: Members of the cucumber family that can be planted now include cantaloupe, cucumber, cucuzza, luffa, mirliton (plant sprouted fruit), pumpkin and watermelon. Although squash can be planted now, production is difficult during midsummer due to pest problems.
Other vegetables that can be planted now are amaranth, eggplant (Japanese types are more productive in heat), Jerusalem artichokes, Malabar spinach, edamame (edible soybean), peanuts, hot peppers, sweet peppers, tomatillo and tomato (only heat-tolerant types).
Despite the extreme heat of summer, you can keep your vegetable garden productive and continue to put food on the table. When planting vegetables this month and through the summer, make sure you choose those that can stand the heat.
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