Beating the Heat- Saving Spring Plants in Summer Heat

Here in North East Oklahoma it has been quite warm for March. It's been in the 80's for several weeks. While working in the garden yesterday I noticed that one variety of lettuce was bolting. Bolting means that the plant is going to seed.

This lettuce is bolting, note the long stem and beginning of flower head on top.

It starts, for lettuce, with a long shoot sticking up which will soon bear flowers and a huge amount of seeds. This made me wonder what are some better ways of keeping them cool, especially since it is in full sun. I have several beds around my yard, my old trusty one next to the house only gets a few hours of sun a day. Making it perfect for cool season crops in the heat of summer. Here are some tips to help your plants beat the heat of an early summer, or warm spring.

1. Water often. Try watering in the morning and evening, careful not to get it on leaves during the hottest part of the day. This helps keep the plant cool.
2. Shade netting. I have never tried this, but it sounds promising. I am thinking about using a sheet instead of buying something. Be sure and leave several inches above the plants for air circulation.
3. Mulching. If you have room to mulch around your plants this could be beneficial as it helps hold in moisture. My lettuce plants are much to close for this, I grow them as cut and come again lettuce, not heads.
4. Planting in the shade of another plant. Companion planting is an option. Try putting carrots in the shade of tomato's, or lettuce in the shade of a taller plant. This may not help out at this moment, but it will eventually. In Louise Riotte's book, Carrots Love Tomatoes, she mentions that peas grow well with cucumbers. I do think I will try this one.

What are some of your favorite tricks for saving your plants? Has any of these tips helped you in the past?

A Froggy Garden

I reserved one of my raised beds for my boys to grow their cub scout garden in this year. I started cleaning it out today, its not too big or small. I guess about 5 feet long and 2 feet deep. It has an evil bush trying to grow in it and cat mint, morning glories too. I didnt do too much with it last summer, I was on bed rest most of the time. So I figured it would be a little weedy, apparently it was froggy too. I was happily hoeing along and pulling roots, when I saw something wiggling. I first thought snake and jumped a bit, then I saw webbed feet. It was trying to go deeper, so I picked it up, my six year old was helping so I showed him. "Cool" he said, I told him we should put it somewhere so it could finish sleeping until spring. We walked over to another flower bed that still had newspaper covered in hay on it, and he lifted the paper and I stuffed it under it. As I was patting the paper back down he said "Now I can step on it and kill it!" I told him no and that he would get in trouble if I caught him, silly boys. So back to work I go and a few minutes later I find another frog sitting in the grass. I put it in the same place that we had the other frog, which was gone. I didnt tell my boys about this frog, I wanted it to live. I didnt give them to my chickens, though I thought about it. It just felt wrong to give those poor little rudely awakened frogs to them. The frogs come out here in spring and happily sing in the evening, even though there is no creek or open water near by. I wonder if I woke the second one or if it was already out. Its nice to think that the other one was out already and that spring is getting closer.