Throughout most of the country, summer is prime gardening time with warm temperatures and long daylight hours. Here in Central Texas, however, many people consider it the dormant season. With little rainfall and scorching temperatures, it is just too difficult for many plants to thrive. So, like Northerners who “put their gardens to sleep” in winter, we sometimes do the same here in the summer. We either cover them with a thick layer of mulch, using leaves of straw, or we plant them with cover crops. Ideally, we choose legumes like black-eyed peas or purple hull peas because they add nitrogen to the soil and do not require heavy watering.
If you choose to garden through the summer, there are many ways to keep your plants and yourself healthy and happy. Here are some of our answers to frequently asked questions about summertime food growing: