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When the weather forecast predicts several days of 95°F to 100°F temperatures, most gardeners think about watering, mulching, and shade cloth. But there’s another important task that can protect your harvest: knowing what to pick before the heat arrives—and what to leave on the plant. Harvesting at the right time reduces stress on vegetable plants,…
Tomatoes and peppers love warm weather, but even these heat-loving vegetables have their limits. When daytime temperatures climb above 90°F to 95°F, and especially when warm nights remain above 70°F, plants begin to experience heat stress. Flowers fall without setting fruit, tomatoes develop pale, leathery patches from sunscald, peppers stop growing, and harvests slow dramatically….
When temperatures climb above 90°F and stay there for several days, watering becomes the single most important job in the vegetable garden. Water too little, and plants wilt, flowers drop, and harvests decline. Water too much, and you risk shallow roots, nutrient loss, and disease. The goal during a heat wave isn’t simply to water…
Hot weather alone can challenge a vegetable garden. Add high humidity, and plants face an entirely different set of problems. While gardeners often focus on temperature, humidity plays an equally important role in determining how well vegetables grow, flower, and produce. High temperatures combined with humid air can slow plant cooling, encourage diseases, interfere with…
A few hot afternoons won’t usually hurt an established vegetable garden. But when temperatures climb above 95°F for several consecutive days, plants begin operating in survival mode. They conserve water, slow growth, stop producing flowers, and direct energy toward staying alive rather than producing vegetables. The good news is that most vegetable crops can survive—even…
When temperatures climb into the 90°F to 100°F range, vegetable gardens enter a period of stress. Tomatoes stop setting fruit, lettuce bolts, cucumbers wilt by afternoon, and peppers pause their growth. A few days of extreme heat may not kill healthy plants, but without the right care, a prolonged heat wave can reduce harvests for…
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