Gardening in the Heat
Gardening in the heat is a challenge.
If you're a gardener you don't need the news to tell you that the last few years have been hot. We gardeners are on the front lines when it comes to temperature extremes. From increased pests due to warmer winters, to plant stress caused by drought- the effects of a warming climate stare us in the face every day.
Fortunately, we gardeners are also the beneficiaries of centuries of plant breeding done by gardeners, farmers, and traditional plant breeders. They have left us with an abundance of varieties bred to thrive in heat as all over the world people have needed to grow food in hot and dry places. At GGS we are on a quest to grow and offer some of these varieties. Here in southern Idaho, our springs and falls are short, and our summers are very hot- even in the best years. That makes our farm the perfect trialing ground for varieties that yield abundantly in hot times. Here are some of our favorites!
Greens for the Heat Package-
Lettuce typically loves the cool and wet of spring and fall. Its a plant that tends leave the succulent green stage of its lifecycle- the stage during which we like to pick greens for our salads- and flower (bolt) in the heat. This package contains our favorite, bolt-resistant lettuces, meaning they tend to stay juicy and tender in the heat and have the ability to delay flowering when stressed by heat or drought.
Salsa Cilantros Package-
2 Heat tolerant cilantro varieties so you can have cilantro and tomatoes ripe at the same time!
Beans from the Desert-
Nutritious and easy to grow, tepary beans are one of few vegetables native to North America! Heat and drought tolerant, tepary beans love to grow in alkaline desert soils like those found in the SW United States and in NW Mexico, where they have been important to the diets of native peoples for generations. They don't love waterlogged clay soils, but other than that they could thrive in most gardens- especially organic ones as their fertility needs are low. Quite productive for the amount of space they take up, we think tepary beans are an incredibly rewarding crop to grow.
Explore the diversity of 12 tepary bean varieties we grow! A shout out to Native Seed Search, our original source for many of these varieties. Native Seeds Search is a non-profit that conserves and sells heirloom seeds, foods and Native American art and jewelry from the Southwest. Please check out and support their work!
Hot Peas-
Find our 2 most heat tolerant pea varieties- Nieve de Sevilla Snow Pea and Lincoln Shelling Pea- on our heat tolerant varieties page.
Fast crops for spring and fall-
Crops that mature quickly like Golden Acre Cabbage are an excellent choice when you can expect the summer season to be HOT. When planted early, they are up and growing and maturing before the heat lands. Check out our Super Short Season Varieties to find more like it!
