How we keep our gardens cool

Shade cloth

In our garden boxes where we grow our heat sensitive plants (lettuces, spinach, kale, carrots and radishes) using a shade cloth to reduce the amount of sunlight and heat on our produce. The frames are made out of pvc pipes, with a 1/2 inch pipe creating the semi-circle to give the shade cloth plenty of support. The PVC pipe can also be used to insert a watering system, something we plan on starting next summer.

We ordered our custom shade cloths from the local company OBC Northwest. We have them made with extra grommets and use stainless steel screw hooks to keep the shade cloths on even during our frequent windy days.

Mulch

In our large garden rows we use mulch to not only keep our weed population down, we also use it to keep our plants cool and help retain moisture in the soil. For plants that we direct sow into the garden we typically wait until the plants have its first two sets of true leaves before adding mulch. You’ll see in the image above our work on mulching our corn.

We also like putting a mulch down as it makes a great way to add nutrients back into the soil at the end of the season. Once we’ve pulled our plants in fall, we’ll add more fresh compost and cover the row. Next spring that mulch and compost will create a rich and fertile bed ready for our next crop!

Drip Irrigation

Finally, all of our large garden beds and orchard use drip irrigation. We like drip irrigation for several reasons: first, it allows us to conserve water. While our well is deep, it is a well and one that needs to meet the farm needs as well as our family’s needs. Secondly, it allows us to just water our produce and not water all of the weeds and grass that tend to take over. We’ve found that it’s much easier to keep up on weeds if we aren’t watering them all the time. Finally, we bury our drip lines under the mulch, allowing the water to reach the plant’s roots without loosing a lot of water to evaporation.

Let us know… how do you beat the summer heat in your garden?