By Jannie Vaught

The unfortunate plants I have in the direct sun in the raised beds are sun-scorched or have given up. This is with good soil, regular soaker watering, with some extra water. The only plants that are thriving and slowly are those with some shade. Fortunately, the fruit trees are holding their own and are heavy with fruit. And will give us fruit to enjoy. Hopefully, we will get some tomatoes and peppers and of course, Okra as this one loves the heat. This is one of those years when every day is presented with a question mark. There are several Texas drought maps you can refer to, online search Texas drought map. Planning ahead 2 seasons may be of interest. If this season is a bust the Fall garden may be where the success is especially if the monsoon rains come our way. Seeds are at the top of my list and having a list of what we like to have is important. My fall list is heavy on greens, cabbage, turnips, and all root crops and things like kale and collards.

When you sort the seeds you planted this year note on the packages if this variety was successful for your area. I save the empty packages and use them as a reference. I will write on them and band them together so I can reference them back when I am ordering. Noting the seed companies is also note-worthy. When growing take special interest in drought-tolerant varieties. I am not giving up we have worked our way through drought, freeze, flood, and wind damage. As gardeners, we have developed a deep respect for the weird weather. Taken the good years with the scarce years and we keep on.

Every year more lessons are learned and we developed techniques and timing to bring the garden to the table. This is a pep talk column today. water early and go slow and deep. If the plants are still wilted the next morning a little late evening water will bring them back. if not the roots have dried too much. Observation is a skill learned through years of trying. Take the time and pay attention, and keep some records and dates. Even though we are watching every drop of water, enjoying the garden and pruning the tomatoes, and getting the grass and weeds out that compete with the plants, mulch helps keep the soil damp. And soaker tape and soaker hose is applying the water directly to the plant where it is needed. Next week we may have rain or it may run past us, we never know for sure. We have water conservation districts there are 98 groundwater conservation districts in Texas, and each state has this also.

Time to get involved and learn more.

Growing Green Jannie