Sweet summer basil thrives in the heat – regular harvesting encourages bushier growth and delays flowering. Photo by Molly Jameson.
As the weather heats up, many spring vegetables begin to bolt, wilt, or shut down entirely. But for gardeners willing to shift gears, summer presents an opportunity to grow a new cast of crops that thrive in high temperatures, intense sun, and even occasional drought. Whether you’re growing in raised beds, in-ground rows, or large containers, these heat-loving vegetables are well-suited to our long summer season in the Panhandle.
Here are some of the best summer veggies to keep your garden productive when the thermometer climbs:
Okra
Okra thrives in the summer heat, producing edible pods just days after flowering. Photo by Molly Jameson.
Okra is a true warm-season crop that thrives in the heat and even tolerates periods of drought. For better germination, soak seeds in water for several hours or overnight before planting. Sow seeds directly into the garden once soil temperatures are at least 65°F and the danger of frost has passed – typically from late March through July. Plant seeds 1 inch deep and 4 to 6 inches apart in rows spaced 3 feet apart. Once seedlings are several inches tall, thin them so the remaining plants are spaced 1.5 to 2 feet apart. Pick pods when they’re two to four inches long, usually within a few days of flowering, to avoid tough, fibrous texture. Regular harvesting encourages more production throughout the summer.
Okra varieties well suited for our area include ‘Clemson Spineless’ and ‘Emerald,’ both known for their productivity and tender pods.
Southern Peas
‘Zipper Cream’ southern peas are heat-tolerant and productive, with easy-to-shell pods and creamy, mild flavor. Photo by Molly Jameson.
Also known as cowpeas or field peas, southern peas are a staple crop across the South for good reason – they tolerate heat, sandy soil, and inconsistent rain. Sow seeds directly in June through August, spacing them about 2 to 4 inches apart in rows 18 to 30 inches apart, depending on the variety. Southern peas are nitrogen fixers, so they can improve soil fertility over time.
Popular southern pea varieties include ‘Pinkeye Purple Hull,’ ‘California Black-eyed,’ ‘Creel Crowder,’ and ‘Zipper Cream.’ These plants are also relatively pest- and disease-resistant, making them a great low-maintenance option.
Sweet Potatoes
Sweet potatoes are grown from slips – vine cuttings taken from sprouted tubers. These slips should be planted after the danger of frost has passed and soil temperatures are consistently above 65°F, typically April through June. Space slips about 12 to 18 inches apart in loose, well-drained soil. While mounding isn’t always necessary, creating raised ridges or planting in raised beds can help promote tuber development and improve drainage, especially in heavier or poorly drained soils. Sweet potatoes require a long growing season – around 90 to 120 days – but they produce abundantly and require minimal care once established. Their vines also form a dense ground cover that suppresses weeds and reduces soil erosion.
Two reliable sweet potato varieties for Florida gardens are ‘Centennial’ and ‘Beauregard,’ both known for their sweet flavor, high yields, and adaptability to southern growing conditions.
Malabar Spinach
Red-stemmed Malabar spinach thrives in summer heat, producing tender, edible leaves on vigorous climbing vines. Photo by Bowonpat, Adobe Stock.
Malabar spinach is not a true spinach, but it provides tender, edible leaves throughout the hot months when traditional greens fail. It grows as a climbing vine, so give it a trellis or support to climb. Sow seeds directly into the garden or transplant young seedlings from mid-April through early June. This plant enjoys both sun and partial shade, and its thick, glossy leaves can be harvested regularly for salads or to thicken soups and stews. Just like regular spinach, frequent picking promotes new growth.
Both red-stemmed and green-stemmed Malabar spinach types are available, with the red-stemmed variety more commonly grown for its ornamental appeal.
Basil
Basil is a heat-tolerant herb that loves full sun and thrives in the warmth of summer. It can be direct-seeded or transplanted once the weather settles into consistent warmth, typically March through May in North Florida. Space plants about 10 to 12 inches apart and harvest often to prevent flowering and promote bushier growth.
In addition to classic sweet basil, try Thai basil or lemon basil for unique flavors that hold up in hot dishes and drinks alike.
Peppers
Habanero plants yield intensely hot peppers with a distinct tropical flavor. Photo by Gerald Holmes, Strawberry Center, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Bugwood.org.
Peppers – especially hot varieties – are well-adapted to Florida summers, although they benefit from a bit of afternoon shade during the most intense heat. Start with healthy transplants in spring or early summer, spacing them 18 to 24 inches apart. Keep the soil consistently moist and apply mulch to help retain moisture.
For sweet pepper options, try ‘Corno di Toro’ or ‘Sweet Banana.’ For heat lovers, datils, jalapeños, and habaneros all perform well in warm conditions. Just note that some varieties may slow production during extreme heat, then pick up again as temperatures moderate.
Take a Break with a Cover Crop
If summer gardening starts to feel overwhelming, you don’t have to plant every square foot. Consider giving part of your garden a seasonal rest with a warm-season cover crop like cowpeas, velvet beans, buckwheat, or even sweet potatoes. These vigorous growers help suppress weeds, improve soil structure, and add organic matter – and in the case of legumes like cowpeas and velvet beans, they also fix nitrogen to benefit future crops. Sweet potatoes, while edible, can also serve double duty as a weed-smothering ground cover.
Sweet potato vines form a dense summer ground cover that suppresses weeds and protects the soil. Photo by Janis Piotrowski.
For a lower-maintenance splash of color, consider heat-loving flowers like sunflowers, French marigolds, or zinnias – all of which attract pollinators and beneficial insects while brightening up your garden space.
Don’t let the summer heat bring your garden to a standstill! By choosing vegetables that are naturally adapted to our hot, humid conditions, you can keep your garden thriving and productive all season long.
Lawn irrigation spray head running. Credit: Larry Williams
When watering to establish a new lawn or when renovating areas within an older lawn, 2-3 “mists” throughout the day for the first 7-10 days until roots get established is recommended. These are 10-minute bursts. Then back off to once a day for about ½ hour for 7-10 days. Then go to 2-3 times a week for about 7 days. By then your lawn should be established.
Irrigation is not needed when we are getting adequate rainfall. Rain counts. In the absence of sufficient rain, you’ll need to provide enough water at the correct time to allow your new sod to root, hence the above directions.
A well designed and correctly installed irrigation system with a controller, operated correctly, helps to achieve uniform establishment. It can be difficult or impossible and inconvenient and time consuming to uniformly provide sufficient water to establish a lawn with hose-end sprinklers, especially with a sizeable lawn and during dry weather. Most people are not going to do the necessary job of pulling hoses around on a regular basis to result in a well-established lawn.
Too much water will result in rot, diseased roots and failure. Too little water will result in the sod, seedlings, sprigs or plugs drying excessively and failure to establish. The end result, will be a poorly established, sparse lawn with weeds, or complete failure.
There is no substitute or remedy for incorrect irrigation when establishing a new lawn or when renovating an older lawn.
It is risky to invest the required time and money if the new lawn cannot be irrigated correctly. Taking the gamble that adequate (not too much, not too little) rainfall will occur when needed to result in a beautiful, healthy, lush lawn is exactly that, a gamble.
An irrigation system is a good tool to supplement rainfall. As much as possible, learn to operate the irrigation controller using the “Manual” setting. It also is wise and is State law to have a rain shutoff device installed and operating correctly. The rain shutoff device overrides the controller when it is raining or when sufficient rainfall has occurred. A rain shutoff device is inexpensive and easily installed. Also, a rain gauge can be an inexpensive tool to help monitor how much rain you’ve received. Rain counts.
The above schedule should help when planting a lawn from seed, sprigs, plugs or sod.
Once the lawn is rooted, your goal change from establishing a root system to developing a deep, strong rooted lawn. To do this, irrigate to provide ½ to ¾ inch of water on an as needed basis. Here are links to a UF/IFAS video and publication with more info on how to do this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W_wn-hwLNtg, https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/LH025.
When I walk around the garden every day I take a little inventory of how things are growing, what is flowering, and am always on the lookout for new bugs I haven’t seen before. This past week I was pleasantly surprised by what at first I thought was a bee with a long mouthpart (proboscis), but soon realized it was not a bee at all!
This small, flying insect buzzed up to purple flowers on several plants in my garden. The body was covered in golden hairs with some black showing through giving it that distinctive bee look. The proboscis was so long in proportion to the rest of the insect that it reminded me of the beak on a hummingbird. Still thinking it was a bee of some kind I started trying to get a picture and that is when I saw the telltale antennae and eyes that clued me in that this was not a bee at all, but rather some type of fly.
So, what was this strange looking insect? It is a bee mimic commonly called a bee fly (Bombylius spp.). The bee fly not only looks like a bee, but it takes advantage of native bees to support its young. The female bee fly watches where a ground dwelling solitary bee makes her nest and as she forages for pollen to feed her young the bee fly drops an egg nearby. After hatching the bee fly larva makes its way into the real bee’s nesting chamber and eats the pollen provisions then eats the bee larva. Since solitary ground dwelling bees tend to aggregate in similar suitable locations, I can only guess that the bee fly’s clever disguise prevents it from drawing attention as a threat to the hardworking bee.
It’s that time of year when you bump into a bumble bee and watch butterflies fluttering around as you water the garden. If you’re like me, you’ve been waiting patiently for butterflies to start laying their eggs. Butterflies and moths lay eggs on specialized plants that caterpillars depend on once they hatch. These host plants provide caterpillars with food, shelter, and protection- and they can be anything from a small weed to a tall oak tree.
Freshly hatched Gulf fritillary on passionflower
Monarch butterfly on echinacea
While host plants feed caterpillars, nectar plants feed butterflies. Host plants are specific to each butterfly or moth, while nectar plants attract and feed many different species. Provide a variety of shapes, sizes, and colors of flowering plants to attract different butterflies. To support all life stages of butterflies it’s important to have both host and nectar plants in your garden.
Keep an eye out for signs of caterpillars on your host plants and remember that these plants are meant to be eaten! Because caterpillars feed exclusively on their host plants, they won’t harm the rest of your landscape. Before you reach for pesticides when you see leaf damage, take a moment to identify what’s causing it. It may just be hungry caterpillars getting ready to transform into butterflies. For more information see this EDIS publication about butterfly gardening in Florida, https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/UW057.
Zebra longwing caterpillar on passionflower
Want to support both caterpillars and butterflies with one plant? Try passionflower! Florida is home to 6 native species of passionflower. Maypop or wild passionflower, Passiflora incarnata, is the showiest of these. Flowers of pink and purple cover the passionflower from the summer to fall, offering nectar for bees, butterflies and hummingbirds. Passiflora species are host plants for the zebra longwing and gulf fritillary caterpillars.
A male bluebird perches on his nest box at the Extension office. Photo credit: Carrie Stevenson, UF IFAS Extension
“Don’t fly, Mister bluebird, I’m just walkin’ down the road. Early morning sunshine, tell me all I need to know.” These lyrics from the Allman Brothers’ song, “Blue Sky” always come to mind when I step outside our office building in the springtime. We have several bluebird houses installed on the Extension grounds, and birds have been busily building nests the last several weeks. Despite my attempts to admire from a safe distance, I inevitably disturb them and they fly off.
The Eastern Bluebird (Siala sialis) is a native species of cavity nesting bird, which covers territory from central Canada all the way south to Texas and coastal Florida. The United States is home to two other native bluebirds, the Mountain bluebird (S. currucoides), residing in high plains from Alaska to the mountain southwest, and Western bluebird (S. mexicana), which lives in drier evergreen forests on the west coast, from southern Canada to Baja Mexico. In comparison photos, the bluebird species have redder bellies on the east coast and are progressively bluer as you move west.
American bluebird species comparison. Courtesy Cornell Lab of Ornithology
A pair of bluebirds perched atop our office building. A grayer-feathered (likely female) bird can be seen on the left, near the deeper blue male on the right. Photo credit: Carrie Stevenson, UF IFAS Extension
Bluebirds’ striking color patterns make them a favorite of amateur birdwatchers and one of the easiest birds to identify in the field. Their brilliant blue is a trick of the eye, though—in reality, birds are unable to produce blue feathers. Flamingos and roseate spoonbills produce genuine pink feathers using pigments from their food (like shrimp), but bluebirds are actually gray. As described by Smithsonian wildlife biologist Scott Sillett, the blue is a “structural color” formed by the angles of sunlight and refraction from keratin, creating the illusion of a brilliant blue. I’ve always thought bluebirds seemed brighter blue on sunny, blue-sky days—turns out they probably are!
Like bluebirds, numerous native bird species are cavity-nesters. Photo credit: Carrie Stevenson, UF IFAS Extension
Bluebirds have overcome numerous threats to their populations over the last few hundred years in the United States. From habitat loss, fire ants (which attack nestlings), pesticides, and competition from introduced house sparrows and European starlings, bluebirds struggled for quite some time. Thankfully, their populations are now actually increasing and they are a “species of least concern.”
I noted about a year ago that someone in my neighborhood installed half a dozen bluebird boxes in our neighborhood park, and I’m betting that trend is multiplied exponentially around the country. Eastern bluebirds are a species of thrush, and are just one of many species that might utilize a nest box. In the wild, they are secondary cavity nesters. This means they wait for a primary cavity nester, like a woodpecker, to create a hole, then move in after it’s been abandoned. So, they are quite content to move into a prefabricated home built by humans.
A bluebird forages for insects on the ground. Photo credit: Carrie Stevenson, UF IFAS Extension
From ancient Chinese, Russian, and Native American mythology to folklore and music of the deep South, bluebirds hold a special place in the human imagination. The song and phrase “bluebird of happiness” reflects their cheery appearance and simple joy. In a quick online search of bluebird references in popular culture, I found more than 25 in the last 100 years. Something about the impossibility of a brilliant blue little bird on a spring day just feels uplifting and joyful. Even in the wistful song from the Wizard of Oz, Dorothy sings, “Somewhere over the rainbow, bluebirds fly.”
