The Texas Growing Season(s)

 A bright reminder of the hot heat of Summer that awaits you.

If you are a long time gardener who has recently moved to Texas, you may be very confused about the growing season. If you are a new gardener reading general information garden books, you may be very confused about the growing season for Texas. First off, there is not just one long season. There are two shorter seasons. These seasons are broken up by the intense heat of Summer.

Not to beat a dead horse, but I swear this is the best planting guide I have found. And no one even pays me to say that, although I wish they would.

So let me break it down for you. When all of our Northern friends, and by that I mean anyone North of oh say Dallas, start planting in Spring, they get so gung ho. They are planting EVERYTHING for their long season. Hold on South Texas. Spring is the time you want to plant the heat loving vegetables. You want to get them in after the last frost. They say March 1st is our average last frost day here in San Antonio. Some of the heat loving veggies you can put in for your Spring garden are: tomatoes, peppers, squash, beans, okra, southern peas, melons and corn. This is growing season one. Some friends will grow all summer. Depending on how painfully hot the summer is- you might make it out with okra, southern peas and peppers alive. The heat of summer is the "dead" time here- where winter is the slow season up North. You can replant most of these heat veggies again around July to harvest in the fall, until the first freeze kills them.

In the fall, or when the heat starts to subside (let's say Sept.) former Northerners can revert back to their Spring planting mode. You can put in lettuce, greens, carrots, root vegetables, broccoli, cabbage, and so forth. In a mild winter like this one, you can replant these guys straight through Jan. to keep the harvest going.

I also recommend checking out some gardening books specific to Texas. A good bet is anything written by Howard Garrett. Texas Gardner Magazine is also really helpful for when to do what around these parts.

Good luck with your future spring gardens!