"Jangchub" wrote in message
On Tue, 21 Apr 2009 11:49:44 +1000, "FarmI" ask@itshall be given
wrote:

"Jangchub" wrote in message
On Sun, 19 Apr 2009 22:24:04 +0100, PeterGreenMan
wrote:


I would like to get my front garden contributing towards the food bill.
I'm at a loss as to what to grow. Not only must the garden be
aesthetically pleasing (whingeing neighbours) but the house faces north
and the garden spends a lot of time in the shade. Any suggestions or
advice would be appreciated. Vegetables

I thought I already answered this, but vegetables will never be good
when grown in the shade. They need a minimum of six hours a day of
full, not dappled sun. Even here in Texas they require full sun.

I had always thought that Texas had high summer temperatures much like I
do
here in Oz. I have to put up shade cloth in high summer here to stop
sunburn on quite a lot of my veg plants.


Texas is the second largest largest state in the country, covering
ten regions and a several climate zones. I am in USDA Zone 8b Heat
Zone 9. We do not have one long growing season, we have two short
seasons with the high summer in the center where most vegetables are
finished producing and much of everything else sits rather dormant
depending on rainfall.

Zones or size are not meaningful to me as they aren't used here (which I
think also applies anywhere outside the US - I think that system is US
specific) . My State is 200,000 square kms bigger than Texas and this is
the 5th largest State in the country so it'd be interesting to see how
anyone would try to use a zone system here. We tend to use a more general
descriptor like 'temperate', Mediterranean, cold (althought cold here means
our form of cold, not Northern Hemisphere snow and ice type cold - heavy
frosts type cold.

I guess we too would have what you describe as two short seasons with
blazing heat in the middle, however that wouldn't be an issue with some
crops such as tomatoes or corn.

I need greens all year round somust continue to grow them through the
blazing plant crisping days of high summer.

The problem is not necessarily the day high's, but the night high
temperatures. In the summer we rarely dip lower than 80 F at night.
Not much producing of fruits other than okra and some other heat
lovers.

July marks the start of the second growing season where we set out
plants again for a fall harvest. So, like up north, short season
varieties are preferred.

I think that would be rather a nuisance. Have you tried the shading trick
to keep up production? Shaded ground is cooler ground both day and night
and it works well if somewhat painfull to keep up.