Slip, Slap, Slop for my veggies!

[beckoes]

So, the garden is growing nicley, even had a few baby cucumbers and lots of herds out of it so far, some things are growing great......but some not!

I m guessing they are getting to much sun, the beetroot isnt really doing much and the rocket basil, tomatoes and coriander are either going yellow or just not growing past medium seedling stage...none of the different lettuces did much, ive got a little shade cover (very sad) over the baby iceburgs and they are lookin O.K. but couldnt save the others.

So even though everything said ''build garden in full sunny spot and the plants like 'full sun', im guessing 8 hours of summer queensland sun is just too much for them. Im thinking about making a bigger version of the shade cover i have over the lettuce and putting it over most the patch, its just made from an old muslin wrap of DDs and ive got a few more i can use.

Has anyone got any better ideas...what have you done,

TIA

[christy]

when I was in Brissy, I found my basil and tomatoes did wonderfully in a place that had around 6 hours sun, rather than FULL sun all day long. Otherwise they got a bit burnt or needed watering twice daily. I did have a vege patch which got 10 hours sun during the summer, and I went to bunnings and got a net thing that was colored just to give them a bit of protection, I would pop it on in the middle of the day.... I got sick though and didn't get into the garden until a month later and had to trash everything, so I can't say how well that went...

[fourthontheway]

I'm in Sydney, but I have friends who garden in FNQLD so we talk about this often. When we have little seedlings - either freshly planted in the garden bed or still in pots - I let them get the morning sun only, then I cover them with an umbrella. Lettuce is hard to grow in QLD, so it might take you a season or so of trial and error before you get it right.

Lots and lots of water is a good thing in QLD. Because I have serious issues about wasting water we use grey water from our washing machine, and find that to be quite adequate. Watering in the morning - but only on the soil, not on the leaves - and then again in the late afternoon, early evening, will also help keep things going.

Have you mulched? Mulch will help keep root systems wet and insulated from the heat. Newspaper and mulch will get rid of weeds, and help the water retention too.

Failing that a shade cloth that allows morning sun, but not afternoon HEAT sun is what they need. The morning sun stimulates the plant to grow, the afternoon sun just melts them, even in Sydney.

[beckoes]

thanks, good advice, i may need to work out how i can water more casue i only do it in the evening and i think a second water would help. i have a layer of staw on top of the soil, not that thick but not up to the base of the plants. hope this is right. it is all trial and error the first time round!
think i will have to constuct something to give better shade! something i can pop over in the arvo.
thanks again.