The Tribune

There’s no getting away from it. It is now officially summer and all that means is hot, muggy, enervating days and frequent thunderstorms. Early morning becomes the most precious time of day, an oasis of coolness, the time to get done what must be done.

There is more insect activity in summer than in winter. Ants, houseflies, mosquitoes and doctor flies become very evident and a walk into the garden usually means being attacked by kamikaze yellow hannas (Caribbean fruit fly).

A Roman writer observed: “There is nothing sadder than a cucumber garden in winter.” Had he seen a Bahamian tomato patch in summer he might have been equally sad. Most of our favourite winter vegetables cannot cope with hot days and warm nights of summer.

Among the vegetables that can survive summer, and even thrive, are peppers, watermelons, corn, okra, snake beans and tomatillos.

Sweet peppers or large hot peppers like Anaheim or Numex are best planted where they receive morning sun and afternoon shade, or a position where they are partly shaded throughout the day. Hot peppers can take direct sun as long as they are watered frequently by nature or by hose.

Watermelons should not be planted in an area where compost has been recently added, but aged compost is fine. As the name tells you, watermelons love water and should be watered daily when young. When the fruits reach full size the plants should not be watered. Over-watered watermelons can crack or even explode, and the flavour is diminished.

Ripeness is determined by two factors. The most reliable is the bottom streak where the fruit touches the ground. Normally a golden yellow, this streak turns an anaemic straw colour when the watermelon is ready to eat. You can double check by inspecting the pigtail at the stem end. This should show signs of drying out.

Most corn on sale these days is sugar enhanced and very sweet. Two varieties I have been using this summer are my regular peaches and cream, and bodacious. Corn should be sown in blocks to facilitate the pollination process. To test for ripeness: open the top of an ear and press a thumbnail against the top kernels. If they squirt milky juice they are ready to eat.

Okra comes in two forms: dwarf and tall. It is probably a little late to grow tall varieties as these take longer to develop fruits. Dwarf plants should produce within 60 days and usually bear enough pods to satisfy all but the most avid okra lover. Pick okra young. Whatever length the package says the pods grow to, pick them an inch short of this. If you do not have enough for a meal, keep those you have picked covered in the refrigerator until you do have enough.

Snake beans are my favourite summer vegetable. Once established, they are fast and heavy producers. Regular snap beans are watery and virtually tasteless. Snake beans have a wonderful flavour, reminiscent of asparagus. The beans should be picked in pairs when 10 to 12 inches in length. If you cannot harvest enough for a meal, put them in a plastic bag and refrigerate them while they wait for company to make up a quorum.

Steam the pods or drop them, whole or cut up, into salted boiling water for a few minutes. Snake beans seem to go with everything savoury.

Tomatillos are not a substitute for tomatoes but can be used in salsas and other Mexican dishes. Tomatillo plants are large and tree- like and therefore need heavy staking. The advantage is that they provide shade for other plants grown under their canopy, an excellent site for summer peppers. Tomatillos can be eaten raw when ripe, or cooked. Either way, the taste is refreshing. The papery cover becomes stretched tight when the fruit is ripe.

• gardenerjack@coralwave.com