Im in Florida and my cherry tomatoes were doing amazing, they were heat tolerant, but at the height of the summer they stopped producing. Did the mid 90 degree temps do that?

My harvest today: Salad Leaf lettuce Kale Mustard Lemon Balm Sage Parsley Oregano Yard long beans Cherry tomato Miniature pepper All growing in my Worm Tower Gardens. YUM

Container gardeners have one problem that traditional gardeners don't always have to think about: We're going to run out of floor space eventually. 😂 The patio is full. The balcony is full. The deck is full. There isn't room for ONE. MORE. POT. Or is there? Because today we're growing UP. Meet one of my favorite cool-season container crops: 🫛 𝐏𝐄𝐀𝐒! Peas love cooler weather, grow beautifully on a simple trellis, and give us an opportunity to use vertical space instead of taking over the patio. And there's another reason you should consider growing them... If you've never eaten a pea seconds after picking it from the vine, you're in for a treat. 🫛 𝐖𝐡𝐲 𝐏𝐞𝐚𝐬 𝐋𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐅𝐚𝐥𝐥 Peas are cool-season plants. They aren't particularly happy when temperatures soar. Hot weather can slow production, reduce flowering, and eventually bring the pea-growing season to an end. But give them cooler days and chilly nights? 𝐍𝐨𝐰 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲'𝐫𝐞 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐲. That's why peas can make an excellent Second Spring crop. There's one catch, though. If August is still extremely hot where you live, don't rush them. You may need to wait until temperatures begin moderating before planting. Remember: 𝐒𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝 𝐒𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐝𝐨𝐞𝐬𝐧'𝐭 𝐛𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐧 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐚𝐦𝐞 𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞. Your local weather gets the final vote. 🌱 𝐖𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐡 𝐊𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐨𝐟 𝐏𝐞𝐚 𝐒𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐰? Here's where things get interesting because "peas" aren't all the same. 🫛 𝐒𝐮𝐠𝐚𝐫 𝐒𝐧𝐚𝐩 𝐏𝐞𝐚𝐬 You eat the pod AND the peas inside. They're sweet, crunchy, and wonderful straight from the vine. Honestly, some may never make it into the house. 😂 🫛 𝐒𝐮𝐠𝐚𝐫 𝐒𝐧𝐚𝐩 𝐏𝐞𝐚𝐬 These have flat, tender edible pods and are usually harvested before the peas inside fully develop. They're fantastic in stir-fries. 🫛 𝐆𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐞𝐧 𝐨𝐫 𝐒𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐏𝐞𝐚𝐬 These are the traditional peas you remove from the pod before eating. The pod itself is usually too tough to eat. But those fresh peas inside? That's where the magic is. 🪴 𝐂𝐡𝐨𝐨𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐫 Peas don't require an enormously deep container, but they appreciate room for their roots.

What if I told you there's a fall vegetable that... 🪴 Doesn't need a huge container 🌱 Is easy to grow ✂️ Can be harvested a little at a time ❄️ Doesn't mind cooler weather 🍳 And can find its way into breakfast, lunch AND dinner? Say hello to green onions! Also called scallions or bunching onions, these skinny little vegetables may not be the showstoppers of the fall garden... But they might be among the most useful things you grow. And for container gardeners? They're practically perfect. 🧅 𝐅𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭...𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐄𝐱𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐥𝐲 𝐈𝐒 𝐚 𝐆𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐎𝐧𝐢𝐨𝐧? Good question! "Green onion" generally refers to an onion harvested while the plant is young, before it develops a large mature bulb. Some varieties—often called bunching onions—are specifically grown for their long green tops and slender white bases rather than big bulbs. And that's exactly why they're so handy for container gardeners. We're not waiting around for a giant onion bulb to develop. We're growing those delicious green tops and tender white stems. 🍂 𝐖𝐡𝐲 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐲'𝐫𝐞 𝐆𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐒𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝 𝐒𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 Green onions enjoy cool growing conditions and can tolerate light frosts once established. They're also relatively quick to grow. That makes late summer and early fall a great time to tuck some into containers. But here's what I especially love about them: They don't demand much real estate. Remember all those containers we've been planting with lettuce, spinach, kale, carrots, and beets? Green onions can often fit into little unused spaces around other plants. Container gardeners know... Every inch counts! 😄 🪴 𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐃𝐨𝐧'𝐭 𝐍𝐞𝐞𝐝 𝐚 𝐆𝐢𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐏𝐨𝐭 Green onions have relatively small root systems. A container around 6–8 inches deep or more works nicely. Window boxes? Absolutely. Railing planters? Yep. Grow bags? Sure. That random little pot sitting empty on your patio? Put some onions in it! 😂 Just make sure whatever you choose has drainage holes. 🌱 𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐅𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐒𝐞𝐞𝐝 Green onions are easy to grow from seed. Plant seeds about ¼ inch deep and keep the soil consistently moist while they germinate.

Wow! One week after planting black eyed peas, popcorn, pinto beans, quinoa, and Chia. Everything grew in low light except the pinto beans. I didn't have good enough drainage so the seeds rotted. Everything else grew and I had a nice harvest for a stir fry! A definite do again this winter.