Shade cloth??

I thought I was crazy with the umbrella for shade idea, but I think it's working. Plus, I don't have to spend money for cheesecloth or shade cloth. I will just have to pay extra attention if there is too much wind, but it's summer so we don't get too much windiness here in Pasadena, CA.

I also use cheesecloth. I make hoops for each 1 foot square or row out of 9 gauge wire and then lay the cloth over it. I then use either big black office clips or clothes pins to attach it to the wire.

Bill

My MM garden is located in Central Florida, and the sun is fierce. The information above is great as to what I can use to block the sun, but I have questions as to support options. Too close to the ground and the bed will surely bake. I read about an investigation in Georgia as to the relationship between shade and productivity of peppers, and 30% shade increased the productivity of the commercial crop some 25 or so percent, as I recall. But the shade cloth was placed 16' (!) above the ground. The snow fence sounds good, but how to support it, short of building a costly pergola out of timbers? I'm working on the issue and will post photos when I come up with a workable idea to balance heat buildup with necessary shade. Has anyone built a PCV 6' to 8' pergola-like support anchored over rebar? Wind? Any ideas from you guys?

At another house I drove into the ground 24" 1/2" rebar at the (4' wide) boxes' corners and also placed them along the sides at 24" increments, with 10' PVC pipe bent over the bed, the open ends of the PVC slipped over the upright rebar. That rig worked fine for frost cloth and netting against bugs and birds, but it was too close to the plants for shade cloth. Too hot!

Planting sunflowers at the west ends of the beds, even outside the boxes, helps shield plants from the hot western sunlight just about the time when plants really appreciate the relief, say my tomatoes.
Carolinda at Forefather Farm

The easy assembly trellis I use for my vertical plant supports should hold your shade high enough to ward off the sun and not rest on your plants. These are easy and cheap to assemble and I move them from plot to plot each year so that the crops are rotated.


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The corners are four 7' Iron hooks (Home Depot the link to the product is below the picture so you can see what you need -- they're about $12.50). They are crossed with green fence posts that sit in the crooks of the hook and attached with galvanized wire through the holes in the fence posts. Then put 6' 2" PVC pipe the side pieces in place and mark where I want to attach them to the fence posts. When I take them down, I measure 1' foot intervals to match my SFG. I drill 1/2 in holes in my pieces on the ground, then assemble them in place. I repeat the marking and drilling process for the PVC pieces that will cross over the SFG and hold my trellis pieces.

In the past I have used single strings as the climbing supports, but this year I will use hanging woven materials, except for the melons and pumpkins which will have chicken wire supports.

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Gilbert-Bennett-84-in-SGL-Forged-Hook-844535A/202295655#.UaoN_9jNn_A

Living in North Florida, we've already reached the time of year when the tomatoes are so hot that they refuse to set fruit and the bell peppers wither each afternoon. This year I made a 7' tall frame (like you would use to put a trellis up) at each end of my 12' beds using electrical conduit and draped shade cloth over it. Tomatoes and peppers are now very happy!!



The shade cloth wasn't exactly cheap, but attaching it with zip ties means that it can be used year after year. It was about $27 for a 15' x 6' roll. I also have shade cloth covering the western ends of these 2 beds (left over from last year) since these beds get the intense Florida sun from 10 am until about 8 pm.

Personally, I don't think tulle is going to do much for our intense sun & heat. This shade cloth instantly dropped the temperatures on these beds 10 - 15 degrees! It might be a little costly, but it can be used year after year.