Which Shade Cloth to Prevent Sun Scald

[Jennifer Roussin]

Hello. I live in St Louis Missouri, in zone 6B. We usually have very hot, humid summers. This summer was especially so. We had weeks of high temps well into the 90's, and muggy and humid. The soil in my raised beds is also light and dries out quickly. It is made of river bottom soil (50%) and compost (50%). The beds are 12" high, 10 feet long, and 4 feet wide. Many of my bell peppers got sunscald. I am a newbie with veggies (first year), and I suspect I didn't water as much as I should have.

My question is, I want to buy shade cloth from amazon to help with the severe heat. There are different ones and they are rated by what percentage of shade they provide. For example, they are listed as 30% shade, 40% shade, 50% shade, 80% shade, etc. Can anyone give me a recommendation as to what rating is the best to use? I would probably like to keep it on for days at a time, so I don't have to constantly put it on and take it off every day. Thank you.

 

[Chuck]

Whatever is cheapest. I live in a zone much hotter and sun intensive than yours and I don't use anything. Having said that, I must admit that my length of growing time is also much lower than yours. If it were me and I were trying to have a fall garden I would use the basic 30% only on the west side of you plants. Don't cover the entire plant although it does give some insect protection. As long as you water properly you will have adequate foliage to protect you fruits from sunscald. Shade cloth is not what it is hyped to be. Your temperatures are always taken in the shade, not the bright sunshine so keep this in mind too. Only water in the early morning or late afternoon, preferably in the morning and never let the water splash on the leaves. And when you water completely saturate the soil. If the plants are wilted in the afternoon don't worry about it. If wilted in the morning water them

 

[Jennifer Roussin]

Thank you.