Tomatoes, peppers, okra, and squash

A Summer Garden Quartet I can't seem to grow this year.

I enjoy growing tomatoes, peppers, okra, and squash in my garden. In a good Oklahoma gardening year with a moderate spring and a not-too-hot summer you can have your fill of this delectable quartet. Since I avoid pesticides, although I start zucchini every year, I also buy organic summer squash at my grocery store.

My vegetable garden failures

This wasn’t a great year for my vegetable garden. I’ve struggled to grow my favorite vegetables, and over the past few weeks, I’ve been reflecting on why that might be.

Wet and cold spring weather.

I think the first problem was the wet spring. My spring garden flourished, but it just would not stop raining at my Little Cedar Garden. The Oklahoma Mesonet later confirmed we had the wettest Oklahoma April on record, and that June 2025, ended any drought in the entire state.

That never happens.

Many of my southern Oklahoma garden coaching clients and friends were thrilled because they always face drought. Here, the rain was so extensive I lost several plants including hydrangeas.

Did I mention it was also cold?

The tomatoes and peppers I started from seed struggled with the cold and damp conditions and didn’t thrive, so I pulled them up. In late June, I restarted with store-bought pepper and tomato plants. I finally sowed my okra and zucchini seeds after waiting for the soil to warm up.

While these plants are doing okay, I just picked my first tomato two days ago. It was a basic slicer, not the heirloom, rainbow super slicers from previous years. I also harvested a few peppers, and my okra is just beginning to bloom.

Frankly, some of my potting soil was terrible.

I can’t just blame the rain. I also tried an off-brand potting soil from a local nursery. I knew when I opened the bag that it wasn’t worth growing in, and I was right. I can’t remember the brand, but its texture taunts me everyday. It’s basically small sticks, and below is what it looks like at the end of the season.

Crummy potting soil that looks like mulch.

Give me good potting soil, or just forget it. I grow my vegetable plants in large containers and raised beds. I knew better, but I was in a hurry so this was the result. Lesson learned.

Next spring, or this fall, when I top off the pots—the potting soil compresses over the season and also decays, I’ll use one of my favorite brands. I used to love Fox Farm’s Happy Frog mix, but I can’t use it anymore. Because of my alpha gal syndrome diagnosis, I’m allergic to mammal ingredients like manure. Happy Frog has bat guano among other things, and what are bats? Itty bitty mammals.

I made up that joke, and it still makes me chuckle.

Alpha-gal also changed my food choices.

Alpha-gal syndrome has not only changed my food choices, but also my garden priorities. You see, my tick borne disease seems to have unmasked Mast Cell Activation Syndrome, a stupid condition that is rather unpredictable.

However, one thing is sure, AGS and MCAS’s levels of severity are different for every sufferer although some things remain constant from person-to-person.

I took this photo today. The zucchini plants are still very small.

AGS means I’m allergic to most organic fertilizers and amendments.

How does that relate to my sorry vegetable garden this year? Well, as of now, I can’t seem to eat tomatoes. That’s not an AGS thing. It’s a MCAS thing. Also, for the last several years, I can’t eat spicy food either. I used to love spicy food, and I grew tons of peppers.

I now know spices aggravate my MCAS. So, between the changes I had to make in gardening practices—like no bonemeal, blood meal, or manure—along with the dietary changes, I haven’t paid the kind of attention to the vegetable garden that I should. And it shows.

Still, there is some good news in the vegetable garden!

I do have some good news! I found Coolapeño pepper plants at Home Depot, and Bill and I really like them! This variety is from Bonnie Plants, and after looking online, it appears they were available everywhere Bonnie Plants are sold. I also started my own Fooled You peppers from seed. They normally perform great, but not this year because of the rain and cool temperatures.

Poblano peppers used to be one of my favorite peppers to grow. Even they are too spicy.

These heatless jalapeños have all the flavor without the spice. Previously, I would have said, “What’s the point?,” but now I’m grateful.

Also, I have been harvesting cucumbers and bush green beans so there’s that.

Blue Lake 274 bush beans in Vego pots.

Plus, although I’ve had a terrible vegetable summer, my flower garden is great As I wrote above, I lost some plants in the middle of the deluge, but things have evened out now, and the butterflies and hummingbirds are on the wing.

Part of the back garden. We received two more inches of rain last night. In August, unbelievable.

Plans for the fall vegetable garden

I’m also planning my fall vegetable gardens, and I already bought seeds. Please let me know if you’d like to hear about it. One thing about gardeners is we’re full of optimism no matter how dismal the previous crop or season may be.

I’m back speaking!

One more thing, I’m speaking on Friday, August 22, to the Oklahoma Organic Gardening Association about overcoming Mother Nature’s challenges. The doors open at 7:00 p.m., and the public is welcome. Why don’t you join us?

I mean, I’m giggling at the irony. Plus, I do still know how to garden organically, and I’ve learned to roll with the punches.

Bye for now and see you next week!