Summer is the perfect season for growing a wide range of veggies. Vegetables of summer that prefer to grow in full sunlight, love long days, and live in warm climates do well in the hot Indian summer. In India, summer begins in March and lasts through May. The importance of eating seasonal vegetables increases because summertime brings with it several health problems, including dehydration, vitamin deficits, and skin allergies. It prevents health issues and ensures that your body feels great during the hottest season. Therefore, you no longer have to rely just on icy drinks for refreshments. lignans than other plants.
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So, now is the ideal moment to learn more about summer vegetables. In this blog, you can learn what veggies should grow and eat this summer season.
What are summer vegetables?
Summer vegetables refer to short-season crops usually grown between Kharif and Rabi seasons. Also referred to as Zaid crops, these vegetables show higher reproductive and vegetative growth when the days are long and weather is warm and dry, causing flowering and fruiting. Summer vegetables need optimum soil temperature and at least 6 to 8 hours of direct sunlight to grow well.
Summer vegetable growing calendar for India
| Sl. No. | Common Name | Scientific Name | Family | Sowing Time | Temperature | Rainfall |
| 1 | Cucumber | Cucumis sativus | Cucurbitaceae | March to July | 25 to 35°C | 12-15 cm |
| 2 | Brinjal | Solanum melongena | Solanaceae | February – April | 15 -32°C | 60-100cm |
| 3 | Bottle Gourd | Lagenaria siceraria | Cucurbitaceae | January – March,
September – December |
18-22° C | |
| 4 | Pumpkin | Cucurbita moschata | Cucurbitaceae | May – July | 25-28°C | 30-40 cm |
| 5 | Spinach | Spinacia oleracea | Amaranthaceae | Mid-February- April | 25-30°C | 80-120 cn |
| 7 | White Onion | Allium cepa | Amaryllidaceae | February – July | 21-26°C | 65-75 cm |
Best vegetables to grow in summer in India
Here is a list of the best summer vegetables to grow in India and all you need to know about growing and caring for them.
Top summer vegetables #1: Cucumber
Scientific Name: Cucumis sativus
Family: Cucurbitaceae
As a subtropical crop, cucumbers need long, warm days, lots of sunlight, and sufficient moisture. The origin of cucumbers is India. It is a climbing plant often used as a summer vegetable in India.
Description
- Stem: rough, succulent, trailing stem with branched tendrils
- Leaf: The plants have huge leaves that are triangular in shape and hairy, with three to five pointed lobes
- Flower: Five-petaled, yellow flowers. Cucumber vines produce staminate (male) and pistillate (female) flowers (male).
- Fruit: cylinder-shaped, with a light complexion and dark green skin.
Basic requirements for cultivation
- Porous, well-drained, and rich in organic matter and plant nutrients.
- It should be planted 36–60 inches apart (12–inches apart for trellised plants) in a location with lots of sunlight.
- Regular watering is required to keep the soil equally moist.
- Add several inches of rich organic matter, such as aged compost, to the native soil to improve it. With little attention, cucumbers will grow swiftly.
Health benefits
- Cucumbers contain plenty of water (96%), which hydrates your body. The fibre boosts you and prevents constipation.
- Beta carotene and other antioxidants in cucumber help your body fight against free radicals, which cause disease.
- The lignans could help prevent osteoporosis, heart disease, and several cancers.
- Vitamin K helps blood clot and maintains your bones strong. Vitamin A supports the immune system, eyesight, and reproductive health. It is perfect for the heart, lungs, and kidneys.
- Outside of your body, cucumbers might also be healthy. Applying them to your skin might reduce skin damage, discomfort, and sunburn-related oedema.
Top summer vegetables #2: Brinjal
Scientific Name: Solanum melongena
Family: Solanaceae
Brinjal is the vegetable of summer that is most frequently grown in India. Compared to other vegetables, brinjal is a more brutal crop. However, it may thrive in dry areas with minimal watering because of its hardiness.
Commonly known as Ringna (Gujarathi), Begun (Bengali), Badane (Kannada), Baingan (Hindi), and other names are used to refer to it.
Description
- Stem: With an upright, bushy stem occasionally armed with spines, eggplant is typically planted annually. Brinjal is a relatively small plant that can reach a height of 1.5 m.
- Leaf: Large, oval, and barely lobed leaves.
- Flower: The typical solitaire pendant violet flowers measure around 5 cm (2 inches) wide.
- Fruit: The fruit is a sizable egg-shaped berry with a glossy surface that ranges in colour from dark purple to red, pink, yellowish, or white and is occasionally striped.
Basic requirements for cultivation
- The crop prefers high-yield, fertile, well-drained soil. Crops planted in sandy soils mature quickly, while those grown in clayey soils produce more. 5.5 to 6.6 is the ideal pH range for brinjal cultivation.
- It needs a long warm growing season because it is grown in the warm season.
- Its successful daily production requires a temperature range between 13°C and 21°C.
- Spacing: The usual spacing for long-fruited kinds is 60 × 45 cm, round variants are 75 x 60 cm, and high-producing varieties are 90 x 90 cm.
Health benefits
- Eggplant is extremely low in calories and has neither cholesterol nor fat. It contains a lot of dietary fibre, which makes our stools more voluminous and aids in efficiently removing waste from our bodies.
- Eggplant is a good source of potassium, a vasodilator necessary for our brains’ healthy operation. Receiving oxygen-rich blood helps our brain grow new neural connections by supplying it with blood. It subsequently enhances our memory and capacity for analytical thought.
- For pregnant women to consume enough folic acid, eggplant must be a part of their diet.
- Additionally, it aids in halting the expansion of malignant cells and tumour formation.
- Because they are high in fibre and low in soluble carbohydrates, eggplants are beneficial for controlling diabetes.
- Eggplant is a good source of copper, which works with Iron to help raise the number of red blood cells.
Top summer vegetables #3: Bottle gourd
Scientific Name: Lagenaria siceraria
Family: Cucurbitaceae
The bottle gourd, or Lagenaria siceraria, is a climbing or running vine in the gourd family (Cucurbitaceae) that is also known as the white-flowered gourd or the calabash gourd.
Description
- Stem: Annuals with hairy stems, long forked tendrils, and a musky scent, bottle gourd vines proliferate.
- Leaf: The bottle gourd’s leaves have smooth borders, a few large lobes, or undulating margins and can reach up to 15 inches wide. The thin hairs, especially on the underside, give leaves a velvety touch.
- Flower: The flowers have to spread petals up to 4 inches in diameter. They are white and attractive.
- Fruit: Bottle gourds come in a fantastic variety of colours and shapes. A fruit with white flesh and white seeds with pale green skin. They might be extended, slender, tiny, bottle-shaped, or thick and rounded.
Basic requirements for cultivation
- Sandy loam moisture soils with a pH range of 6.5 to 7.5 are rich in organic matter and have adequate drainage.
- The cultivation of this plant requires hot, humid weather. 20–32 °C is the ideal range for its growth.
- Vegetable seeds are planted using the “dabbling” method at a distance of 2 to 3 × 1.0 to 1.5 meters.
- Typically, 2-3 seeds are placed in a trench between 2.5 and 3.0 cm deep.
Health benefits
- It treats acidity and digestion since it is high in fibre and alkali.
- Lauki is also very good for the heart and lowers blood pressure.
- Having lauki juice daily will aid in weight loss because it is rich in potassium, vitamins, and Iron.
- It stops hair from prematurely greying.
- Lauki juice detoxifies the body by removing toxins naturally.
Top summer vegetables #4: Pumpkin
Scientific Name: Cucurbita moschata
Family: Cucurbitaceae
It is a famous vegetable crop in India grown during the rainy season. It is a member of the Cucurbitaceae family and is also known as “HalwaKaddu” or “Kaddu” in Hindi. The second-largest producer of pumpkins is India.
Description
- Leaf: Large, lobed, hairy pumpkin leaves develop on hollow stems. They have a somewhat rounded form and frequently have serrated edges. There are three or more veins on them. Depending on the type, they could be light or grey-green in hue instead of the usual dark green.
- Flower: The flowers are stunning, funnel-shaped, and have an intense orange or yellow hue. They could be about 4-5 inches in diameter. Both male and female flower components, known as staminate and pistillate, are produced by pumpkin plants.
- Fruit: Pumpkins can be oblate, spherical, or oblong and range in colour from yellow to orange. Some have a white rind and are smooth, typically just mildly ribbed or wrinkled. The ridged, angled, and hard, woody fruit stem.
Basic requirements for cultivation
- It needs loamy soil rich in organic matter and good drainage. For growing pumpkins, the best soil pH is 6-7.
- For optimum growth, the seed should be placed at a depth of about 2.5.
- Its development requires temperatures between 25 and 30 °C.
- Plant pumpkin seed with a 1-meter minimum distance between each plant, with rows spaced 1.5 to 2 meters apart.
Health benefits
- Potassium and vitamin A are abundant in pumpkins.
- Pumpkins could improve eye eyesight.
- Blood pressure may be lowered by pumpkin.
- Pumpkin is a good source of antioxidants.
- Pumpkins may improve sleep.
Top summer vegetables #5: Spinach
Scientific Name : Spinacia oleracea
Family: Amaranthaceae
Spinach is a hardy leafy annual plant from the amaranth family (Amaranthaceae) that is eaten as a vegetable. It is native to central and western Asia.
Description
- It can grow up to 30 cm tall and is an annual plant. The leaves are simple, alternating, oblong to triangular, flat, or curled with whole or coarsely serrated edges and dark green leaves. Larger leaves are found at the plant’s base, and smaller leaves are located higher on the flowering stem. The leaves range from 2 to 30 cm long and 1 to 15 cm wide.
- The blooms can grow alone or in groups called cymes, spikes, or panicles. The bracteate flowers have 4-5 average petals that are frequently fused. There are 1 to 5 stamens. Three to five connected sepals together up a hypogynous ovary. They are unassuming, yellow-green, and 3–4 mm in diameter. When fully grown, they develop into a small, complex, lumpy fruit cluster 5–10 mm across and containing several seeds.
Basic requirements for cultivation
- The entire year, except December and February, is the sowing season.
- Well-drained soil is rich in organic matter, such as compost or composted manure, and has a pH between 6.5 and 7.
- Ten °C to 22°C is the germination temperature, and sowing temperatures are between 25-30°C.
- Sun to some partial shade.
- Water – Because spinach grows best in colder climates, don’t overwater it.
- Use a plant-to-plant distance of 5–10 cm and a row-to-row distance of 25–30 cm. Sow seed at a depth of 3-4 cm.
Health benefits
- Potassium is abundant in spinach, which lowers blood pressure.
- Lutein is an excellent antioxidant found in spinach, known to guard against age-related eye conditions like macular degeneration and cataracts.
- Lutein has also been demonstrated to support the maintenance of cognitive functions.
- Spinach is an excellent source of vitamin K, which is crucial for healthy bones and bone development.
- A high amount of Iron is found in spinach which aids in producing haemoglobin.
- Spinach contains vitamin A, which develops tissues. It also keeps skin hydrated and minimizes wrinkles and fine lines.
Top summer vegetables #6: White onion
Scientific Name: Allium cepa
Family: Amaryllidaceae
Indian onions are harvested twice a year, from November to January for the first harvest and from January to May for the second.
Description
- Stem: The plant’s stem is a flattened disc at the base, and the tubular leaves’ overlapping sheaths create a pseudostem. The height of an onion plant is 50 cm.
- Leaf: There are 3 to 8 leaves per plant, which can be erect or oblique.
- Flower: On stalks, the onion plant develops clusters of pink or white blooms.
- Bulb: Bulbs grow in clusters of 3 to 18 per plant, and their shape is typically oval, though it can vary. A membrane that transforms into a papery sheath covers the bulb to keep it safe.
Basic requirements for cultivation
- Deep, friable loam and alluvial soils with adequate organic matter, proper drainage, and the ability to hold moisture are the ideal soil types for growing onions successfully.
- Its growth requires temperatures between 21-26°C.
- Spacing: Use a 7.5 cm space between plants and a 15 cm between rows when transplanting—plant seeds between 1 and 2 cm deep.
Health benefits
- White onions include nutrients like chromium and sulfur that control and reduce blood sugar levels.
- Sulfur compounds and flavonoid antioxidants found in white onions have anticancer effects. Fisetin and quercetin, flavonoid antioxidants found in onions, may inhibit the growth of tumours.
- White onions are a great source of prebiotics and fibre, which can benefit your gut health.
- White onions are beneficial for older women’s bone density. Additionally, it helps to lessen oxidative stress, raise antioxidant levels, prevent osteoporosis, increase bone density, and reduce bone loss.
- White onions have anti-inflammatory, triglyceride-lowering, cholesterol-lowering, and antioxidant properties that benefit heart health.
- White onions’ anti-inflammatory qualities might lower high blood pressure and guard against blood clots.
- Sulfur and flavonoids in it aid in blood thinning.
- White onions help control your immune system since they contain selenium.
- White onion juice is a well-known natural cure for hair loss, dandruff, and early hair ageing.
Summer vegetables: Common growing tips
Whichever summer vegetable you choose to grow, following are some growing tips you should keep in mind.
- Grow regionally: Make sure to pick summer vegetables that will thrive in your area. If the growing season is shorter, select those vegetables that mature faster. Don’t forget to choose heat-tolerant veggies for hotter climates.
- Watering: Carefully irrigate plants every morning to reduce the rate of evaporation and avoid foliar diseases. Opt for drip irrigation to conserve water and reduce diseases caused by overhead watering.
- Mulch: Spread a one- to two-inch layer of compost around your plants to conserve water, cool soil temperatures, and suppress weeds.
- Provide shade: Summer vegetables like beets, broccoli, peas, greens, and cauliflower benefit from partial shade, particularly during a day’s hottest part in warmer climates. Make sure to plant the veggies in a site that receives protection from the hot afternoon sun.
- Plant successively: Re-sow summer vegetables like beets, bush beans, and lettuce every couple of weeks all through the summers to ensure continuous harvest.
- Harvest: Pick the summer vegetables either late or early in the day to keep the fresh, crisp, and flavourful.
Summer vegetables: Common diseases
When the climatic conditions are right, infectious pathogens like fungi, bacteria, viruses, and nematodes can cause several diseases in summer vegetable plants. Even unfavourable environmental factors like inconsistent watering, compacted soil, nutrient deficits, and pH imbalances in the soil can lead to plant physiological disorders.
Learn about the diseases that affect summer vegetables and how to prevent them.
Root-knot nematode – caused by nematodes of the genus Meloidogyne
- Host Plant: beans, okra, cucumber, squash, and tomatoes
- Symptoms: Large galls developing on the plant’s root nodules, wilting, and decreased yields, stunted plant growth.
Leaf blight – Caused by a fungal pathogen
- Host Plant: cucumber, pumpkins, squash, etc.
- Symptoms: Earliest occurrences at the base of plants are on older leaves. Plants with infected leaves exhibit dry, black-brown dry spots and patches of dull, green, or brown lesions.
Powdery mildew – Caused by a fungal pathogen
- Host Plant: Cucumber, squash, okra, and beans.
- Symptoms: Usually, white to grey powdery growth is present on the upper surface of diseased leaves. Plants suffer from reduced growth as a result, which finally causes death.
Downy mildew – Caused by a fungal-like organism, pseudoperonospora
Host Plant: onion, cucumber, squash, and some other cucurbits
Symptoms: Infected leaves have dark patches and irregular yellow to pale-green dots on the upper surface. Mycelia, with a soft grey colour, covers the underside leaf patches.
Summer vegetables: Disease management
- Removing the diseased plant parts to stop the disease’s transmission to other plants
- To avoid crowding and improve air circulation, leave enough space between plants.
- After the plants have been harvested, plough the soil to expose any diseased eggs to the sun.
- In the summer, cover the soil with transparent polythene to keep it warm and prevent the spread of weed seeds and diseases that are transmitted via the ground (Soil solarization process)
- Ensure that vegetable plants access enough water, nutrients, and sunshine.
- Water should not be applied to the surface of leaves or foliage because diseases thrive in moist plant parts.
- Summer vegetables should be picked at the proper time. Don’t let them become overripe.
Summer vegetables add flavour and variety to our distinctive summer recipes, and numerous vegetables thrive during the summer. In addition, vegetables usually offer a wide range of health advantages. Summer vegetables are no different. They raise our energy levels and improve our immune system. In addition, all vegetables help us keep in shape as the seasons change.
FAQs
How can the vegetable garden stay hydrated in the summer?
Mulching is a superior option to keep the vegetable crop moisturized. Peat moss, coco coir, dried shredded leaves, and freshly cut fodder are all acceptable mulching materials. In addition to keeping the soil moist, mulching prevents weed growth and slows down soil erosion.
In the summer, which vegetables proliferate?
With a short growing season of three to four weeks, radishes are one of the veggies that mature the quickest.
Which crop is referred to as a summer crop?
Kharif crops refer to plants that grow primarily in the summer. Around June, they are sowed to begin the rainy season, and around October, they are harvested. Examples of Kharif crops include groundnuts, maize, and rice.
What triggers diseases is summer vegetables?
Fungi are responsible for most vegetable diseases and harm plants by stressing or destroying plant cells. Fungal infections can come from contaminated seeds, soil, agricultural debris, neighbouring crops, and weeds.
What plant is cold to the body?
Cucumber. Due to its high fibre content, constipation is avoided. In addition, it contains a lot of water, which prevents heat exhaustion.