When the skies open up and the monsoon rains pour down relentlessly, every gardener’s heart skips a beat. While rain breathes life into your garden, too much of it can turn your flourishing vegetable patch into a soggy and struggling mess.

The monsoon season is a double-edged sword, important for growth but potentially harmful when excessive. So, how do you keep your precious vegetable plants healthy and alive amid the wettest months of the year?

With a bit of foresight and some clever gardening hacks, you can safeguard your crops from waterlogging, fungal infections, and other rain-related woes. Let’s dive into some practical tips that will help your garden grow, come rain or shine.

1. Choose the right vegetables for the monsoon

Choosing suitable vegetables for the monsoon season is the first step towards a successful garden. Some plants naturally tolerate wet conditions better than others, so it pays to plan accordingly. Leafy greens such as spinach, amaranth, and mustard grow in moist weather, allowing you to enjoy a fresh harvest even with intermittent heavy showers.

Root vegetables like radishes and turnips also tend to cope well as they develop beneath the soil. However, more delicate or water-sensitive crops like tomatoes, carrots, and potatoes often suffer during continuous wet spells, becoming susceptible to rot and fungal diseases.

When selecting seeds or seedlings, opt for disease-resistant varieties whenever possible, as they are bred to withstand the humidity and pest pressure that come with the monsoon. By choosing your crops wisely, you can reduce the risk of losses and maintain a blooming kitchen garden even in the soggiest conditions.

2. Elevate your garden beds

Waterlogging is one of the most common threats during heavy rains, which is why elevating your garden beds is so crucial. Raised beds, constructed either with timber, bricks, or stone, help improve drainage by allowing excess water to run off more easily, preventing the roots from sitting in waterlogged soil that can lead to root rot or fungal diseases.

Ideally, beds........

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