A late-winter warm spell that led to early flower buds, followed by a harsh spring frost, then drought-like summer conditions have combined to make for a challenging growing season for home gardeners and commercial farmers alike.

As more and more vegetables are harvested - such as the squash we eat to the varieties used for decorative purposes - there is reason not to take for granted what's available for consumption and display alike.

On one hand, it was a fruitful vegetable-growing season; the dry conditions, when managed properly, yielded a longer growing period and the heat and humidity did some vegetables (such as tomatoes and corn) good, farmers say. On the other, however, cooler-weather plants such as cabbage and broccoli struggled with the overriding hot and dry conditions. The chilly- (even freezing-) at-times April set some growers back.

Then of course, there are those pesky critters that chew up plants and vegetables before they have a chance to develop. An increase of leaf-devouring bugs is a product of dryness, and chipmunks and other furry scavengers are garden enemies in any growing conditions.

"Overall, [crops] did very well with a couple of exceptions, but that always is the case every year," said Jim Shortt of Shortt's Farm & Garden Center in Sandy Hook.

One of the exceptions is that the farm's nearly 100 fruit trees did not produce peaches and plums because the buds were destroyed when temperatures dropped into the teens in April, Mr Shortt said.

They were worried about the possibility of frost back in the final weeks of winter when springlike weather had already arrived, since it was too early for buds to form, yet they were taking shape.

"You knew if you were going to get a cold snap, you'd lose the fruit," Mr Shortt said.

Sure enough, Mother Nature's chilly April nights took a toll. Orchards that rely on fruit tree production suffered greatly, with crops completely wiped out in some instances, Mr Shortt says, but farms such as Shortt's did not suffer so much since a bulk of the revenue comes from sales of veggies that did well. In addition to some delicious vegetables, Shortt's also carries peaches imported from another farm.

"We're small, but we're fairly diversified. It's a hit; but we'll get over it," Mr Shortt said. "It certainly cuts into the cash flow you have normally in the season."

Shortt's Farm has plenty of vegetables at its stand that thrived in the heat and dry conditions, Mr Shortt says.

"We can make it wet but we can't dry it out," he points out, adding that an irrigation system coupled with the dry air and sunlight were the perfect mixture for hearty crops.

Mr Shortt's wife, Susy, said wet leaves promote fungus and that the dry conditions have meant less fungal problems on the plants this season.

The mild winter also contributed to an increase in bugs, the Shortts point out. So the organic farm operators used lady bugs to eat aphids, white flies, and other soft-bodied plant pests.

"It was a buggy year. That probably has to do with the mild winter we had," Susy Shortt said.

A Dry Summer Plus Pests

"The insect population was definitely expanded because of the dry weather," said Bethel's Hollandia Nurseries owner Eugene Reelick.

Mr Reelick said a common concern among customers is how to handle the dry summer. Watering seems like the obvious solution. However, "We don't overwater our plants. We let the plants struggle a little bit," said Mr Reelick, adding that plants in the proper soil conditions can find water. Mulching on top of material that holds moisture allows the ground to retain water at the base of plants, Mr Reelick notes.

Resident Marlene Whitney has two vegetable gardens and says her plants - including tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, green beans, and zucchini - thrived thanks to watering, adding that a well and irrigation system enabled her to wet the soil regularly during this dry summer.

"I can water without worrying I will harm other people's supply," Ms Whitney said.

Ms Whitney's tomatoes did well. "This year I have an abundance - I even canned some," she said.

Eggplant also did well, Ms Whitney added. "This year I'm giving it away - it's wonderful."

Dr Bob Grossman has a few gardens with a wide range of vegetables and fruits, including tomatoes, asparagus, artichoke, broccoli, eggplant, corn, Brussels sprouts, squash, strawberries, and watermelon. He also has several pumpkin and gourd vines that have pushed their way through and along the top of fencing, producing plenty of orange and green-for-now beauties.

Dr Grossman has the same problem many gardeners have, which is that even with protective fencing around the plants, animals, including rabbits and raccoons, make their way in for a midday or midnight snack.

Louise Zierzow of Sandy Hook relocated a pair of groundhogs and a possum - Ms Zierzow left the resident skunk alone since that stinker was not allowed in her car, she said. With those garden violators gone, everything from zucchini, rhubarb to potatoes has thrived, she said.

Ms Zierzow cooks with her crops, making zucchini breads and casseroles, as well as simply enjoying home-grown tomatoes on sandwiches.

Of course, planting and watering alone doesn't produce. Flowers in addition to those on the vegetable plants, Ms Zierzow notes, attract bees, hummingbirds, and butterflies for pollinating.

"I water every day. Because they're in pots I've watered, watered, watered," Ms Zierzow said.

"You have to water a lot because it's been so dry," Dr Grossman adds.

There is a bright side, besides the bright sky, to the dry summer. Slugs that thrive in moist conditions have not been around, and there have not been an Japanese beetles to speak of either, Ms Zierzow said.

Mr Reelick said squash and cucumber plants, with shallow root systems, had an accelerated and abbreviated growing season due to the heat and dry air. Onions, beans, and other veggies thrived this summer. Broccoli and other veggies that do best in cooler conditions did well in the early part of the season, then struggled with the heat, Mr Reelick said.

"All in all, it was a good year for us," he said.Seasonal Challenges

Castle Hill Farm on Sugar Lane, run by the Paproski family, Diana and Stephen Paproski, and their daughters Shannon and Stephanie, along with Stephanie's husband, Dan Kearns, has a wide range of veggies that have done well. The family had to persevere through not only the cold spring and dry summer, but also a windstorm blowing down a greenhouse early in the season.

"There were a lot of challenges we overcame," Stephanie Kearns said.

Ms Kearns said that the family had to hand water four acres of pumpkins for a month and a half because of the lack of rain.

"Which was very time-consuming," she noted. "It was hot - you had to get out there before the temperature rose."

It was a tough start to the growing season. Because some of the pumpkin seedlings didn't make it - likely eaten by pinworms, Stephen Paproski believes, he had to spend hours transplanting. Two seeds were planted together and typically the strongest is allowed to take over, but this year many of the second seedlings had to be moved to replace those that did not make it. The hard work is paying off with different shapes and sizes of Halloween and Thanksgiving decorations - including perfect Prizewinners - growing throughout the field.

Mr Paproski says his corn got off to a slow start because chipmunks ate the kernels as they were developing, but once the weather heated up the corn began to take off.

"Corn is fantastic this year. Now that it's hot and humid, it's growing really well," Diana Paproski added.

Castle Hill Farm's hybrid tomatoes are doing exceptionally well, Ms Paproski said. The vegetable crop is a bit later than it would have been if not for the chilly spring and greenhouse issue, but "our market is really now, at the end of the season," she adds.

Castle Hill not only sells a wide range of pumpkins, squash, and gourds, but also opens its corn maze in the fall.