How to Keep Your Cool When the Garden Is on Fire (With Food!)

by Judith Yisrael August 26, 2025

Real talk from the homestead, where the sun is cooking and so are we.

August on the farm hits different.

The mornings start crisp, quiet, and golden—but by noon, you’re dripping sweat just walking to the garden gate. The tomatoes are popping off. The squash coming in hot (literally). And the weeds? Child, they’re living their best life.

I call this the season of abundance… but let’s be honest—it’s also the season of burnout if you don’t pace yourself. This season has brought some set-backs and has tested me in ways I've never thought possible.

Over the years, working our land in Sacramento has taught us how to ride the rhythm of summer without letting it ride us. And now that we’re in our fourth year stewarding land in Amador County, we’ve deepened that rhythm even more. Up here, the sun feels different, the soil speaks slower, and the lessons come with longer shadows and quieter mornings.

When the garden’s on fire and everything needs your attention, you’ve got two choices: hustle ‘til you melt… or move with wisdom.

Here’s how we stay cool, nourished, and grounded when the heat is doing the most—and how you can, too.

Let the Sun Be Your Sous Chef

I don’t just respect the sun—I collaborate with it.

During the hottest weeks of the year, our solar oven becomes my best friend. Instead of firing up the stove and turning the kitchen into a sauna, I harness the sun’s energy to cook everything from sun-kissed oxtails to turmeric-infused golden cornbread.

What’s a solar oven?

It’s basically a sun-powered slow cooker—but with versatility depending on your needs. We use a variety of solar ovens on the farm, from the humble to the high-tech.

Sometimes I reach for our cardboard box lined with foil, which is lightweight, portable, and perfect for quick reheats in the field or at market events. It's surprisingly effective for warming up leftovers or steeping herbal infusions when you’re on the go.

On the homestead, I also use a simple box-style solar oven with a glass door. This one is a bit more durable and works great for roasting veggies or baking cornbread right on the porch.

And most recently, I’ve been putting our Sun Oven® to work. It’s sturdy, insulated, and comes with reflectors that help it reach higher temps—sometimes up to 350°F on a hot day. I’ve roasted squash, baked bread, simmered oxtails, and even slow-cooked beans in it, all without turning on the stove. It’s a beautiful example of how sustainable tools can meet everyday needs without compromising flavor or tradition.

Here's one of my favorites:

Toss chopped tomatoes, zucchini, onions, and okra in olive oil, garlic, and your favorite dried herbs. Pop them in my double stacked cooking pan, cover with lid, and place in them in my solar oven for 2–3 hours. The result? A slow-roasted, sun-kissed veggie medley with zero electricity used.

Cool Down From the Inside Out with Herbal Sun Tea

Your body is 60% water—and in this heat, every sip counts.

But instead of just plain water, I reach for herbal sun teas that hydrate and heal. Cooling herbs like peppermint, lemon balm, hibiscus, tulsi, and calendula grow right here on the farm and offer benefits beyond refreshment.

Lemon balm calms the nervous system
Mint cools the body + aids digestion
Hibiscus supports heart health and electrolyte balance

How I make it (roughly because I don't measure):

Ingredients:

4 tbsp dried lemon balm
4 tbsp dried peppermint
4 tbsp hibiscus petals
Optional: a few slices of fresh cucumber or dried orange peel
Optional: fresh mint sprigs for garnish
Lemon juice or farm honey, to taste

Directions:

Add all dried herbs to a 1-gallon glass jar (or divide between two ½-gallon jars if needed).
Fill the jar with clean, filtered water.
Cover with a lid or cloth and set it in direct sunlight for 3–5 hours.
Strain out the herbs, then chill in the refrigerator.
Serve over ice with a squeeze of lemon or a spoonful of honey.
Store the rest in the fridge and enjoy within 3–4 days.

This brew is beautifully floral, tangy, and cooling. Great for hydration, mood, and digestion—all while honoring the plants that grow right here on the land.

Blend It Up: Cooling Smoothies to the Rescue

When it’s too hot to cook (or even chew), we make smoothies—packed with hydration, fiber, and plant-based fuel.

Smoothies are one of the easiest ways to sneak in nutrient-rich produce, especially when your fridge is overflowing from your CSA box.

Our go-to Cooling Farm Smoothie:

2 frozen bananas
1 cup nut milk (I like to use Almond or Oat)
1 heaping tablespoon of peanut butter
1 tablespoon of Chocolate collagen peptides
Optional: teaspoon of vanilla or mint for a chocolate 'thin mint' flair

Blend until smooth, sip slowly, and let the chill reset your whole system.

Other ideas:

Frozen figs + oat milk + cinnamon
Blueberries + basil + yogurt
Tomato + peach + a pinch of sea salt (trust me)

Smoothies aren’t just for breakfast—they’re survival tools during harvest season.

Rest Like It’s Sacred

At Yisrael Farms, we take rest seriously. Especially during peak sun hours.

It took me a while to learn that rest isn’t weakness—it’s wisdom. Our ancestors didn’t labor in the midday heat if they didn’t have to. They rose early, moved slow, and let the hottest part of the day be for stillness, prayer, shelling peas, or mending clothes under the shade.

My rhythm:

Mornings are for harvesting, watering, collecting eggs and feeding the livestock
Afternoons are for light work, administrative tasks, zoom calls or short naps
Evenings are for watering, weeding, or walking the land as the sun sets

The afternoon rest part is still a struggle for me, yet I'm learning not to chase productivity. My goal is more alignment with the sun.

Feed Your Skin What It’s Thirsty For

When the heat is high, your skin can dry out fast—and our whipped body butter is the best way to keep my skin moisturized and to lock in hydration. I also reach for our comfrey oil, which I love to use after a day in the sun or working in the garden. It soaks in beautifully, soothing any irritation and supporting skin repair naturally.

For me, it’s all about keeping things simple and plant-based—nourishing my skin with the same ingredients we grow and care for on the farm.

This time of year, I plan to lean in more on herbal mists, tea rinses, and light oil infusions made from calendula, peppermint, rose, or lavender. I have a wonderful calendula facial serum that is currently in test mode and I'm excited to roll it out soon as part of our farm to skin offerings. It has been wonderful for my skin. Until then, try this:

Brew a strong tea of peppermint and calendula
Chill it in the fridge
Pour it into a spray bottle for a cooling, anti-inflammatory skin mist

Pro tip: Keep it by your door or in your market bag—it’s a whole experience when you spritz that cooling mist mid-market or after watering the chickens.

Body butters will resume shipping in fall. For now? Hair and body serum, hydration and herbs.

Eat Like the Land Is Feeding You (Because It Is)

This time of year, our meals are 80% what we pull from the land and 20% what we can stand to cook.

We eat light and seasonal. Think cucumber salads, grilled eggplant, fresh watermelon, grapes from our vines, and good old salad and kale massaged and tossed with tomatoes, basil, fresh peppers and olive oil.

Try this simple meal:

Slice up a few sun-ripened tomatoes
Add chopped basil, red onion, marinated artichokes, cucumbers, bell peppers, avocado
Drizzle with olive oil, sea salt and lemon or lime juice or just slather on some chipotle bitchin' sauce
Let it sit for 10 mins before serving with bread or grilled corn

Cooling. Easy. Nourishing. And it doesn’t heat up your kitchen.

Let Your Garden Breathe

Your plants are sweating too.

Here’s what I do when the garden feels like it’s frying:

Mulch deeply to retain moisture and protect roots
Harvest early (okra especially needs daily attention)
Water at dawn, not dusk, to prevent fungal issues
Shade delicate crops with row cover or trellised plants like beans or sunflowers

And if a plant is struggling hard? We let it go. Not everything is meant to survive August. We save seed, say a prayer, and move on.

Final Thought: Honor the Heat

Summer teaches us boundaries.

You can’t do everything. You can’t grow everything. And you certainly can’t pour from an empty watering can.

So move with the heat, not against it. Let it slow you down. Let it teach you which tasks can wait. Let it remind you that your ancestors did not survive by running—they survived by resting, restoring, and remembering who they were.

Stay cool, stay grounded, and keep tending to what feeds you.

With love and soil-stained hands,
Judith Yisrael
Chief Cultivator | Yisrael Farms
“Grow food. Grow people.”

IG: @beets_by_j