OJ
My sister lives in the high desert of Colorado, trying for a veggie garden. They experience extreme temperature swings, 90F plus days, can freeze at night anytime of year. I heard of a tactic of spreading a layer of river pebbles, crushed rocks, or pea stones on top of the soil. My guess is that this acts as a buffer from the sun during day, and releases heat at night? Is there truth and science to this? Thanks, cheers.