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NYT Strands Answer & Hints — “The growing season”, July 6, 2026

Stuck on the July 6, 2026 NYT Strands puzzle? Here are progressive hints and the full answer for the “The growing season” puzzle (Strands #546 of 546 in our archive). Every reveal is hidden by default — click to open the ones you need.

Spoiler warning. The answers below are for the July 6, 2026 NYT Strands puzzle. Scroll past this section if you want to solve it yourself first.
Hint 1: The themeReveal

The theme for the July 6, 2026 NYT Strands puzzle is “The growing season”. Every theme word and the spangram connects back to this phrase, so think about what related words might fit a 6×8 grid of 48 letters before you start scanning.

Hint 2: Spangram length and first letterReveal

The spangram for the “The growing season” puzzle is 10 letters long and starts with the letter S. It touches two opposite edges of the grid, as every NYT Strands spangram does.

Hint 3: How many theme wordsReveal

Besides the spangram, the July 6, 2026 NYT Strands puzzle has 6 theme words. Together with the spangram, they use every letter on the 6×8 grid exactly once.

Answer: Full spangramReveal

The spangram for the July 6, 2026 NYT Strands “The growing season” puzzle is SUMMERTIME. It spans two opposite edges of the 6×8 grid and captures the theme directly.

Answer: All theme wordsReveal

Here are the 6 theme words for the July 6, 2026 NYT Strands “The growing season” puzzle:

  • BLOOM
  • BURGEON
  • EXPAND
  • FLOURISH
  • SPREAD
  • THRIVE

Plus the spangram SUMMERTIME, that’s every word on the grid — all 48 letters accounted for.

Answers for the July 6, 2026 NYT Strands puzzle. Strands Unlimited is an independent fan archive — today's NYT Strands is free on nytimes.com/games/strands.

About the "The growing season" NYT Strands puzzle

This puzzle is themed "The growing season", a descriptive phrase that captures the essence of what you're searching for. In Strands, descriptive themes give you a broad direction without being too specific — the fun is in discovering exactly which sports & games words the puzzle maker chose to represent the idea. The spangram will name the core concept, and the theme words are its supporting cast.

This puzzle has 6 theme words hidden in the grid — a balanced count that gives you enough to work with without overwhelming the board. The 10-letter spangram is notably long, consuming a good chunk of the grid's 48 letters. Its size makes it easier to find if you focus on the grid's edges. Originally published on a Monday, Puzzle #546 is a more recent addition to the 546+ puzzle archive.

#546
Puzzle Number
6
Theme Words
10
Spangram Letters
Medium
Difficulty

How to approach "The growing season"

  • The theme paints a picture. Brainstorm 5-10 words that come to mind when you read it, then scan the grid for those words or close variants.
  • The long 10-letter spangram is your best starting point. Scan the edges of the grid — the spangram must start on one side and end on the opposite side.
  • Work from the corners of the grid — corner letters have fewer possible neighboring connections, which limits where words can go and makes them easier to trace.
PreviousAll NYT Strands answers

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Strands Unlimited is an independent fan archive of past Strands puzzles. Not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by The New York Times Company. NYT Strands is a trademark of The New York Times Company. Today's daily puzzle is free at nytimes.com/games/strands.