Would you plant out?

[Boutique Tomatoes]

I've been planning on planting out this week, however now it looks like we're in for several days of thunderstorms; some potentially severe tomorrow. If we get 40+mph winds my row covers are going to be in the next county.

Sooo tempted to roll the dice and plant some out after dinner. Plants are hardened off, planting amendments are all on hand and the holes are dug and everything.

I've got extras of pretty much everything, but I'm wondering if I'm just sacrificing them and I'd be better holding off until this weather passes. Problem is if we get a lot of rain I won't be able to plant after the storms pass until the ground dries out again.

Maybe I should see what the weather says in the morning and skip work for a few hours if it changes, they're wrong so often these days.


What to do, what to do...

[Lcottomsvcs]

I am contemplating the same thing. The sun in shining at the moment, after a hard afternoon of thunderstorms. I'm thinking of slogging out there, mud and all. The plants are more than ready.....

[Boutique Tomatoes]

If it weren't for the big red smear marked "severe weather" coming right at us on the forecast and the talk of "Damaging winds, hail and isolated tornadoes" I'd take my chances. But we've had two bad hailstorms and a near miss with a tornado in the past few years so I tend to have a bit of respect when they're warning about major storms.

Much as I'm starting to hate watering all these plants I'll probably carry them back in tonight and see what tomorrow brings.

It's just getting hard to fit them on the shelving units...

[bughunter99]

As soon as I get a break in the rain the rest of mine are going out.

[dipchip2000]

Mark

If you are waiting on a Spring with out severe weather and thunderstorms and wind then you will never get to plant out. I planted out February 18th in Oklahoma which is insane by anyones measure. I lost only one plant and that was to a squirrel and was last week. Give them a chance and if it doesnt work out then use the extras to replace them. If they do grow and you throwaway the extras there is no loss.
Just my opinion YMMV

ron

[biscgolf]

if you have extras of everything then you have nothing to lose but some time by planting out...

[chalstonsc]

I 'd vote to let the weather get to where it will be settled down at least for a few days, if that means only waiting another couple days or so....planting out is hard enough for seedlings, so avoiding unecessary wind whipping, soil splash, not to mention possibly beating rains and hail at least until they get a little established, would seem to be a good thing to me....especially if it's a matter of days delay.... I figure what I lose in growth over as much as a week delay in planting out is not as important as the best possible start after transplant.

[Boutique Tomatoes]

I've decided against planting out knowing that the plants are likely to get beaten up when I can wait a few days and avoid the extra stress. If it gets too wet I've planted out barefoot in the mud before.

I'm guessing that it's going to take 2-3 minutes per plant to do everything I plan to (trying a myco dip this year, plus some amendments in the planting holes), even if I'm moving quickly. Times 200 plants - that's a lot of time to lose gambling that the weather forcast is wrong.

[lakelady]

I am not growing nearly as many plants as you are Mark, but one of my new garden areas is along a concrete walkway, with a stone wall up against the backside so it warms up pretty well there. So I decided to try putting some plants in as I had 6 WOWs. One collapsed two weeks ago and nearly killed one plant so I kept it off. Then I put 2 more plants in their holes so now I have 9 plants out there. All except one, which surprised me, are doing veryvery well. I did cover when frost came this week and cold nights but one of my Legends has weird colored blotches all over the leaves. Other than that, the protected plants are doing excellent. My main garden areas, I'm waiting another week or two as they won't be nearly as protected. Even though I keep knocking the cups over, they will have to wait a bit longer.

For as many as you have, you could try a few that you won't mind losing if they don't make it, and hold off on the bulk of the plants.

By the way, saw your pics and the garden plan looks awesome!

[fortyonenorth]

I'd wait, Mark. It's only the beginning of May and we could easily see night time temps dip back into the 30s over the next few weeks. Even if we don't get a frost or freeze, that's still a cold night from the perspective of a tomato or pepper. I used to shoot for Mother's Day (we're zone 6b along the southern shore of Lake Michigan) but now I postpone until at least mid-month.

[Boutique Tomatoes]

Originally Posted by fortyonenorth

I'd wait, Mark. It's only the beginning of May and we could easily see night time temps dip back into the 30s over the next few weeks. Even if we don't get a frost or freeze, that's still a cold night from the perspective of a tomato or pepper. I used to shoot for Mother's Day (we're zone 6b along the southern shore of Lake Michigan) but now I postpone until at least mid-month.

Probably sage advice. One reason I want to go ahead with my early plant out is I just don't have room inside for as many plants as I have now without them all covering each others leaves and they're starting to stretch a bit from the competition. I have larger planting containers to move all the extras up into once I get the first round planted out, and if I can get the boat out of the garage and in the lake I'll have space to put them all there and can just open the garage door for them to get sun during the day.

Another reason to get the greenhouse up for next year, no shuttling of plants in and out and more space...

[attml]

I always put a couple of test plants out. If it gets cold I just cover them with a large coffee can covered by a rock. The funny thing is that sitting out in cooler weather has slowed those early plants down and the stuff that stayed inside has doubled in size. The end result is the stuff that I waited on planting out is bigger and healthier than the stuff I put out early to get a head start!

[Boutique Tomatoes]

Originally Posted by lakelady

I am not growing nearly as many plants as you are Mark, but one of my new garden areas is along a concrete walkway, with a stone wall up against the backside so it warms up pretty well there. So I decided to try putting some plants in as I had 6 WOWs. One collapsed two weeks ago and nearly killed one plant so I kept it off. Then I put 2 more plants in their holes so now I have 9 plants out there. All except one, which surprised me, are doing veryvery well. I did cover when frost came this week and cold nights but one of my Legends has weird colored blotches all over the leaves. Other than that, the protected plants are doing excellent. My main garden areas, I'm waiting another week or two as they won't be nearly as protected. Even though I keep knocking the cups over, they will have to wait a bit longer.

For as many as you have, you could try a few that you won't mind losing if they don't make it, and hold off on the bulk of the plants.

By the way, saw your pics and the garden plan looks awesome!

I've got things rigged up to put down black plastic sheets in the walkways to help warm the ground a bit more (don't want to affect the good soil life in the planting area) and plastic row covers over every two rows with an optional inner cover of agribon fabric, which I'm hopeful will be enough protection for the occassional dip between now and the end of May. I'm not sure I have a good explaination as to why, but the raised bed soil temperature is a good 15 degrees warmer than non-raised beds, so that should help too. After last years June start I've set a goal to be planted out before my birthday next week and take my lumps if Mother Nature smacks me for being foolish.

Thanks for the compliment! As soon as I can get to it I'll post pictures of my other new tomato bed with the different trellis system. It uses less material.

[GaryStPaul]

I'm in exactly the same position, Mark. Plants have been ready for a while, are looking great but getting too big for their confinement; these from a much earlier sowing than in previous years. Despite predictions of thunderstorms off and on for the next few days I'm putting about 50 plants in bags out in a tunnel house, mostly the late-ripening varieties. Am still waiting on the greenhouse kit that was supposed to be here a couple of weeks ago. Could have put it to good use in that time.

[hoffman900]

I planted mine tonight. Local farmers started last night.