As usual...

[TomatoDon]

Typical April here. I have everything ready to go and was exercising a LOT of patience not to plant. I can depend each year on that last cold snap. Last year it wiped out tomatoes and bedding plants all over the country. This week I was really temped with the current good temps to go ahead and get started until I saw the forecast predicting another blast in the 30's for here in a few days.

Thank goodness for patience. I'll hold back a little longer. My original plan to wait till the middle of the month and then get a good ten day forecast is paying off.

Has everyone who planted got a good back up plan for the cold snap?

Don

[kygreg]

My first back up plan is to move to Ecuador; the second and the one I use is to start about 4 times as many seedlings as I need.

[gardenhappy]

We had a crazy spring it would be high 80's for a few weeks then for like 24 hours go all the way to 34!!!! then back up to 80's then a freak cold front would come in and we would be back to 30-40's,the poor plants did not know what to do! finally the last few weeks now rain,rain ,rain and this is our "dry" month,our cannals are full with more rain comming Saterday.

[natural]

Hi Don, That is my plan as well. I am in northern Georgia.

I am waiting until next week and then checking the 10 day forcast. I also was nailed by the late freeze last year.

Bill

[TomatoDon]

I think I learned my lesson in 2001 I believe when we had a freeze April 17. From then on I potted them up to bigger sizes if they needed it, but moved them in and out of the house as the weather dictated, keeping everything mobile till at least April 17 with a good extended forecast before planting out. That is what saved my plants last year. My theory now is to just let them grow in pots till it is REALLY time to plant.

Don

PS...edit...I noticed my neighbor out in the country just planted 100 or more really nice Goliath's this week. And the temps are supposed to be 34 f Monday night. He's been raising those seedlings since the first week of January and they are really nice, healthy, large plants now. I sure hope they stay that way. He's originally from south MS and is on this Goliath kick and that's all he will plant. I have no idea what his passion for that variety is. Maybe I'll try one this year.

[the999bbq]

I use the same strategies as mentionned above : I have about three good seedlings selected per variety from the seedlings that came out (more than those three of course) and they will be repotted as the need it (the best one go into bigger ones first, the lesser ones stay longer in their smaller containers, keeping their size down with it - they are just back-up, and I hope that I will not need them and give them away if nothing bad happend). The second strategy is really to wait as long as possible and that isn't easy because two weeks of t-short weather does mean things to our minds). And my third and maybe most important strategy is not to start too early with the sowings. Every year I have to sit on my hands, lock away the seeds and give the key to somone else or I would sow my tomatoes the second of january. I don't want to stretch the season to the absolut limits, a fair amount of tomatoes from the plants is already more than I can handle and conditions are not adequate too early in the season (nor for working in the soil as for growing them) so keeping the food of the speedpedal may be the best strategy... for next season ;-)
I don't like the hassle of covering plants in or out the greenhouse for those last below zero temperature spikes, so I'd rather loose two weeks of my season than two thirds of my plants.

Peter

[TomatoDon]

"Would rather loose two weeks of my season that two thirds of my plants"....good one! I like that, and the other saying "I always plant late but I never plant over."

I'm counting down the days now!

Don

[rxkeith]

also as usual for here, we can't seem to get by mid april without a major snow storm. 6-10 inches predicted by tomorrow with a little more after that. it doesn't stick around for long with temps rising, but still kinda discouraging after finally getting the streets clear, snow banks shrinking down, pulling out the bikes for a couple of days. thats life in da U.P. june 1st is the usually safe plant out date here. still gotta keep an eye on the forecast which isn't always close to being right.

keith

[Dukerdawg]

Keith, I think I mentioned this before, but it was 32 degrees the night of the 4th of July 5 or 6 years ago when I was camping (tent) in Munising! I would add...I kid you not....but you would know I wasn't kidding. Challenging in your neck of the woods for sure.

Mid-may is usually safe here, but again...not always. I've never lost any plants jumping the gun, thanks to that 10 day forecast (knock on wood).

My plants snuggled under lights in the basement except for some Silvery Fir Trees and Taxi's that are out in the greenhouse. Rather than spend money on heat I will just bring the tray in the house if it gets too cold. Just trying to get those early container tomatoes!


Duane

[huntoften]

Snowing in Kansas City now...unreal!

[TomatoDon]

Going down to mid 30's here tonight, then good chance of freezing tomorrow. It's working out about like it usually does, and this should be the last cold blast of the season. Wasnt the last bad cold blast of 2007 the week of April 7-10?

Everything's ready to plant. Just waiting on the weather.

Don

[gardengalrn]

I was shooting for the 1st of May or so, depending on the long-range forecast at the time. It sure has been cold here, too. I potted up all my spring veggies this afternoon (cabbage, broc, collards, etc) and ended up putting a sheet over them tonight. They've been out all this time but were more protected in their 2-liter bottle greenhouses. I was absolutely shocked to see that my peas are shooting up today! I planted them back in March and it hasn't been nice since. 5 or so days ago I dug a small patch to see what was going on and they had sprouted. Nothing above ground until today, I was just sure they had rotted.

[jenn_sc]

We've had some really fickle weather this month too. 40F and strong winds forecast for tonight. I learned my lesson last year with that April freeze....but I'm chomping at the bit to get my plants in the ground. I wouldn't mind waiting if it didn't go immediately from winter to summer here! It's either cold enough to kill the plants or too hot for fruit to set. It seems we have very little in between

Jennifer

[Lilypon]

Seems so strange to read that some well south of me are expecting snow! North of the 49th (in the mid west) we hit + 23 degrees Celsius (73.4 F) today. Tonight's temperature 48.2°F / 9°C

Our greenhouse is now up (and while we didn't get snow DH turned the air blue....instructions left out a few important steps).

However I won't be jumping the planting out gun...... nights can hold some (many) extremely nasty surprises for awhile yet.

[TomatoDon]

Here's a few shots, thanks to Feldon Central, of covering some plants before the freeze. The raspberries are mine, the tomatoes are my neighbor's, Mr. Holyfield. His grandchildren helped get them covered against the freeze.

Don