PLANT OUT! (W. Houston) - Page 2

Mojo · March 1, 2009

I'm keeping everything covered until Monday morning. I'm just wondering how much the actual cold will affect the plants, as opposed to frost.

Worth1 · March 1, 2009

The cold wont effect the plants but the frost and/or a freeze will.

Mine are in the garage at night all nestled in their beds with visions of sugar plums dancing in their heads.

No way will I plant out early this year, not enough of the other trees have budded out yet.

If I don’t plant out in about two weeks then I will have to wait and plant in a month.
I start twice what I need so if the first batch dies then the next batch will live so no big deal.

My cucumbers and squash have all sprouted and are awaiting plant out too.
And as above I started more than I need.

Worth

Plantersville · March 2, 2009

It got down to 28 here saturday nite and its sitting on 30 right now. The secret to planting early is having a plan for protection which I didnt but hopefully got lucky with a throw down plan for protection of my plants. I WILL have a better plan in place for next year!!

Mojo · March 2, 2009

It's sitting around 34 here at the house. I'm not going to uncover until I get in from my morning lectures (wherein my students will learn of the vicissitudes of weather and their effect on history) and hopefully all will be reasonably well. I do have the dozen or fifteen Gulf States Market seedlings that are about ready for planting anyway, so even a total loss could be replaced, although I'd want to hunt for some other varieties to round out the field.

feldon30 · March 2, 2009

Frost on the cars last night, but looks like my 3 sacrificial tomato plants pulled through. 43 expected tonight and then it's PLANT OUT TIME.

70's to low 80's during the day, mid-50's at night for the next 5 days.

Worth1 · March 2, 2009

I must be blessed, I have a volunteer vegetable vine of some sort growing in the yard and it shows no sign of frost or freeze damage.

I don't even think it has gotten down to freezing here at the house.

Cold sinks and I live on a hill and when I ride my motorcycle I can feel how much warmer it is here as opposed to down in town.

The other place/garden is a different story, it's almost always colder there and if it will frost it will there for sure.

I am at a total loss as of what to do, plant in a week or wait for three weeks to plant.

They are all in four inch pots and they should be ok till I get home the next time.

So today I think I will wait.

Worth

Mojo · March 2, 2009

I just got in from work and pulled off all the covers. No damages, save one or two broken leaves. Take THAT, no-account-weathermen!

Everyone is getting a nice watering about now. All that wind dried out the soil. Also, some of the bigger plants did not like being placed under cups and are kinda bunched up, this should help encourage them to spread out again.

feldon30 · March 2, 2009

The things we do for our tomatoes, right?

Plantersville · March 3, 2009

Wind is expected to be high for the rest of the week so I'll have to do something about that although I have a bunch of trees for some protection. March winds, April showers? Lets hope so. I can sure use some rain up here.

Plantersville · March 3, 2009

I mistakenly left a flat of plants on the back porch last nite and it looks like cutworms had a hey day. Either that or the rabbits got up on the porch.
Here's a pic

salix · March 3, 2009

I would suspect birds...

Ruth_10 · March 3, 2009

Not cutworms. I don't think they can climb up plastic. When it is a cutworm, you often can find the cutworm by digging around in the soil around the stump.

Worth1 · March 3, 2009

My cat Smokey does this sort of thing.

I thought she would grow out of it but she did it this year too.

If I didn't love my cats so much I would kill her.

I just have to out smart her.

Worth

newatthiskat · March 4, 2009

Yea my kitty Resses is the reason I only have 2 possible tomotillo plants. I say possible because i am not sure they will survive.
Kat

Mojo · March 4, 2009

P, that looks like Mammal Damage. Thankfully my garden cat doesn't enjoy using plants as chew toys --she just 'helpfully' rearranges the furrows.

Nice warm days and little wind here. I put out five of the taller Gulf State plants and two replacement zukes. I have eleven GS left --anyone around here (Feldon, deerpark?) wanna swap?

March 1, 2009	#16
Mojo Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Houston, TX Posts: 317	I'm keeping everything covered until Monday morning. I'm just wondering how much the actual cold will affect the plants, as opposed to frost. __________________ There is no logical response to the question, "Why won't you let me plant more tomatoes?"

March 2, 2009	#18
Plantersville Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Plantersville, Texas Zone 8 Posts: 138	It got down to 28 here saturday nite and its sitting on 30 right now. The secret to planting early is having a plan for protection which I didnt but hopefully got lucky with a throw down plan for protection of my plants. I WILL have a better plan in place for next year!! __________________ Chuck I love to eat, sleep and fish........not necessarily in that order!

March 2, 2009	#19
Mojo Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Houston, TX Posts: 317	It's sitting around 34 here at the house. I'm not going to uncover until I get in from my morning lectures (wherein my students will learn of the vicissitudes of weather and their effect on history) and hopefully all will be reasonably well. I do have the dozen or fifteen Gulf States Market seedlings that are about ready for planting anyway, so even a total loss could be replaced, although I'd want to hunt for some other varieties to round out the field. __________________ There is no logical response to the question, "Why won't you let me plant more tomatoes?"

March 2, 2009	#20
feldon30 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2006 Location: Rock Hill, SC Posts: 5,346	Frost on the cars last night, but looks like my 3 sacrificial tomato plants pulled through. 43 expected tonight and then it's PLANT OUT TIME. 70's to low 80's during the day, mid-50's at night for the next 5 days. __________________ [SIZE="3"]I've relaunched my gardening website -- [B]TheUnconventionalTomato.com[/B][/SIZE] * [I][SIZE="1"]*I'm not allowed to post weblinks so you'll have to copy-paste it manually.[/SIZE][/I]

March 2, 2009	#22
Mojo Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Houston, TX Posts: 317	I just got in from work and pulled off all the covers. No damages, save one or two broken leaves. Take THAT, no-account-weathermen! Everyone is getting a nice watering about now. All that wind dried out the soil. Also, some of the bigger plants did not like being placed under cups and are kinda bunched up, this should help encourage them to spread out again. __________________ There is no logical response to the question, "Why won't you let me plant more tomatoes?"

March 1, 2009	#17
Worth1 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Den of Drunken Fools Posts: 38,539	The cold wont effect the plants but the frost and/or a freeze will. Mine are in the garage at night all nestled in their beds with visions of sugar plums dancing in their heads. No way will I plant out early this year, not enough of the other trees have budded out yet. If I don’t plant out in about two weeks then I will have to wait and plant in a month. I start twice what I need so if the first batch dies then the next batch will live so no big deal. My cucumbers and squash have all sprouted and are awaiting plant out too. And as above I started more than I need. Worth

March 3, 2009	#24
Plantersville Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Plantersville, Texas Zone 8 Posts: 138	Wind is expected to be high for the rest of the week so I'll have to do something about that although I have a bunch of trees for some protection. March winds, April showers? Lets hope so. I can sure use some rain up here. __________________ Chuck I love to eat, sleep and fish........not necessarily in that order!

March 3, 2009	#26
salix Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: north central B.C. Posts: 2,310	I would suspect birds...

March 3, 2009	#27
Ruth_10 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: MO z6a near St. Louis Posts: 1,349	Not cutworms. I don't think they can climb up plastic. When it is a cutworm, you often can find the cutworm by digging around in the soil around the stump. __________________ --Ruth Some say the glass half-full. Others say the glass is half-empty. To an engineer, it’s twice as big as it needs to be.

March 4, 2009	#29
newatthiskat Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: texas Posts: 1,451	reply Yea my kitty Resses is the reason I only have 2 possible tomotillo plants. I say possible because i am not sure they will survive. Kat