tenting tomatoes

Sometimes we do things out of habit without really understanding why - at least I do. I'm in Minnesota and I've had a portable greenhouse for several years and used it through around the middle of June to protect container tomato plants I started with seed from temperature drops, direct sunlight and pesky deer and rabbits. Last year it was ripped to shreds by age and wind, so I built a very cheap makeshift one this year out of 1x2's and 3 mil plastic.

So far it's holding up OK but I'm starting to wonder why I actually need a greenhouse at all once the temperatures are above 40 at night. With lower temps or the threat of heavy storms I drag everything into the garage anyway. Mostly I have tomatoes, herbs and flowers. I'm thinking the only real threat if I eliminate the tenting is pests, but very soon I will have most of the plants off the ground (rabbits) and will spray (for deer & rabbits). Just wondering what others think about this... tomato temperature tolerance, what you do to protect them, etc.

They may tolerate temperature, but they grow at lot better if they are warmer. 10° makes a big difference in how fast they grow.

You need to take into account the soil temps also. For tomato transplants the soil temps should be at least 60*. If the temps are lower the roots will be stunted and this could effect your plants the entire season or you will be taking care of them for longer then needed. I have found that my plants that are put in the ground later in the season have a MUCH shorter DTM.

Right now the day temps are 60-70 degrees and nights are as low as forty. If I haul them into the garage the night temp is 50. Not much I can do about that now - so you're saying thew damaged roots will lead to plants that do not produce fruit?

I don't think the low temps actually damage the roots, but the plants will just not grow that well unless the temps are higher, which for most of us happens pretty soon after setting out.

And I agree that plants set out later, sometimes I have to do that if I've received seeds too late, do catch up to the ones set out earlier, but I'm not so sure it changes the actual DTM's .

But who knows with DTM's which are sheer guesstimates in the first place b'c there are so many variables that can influence them. So I pay no attention at all to DTM's and just use a spread of days to know if a variety is early, mid-season, or late season, for my area.

Carolyn

OOPs my above post was more for peppers. BUT I have noticed that the tomato plants that went in the ground, when it was cooler, have much smaller root systems, and grew much slower when it was cooler.

Michael-your situation is completely different. Im still trying to figure out how it is in the 60s-70s and rainy, in Texas in May!
It was in the 90s last week, but even that wasnt around very long.

Minnesota temperatures have been unusually weird this Spring, warming very early and then bouncing all over. I left some tomato plants in the protection tent last night and drug everything else into the garage. I checked the tent temp before heading to bed at 2 am and it was a little over 40 degrees (about the same as the outdoor temp). The garage was 52. The plants in the tent look like they survived just fine (so far!).

The plants will be fine as long as the temps stay above freezing, temps in the 40s won't kill them but they will probably just sit there and pout. Your temps sound like ours.