Atlanta's frost date is 4/15. I got spring fever and just bought a ton of plants at the Growers Outlet in Loganville. The perrenials are established in 4" and gallon size pots. Do you think I should wait to plant them. It seems spring is here to stay. I know anything can happen before the frost date, but I was hoping for some seasoned veterans opinions. I really don't have any more room in my garage for more plants!
Thanks,
Catherine
Too early to plant?
If it makes you feel any better I read somewhere, (?) can't remember where, that Atlanta's last frost date is 4/10. It's a toss-up. The plants have probably been grown and protected inside a greenhouse before shipment but perennials are usually hardy...If you have no more room to store in your garage, maybe keep them in a protected area near your house until the end of the month or plant them, heavily mulch and even if we get a night or two of freezing temps the mulch should protect them because the day time temps are warm.
I can't wait anymore. It's 82 here today and the ground is plenty warm, I say. After all, everything I am planting is hardy anyway, so what can it hurt, hmmm? I hear dear hubby saying: "impatient child"
I too want to plant NOW!! I have been convincing myself that it is not a 4/15 last frost date...its only a 4/15 POSSIBLE last frost date. (so how lucky do we all feel?) I decided last week that 4/1 is the longest I am going to wait. Now I am actually thinking, the weather channel has a 7 day forcast so on March 22, I will now what the temps will be up to April 1. We are supposed to get cold on this Saturday and Sun. I am trying to hold off for the tomato sake but its soooooo hard.
Chris
It's driving me nuts too. Now the weather forecast says lows in the 40's for this weekend. An old farmer told me don't plant until the oak trees have buds on them. All 4 of my oaks are budless. :( Another friend waits until April 1 to plant his tomatoes, peppers, etc.
All I have to plant is about 85 bulbs and a ton of cannas. I haven't been to Growers outlet yet.....
Well, I just planted 62 caladiums, and if they don't make it that's just tough patooties. I have a whole ton of stuff on the way and I simply MUST get started or they will never make it in the ground. The package the caladiums came in said Feb to April for our area, so I think I'm safe on those. If I can find the energy after Woodthrush's coop stuff gets planted, I may go back to Sam's and get another box of caladiums. I am just finding more and more places I think they would look nice. :) 50 for 12.99, hard to beat that price if you don't care about knowing what their names are.
Raggedyann, we cross posted; I am relieved to hear this info, as most all my oaks have buds. I learn so much here!
Guardians, I love caladiums! I dug all of mine up in the fall and have started them in pots again. I'm waiting a few more weeks to get them in the ground. That is a good price at Sam's. I may go get some more. They look awesome wherever they are planted. A few years ago I planted some along the side of the house between daylillies and glads and got so many compliments from the neighbors. Hubby found them at Lowe's for .88 a pot then.
I had no idea where Thomson was, had to look at the map. I've heard of Thomaston but that one stumped me.
It's nice to meet you :)
Susan
Susan, how did you have them with daylily and glad, I thought caladium had to be in full shade? I never had caladium before and bought about 30 this year. I never buy anything that has to be dug up, but this year I gave in cause they look so cool. I still dont think I will actually dig them up. Has anyone had any come back after the winter or do you all dig them up?
chris
Caladium tubers are tropical with a vengence. They will not sprout in cold soil and will turn to mush in the ground during the winter here in zone 8. The only place that I have seen them over winter planted in the ground was inside a greenhouse in Birmingham.
I thought that I was safe planting them out and trying to over winter them here in Cordele. No dice. Next time I plan to start them early in pots and plunge the pots in the ground. For the winter I will just lift the pots, dry them off, and store inside till the following spring.
Beth
Well Bummer! I was really hoping that they had at least a chance. Ok, I doubt it, but if I decide to dig them up do I have to do anything to them? Can I just put them in a plastic storage box with shredded paper and a cover? I like the idea of pulling the pot. Will you just put them in storage still in the dirt? What do you mean by "dry them off"?
chris
The oak trees here are full of buds, several trees are sprouting greenery (sorry, don't know my tree types well yet!), and I've planted out some of my wintersown stuff already. It's just too pretty to not be gardening. Since I've grown everything from seed, if I lose a few then I'll just re-plant some new seeds! I've got two beds prepared for veggies, one half-full already - but all early season stuff that should do fine even with a frost dusting.
I am SO loving the weather!
~Sunny
Chris,
The daylillies were here when I moved in. They are on the side of the house that the sun comes up on. I put a few glads in a couple years ago and then added caladiums after that. They are in the shade for the rest of the day.
Last fall I dug up the caladiums and stored them in sphagnum moss because that was all I could find at the time.
Hope this helps you some.
Susan
Thanks, Sounds good, I am still figuring out where everything is going to go.
Atlanta weather says 32 for Saturday night. :(
Sterling
I plan to cover my growing nursery of unplanted plants. I pray that will hold off Saturday's cold night.
cn
I have been slowly planting since the begining of March, being careful to heavily mulch tender plants such as caladiums, elephant ears, philadandrums, hosta, lambs ear, etc. I have mountain laurel and lavender to plant over the weekend so I will definitely be protecting them. The key as far as I have learned is mulching in case of frost. The soil temperature must remain below freezing to actually hurt the rooting system. There is still ample pine straw and leaves on the ground, so cover cover cover!
Well, I'm a bit north of most of you and we have 28-30 predicted. I keep my hardy stuff in pots out in the open and they have fared well this winter, but my annuals will be under cover this Saturday night. And maybe a few more before it's finally "safe"!!
Thank goodness I didn't get all my leaves up; they will mulch my hosta and other plants up way too early! And, also being north of ya'll, up above Gainesville, nearer the mountains, two years ago we got a bad frost on April 19, and then last year, a near miss in mid-April, so our last frost was actually in late March, the 24th.
Ya never know!! Toss of Nature's dice!
Good luck, all!!
Brenda
It's too early to gamble with tender perennials and annuals unless you cover them. Covering gets old real fast unless you have a tiny garden. We used to cover azaleas until they got too big. If a frost gets them, it gets them. We got down into the upper 30's two years ago in early May which is very rare. One thing is for sure, when it does dip down into the 30's (maybe even the 20's) you will find out what is hardy and what isn't. I can't tell you how many years it took to learn that lesson. Don't forget dogwood weather and Easter always seems to bring in some cold air so don't get too impatient!
uh-oh....too late
Icf,
Saw your question on caladiums. If you plant them in the ground, you have to dig them before or around the first frost. Do not leave outdoors over winter because they will not survive (I did that two years ago and lost all of them). Hose off the bubs and let them dry in the sun for a few hours then store them in pots, trays, boxes, etc. They should do fine unless one rots which could rot any that are touching it (like potatoes). I suppose you could store them in a pot with soil as long as you have it semi-dry before storing away for winter. I have several in pots and aluminum trays in the basement that were nice and firm when I checked them a couple of weeks ago and one still in the pot it came in out in the garage (this one I don't know the status of).
Thanks hcmc, that is exactly the kindergarden instructions I was looking for. I ask an awful lot of questions because it wasnt long ago that I realized that I dont have to plant square or round bushes in a straight line across the front of house, with a holly on either side of garage door. Now I want elaborate garden beds and I want them this year, so I have alot to learn in a short time. I really do appreciate an answer that I dont have to look up every other word in the glossary. I will speak fluent plant probably in another year. :) Will still ask a thousand questions though, they just probably wont be so basic.
chris
Chris I do have squarish hedges across the front of my house. They were here when we moved in. The ones in front of the holly are azaleas and they are small. Every year one dies and I plant something that I love in it's place.They have been on the other side of the garage and side of the house. I have 2 more to remove. One is dead and one almost. It took me almost 2 hours Sat. to get one out but I did it. My neighbor's son cuts our grass and he has a big chevy truck. He told me he can pull the hedges out with his truck and a chain. I'm drooling! I have a rose, hydrangea and butterfly bush to put in.
Guess we are a lot alike. I want what I want and I want it now. LOL!!
Susan
LOL Susan. I think what happens is...I spend a long time thinking of exactly what I want, right down to which bush and flower goes where and exactly how big it gets and what the whole picture will look like, then if I dont get it done I am afraid I will forget all the details and have to start the thinking process all over again.
I pulled mine out with my truck but when I did the chains crushed the bushes. I ended up using a 1/2 inch nylon rope and wrapped it around and around and in and out of the base of the branches, then did the shovel lever at the same time and the truck was pulling. They came right out. Good luck
chris
I had the old burford hollies pulled up from the front of my house and a new flower bed installed at the end of summer of '05. It was well amended and bordered nicely, but was completely empty. I have just about 'furnished' the whole bed with perennials and shrubs I bought during that first winter. Most were up to 95% off, none were less than 50% off. I have lost very few...maybe 3 perennials and no shrubs, though they were all planted during the winter and very early spring.
I just made sure they were well watered and mulched. Other than that, no special care at all, and I saved a whole lot of money!!
If you're one who like a lot of one plant, this likely wouldn't work for you. But I like the cottage garden effect, so buying two or three, or one plant at a time works well for me.
Beth.. I'm doing what your doing with my new caladium bulbs from Sams.. Plant in pots and place in basement for following year after frost. I just can't do the digging up every year.. too labor intensive for all that I grow. i wanted to grow dahlias and found out that some local growers don't dig and leave in over winter.. so there went my money on Dahlia tubers this year!! I've been planting spring bulbs and have many more to go. :)
Susan
I leave dahlias in the ground. They usually come back but if it got real cold then chances are they won't.
I saw that the low temps this weekend are supposed to be 35, 33, and 30 starting Friday morning. Just hope the seed that are up are tough enough to take it. Thank goodness I haven't moved houseplants out yet.
mee too!! notwithstanding the fact that I've almost killed some in the garage from lack of watering!!
:0
Susan
Do you think there is even a slight chance that the zinnia that I grew from seed will survive? They are between 4-12" tall and have been planted out for over a week. Or will they bite the dust like the coleus. There was no more room in the house, the easiest and cheapest had to go out.
chris
If you protect it, then it should be okay. If you leave it exposed it could be frost bitten but it may come back and make a nice plant (it all depends on how cold and how long). The nice thing is seed is fairly cheap.
I think your zinnia will be fine.. so close to the ground still.. can you cover them? too many??
Susan
This happens every year. You'd think I'd just accept it instead of fighting it and rushing the season. Luckily I still haven't planted most of my annuals! Procrastination pays off!!! I just will hate to see the dogwood and azalea flowers die. They are SOOO beautiful this year. Better than I can remember in several years. I know Easter isn't about all of the flowers, but they sure make the holiday feel special...hopeful...like a rebirth.
cn
Nice to know that they at least have a chance. There is kinda too many to cover, I was able to put milk containers and 3 lb coffee jugs over some, but most will have to fend for themselves. I will wait a little longer next year to plant, being new I started the seed inside too early and my hubby was calling it my jungle. I grew alot of perennials for new beds and wont have all that next year.
Newbie question...does cover them really just mean cover them with anything, ie buckets, cups, pots, small garbage pails, plastic totes? Should i put t-shirts or towels or newspaper on top of these items?
chris
Good Luck to everyone this weekend. I covered all my tomatoes with plastic pots and then 6mil black plastic.
I knew I shouldn't have tried to cheat by 2 weeks
BB
WATER IT!!!!!!! :)
Susan
http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/503197/
Understanding Frost
In spring and fall, the word frost sends gardeners scurrying for sheets, boxes, jars, floating row covers, the sprinkler system, or whatever they can scrounge to keep their plants safe from a possible cold snap. Just what is frost, and what does it do? How do your protective measures work?
There are two types of frost, advective and radiation. Advective frosts occur when a cold front sweeps into an area. Winds are typically gusty, clouds may occur and the thickness of the cold air layer may reach more than a mile high. One seldom sees the first frost of the season under these conditions. The first frost is typically a radiation frost. These occur under a clear sky and calm winds.
On overcast nights, cloud cover acts like a blanket on the Earth, trapping radiant heat from the ground. Any wind mixes the air thus trapped, creating a uniform temperature. However, clear skies and calm winds allow radiant heat from the Earth to rise to the upper layers of the atmosphere. Lack of wind prevents mixing of the air and an inversion layer develops. An inversion means that atmospheric conditions are inverse or opposite of normal daytime conditions when air temperature decreases with height. In an inversion, cold air collects near the ground while warmer air lies above this trapped cold layer.
The topography of the land also affects frost prevalence. Cool air settles at the bottom of slopes because it is heavier than warm air. Frost pockets will then form in valleys where cool air is trapped. Higher altitudes also have colder temperatures. Therefore you are apt to see frost damage at the bottom of sloped and on the hilltops, while the hillsides are frost-free. On any given property, there may be temperatures on different sides of the house, under protective trees, on south or north facing slopes, or in low-lying spots.
Frost warnings signal us that our plants may be in trouble. However, the essential criterion in damaging plants is not the appearance of frost, but the internal temperature in various tissues of the plant. If this is cold enough to break cell walls or disrupt cell constituents beyond repair, damage, wilting, and death will occur in affected tissues. Frost will not always cause this degree of chilling within plant tissue, nor is it the only cause.
Typically, we may have 3 – 5 weeks of good weather following a frost but the crops have already been damaged or killed. Rather than just talking about the weather, there are several things that gardeners can do to minimize the effects of the first radiation frost. These include.
Watch the calendar and the forecast. Know when the average first frost will be in your area. This is the date by which a frost will occur 50% of the time. In looking over weather records in upstate New York over the past 50 years, it seems that this date is coming later each decade (although the date of the last spring frost has not changed much). Keep a careful eye on the weather forecast, too. Cool, clear nights with low humidity, often following a cold front, are signs of an impending frost.
Beware the full moon? People have always associated the full moon with an increased chance of frost. However, in reviewing weather records of four locations in the Northeast for the last 100 years, a full moon did not increase the chance of a frost. It was just as likely to occur when no moon was present as when the moon was full!
Harvest early. A crop like tomatoes is very sensitive to frost. If you have no way to protect plants, you may want to harvest all fruit that are in the mature green stage of ripening. Fruit harvested at this stage will still ripen, albeit not with the same flavor as fruit harvested with some color. Place fruit in a single layer in a warm, dark location with some air movement. Tomatoes and other fruit do not need light to ripen. In fact, light will slow ripening. Store where the temperature does not go below 55F. Lower temperatures will cause the fruit to be poorly flavored.
Irrigate, before the frost. A moist soil can hold 4 times more heat than a dry soil. It will also conduct heat to the soil surface faster than a dry soil, aiding in frost prevention. In a study performed years ago, the air temperature above a wet soil was 5oF higher than that above a dry soil and the difference was maintained until 6 am the next morning. Thus, plants should be well watered the evening before a frost.
Cover your plants. Covering plants can give you 2oF to 5oF protection. The covers can be laid right over the crop, or can be supported on stakes. The difference being that protection is less wherever the cover touches the plant. Any material can be used to cover the plants, however woven fabrics are better insulators then plastics or paper. The best time to apply covers is in the late afternoon after the wind has died down. Remove covers the next morning before the sun hits them.
Irrigate during the potential frost. Many people claim that watering the frost off plants prevents frost damage. This is partially true. As mentioned above, watering plants helps raise their temperature and the air around them to that of the water. In addition, as water freezes, heat is released; 80 calories for each gram of water that freezes. Therefore, watering plants before they are injured from frost can help keep their internal temperature above freezing. A single application at the coldest part of the night (generally just before sunrise) may be enough on 30-32 degree nights. On colder nights it may be necessary to apply overhead irrigation for an extended period of time, allowing actual ice formation on the plants. In this case, irrigation must continue until morning temperatures rise above 32 degrees and the ice melts. It is important to note that once frost damage occurs, watering does not help.
Chemical sprays. Buyer beware! Many materials will claim to provide frost protection using a variety of techniques. However, no commercially available product seems to be able to stand up to a replicated, scientific test.
Heaters and wind machines. These measures are generally restricted to commercial growers and work best in orchards. Both are used to break down an inversion layer. Heaters warm the cold ground air, causing it to rise. This updraft causes a corresponding downdraft, thus mixing the air. Wind machines are huge fans mounted on 30-foot towers. The wind currents they create physically mix the warm and cold air layers.
Whatever frost protection measures we use, winter will eventually end our growing season. The time will come to say goodbye to our garden and begin chores left undone for so long under the pretext that “there will be more time in winter!”
9/2001 Compiled by Eric de Long, Cornell Cooperative Extension, Chemung County
Latest 5 day forecast (lows) from Channel 2 is 35, 26, 29, 32 starting tomorrow morning (Friday).
Hubby found a baby snake in the back yard yesterday while he was mowing, I hope it goes back where it came from and hopefully the temps will keep them in hiding for a little while longer..... It's nice out, but covering plants, eh... I'd rather be doing something else....
Impatient LOL!!!!
I solemnly swear never again to plant before April 15th and to not start seeds until March. Hopefully this will pop up next year in Feb. to remind me. Covering these plants is worse than the reward of the early start! And they still might not make it!
chris
Don't feel bad. I tried telling everybody about this, but even I planted a ton of seed a couple of weeks ago and most of it is up. I should know better than to listen to the weathermen (David Chandley if I remember right said that danger of frost was over a couple of weeks ago).
Seed is fairly inexpensive but just the thought of replanting is aggravating (but not as much as covering/uncovering everything).
We found a baby snake as well when we tilled up a patch of weeds plus the largest earthworms I've seen since I've been digging in GA. (about 24 years).