Blackberry Winter = FROST!

Seriously!? Frost is in the forecast? What kind of crazy spring is this? So much for Mother's day being our last day of frost in this part of VA. To deal with this blackberry winter (that's what my grandmother always called it when we got a late cold snap while the blackberries are blooming), I've covered my little seedlings in the garden with newspaper. They're calling for frost again tonight, so I'll take pictures of my little hobo garden. One or two sheets of newspaper lightly draped directly over the plants is enough to protect them for just a night. If we were going to have long term (a week or more) cold, I might invest in some floating row covers, but for just a night or two, I can get away with newspaper.

Garden frost protection falls into two categories: those that can be left on during the day and those that need to be removed. And those categories change as the daytime temperatures rise.
Those that can be left on include:

• Milk cartons with their bottoms cut off and their lids left off. This is great for a few prized tender plants in the garden (Basil, Eggplant, Peppers to name a few). But if your daytime temps are going to be above about 70, you should remove these to keep your plants from baking.
• Floating Row Covers. Some folks leave these on their crops all summer to prevent pest damage too.
• Water Walls. These little guys go around each individual plant and can stay there all season if you wish, but most folks remove them. The cheap way to do this is to fill multiple water bottles and surround the plant with them. Again, only cheap if you've just got a few plants. I've got 24 peppers and 38 tomatoes.... not an option for me.
  

Those that need to be removed: Basically anything that can cover the plant and keep the frost from forming directly on the leaves but that won't allow sun and air to the plant for days on end.

• Bed sheets - cover a lot of space quickly
• Newspaper
• Pots turned upside down over your plants
• Straw or other loose mulch

With any luck, these cold nights won't last long and my little plants will be just fine with a little protection.

A Fully Seasoned Day

Today was one of those bizarre weather days in Virginia. It started out 70 and gorgeous with a slight breeze and the smell of spring on the air. I thought it'd be a great day to snap some photos of the tulips coming up under the maple tree. They look like little red stars amidst the slowly greening vinca. We had the windows open, the heat off, just plain enjoying the day when suddenly the temperature dropped, black clouds were in the sky, and it started to rain. So we rushed around closing windows. Then it was about 45 and started to hail. No kidding, hail. Then suddenly cold sunlight and blue sky, so I snapped some more pictures of the tulips (which apparently had the good sense to close back up in the now cold weather, like little tubes of lipstick). Then more rain. Then more sun. Rain. Sun. More hail. Sun. It's like the entire season of spring has played itself out in one day. Just this moment, the sun is shining in the front yard and its raining in the back yard. All day, I've been watching, fascinated at the instantaneous changes in the weather. On days like these, I understand why we call Nature a woman, as if she just can't make up her mind about what she wants to wear.