Topic: Frost forecast

[grannyjanny]

Frost given Thursday/Friday night. Strawberries are well on the way so will need covering. What else needs covering please?

[RenishawPhil]

Spuds.

Forecast has improved recenty

[galina]

Frost given Thursday/Friday night. Strawberries are well on the way so will need covering. What else needs covering please?

Tomatoes, courgettes, peppers, French beans need protecting.  Broad beans and peas can tolerate a bit of frost. 

Yes potatoes too, however should the worst happen, potatoes will actually regrow, but the harvest will be delayed by a few days. 

Anything will do, doesn't have to be proper fleece or a proper cloche.  An upturned bucket over a courgette or a sheet of newspaper, a net curtain, even a black bin liner cut open.  As it only stays on for a night, black does not matter.

Hope it doesn't get too cold, but I find that squash and courgette and cucumber plants get harmed if it gets below +3C.  Some French beans are also affected at temperatures just above freezing.  Might be the difference between ground frost and air frost.  Ground frost will kill them, but that can occur at temperatures above air frost.

Hope everything you have planted out survives,  if it is still in the greenhouse, it should be ok.

[grannyjanny]

Thank you folks, I think the forecast is changing but at least I'm now in the know, so to speak .

[Digeroo]

Its Friday/Saturday night which is forecast to be the worst here.

But then I do not trust them, it is not supposed to be raining at the moment.  They do not even seem to have read their own radar images.

I really need to cover my strawberries they are covered in flowers at the moment.  The centres go black when they are caught by frost.   

[RenishawPhil]

Its Friday/Saturday night which is forecast to be the worst here.

But then I do not trust them, it is not supposed to be raining at the moment.  They do not even seem to have read their own radar images.

I really need to cover my strawberries they are covered in flowers at the moment.  The centres go black when they are caught by frost.

We are double fleecing them friday after work, got quite a few beds,better safe then sorry

[grannyjanny]

Just been up to cover the strawberries, best safe than sorry.

[Uncle_Filthster]

With how clear the sky has been here in Northumberland and the cold easterly wind off the sea all day I'm expecting frost so I wrapped up my pear and apples in bloom nice and cosy with some of the thin foam underlay for laminate floors we had spare. Last year I had some pears just starting to swell till they were hit by late frost and the whole lot were wiped out.

[RenishawPhil]

We put enviromesh on strawberries should do the job I hope?

[squeezyjohn]

I felt the weather changing when I was out potting plants at about 2pm - very nippy!

I too have used enviromesh on my strawberries after having seen the posts here ... I also hope it does the job!

[Ellen K]

Brrrrr .... it's COLD!

Spuds and strawverries under various improvised covers - off to the plot soon to take them all off lest they FRY in the sun.

[RenishawPhil]

Brrrrr .... it's COLD!

Spuds and strawverries under various improvised covers - off to the plot soon to take them all off lest they FRY in the sun.

Things badly hit here

[galina]

Rather than the +2 in the forecast it went to -1C here.  These late frosts are galling after such a warm winter, but unfortunately not uncommon.  We have had frosts in early June.

[pumkinlover]

Frosty here, top of shed and caravan covered. I covered my potatoes, but expect a bit of damage on the plot.

[RenishawPhil]

Frosty here, top of shed and caravan covered. I covered my potatoes, but expect a bit of damage on the plot.

Our spuds were fleeced but all damaged. Not good:(

[galina]

Frosty here, top of shed and caravan covered. I covered my potatoes, but expect a bit of damage on the plot.

Our spuds were fleeced but all damaged. Not good:(

Sorry to read that!.  Very disappointing having done all the right things and still have damage, but spuds will grow back.  Haven't checked mine yet, but expect there is some damage too despite  grass mulch and fleece.

Does anybody know how cold it got in their area?

[BarriedaleNick]

Fine here in London 3 or 4C I think..

[galina]

Glad to hear it Nick.

Just been out.  All in greenhouse ok.  A cloched and double fleeced squash plant (experiment to get earlier courgettes) looks fine.  Not all potatoes are showing here yet.  Single fleeced potato plants have some damage on the top leaves on almost every plant, but not extensive, they should shrug it off in a week or so.  Peas/Broadies fine and had no protection.  Guess the apple blossom will be affected too.

How are everybody else's plants?

[small]

0C here between Nottingham and Derby, frost on the shed roofs and grass. I'd fleeced everything in the greenhouse - toms with fruit formed, begonias, beans - and they are all fine, polythened my Pentland Javelins, fine - glad I did because the volunteer spuds in the JAs have all collapsed to mush.
But round here, we always get frosts in May so I wasn't surprised. I don't feel safe till the first week in June.

[goodlife]

Yes...we had light frost but nothing damaged that I could see this morning
I went around plots to check if there is anything particularly that may need bit of cover...and found 1 potato that had just come through, kicked bit of soil over it and it was done 
Spread little fleece over kiwi plants that has loads of tender new growth on.
In greenhouses I didn't really cover anything else part my little potato plants. All toms were fine.
I did do some watering in GH yesterday...left tomato pots dryish, but all the surrounding soil I watered well, making the bedding dark again to trap lots of heat...there was steam coming up from surface  ..and to touch it was very warm indeed.
So that worked like radiator....kept GH closed up most of the day too to warm everything inside well.
Outside I have few buckets in very sheltered position where I sowed some runner bean seed few weeks ago..those are just coming trough..those got just  got upturned empty buckets for protection. They probably didn't need it but it didn't hurt neither...and the young seedlings are fine today  ...hoping some early runners and possibly some 'cleanly' pollinated seeds if there is no other plants yet in flower nearby..