I'm very excited because I made my very own first raised bed today with pallet bits from the office.
I've got three foot posts at the corners and if I plant my toms out next week and wrap fleece aroung the outside, will they survive down here in the South? :-[
Depends on the weather. Mine are in the mini-greenhouses.
In a normal year, I'd say you were off your trolley even thinking about it until the 2nd week of May at the earliest.
But this year isn't normal, is it?
If you've only got a few plants, I'd still say keep them indoors. But if you've got plenty then chance a few. But fleece them and try to give them some kind of wind-break; the wind can do more damage than the cold at this time of year, especially in an exposed allotment.
Should we be re-writing the calendar? One guy was planting outdoor cucumbers yesterday afternoon!
eric has put 6 outside under fleece and he's been on a plot for 35 years, even he's amazed :)
The problem with frost is that it is a description.
There are days when the temperature is below zero yet there is no frost as it is windy. This year on the Mersey Riviera we have had a Minimum temperature of -1c with 8 days of frost. On all of these occasions it was brief and never lasted all day and never froze the pond surface. Remarkably my water lily continued to produce new leaves all winter long and the water temperature only dipped to a minimum 8C at 6 inches down. I have a Maidenhair fern (a house plant) that I left outside and it is healthy and growing as is my young banana.
Go ahead with tomatoes and as advised protect from wind.
http://www.allaboutliverpool.com/allaboutallotments2_my_allotment_in_liverpool.html
Right, going to chance it and plant out half of what I have raised and keep the others on the garden table where they've been for the past three weeks. Thanks for your help. :)
Well I chanced it and put half my toms outside along with most of my cucumbers yesterday. They were getting a bit big for their pots and didn't fanct potting them on for only a week or two, they're in grow bags against a wall in a fairly sheltered garden so I'm quietly confident....
We've only had about two days of frost all year here in Gloucester and even though it's wet this week the temp promises to be well above freezing so I'm thinking/hoping I'll be fine.... :)