Just set out 100 tomato & pepper plants:-(

Assuming it will freeze tomorrow night, is there an
easy way to protect them? Plastic sandwich bags?
As a kid, I remember Grampa putting tiny white paper
snow-cone things over the plants & placing dirt around
the base. Never grew any snow-cones.

Thanks,
Gene


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On Mon, 7 Apr 2003 19:43:41 -0500, "Gene S"
wrote:

Just set out 100 tomato & pepper plants:-(

Assuming it will freeze tomorrow night, is there an
easy way to protect them? Plastic sandwich bags?
As a kid, I remember Grampa putting tiny white paper
snow-cone things over the plants & placing dirt around
the base. Never grew any snow-cones.

Not plastic, Gene. Paper like your Grampa, or cloth will be fine.
The dirt he piled around the base created a seal that trapped the heat
being radiated from the ground.

Pretty smart gardener, your Grampa.

Gonna buy a bunch of the "really big" plastic party
drink glasses & put a big rock on top of each. (My
wife's idea - and I think a good one:-) Should be
easy to do, as well as quick. I'm pretty sure that by
pressing the lip 1/4" or so into the soft soil, the little
guys should not freeze. Just have to remember to
take them off before they cook.

Gene



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"Terry Horton" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 7 Apr 2003 19:43:41 -0500, "Gene S"
wrote:

Just set out 100 tomato & pepper plants:-(

Assuming it will freeze tomorrow night, is there an
easy way to protect them? Plastic sandwich bags?
As a kid, I remember Grampa putting tiny white paper
snow-cone things over the plants & placing dirt around
the base. Never grew any snow-cones.

Not plastic, Gene. Paper like your Grampa, or cloth will be fine.
The dirt he piled around the base created a seal that trapped the heat
being radiated from the ground.

Pretty smart gardener, your Grampa.

Gene, since you got down to 28 last time there seems to be a good chance you
might be in danger (100 plants? How sore are your backs?). I've tried the
tarp route and paper and sheets and covering individual plants with pots and
the pots (in your case cups) seem to work best -- anything the touches the
surface of whatever is protecting the plant may suffer damage and the little
pot or cups holds the warm air around the plants without crushing them. In
Denver they sold a product (can find in catalogues) called a "Water well"
that was very much like a kids floatie or instead of filled with air they
were filled with water --

--
Marta
(if you email me directly you need to remove the X )

Gene S wrote:
Just set out 100 tomato & pepper plants:-(

And I was exhausted after planting 5 tomatoes and about 8 peppers... ;-)
Then again, I also divided and repotted all the pond plants... not *that*
was back-breaking labor.

Assuming it will freeze tomorrow night, is there an
easy way to protect them? Plastic sandwich bags?

I don't think it will freeze, but I'm in the city (a cold spot though, for
the city). I'm not worried about my tomatoes but peppers really don't like
cold. The best and most practical way to protect them is to use row cover.
That's what they do at the farms and nurseries.


--
Victor M. Martinez

http://www.che.utexas.edu/~martiv

Thanks, Marta.

I guess I'm just suffering from shell shock, as the last
one got down to 27 degrees out here in the metropolis
of Briggs. The figs were really looking great, massive new leaves -
now they are really sad ;little brown sticks with potential.
Decided to put the entire garden "around" each of the
orchard trees, as they are drip irrigated. If this
works, I will never go back to rows. It seems like a neat
way to take care of the orchard trees, as well as eliminate
the row garden. And yes, 25 orchard trees are a lot of garden
space. We'll see how it all works out:-)

Gene


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"Wayfarer" wrote in message
...
Gene, since you got down to 28 last time there seems to be a good chance
you
might be in danger (100 plants? How sore are your backs?). I've tried
the
tarp route and paper and sheets and covering individual plants with pots
and
the pots (in your case cups) seem to work best -- anything the touches the
surface of whatever is protecting the plant may suffer damage and the
little
pot or cups holds the warm air around the plants without crushing them.
In
Denver they sold a product (can find in catalogues) called a "Water well"
that was very much like a kids floatie or instead of filled with air they
were filled with water --

--
Marta
(if you email me directly you need to remove the X )

I can always poke holes in the bottom of the big
plastic glasses & use them as planters. After
you have planted 100 plants, you tend to watch
the weather very carefully:-) The orchard is near
the creeks, so there are a lot of strange critters that
damage the plants. Lost 5 plants yesterday - birds
probably.

Gene



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"Victor M. Martinez" wrote in message
...
Gene S wrote:
Just set out 100 tomato & pepper plants:-(

And I was exhausted after planting 5 tomatoes and about 8 peppers... ;-)
Then again, I also divided and repotted all the pond plants... not *that*
was back-breaking labor.

Assuming it will freeze tomorrow night, is there an
easy way to protect them? Plastic sandwich bags?

I don't think it will freeze, but I'm in the city (a cold spot though, for
the city). I'm not worried about my tomatoes but peppers really don't like
cold. The best and most practical way to protect them is to use row cover.
That's what they do at the farms and nurseries.


--
Victor M. Martinez

http://www.che.utexas.edu/~martiv

It froze here for sure Tuesday night, and probably
a little last night. I placed the 16oz WallyMart cups
over the tomato & pepper plants - "all 120 survived
just fine". The five large ones that I could not stuff
into the plastic cups all froze - they died a horrible
death.

Here's a simple solution that worked 100% - free rocks
on top of cheap plastic cups:
http://members.thegateway.net/genes/ORCHARD.JPG


CAUTION: get the cups "OFF" as soon as the sun comes up,
else the plants may get steamed.

Gene
Briggs,TX


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"Gene S" wrote in message
...
Just set out 100 tomato & pepper plants:-(

Assuming it will freeze tomorrow night, is there an
easy way to protect them? Plastic sandwich bags?
As a kid, I remember Grampa putting tiny white paper
snow-cone things over the plants & placing dirt around
the base. Never grew any snow-cones.

Thanks,
Gene


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