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| Vegetable plot patiently waiting |
One could be lulled into thinking that putting all those tender plants out will be just fine. I know better. . . rather I have had this happen before. I put everything out on a fine weekend before the risk of frost was completely over. Naturally, a late frost came along and killed everything. I learned my lesson.
The US has a system of zones that lets gardeners know when the frost risk is gone. Britain is a much smaller area. We don't need a zoning system. Just trust local knowledge and experience. Folks in Cornwall can plant stuff out earlier and probably grow tomatoes outside. Scotland has a narrower growing season and some tender things like cucumber and tomatoes do best in the greenhouse. Some years we don't get enough sunshine for those tomatoes to ripen or the sweetcorn cobs to fill out.
The rule here is to wait until the end of May. Seriously - that is late in the growing season . . . but that's our time. Don't play Russian roulette with your tender plants. You may win but if you don't, you will have dead plants.
The only things that have been planted in so far are things that are known to be okay with a light frost. I have sweet peas (pretty flowers), garden peas, onions, garlic, and cabbages. Peas are super hardy. I love them for that. The soil is ready. The bean supports are up and we're ready. Just waiting for the calendar to move forward twenty more days.
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| Me enjoying the sun |
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| Strawberries on their way |
3 comments:
Can you believe that we woke up this morning to a couple of inches of snow on the ground, everything was white and the snow kept coming down..... on May 11! All melted by 10:45 but it's been cold all day and more frost tonight. Good thing I don;t have a garden.
That soil does look rich and so ready for planting. Good you know when best to plant and not be fooled by some nice days. May does seem late for planting based on where I lived in the U.S. Midwest Great Lakes area. Interestingly though, my daughter living on the east coast tells me they just had an unusual bit of snow, so climate change is doing its thing here in the U.S. In Southern Calif. we've had strawberries for months, fortunately for me, 'cause I'm an addict -- probably my favorite. The best ones I ever ate were nurtured by a Japanese man and his wife on their large commercial plot -- the absolute best, sweetest large berries I ever ate -- no sugar needed -- they were called Sequoia Strawberries. Expert different varieties are best in different areas of a country or the world. I've never grown them but wish I had -- blueberries. Don't know how they do where you live.
Blueberries grow beautifully here. I have to cover them to keep the birds off 'em. Fruit in season is always always always best!
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