Like any gardener, I consult the frost dates when deciding to plant. April 19 was our average last frost, so a 50% probability that after this date, there will be no more freezes. 50% is not a good bet with my tomatoes, and I’ve been burned by this in the past (or rather frostbitten), so I go off the later date: the guaranteed last frost date, or whatever they call it. It seems to go by more than one name, but it’s basically the almost certain guaranteed date after which there will be no more frost. Ours was May 3. The weekend after, I planted my tomatoes.
That weekend, Sunday night–last night, May 7, the weather report predicted a low of 34. But, there was no frost advisory. It would be cutting it close, but ultimately after an exhausting weekend, I lacked the energy to consider going out and covering my tomatoes. I trusted to fate.
This morning, as I rolled the trash to the curb, I noticed with dismay that there was frost upon the grass. I quickly inspected my tomatoes. One appeared frostbitten, but the others did not. I noted that the line of frost only just barely touched the edge of my garden.
The coldest period of the night was 6-7AM. This was the time during which I was reviewing my garden, so it is possible that I was seeing the worst of things. The garden is against the garage, so maybe enough residual heat leached from the house to keep the garden thawed.
The Farmer’s Almanac had this to say about the date:
‘You are almost guaranteed that you will not get frost’
Apparently “almost” is the key word. After work, I go home to determine the damage. And I hope that one night has not destroyed 6 weeks of indoor growing preparation for my first garden at the new house.
–Simon