Frost alert!

[alan refail]

A good idea to keep a watch on the forecast for the next few days with a return to much lower temperatures and a return to ground frost overnight

[Catherine]

Hi Alan I know it said lower temperatures but I have not heard of any frost mentioned. Thanks for the info will definately keep an eye open. I planted my broad beans out three weeks ago and they are going yellow and sulking. I think I planted them out too soon.

[alan refail]

Have a look at the forecast warning HERE

[glallotments]

Broad beans are quite hardy - ours are planted out and doing well. Did you harden them off before planting as if not the shock of moving from a greenhouse to the open ground could be the problem.

[Johnboy]

What should be remembered is that a ground frost can occur several degrees F above freezing point. Here I have had a ground frost at 37F
which is a full five degrees F above freezing point.
JB.

[alan refail]

Hi Johnboy

A good point and a very timely reminder.

I posted the "alert" for the benefit of people who have sown (too?) early and might have been tempted by the recent well above average temperatures into planting out tender beans (broad beans should not suffer) etc. My fear is they may be too busy over the weekend to heed the warning

[Monika]

If you have an unheated greenhouse which is likely to be packed full of non-hardy vegetable and flower seedlings at the moment, a good tip I read many years ago and have followed ever since:

As, at this time of the year frosty nights are usually preceded by sunny, clear days, make sure to close down the greenhouse the moment the sun goes off it and also keep things like potting compost, growbags etc in the greenhouse to store up the day's heat so that they can release it during the night. Watering cans and buckets full of water will also help.

I find my electric oil-filled tubular heater which just keeps out the frost is exceedingly useful this time of the year and not too expensive to run.

[Geoff]

Well yesterday the forecast said -3 for tonight now it says +2. Gone very clear in the last hour so I've sheeted over the First and Second Early Potatoes and earthed up the just showing maincrop, fleeced the French Beans in tubs in the cold greenhouse, fleeced some rockery Rhododendrons that usually catch it - hope that's enough, pity I can't fleece the plums and damsons.

[Catherine]

I have been up and covered everything in our polytunnel with fleece and plastic tops I have also put a polythene cover over my broad beans that are starting to go yellow and sulking. When I left the plot my car outdoor temperature said 4 degrees.

We have been up to Silverdale on the edge of the Lake District and spent time wandering on the sea shore with our grand daughter, but it was bitterley cold but we had sunshine all day.

[Geoff]

We went in the opposite direction to the Plant Fair at Harlow Carr. It was cold with light rain. It brought home how late the Spring is as the garden was nowhere near as good as for the same event last year.

[oldherbaceous]

No frost here this morning i'm glad to say, and i do hope everyone else escaped it as well.

[alan refail]

Currently (6.15) down to +2C in the polytunnel, a touch of car-frost and ground-frost forming and frozen raindrops on the tunnel roof. Fortunately the sun is rising to warm it all up. Took care to cover potatoes that were showing and take 30+ tomato plants to a warm place last night. Cucumbers and peppers still nice and warm in propagator.

[Catherine]

Ohh so glad I spent time putting everything to bed last night as it went down to 1.5 deg last night and is only 3 deg now.

Ground frost on the back garden this morning. We are off on holiday on Saturday and I am hoping that the weather will start to pick up as I can't expect my friend to spend a lot of her time covering and uncovering my seedlings in the allotment polytunnel. From Saturday I think, except for watering, they will have to take pot luck.

[Geoff]

Yes it was time well spent. Definitely a serious ground frost and possibly just an air frost. My outside thermometer is at five feet on a shed that I think keeps it a bit warm and it showed minimum of +1 but there was ice in the bird bath that is about three feet high. Stuff I covered seemed OK. It looks like the same routine tonight.

[Catherine]

Just been up to cover all my stuff again tonight. The people on the next plot have planted some peas that they bought from B&Q. The have not covered them tonight I just wondered if they would be safe in the frost. Am I being too protective about my plants. I hope it starts to warm up before weekend.