Early Garden

Listening to television personalities for weather information is a bit like listening to the news for medical advice. “A report out today sponsored by the pork producers suggests 4 pounds of raw pork a day can prevent cancer.” Absolute rubbish. In my neck of the woods the “weather reporters” are not meteorologists and therefore only read the weather. To top it off, they are under pressure from directors, producers and managers to retain viewers. For example, a recent forecast was calling for an overnight low of 45F but they thought that it would be good to say “risk of frost” despite the weather service issuing no such possibility. For those who are bringing off their garden crops in late August, this would perk up their ears and have them watch through the news to get to the weather though. A little drama.

However, that same forecast at the BEGINNING of August brought no such warning. As well, last night the same forecast brought no such warning, but that was about to change quickly.

The REAL meteorologists issued a frost warning at 7:30 PM thanks to skies clearing off. But 7:30PM is long after the reporters and anchors have gone home. Even the local radio is airing pre-recorded announcers who are off on vacation at the time their taped voice is broadcast. Most people watched that 6PM news and made their decisions about their garden crops from what they heard. Of course they never got the 7:30 PM warning for “widespread frost.” Thank goodness for the Internet.

What is the moral here? Really, there are two lessons:

1. Get your weather information from meteorologists, not media. If something as important as your garden is at stake don’t use second hand information. The weather changes constantly so keep up during risky times of year.
2. A little bit of planning for an early garden can save you the heartbreak of losing your garden to an unexpected frost. There are a myriad of season extenders on the market. Most people think of these as early spring items but you can use them anytime really. You can plan ahead in late summer and put them out early. If you used the ultimate low tunnel on crops like peppers then you have no worries at all. These are simply small greenhouses that fit over only one row, only as big as you need them.

Even with an unexpected frost, an early gardener would have had a fabulous showing of fresh fruit and vegetables long before that unexpected frost. After all, it is hard to catch an early gardener by surprise!