Stupid Massachusetts weather!

[Rosalind]

I honestly don't know how this happened. It was cold last night but not THAT cold--it's been chillier, and it didn't freeze. The plants were all covered up, as they have been since last Friday. They were perfectly fine last night. I watered them, put the lid down on the cold frame. This morning, opened the cold frame just a crack. It was about 60F today. Got home from work, all DEAD!



Those were tomato and pepper and squash seedlings that I've been growing since FEBRUARY. Last year I started plants in March and it was too late, they were still little spindly things by May. This year, I had heating mats, I started them plenty early, they were nice bushy little things and I worried that they'd be root-bound by late April/early May. I started hardening them off in the cold frame last week, and they were doing great, getting greener and bushier and happy as could be. A lot of them were seeds that I can't get any more of. The stupid season ends so early here, that even if I start new ones right now or buy started plants from the greenhouse, I won't get anything till September.

WHY!!!!?????!!!!

 

[vfem]

 

[DrakeMaiden]

OMG that is so frustrating!!!! What do you think happened? It sounds like they were ok this morning? Do you think it got too hot in the cold frame while you were gone? I would feel completely devastated! Is there any way to track down someone else growing similar varieties in your area? Master gardeners sometimes have sales . . . or maybe you might find one who just has a few extra starts.

I'm sorry for your loss.

 

[Rosalind]

Inventoried the seeds left over. Things I can't get any more:

-Seeds from a co-worker, of a type of cuke her parents brought over from China
-Cheyenne bush pumpkins
-Lillian's yellow heirloom tomato

New plan is to start new seeds, supplemented with some garden center plants when those come in. Then extend the growing season as much as possible by means of portable hoop houses. If I can. My handyman guy who I normally get to do carpentry projects like that is already overworked this year on my behalf. I'll see if he's up to another project in September-ish.

Honestly, I am going out of town tomorrow for a week. This couldn't happen at a worse time.

 

[obsessed]

I am so sorry for your loss. Maybe you could move to the south. The weather down here is almost as nice as Southern Cali!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[momofdrew]

Rosalind...It sounds as if you boiled your veggies in the cold frame...the sun was probably too hot and over heated everything...and you needed to vent it more... If you put black plastic on your soil and use row covers you may be able to catch up and have an early harvest...with store bought seedlings... I just planted my seeds tuesday in the house I have a heat mat and things are already popping...being north of you I have had to learn how to grow in a very small time slot [zone 4/3] between frosts and black plastic and row covers and clouches made from milk jugs help a lot...I still have 7 weeks before I can put out my cucumbers which I have not started yet...

 

[simple life]

Rosalind, so sorry to hear that. The weather here is so unpredictable, gardening can be a leap of faith sometimes.
I wish you could get more of those seeds, what a shame.
I hope you get caught up again.

 

[Rosalind]

OK, I started three seed trays with what was left, before I took off for a business trip. I paid my house-sitter extra to mind them. And when I got back, two of the trays (peppers, squash) had sprouted their seed leaves and it looks like the tomato tray is thinking about it.

There may be hope yet.