Texas Gardening: Vegetable Garden Planting..too early??, 1 by drthor

drthor wrote:
I have transplanted out my tomatoes on february 17th.
They are under a hoop house and covered with plastic with holes.
The plastic is protecting them from the wind mostly, but I found out that it is really good at night.
Two nights we went below 40s and I covered the hoop house with blankets.
NO PROBLEMA.

My tomatoes are growing really good with thick stems.

Off course we are going to have a freeze (but I hope not) by the end of march or beginning of april, but I will just cover them.
In the previous years I had tomatoes under the snow (inside my hoop house).
The good thing about our weather is that the day after a freeze the sun will be back to melt everything.

I just checked my tomatoes today and the one I have started indoors in December are making flower buds already.

I have experimented in the previous years that if I plant my tomatoes outside before March 15th I will have a huge harvest with less pest problems.

If I plant my tomatoes after that date, I will have some tomatoes ... but not as strong plants.

I have not experience with peppers so early, but I am tempted.
The peppers I grew myself are 10" tall and very strong.
They have been outside during the day in my deck for almost 2 weeks now.
I am really tempted to transplant them out by mid march under a hoop house.