I attended a vegetable class yesterday.
I learnt that the zucchini/summer squash should be planted in our area on March 15th.
In this way the fruits will mature before the squash vine borers and squash bugs attack !!
I never planted out so early ... that's why maybe I had so many problem growing zucchini !
Normally we have a late freeze in march and I guess they will do fine if I cover them.
Have you ever try this method?
Nice pic.
I have heard the same thing: that early planting will allow you to enjoy a few weeks of production before the SVB hatch and start flying around. I have not done this in the past but will be doing so this spring. I will be shooting for a transplant date of March 11th (only cause I know I will be home that afternoon since it is a Friday) so that means I should sow some seeds next week or so.
If a freeze heads my way I will just need to be prepared. I think this will be worth it.
Two weeks before your last frost date. For me that is the first of April. By emergence, danger of frost is minimal.
I'm trying something new this year by plant a few seeds each of squash, cucumber, cantaloupe, melons, and okra two to three weeks earlier than usual. These seeds will be planted inside Kozy Coats, the red Walls-o-Water things. The Kozy Coats worked well with tomato plants for me last year.
Once the seeds germinate in the event of a freeze I have some of the medium duty white cover cloth that has worked well in the past.
The trick as I see it for germination is to get the soil warm which hopefully the Kozy Coats will do. I know from years past if certain seeds are planted too early and the soil remains cold and wet that the seed will rot in the ground.
Sometimes the nurseries around here take a chance on the weather and offer up plants early like around the 1st of March or the last week in February. It may be worth trying some of these early plants with the Kozy Coats.
