Has spring finally sprung??

I check the 10 day weather forecast daily, and this is the first time all the low temps are forecast to be above freezing! No thirties in sight! I can finally plant out my jungle of "houseplants"! I had to vent, SO EXCITED!!! And all my perennials are starting to wake up! Ok that's all folks, I'll try to settle down. LOL

^_^

Wow, I'll have to look at your forecast, I still see 30s in my forecast....also it was supposed to be in the 80s one day this last weekend but it only made it to the 60s. I think we may be done with the really cold weather but I would be surprised if we don't have some more frizzing temps.

I know, You make too much sense, lol. I am a little nervous still but I have so many unused jugs from winter sowing that I figure I can cover them, mini-greenhouse style, if need be. I'm thinking if you anchor the milk jug into the soil with a dowel and mulch heavy up the sides, hopefully that would be enough! The tomatoes will start the hardening off process this weekend, weather permitting :)

I exclusively use the wunderground app for iphone, love it. When I installed fox 4 dfw weather app, I realized they receive their weather info from the same source. Very accurate. When I checked the 10 day for my zip, 76472, it said my lows range from 41-55 degrees.. I'll take it!! LOL been waiting for this!!

Wunderground.com? I wonder where my husband gets his DFW airport weather from. Maybe something Federal.

I use NOAA on the computer...accuweather on TV...I picked this winter to try and overwinter a bunch of pepper plants in containers. Some look OK some not so good. Lol. In my area I would need to increase the soil temp which I have no way of doing. My micro climate is much different then most of Texas, must be one reason they grow grapes here. It was recently pointed out to me that our nite time temps are much lower then surrounding areas. But the upside is that my garden slows down during the summer but never stops. I just have to wait...

Oh sorry that came out wrong, I wasn't implying that the local news gathers it's info from wunderground. Rather I meant they both gather their info from the same source as there is no difference in either forecast. Usually when comparing forecasts from multiple sources there are at least a few minor variances. Looks like dfw airport along with other airports use the Aviation Weather Center provided by the NOAA.

I may have to check it out since 1lisac also seems to like it! Btw, I also brought in some bell peppers and also jalapeños, to overwinter. I, being the plant torturer thought I didn't need to water during their dormancy and out of the 5, I have one little stocky jalapeño left. All the better I say, I don't have the room for wimps anyway ;D

We are near (enough, by texas standards anyway) to a winery in Llano, supposedly the soil and climate there are ideal for grapes. I wouldn't know, have never grown them, but I think we have muscadine vines snaking through the creek at out deer lease. Reminds me I need to learn how to propagate them! My kentucky wonder beans stopped producing last summer when night temps wouldn't get below 70, but picked back up again once they did. Lucky you!

I didn't realize you are near Llano, my temps are about the same except my place is at a low elevation. That couple degrees can make a big difference, as you know. I'm not saying that we always have production it doesn't stop for good.

I tried to overwinter these plants outside....in kiddy pools as the water holds heat. I covered them to hold in the heat...but it got down to 17* wasn't expecting that. I do have a few in the house and I just treat them like regular house plants and they do fine.

Ahh outside, not inside, I misunderstood.. Yeah I bet they didn't like that dip in weather much! Lol! There is a woman on here, GymGirl, who has these PVC hoops over her raised beds and grows all kinds of stuff in them during the cold season.. She's my garden hero! You think I'm joking but really she is amazing! :D

Yes, GG is extremely willing to help...she really does care about others....TX is such a big state that it's hard to generalize and her climate in Houston is much different. I actually checked some of my plants and some made it, but not all. Any other winter, they would have been fine....during the summer I keep many of my potted plants in kiddy pools on my large porch, but I never expected it to get this cold. I grow many things during the winter and I never protect them, if they are cold weather crops, and I've never lost anything. I grow too many warm weather crops to make it practical to cover them when the temps dip. Last yr I planted 3 tomato plants 1 month early but the plants just sat there (soil was too cold) and I only got fruit one week early...

I checked NOAA and your temps are higher, really surprises me. If there is a chance of a freeze I know it will freeze here.

This message was edited Mar 19, 2014 7:54 PM

Yes Houston temps are a far cry from here. They can keep a lot over winter down there that would croak at the first sign of frost here. Zone envy for sure during winter, but once I see their summer high temps, I am glad I'm not that far south. And the water restrictions are ok joke. We are in stage 2 drought here right now and I'm in the process of installing rainbarrels for that very reason.

I hope you didn't lose too many of your plants, I know how much that stinks! My friends could care less when I whine about this or that plant dying for whatever reason.. Well the non gardening friends anyway. Lol

Btw I just checked wunderground and the forecast has changed. Again. Next Tuesday they're calling for a low of 38. Maybe I'll plant out on wed/th instead..

I googled Lipan Tx and it shows it's near Dallas but you mentioned you are near Llano, am I confusing myself? Lol

I'm about the same distance either way, Lisa. I'm almost 2 hours from Dallas, and probably technically further from llano, but if you factor in traffic, I'd prob get to llano quicker. The drive to Dallas through Fort Worth is the worst! We drive past llano whenever we make a trip to Austin, always say were gonna stop in there 'next time' but have yet to!

Ok, what major city are you near. Lol I noticed you are in zone 7b, so know I'm just curious...I'm exactly an hour East of Llano. Yes, I have driven in the metroplex, it is not for the faint of heart.

You're not kidding! I, personally, am faint of heart.

Lipan is much closer to Fort Worth than Dallas. If I could live anywhere in Texas, it would be in or near Llano. Such a pretty place! Fell in love with it when I lived in Kerrville.

I'm still out on whether or not spring has sprung. It's awfully chilly out there today.

Agreed (about it being chilly).

Lisa, I am closest to Fort Worth. 70 miles due west to be exact. Some zone maps say I'm an 8a but I know for a fact we are a bit cooler than that here, so the zone 7b designation is a little more accurate. We are at the outskirts of hill country and it makes for some just plain weird weather if you ask me. If I watch the radar and a huge thunderstorm is headed straight for us, it usually falls apart right before it gets to us and will come together again once it gets past us. I figure this is because of all the hills and valleys, but I'm no weather expert lol. I do know, however, that it makes for some interesting gardening!

Carrie, I am too, faint of heart. I hail from Hawaii and when we moved to texas and I saw all the overpasses and mix masters I was blown away. You really have to know your way around or one wrong turn and good luck getting back on track!! It wouldn't be so bad if people on the road didn't drive like idiots!

Yes it was ridiculously chilly yesterday but have you seen this weeks forecast! Mostly 70s :))))

Hawaii?!! That's a long trip! And one of the states I will probably never see.

Hawaii is beautiful...I understand the zone issues. I'm at the base of the Hill Country and is noticeably cooler here (not during the blazing summer) but otherwise it is cooler here at night and during the winter. I'm not complaining tho my garden produces all summer long. I'm way out in the country that may have something to do with it.

Aw Carrie, if you ever have the opportunity you should go. I miss it every day..

Lisa, I wish my garden produced all summer. Last year everything quit until nights cooled down a bit.

My garden slows down but it never stops...I looked at this week's forecast, accuweather says one thing NOAA says something else. Mornings in the 40s are better then in the 30s. I have gardened in TX for 20 yrs and I grow a lot of Asian peppers and beans, they seem to love the heat.

That's good to know, I'm doing some ghost peppers and yardlong beans so maybe they won't be such sissies! Lol

Yard long beans do great here and Spider Mites tend to leave them alone. Ghost Peppers should be OK....the only pepper that I have problems with are bell peppers but there are a ton of others that do fine,

This morning the thermostat, in the truck, said 33* and "ice". I had no idea that it was supposed to get anywhere near freezing...,needless to say the dog will get a walk this afternoon, 40* is my cut off. Lol. I keep thinking I'll get a warning if it supposed to get that cold!

That crazy you say that, I left all my houseplants outside last night since I first moved them out last week. Even my 'extra' tomato seedlings (these are the ones I thinned out and expected to lose.. nope) stayed out the night. Needless to say I was not expecting the 39 low last night. Thank goodness everything is fine, even my over wintered jalapeño. I hope this is the last thirties I see this spring!