Simple question, in east central Indiana when can you expect to till the ground and start planting? Doing a garden for the first time this year. To be more specific what's and acceptable time to be sure their wont be a frost?
Simple question, in east central Indiana when can you expect to till the ground and start planting? Doing a garden for the first time this year. To be more specific what's and acceptable time to be sure their wont be a frost?
This. Tilling is less about frost dates and more about soil moisture. I would recommend a garden fork instead of a shovel though.One should till when the ground is dry enough that the tilling leaves loose friable soil. Too moist and you're just making mud balls. You CAN however, turn parts of the garden that you wish to plant sooner with a shovel. My peas and lettuce will go in soon this way.
That a big question with a huge amount of variables.
Peas - now
Potatoes - soon
Spinach - soon
Brocolli/Cauliflour/Cabbage, etc. - soon
Non frost tolerant crops - first/second week of May.
In between, IF the weather seems to be cooperating, you can attempt some "sacrificial" beans, lettuce, carrots, etc.
NOOOOO! Not this year! Grandma taught me "the weekend after St Pattys day" for peas, lettuce, and onions. Not this year. Its too cold.
Typically I have to cover a couple nights due to frost warnings. This year I expect at least a hard freeze or maybe two with as cold as this winter has been. I'm not putting my peas, etc in the ground this year until at least the first week of April.
There'll be a lot of guesstimating going on this year, won't there? I'm hoping for 10 degrees warmer than you northerners.
88GT is absolutely right on the moisture, but you can game it a bit with the Mantis and freeze/thaw busting the marbles. There'd be a lot more gaming with tents, covers and such if I had her beautiful garden beds.
Aw, thanks. I wish I could take credit for such "beauty." They really came about as a necessity when we realized that the area we originally intended to plant was nothing but rock.
I bought covers for for the first time this year. And I am trying to figure out whether I want to put things in when I normally do or wait a couple of weeks. I've been keeping an eye on the 10-day forecast and we just can't seem to get away from day time high in the 30s. High 30s, to be sure, but still well below the seasonal temps for this time of year. I've got my box of seed packets sitting in the office, just daring me to put them in on schedule.
Its going to be an interesting growing season, that's for sure.
My major guestimate today is do I run the snow blower later today after the 3 days of snowing is over, or just let this crap stand and melt slowly, on top of the now frozen crap that has yet to melt.There'll be a lot of guesstimating going on this year, won't there? I'm hoping for 10 degrees warmer than you northerners.
88GT is absolutely right on the moisture, but you can game it a bit with the Mantis and freeze/thaw busting the marbles. There'd be a lot more gaming with tents, covers and such if I had her beautiful garden beds.