All spring people ask "Can I plant (the whatever) yet?" Now we must look beyond temperature extremes - at frost, ambient and soil temperatures. Just one frost will simply kill basil or Impatiens. For those of us in the North East our last "average" frost date is about May 21 - a long time away. For plants that survive frosts, it's about whether or not they can germinate or grow, and the effect of cold temperatures on development. Some plants are severely damaged, or develop growth defects, if they experience cold nights when they are young and tender. Other plants are damaged in cold soils - or just don't grow. Soil temperature is the most under-appreciated factor affecting vegetables and some annuals, worth understanding before you damage your plants or waste your efforts.

• Cold-weather crops: Vegetables that thrive in cool weather and soils include lettuce, peas, spinach and the Brassicas or Cole crops (broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, kale). You can plant peas now and lettuce, spinach when soil is over 40 degrees. These crops bolt, get bitter or die when the heat comes on. The broccoli crowd grows best when soil is 60 and nights stay above 50.

• Warm-weather crops: The most mistakes are made in the world of the Nightshades and the Vine crops: Tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, melons, squash, pumpkins. 

Tomatoes want soil above 70 degrees to grow well (and nights above 60). Growth defects such as cat facing or cracks result from exposure to cold weather. Tests show that tomatoes planted later in warm soil catch up to early plantings anyway. Pumpkins, squash, etc. need warm soil. Get a soil thermometer, and slow down.

• Tender or tough flowers: Many flowers tolerate light frosts and a few snowfalls, including fall-planted bulbs, pansies and container plants such as Diascia, Nemesia, Osteospermums, Calibrachoa and Bacopa. Ask a garden center consultant; don't rush the tender ones.

Even hardy plants, if they came out of a greenhouse or a truck from the south, were forced to leaf out or bloom early, aren't necessarily ready to go outside. Hold them in a cool but sheltered spot and help them adjust gradually, before they experience the shockingly variable springs of Western New York.

See Also: Organic Gardening   Hydroponics Gardening

Beginning Garden

I recently bought a split ranch house, the basement windows are ground level. It is facing North, so mostly shade. I would like to have a small retaining wall to outline the garden. What plants and colorful flowers would look and grow best? I need different heights to see the garden. Thank you. 
Karen 
Orchard Park, NY

Answer: Some of the most popularly grown shade-loving perennials include Aconitum (Aconite), Acanthus (Bear's Breech), Anemone (windflower), Astilbe, Begonia, Caladium (grown for foliage color, not flowers), Campanula (bellflower), Clivia, Cyclamen, Dicentra (bleeding heart), Gentian, Hosta, Lilies of all kinds, Primrose, Saxifrage, Vinca and Viola (pansy), and possibly some of the wildflowers such as Iris crestata

Good annual flowers to consider are impatiens, primrose, and torenia. Perennial flowers include Japanese anemone, viola, hardy geranium, tall summer phlox, cardinal flower, perennial foxglove, astilbe, monkshood, columbine, and daylily.

For a location in full shade your selection will be somewhat limited to shade lovers such as pulmonaria and. Finally, you might look into foliage colors available in many types of hosta (ranging from green to blue to gold and some with wonderful variegated patterns) and ferns, including the patterned Japanese painted fern. I hope this gives you some ideas.

There are quite a few shade perennials for you to choose from, here are a few: flowering perennials: Alchemilla (Lady's Mantle), Astilbe (Meadowsweet), Anemone, Aruncus (Goatsbeard), Brunnera (Siberian Bugloss), Campanula (Bellflower), Chrysogonum (Goldenstar), Dicentra (Bleeding Heart), Cimicfuga (Bugbane), Filipendula (Queen of the Prairie), Helleborus (Christmas Rose), Hemerocallis (Day Lily), Heuchera (Coralbells), Siberian Iris, Mertensia (Virginia Bluebells), Polygonatum (Great Solomon's Seal), Primula (Primrose), Trillium Grandiflorum (Wakerobin), Lysimachia (Gooseneck Loosestrife), and Pulmonaria (Lungwort). You can also try many, many varieties of Hosta. Groundcovers suchas Ajuga, Pachysandra, and European Ginger would also be suitable. These plants are all pretty readily available.

 

Happy Planting!