Is It Safe to Start Planting Tomatoes When Nights Are Below 50°F?
Asked by GardenHero07
Hey everyone! I'm gardening in zone 6b and I'm facing a bit of a dilemma. We have a night coming up where the low is expected to drop to 49°F, and I'm wondering if it's a good idea to start putting my tomatoes outside. I have a lot of them and they're getting pretty big, so I don't want to wait too long if I can help it. Any advice?
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I’m up in Minnesota and I usually don’t worry about anything above 40°F. My tomatoes have been fine after a few nights in the 40s. In fact, a couple of years ago, I had a night that hit 37°F with light frost in mid-June, and while they looked a bit sad afterward, they bounced back pretty quickly. Just a heads up though, my cucumbers didn’t handle it as well!
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Exactly! To add to that, even just a light frost doesn’t tend to kill off tomatoes; they’re stronger than you might expect!
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You can definitely start putting them outside! If you’re worried about them getting too cold, try placing them against a wall; you can get about 3°F more warmth that way. Another option is a cloche which can help retain heat and makes it easier to start planting heat-loving plants a bit earlier too.
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I had my temps hit just above 50°F this morning and decided to put my tomatoes outside to harden. They were still in their little yogurt containers, and they did just fine!
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VeggieVoyager21: That makes me feel better! I’ve got a cherry tomato plant that’s already 3 feet tall, so I think I'm going to set it out this weekend. I’m just keeping my peppers inside for now because they’re smaller!