[lesley1322]

i have got one of those plastic cold greenhouse thingys with all my seedlings in etc & because of the hard frosts we have had the past few nights i have been covering everything in it with newspaper until the morning when i remove it.

the tomatoes in my grow bag seem ok but everything else seems to have wilted this morning does that mean i have lost them to the frost? on the courgettes & cucumbers its just the leaves that have wilted but not the centre stalk... might these survive? i dont know whether to just sow another batch?

I'm really sad today as i think all my hard work might have been in vain! boooo

[DD.]

I think they may have had it.

Don't sling them just in case, but I'd cover all bases by re-sowing.

[woodburner]

Frost usually makes things go mushy, and then black as they dry out.  
Ditto what DD said.

[aelf]

Some of the outer leaves on my courgettes were frosted in the last few days but new growth is pushing through. This time last year, I was harvesting my first courgettes! 

[lesley1322]

noooo now i am very sad indeed!

i'm not too fussed about the cuc's, pumpkins & courgettes as they are speedy growers but if i have lost my chili peppers i will be devastated as they seem to take an age to get going!

i'd better get sowing some more...

[lesley1322]

also... why didnt the newspaper help??

i have got some fleece but its up at the allotment & i read somewhere that if i covered things in newspaper they would survive?

what have i done wrong? not enough newspaper do u think?

[aelf]

noooo now i am very sad indeed!

i'm not too fussed about the cuc's, pumpkins & courgettes as they are speedy growers but if i have lost my chili peppers i will be devastated as they seem to take an age to get going!

i'd better get sowing some more...

These are all delicate seedlings and very susceptible to the cold. A well insulated greenhouse and sowing them later in the season is the best solution. We are really pushing it a bit to get chillies and peppers to germinate at this time of year in our climate. The healthy looking peppers and chillies in garden centers have been living in cosy warm greenhouses for the last 3 months. Mine are in a chilly ('scuse the pun   ) greenhouse and only just thinking about growing.

[aelf]

and newspaper will keep the frost off but not the cold out 

[lesley1322]

i started them all off indoors and gradually got them used to the colder conditions in the cold greenhouse by hardening them off properly... i guess i'll just have to do it all over again. the chili peppers still seem to take a while to grow on the windowsill though

[DD.]

Any material will provide only so much insulation. If the temperature is low enough the frost will get through.

Don't look upon it as in impenetrable barrier.

[JayG]

You can only expect so much of newspaper or fleece; they can help trap some of the warmth in the soil overnight, and provide a barrier to frosty air descending at night but obviously they can't actually raise the temperature, and unfortunately your plants are particularly tender ones.

[Kristen]

Frost can occur at, what? 2C? maybe even 4C? if the air is still enough.

In some places last night temperature was down to -4C - that's a lot for some newspaper to protect against

I put grass clippings around all my spuds, under two layers of fleece, but I haven';t had the courage to have a peek and see how they faired yet ...

[sunshineband]

Newspaper was certainly insufficient for my spuds (no more earthing up space available I'm afraid) and the tops are all dark and wilty.

[Dan78]

cut grass was useless for my potatos.. obvously didnt use enough of it!

My chillis are staying inside for another month or so yet i think! They are quite small at the minute but very strong!