tonight will be very cold

Potato tops have survived this weeks freeze, but the Avocado looks like its had it.

Sods law its warmed up here now, now i'm in a house & not sleeping outdoors:DOH:

 

The one my Mum grew from a "pip" when I were a nipper took some killing - she put it out every winter hoping it would die ... I think in the end someone took it off her hands 'coz they thought they could make it into a walking stick!

 

I probably dont have the plants on the same scale as you, but I have my regime, if they say sub zero, I cover things up.
I also look at the met office site, weather charts, (there are far too many idiots on the web posting stupid info regarding the weather), look at the dotted red lines regarding air mass, and see how it moves.
Just sticking your nose outside on a frosty night is enough, if its clear and cold.

You then get an idea of how hard the frost is likely to be, bearing in mind whether you are a cold spot or a warmer spot.

To me, minus 5 is the real killing point for most of my stuff that's tender, but my aim is to keep them plants frost free, that gives me a cushion temperature wise.

Eg, the greenhouse on the allotment had a paraffin heater in it on Friday night, it was still minus 5 in the morning, but I think I've got away with it.

 

Very spring like here today. It's 6C now at 9.30pm.

 

Still got a chance then Kristen?

 

Thanks Pete, I hadn't really analysed it, but I do the same things you do. I suppose I am just hankering after sitting in my armchair in front of the telly and a blazing fire and getting an early warning that I need to get out there and do stuff! By 11pm or similar when I take the dogs out for a quick pee we are both mentally half way to bed! so putting my nose out side and saying "flipping heck, its crystal clear and perishing cold ..." and then having to cover things is an annoyance!

" bearing in mind whether you are a cold spot or a warmer spot."

By the by, I've enjoyed watching Wunderground over the last few nights as the cold has developed. May be a statically insignificant sample size, but the area close to where I am (which is fully rural) has consistently been slower to cool in evening and quicker to warm up in morning (by a degree or two). Something I would check in future before choosing a new property.

"To me, minus 5 is the real killing point for most of my stuff that's tender, but my aim is to keep them plants frost free, that gives me a cushion temperature wise."

yeah, sorry, I wasn't completely clear. My conservatory will give me about a 7C lift on external temperatures, so -5C is still going to comfortably be +C indoors. -10C or colder outside is a different thing altogether and needs heat in the conservatory plus covering vulnerable plants.

I'm going to have a list next year of what is most tender so that it is all next to each other indoors, and easier to cover / protect. And the ones that want "dry" over winter can be in their own group too. This year I have everything arrange simply by the date when it came in and just lined up next to everything that was already in there !!

"Eg, the greenhouse on the allotment had a paraffin heater in it on Friday night, it was still minus 5 in the morning, but I think I've got away with it."

Fingers crossed for you on that ... I had a bottle of gas run out (during the day) and no spare for the evening; based on the forecast I did nothing, but then I had to nick the one from the kitchen range when I saw how low the temperature was going, and I would have preferred to do that at 7PM rather than 1AM as it turned out !! ... messing about with blinking cold metal spanners outside in a thin jumper because I thought "It'll only take a minute" !! My own silly fault of course ...

 

It's 4C here at the moment and forecast to be a balmy 8C later. Best get my shades out

 

I agree with you Shiney, the plants I have take their chances too. I don't buy or grow plants that need mollycoddling.

8C today, but didn't feel like it in the wind. 8C now too at 8.30ish.