0°C.

I planted beets outdoors here a over 3 weeks ago . The soil has been kinda cold so they're slow takng off ... we've had frost here twice this week , the only things affected were the taters . Nipped a bit but they'll be OK .

"Here" is north central Arkansas , about 50 miles from the Missouri state line . We're on the southern edge of the Ozark Plateau .

I'm in Prince George, VA, USA.

I've got lettuce plants I started from seed last month waiting to go outside, but it's still going down into the 30sF on most nights, so inside they wait.

The brisk winds we're having here are worse than the nighttime chill though. I've been trying to put the lettuce outside to start hardening off, but when that wind starts gusting, I rush to bring them inside before they're damaged.

The joy of gardening. [sigh]

Nyssa, who sends a friendly wave up to the other Prince George~~~~~

Hi Nyssa!

Wondering if you might have to up-pot the lettuces indoors?

Also, what's your gardening situation like? Just a small backyard, or is there enough space to sacrifice some space on a hedge for a windbreak at the edge of the veggie plot?

I d> The Bjornsdottirs - Re>

Hi back at ya, Reinhilde!

I had a good-sized in-ground garden for years in my backyard, but after several years of invading deer eating nearly everything I planted, I switched to a "pot farm" on my deck and around the foundation in back of the house.

You can see some before-the-deer pictures of what my old garden looked like plus a article about my "pot farm" on my website:

As for the lettuce plants, I'm hoping that after this rainy weekend coming that I'll be able to get at least a few of 'em outside in large pots. Our lettuce growing season is short before it gets too hot and they bolt, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the winds and chilly nights are almost over. I did get them outside on the deck for a couple of hours today, so that's a plus.

Nyssa, who needs to get the lettuce outside so there will be room under the plant light to get the tomato seeds started