Let’s face it, the Wasatch Front does not have a terribly long growing season so its sometimes necessary to take advantage of every single possible growing day before harvest to ensure our garden plants are a successful investment of our blood, sweat and tears. I was reading the most recent Utah Pests IPM advisory which talked about frost dates – including effects of cold weather on plants and freeze damage to fall veggies – which reminded me that many of you might not know how to find your local average last freeze date. I know Salt Lake gardeners often hear Mothers’ Day which is a very safe gamble for most years, but I might argue that Mothers’ Day 2019 – May 12th – is about 2 weeks after the actual average last freeze date for my garden – April 29th. And I want to grow plants for those extra 2 weeks!!! More risky, yes, but possibly a risk that could result in garden fresh tomatoes 2 weeks earlier! So, it’s up to you – if you want to be safe, Mothers’ Day works just fine, but if you want to know your actual average last freeze date, here is how you find it…
Go to climate.usu.edu
Click on the ‘Resources’ tab
Search your nearest weather station under ‘Freeze Dates’
Oh, and don’t forget to read the most recent Utah Pests IPM advisory
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