Planting veggies and annuals now (Raleigh: transplants, how much, tax)

[Hardwick]

So I am a little excited to grow my first crops in NC. I put together a couple raised beds and planted the veggies today. Also potted up some annuals. AFTER doing this I checked the weather forecast. Ooooops. Will I be in trouble Wednesday and Thursday night? How early do y'all plant around here?

[North_Raleigh_Guy]

To play it safe a good rule of thumb is to wait until after tax day to plant your garden in this area.

[GatorinCary]

We already planted our veggies also. We covered them with plastic last night, uncovered them in the morning, then put the plastic back on this evening. We'll do the same if the temperature is going to be below 45 or so.

[YoungFogey]

I try to follow the Wyatt-Quarles vegetable planting guide (it pops right up on a Google search). Right now we're between seasons: a little past the time to plant spring veggies, but not quite time for most summer fruits & veggies. But, if you've already planted summer vegetables, just cover them with a blanket or something on nights when the forecast calls for freezing temperatures.

[ucctgg]

You can plant the vegetables now, but they aren't going to do anything until the soil temp is about 65.
It's better to put them in a bit larger pots and wait a week or so.

[evaofnc]

This is a great guide for when to plant what vegetables in this area: Home Vegetable Gardening

[peperoberto]

We've had a warm year this year. I took my tomato and pepper transplants out from the basement (grow lamp and heat pad) three weeks ago, and they've been doing great. "Last Frost", which is actually the date that 95% of last frosts have occurred by, is April 12th around these parts. Don't worry about seeds, they won't germinate before Thursday anyway. Vegetable transplants should be ok, but you can put a floating row cover on them if you're worried. I'm not, though.

[timd2010]

Here's another great guide for planting times...

Growing Small Farms: Planting and Harvesting Guide

This guide is for direct seeding, transplant and "seasion extension" ( which has to do with row covers, high tunnels, shade, micro-sprinklers, etc.)

[Hardwick]

Now I see they are bypassing a frost possibility tomorrow night and Thursday morning and going with a freeze warning. I can bring in the potted plants, but don't know if covering the veggies with plastic will be enough to withstand a freeze. How much do the temperatures vary here from the Raleigh temperatures they use in the forecasts? We are off of Johnson Pond Road about a mile and a half below 1010.

[evaofnc]

Plastic can cause condensation to build up and damage the plants anyway. You're better off using something like cardboard boxes. I'm debating whether to cover up my plants or just leave it to fate and see if they survive lol.