Try making a small green house around the plants. A few sticks and some clear plastic sheeting should work. Doesnt need to be fancy.

I tilled my soil last night and added a few bails of hay. Also got some soil to send off for a soil test to try and get a head start on the new season.

That's basically what these are. It's a 24" tall ring of 2" diameter soft vinyl tubes. You know those "popsicles" (plastic bags of colored sugar water)you put in the freezer? Think of 30 of those glued together. You fill the individual tubes with water . Fill 'em up all the way and it closes over the plant, let some water out and the "teepee" opens up. The water warms up in the sun and slowly releases it's heat overnight.

I've been using them in the spring for years. Excellent for late frosts. I've had tomato plants get bit down to where the plastic starts but everything inside is fine ; even with sleet or snow. The only problem is that warm, humid interior attracts fire ants.

where do you get those "walls of water" things? I've seen them, but they looked kind of expensive, $3-4 a piece.

Looks like there could be a hard freeze tonight/tomorrow morning further south and east than the last one...Y'all may want to cover/harvest your plants and remember to protect your pipes...

forecasted low here in DFW is 29.

That's not too bad. Earlier they were saying 23 to 26...Not that they are ever right, but still...

If one gets out of the concrete jungle that holds heat, 23 to 26 is probably more realistic.

It was 29 at 10:00 last night in Hillsboro and 30 in Burleson...I am thankful I drained the pipes at the houses down at the lake...I know they got a hard freeze down there...

Since Christmas is around the corner, those of you who do a lot of gardening/yard work may want to ask for some Radius Garden tools. I have the shovel and I LOVE it...I've used it for digging holes for large trees and crepe myrtles and for removing the pepper and tomato plants from my garden...The handle is at a great height for me so I can use it as leverage when I have to bend down to pick up plants.

http://www.radiusgarden.com/index.php

LSS , do you have any good links to what plants you can grow through out the year for our area?

Your area being Arizona?

LSS,

Is it too late to start a winter garden? If not what would you plant. I just tilled my garden yesterday.

No, I live in the D-FW area. I was at the local hardware store today and noticed they had cauliflower for sale.



Edit: Heres a good start.
http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/publications/guides/E-502_home_vegetable_guide.pdf


http://www.nhg.com/pdf/NTexasVegPlantingDates.pdf

My broccoli and cauliflower is in. I had maybe a half pound of frozen shrimp, and some kind of pasta shells. I just boiled it all together for a around whatever, and poured in store bought Alfredo sauce. It was great. I make my own marinara in the summer when my tomatoes are in. It's great, but what-the-heck, so is store bought. I think they're about as cost effective. Do you use them? Which ones?

Both

I know I'm way early here and this may be somewhere in the 55 pages of the thread so far, but when do you guys start your tomato plants indoors? I read somewhere that you should have 6 - 8 week old tomato plants in the ground by march, covered by row covers to protect from late frosts. That would mean starting them indoors in late Jan or early Feb. That seems too early to me.

Late January or early February is right for both tomato and pepper seeds to be started indoors...

Start them now , your late.

Where would a guy take his soil to be tested ? I started a new garden last year and it did not do to well.

http://soiltesting.tamu.edu/webpages/forms.html

Most nurseries will have a soil testing kit you can purchase to do the work yourself.

I would go with the link LSS gave you. The soil test you buy at the store are a waste of money IMO. I have bought about 5 packs and got different readings everytime. If you send the soil off you will have it LAB tested and results back to you in about a week.

Got my onions yesterday and plan to plant them next weekend.

I have a 16 feet by 32 feet raised garden and was wanting a very small tiller, I checked into the Mantis but they are expensive, anyone have one or know of one for sale ?