Although the last few days have been a touch on the cold side in between the showers of hail and rain it’s been sunny. Added to the lovely sunny days of the middle of the month it means that this April has turned out to be the sunniest of the last five years.
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| Marsh Marigold |
However it’s not all good news as despite the record number of sunshine hours it’s not going to turn out to be a particularly mild April. We've had plenty of cold nights with low temperatures which have held tender plants back in the greenhouse. The growing on information on my tomato seed packets say grow on and maintain a temperature of 15°C (59.0°F). My chart of greenhouse temperatures this month is shown below.
Almost every night this month the temperature has fallen below 7°C (44.6°F) so there is little wonder that my young seedlings aren’t growing very quickly. By the way the high temperatures tend to be exaggerated somewhat as the thermometer isn't shaded from direct sunshine.
It seems we may have to wait a little bit longer before the temperatures start to pick up. It can’t come soon enough for my tomato seedlings.
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It was fantastically sunny wasn't it. But as you say, we could really do with some warmth now. I think I've lost five or six tomato plants out of fifteen. The rest are hanging on in there, but they don't look very happy. I direct sowed runner beans this year for the first time ever, and none of them have germinated. Lessons learned.
ReplyDeleteIt's just so difficult to resist the temptation to get planting when the weather is so nice during the day. Fortunately my runner beans are still in their seed packets. Tomatoes in the greenhouse are hanging on in there but certainly aren't growing at all.
DeleteIt has been a cold and rainy month in Kentucky...the farmers are just now getting the corn out. Our garden is still on hold due to all the rain. Love your end of the month weather charts! Maybe May will be warmer!
ReplyDeleteThe forecasters don't seem too optimistic about an improvement until the middle of May. Hope you start to dry out soon.
DeleteMy tomato and chilli plants will have to race on next month to be big enough to plant out - they're only tiny now, so slow growing.
ReplyDeleteSome milder nights would be a great help to get things moving.
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