Lessons From the First Frost

After the summer that felt like it would never end, it did. We finally had our first frost on Monday, October 29. Today for Green Thumb Sunday I thought I would record some of the lessons I learned from the first frost so I don't forget them next year.

1. Don't wait to bring in the green tomatoes if you want to keep them. The tomato plants were instant goners. I thought I remembered bringing in green tomatoes last summer after a frost or two. Well, either I remembered incorrectly or those were light frosts, because after Monday's frost the green tomatoes had turned dark green and many of them were coated with a brown sticky substance. Ew!
   
   
2. You can put annuals in the garage to buy some extra time. I have a pot with some annual herbs that I might want to take cuttings from, but I was too tired to do so last Sunday after a day of bulb planting. So I've been sticking them in the garage at night to buy myself some more time.
   
   
3. Some flowers can take the frost. Surprisingly, not everything was killed by the many frosts we've had this week. The cosmos are still kicking (yet another reason to love this wonderful annual, along with the scabiosa, sweet alyssum, pinks and veronica speedwell. Even the lavendar isn't mush yet.
   
   
   
   
4. You don't have to say goodbye to the annuals you love. Before I started reading gardening blogs, books and mags, I thought all annuals died at the end of the season no matter what. And since I'm cheap, er, frugal, I wasn't willing to buy vast amounts of annuals. But, as I've learned, if you have the space and desire you can overwinter entire plants or cuttings an replant them next season. So this year I'm trying to save these cute little daisies. More likely than not I'll end up killing these, but it's worth a shot right?