Feeling very guilty... :(

[SarzWix]

Popped round to the school garden this afternoon to do a bit of watering etc., after not going all weekend because of my birthday, and found that half the bedding plants in the polytunnel, and all the potato tops, have been hit by frost The bedding plants were covered with a double layer of polythene, but it got to -2c in there, and it just wasn't enough. We earthed the potatoes up on Tuesday, but they'd obviously had a growth spurt. I feel really bad - if I'd called in on Saturday, I'd have seen the potatoes poking out and been able to cover them up

[Glutton4...]

Oh Bummocks! Amazing how things can change in just a short space of time. I had frosted Tattie tops, but they soon carried on growing, despite that, so fingers crossed for you.

[Bigmallly]

I was very lucky Sarah, when I saw the forecast I went down & covered the tatties with straw. Others on the lottie were not so lucky. I'm sure they will recover.

[SarzWix]

I hope so - these are the kids individual poly-pots with just one potato each in. The ones in the ground haven't poked their leaves out yet, thankfully. I'm expecting mine on the allotment to have been caught, but not so bothered about those as I am about the school ones.

[zazen999]

Good opportunity to discuss weather and what frost is...it happens Sarz - you can't be expected to do everything all the time!

[WendyC]

Agree with Zazen can't be everywhere doing everything. For some reason in educational circles we are made to feel guilty for what we haven't done not pleased for the 101 good things we have done.

[Bigmallly]

Good opportunity to discuss weather and what frost is...it happens Sarz - you can't be expected to do everything all the time!

You beat me to it Zaz, treat it as part of the lesson.

[Aberdeenplotter]

Polythene seems to hold the frost for some reason so not the best to use as insulation. Newspapers, paper sacks, netting or even fleece. Hard lesson and it's a real shame it's the schools stuff that has suffered but it would still have been a shame if it was your own.

[SarzWix]

I've lost a couple of tomato plants in my greenhouse, and my spud tops have been caught too. Not so bothered about mine - I have all summer for my spuds to catch up. That's the trouble with school growing - you want as much as possible to mature before the holidays! Still, they're all 1st earlies, so even if they have to resprout from below we should get something off them before mid July. *crosses fingers*

[Bigmallly]

I've lost a couple of tomato plants in my greenhouse, and my spud tops have been caught too. Not so bothered about mine - I have all summer for my spuds to catch up. That's the trouble with school growing - you want as much as possible to mature before the holidays! Still, they're all 1st earlies, so even if they have to resprout from below we should get something off them before mid July. *crosses fingers*

It may be a silly question but is it too late to plant more earlies?

[Seahorse]

Now Mrs, you're not Wonder Woman (though I bet you'd look fetching in the outfit!). How many of us would have gone there, on our birthday, to do something for which we get no pay and which we thought would be ok anyway? None! I like the advice about treating it as part of the kids' learning experience.

[di]

Oh, Sarz. You can't beat yourself up about it.

I was feeling a little guilty about how much time I 'don't' get to spend preparing and being at the school for my Eco Club, then had a shift in prospective. I'm just giving them a little taster in GYO and eco stuff in general. The results/ harvests aren't going to be adequate for them to feed themselves and their families, or the entire school. Some things will work, some won't. If it wasn't for me, you and all the others that volunteer to do growing in schools, they might not get a chance. Do your best, make it fun, learn from the losses(and let them learn too, Zaz's idea is brilliant....don't tell her but I'm working on a way to steal her brain )...and just hope that at least a handful will be inspired enough to start their own growing projects at home. xxx

[SarzWix]

I did Wonder-woman, aged 10, for a fancy dress. I won nowt

They were okay about it, and I showed them how to snip the mushy leaves off, then we earthed up where we could and covered with fleece where we couldn't. One poor lass was quite upset because her mum threw away the potato she was growing at home in a polypot because she didn't want to buy compost to fill the pot up So she planted one of my spares in a pot to keep at school

[Bigmallly]

If all fails Sarah, would it be feasable to invite them to your lottie in small groups. Or maybe that's not allowed, just a thought.

[WendyC]

This thread was started with frost disaster, well all our plants for the local horticultural society comp and the plants to sell at the summer fete cooked over the weekend. Crispy petunias anyone?
Most annoying is the plants from seed grown for the competition as we haven't really got time now to resow and get them flowering by mid July. It was going to be touch as go on the first place. Watered well today and will have to see what has revived tomorrow when we meet.