Spring seems to sucker punch me every time.  Late in February it gets sunny and the nights suddenly get warm. There are tomatoes and peppers at the nursery.  So I fall for it and grab some tender seedlings all full of the promise of tasty summer harvests.

colorful heirloom tomatoes fresh off the vine

But then there is the sucker punch.  No sooner are the seedlings home but the night turns cold and the wind blows endlessly for days.

Some of the tomatoes will be potted up and kept in the greenhouse. They will put on fast growth in the sheltered environment and bear fruit by early June.  The remaining tomatoes, including ‘Sun Gold’ and the peppers will get planted out despite the cold and tough it out protected by black plastic collars cut from 5 gallon cans.  the collars protect the seedlings from the wind and absorb the sun’s heat.