First Frost

[wraavr]

 The first frost in the area is forecast for early Saturday morning.  I still have tomatoes, tomatillos, ground cherries, peppers, and green beans making a go of it, so I'll need to protect them from the cold.  Some of the plants are in containers, so I can move them into the basement.  For the ones that are in the ground, I'm going to water them well in the evening and then probably also wake up before dawn and give them some more water.  It's similar to when citrus growers flood their groves; the water-to-ice transition is exothermic, and at the phase change, the temperature will remain at 32F until all of the water has changed to ice.  So if you've got enough water and the low temps are not persistent, you can keep your plants from freezing and dying.  Until the first hard frost, anyway.  I have a small tarp that I'm going to put over as much as I can, too.

The Cornell University Department of Horticulture has some helpful hints in a pdf for giving your plants a better chance against frost.  Good luck to the Boston area gardeners tonight!