Don’t let tempting temperatures lure you into planting early, say farmers

SALISBURY, Md – With 80-degree days hitting Delmarva, local farmers say they are cautiously optimistic about the coming season, but say it’s still too early to start planting.

“We are right now about two weeks early, but this is unusual you don’t get 80-degree days, especially a couple in a row,” said local farmer Virgil Shockley.

Shockley tells 47ABC the high temperatures during the day could lull some into planting early, but he says it’s the ground temperature and night temperatures that could still kill tomatoes, corn, and soybeans.

“Last year we had a killing frost the last Saturday in April of last year, and at night tomatoes they want to be above 50 or they will sprout and then come out of the ground and not want to live anymore,” Shockley said.

He says the weather is bringing one key benefit, increasing the growth of cover crops, which help to soak up nitrogen in the ground and prevent runoff ahead of the fields being mulched and replanted with crops like corn and soybeans.

“The wheat that’s cover crop it’s been growing 3-4 inches in the last week,” he said.

But what about home gardeners looking to get a head start on their green thumb?

Johnson’s Seed and Feed Owner Kale Ashcraft says flowers, perennials, and bushes are good to go, but hold off on starting that home garden with full of fruits and veggies.

“The veggies are a young plant, so Don’t put anything out too early watch out for nighttime temperatures make sure that you don’t put tomatoes out or peppers you might start them in a greenhouse and they do well but don’t take them out yet,” Ashcraft said.

Ashcraft tells 47ABC that they have seen a lot of plants sprouting in their outdoor garden in the last few days, but are ready to help protect those plants should temperatures dip back down.

“We got the tarps to cover them up, it keeps the frost off the leaf that way when the sunlight hits it doesn’t change that temperature,” Ashcraft said.

Ashcraft says as the weather gets warmer they see more customers stopping in, and they are glad to see the weather heat up, even if the ramp-up was drastic.

“We are ready, it signals that we hope spring is here,”  Ashcraft said.