Frost in September! That is absurd ! :D We still have like two months of 90+ weather here in the Phoenix area.

Boo.

Here in central NC we're getting our first "taste" of fall...about 2-3 weeks early...with nights touching the mid-high 50s. We can usually take summer crops through October, though.

Though it's a welcome break from the heat in September, I know winter is lurking. Meh.

Wow, that is a bummer. Does it normally happen this early in your area?

55 here this morning. Unusually cool, and probably some parts of new england have frost. I doubt we will see any until early november.

we had two nights of 44F in SE MI. But it will be 86 tomorrow, and down to 71 again by the end of the week.

That is a bummer. Guess it's time to pick, process and freeze for later.

A first frost does not a season end, unless one is weary of the gardening chores for the year and wishes it to be so. Cover, protect, shelter, bring inside (whichever applies) for the early cold snaps at night and the season can normally be extended. Depending on when the first frost hits here, my season can usually be extended for another three to five weeks.

Nights are cooling off here as well, but no predictions of frost in the near term. We usually get a first hard frost sometime in the second half of September. Last year the first hard frost hit on September 14, which beat our average first frost date by one day. We had to cover the tomatoes and peppers for two nights and had a wonderful extended harvest until the next hard frost that occurred the third week of October.

Very dry here again, though. We are once again ranging in the abnormally dry to moderate drought categories. Not a big deal compared to folks further south of course, just doing lot of watering of the tomatoes and peppers which are my two main crops left at this point.

Good luck to all,
-Tom

Well here in new zealand iv been reading all your summerposts for the last few months while looking at the wind an rain outside, now the days are getting longer an spring is in the air its our turn now lol, i realise im probably in the minority here tho :-)

Agreed with Tom, cover your basil with something you have available (just not plastic, unless you can support the plastic with hoops). Water the plants really well, soaking the ground, in the late afternoon. Moist soil will release more heat to the air above.

There was frost, even a light freeze near here last night with low 30's. We were spared until next time...temp only dipped to 39. Though there was steam coming off our pool this am.

Dan, you'll just have to come here in jan/feb bleating about how wonderful NZ summer is, won't you?

Yes, this was a bit early this year, by a few weeks. Fun to hear about the varying weather out there -- obviously not even all zone 5's are created equal!

I won't be back to the garden until first of October, and I had hoped that the basil would hold out. Hopefully now it will warm back up and every thing else will be spared. Thanks for the tips on how to save it all -- for a year when I'm there.

This is my year of having a long distance relationship with my garden because of family commitments, but it's all good. The last adventure of the summer is at hand -- awaiting the birth of a grand daughter at home, and being there (with the midwife, of course) to welcome her into the world. That makes frozen basil seem a small price to pay :)

First Frost is REALLY Early this year. And my plants are just picking up

Here is a link that might be useful: A Tomato Grows in Queens

Go ahead and make that pesto! That's what I'm doing tomorrow! Then freeze it with a little extra Olive oil on top!
You can freeze it in ice cube trays or in a small tub that you can dip into as needed!
No biggie Nancy