>> You say ".... after last frost" How do you define last frost?
Gambling.
I should have said "after the average date of the last Spring Frost".
One year there were two cold snaps with more snow than we have in an average winter AFTER that average date!
I'm stil learning, but here's my thoughts after dealing with last spring, which stayed rather cold into June!
I think we have to come up with coping strategies. First, look up your part of the state and pick, say, the 50% date and the 20% date. Then, over several years, get a sense of whether your yard is warmer or cooler than your county, and pick some other dates.
I think it also helps to know how mild you late winter happens to be, and how slow or fast your spring warms up.
AND whether your favorite annuals benefit from being started as early as possible, or whther they might just as well wait for warmer weather.
Then gamble. Sow some 1-4 weeks early, most around the 50% or 30% date, and some 1-4 weeks late.
I would say to only "push" plants that need as much time in the ground as possible to bloom when you want them. For plants that do well in your zone, it's easier to wait for the 30% or even 10% date, and plant them all at once. Then, if you get zapped by a late forst, re-plant or fgive up on that plant that year.
My plan is to make some small light-weight hoop tunnels that I can move around or assemble easily, then plant the things that would benefit from a head start around the "frost is still 80% likely" date, and cover them at night. I already have a collection of 2-liter bottles for plastic cloches.
If that works well, I'll do it to more plants, like anything I wnat to bloom earlier. I have a mild winter and long slow spring, so this may stretch my growing season by a lo
