Starting to get cold here - advice

[Ptreach]

First time grower. Unknown seeds. I think I've got at least two more weeks before harvesting. Temps are supposed to get into the 30's the next two nights, then it looks like clear sailing for at least another week, with night time temps in the 40's and 50's. It's gotten down to 41 so far but the plant looks great.

What's the best way to protect my plant? I'm thinking of using an old bed sheet against the plant, then a fleece blanket and finally a piece of poly. I can arrange it so the weight of the coverings isn't weighing the plant down.

What do you think?

 

[oldhippie64]

I woudn't lay anything directy on the plant I'd make a frame for the covering to sit on instead. I'd also only use the cear poly/plastic so it's like a mini greenhouse. this way it see the sun as they aways have and I don't change it's day/night cycle.

 

[DragonJeans]

What ever happened with the cold?

If you have them in pots, you should move them indoors to a place where they will not get any artificial light to mess up their circadian rhythm. You can store them in the darkened spot for over a week, and they may actually benefit from this by ripening more fully before harvest.

If they are in the ground, you have to either harvest or hope for the best with the mini greenhouse. Like the other commenter said, don't put them directly against any plastic/fabric if you can avoid it. Start the plastic from the ground and make sure it is sealed well. Try to let it get a full days sun so that it is as warm as possible inside before the sun goes down. Paint buckets or water containers black and put them inside as thermal batteries- they will absorb the heat of the day and help regulate nighttime temps. Another method of adding heat could be hot rocks (kept in a fire). Anything that will not generate steam or light should work. Possibly an electric blanket inside the greenhouse.

If I were you in that situation, I would harvest instead of taking the chance of losing it all. Many people let plants go too long outdoors anyways.

If you had a larger greenhouse, a heater would be ideal. You might get away with a propane burner on low, possibly with a large pot of water above it to help heat infrequently, but keeping that up for a week is likely to be problematic with mold/moisture/burning stuff/etc.

Planning for this ahead of time is your best chance at success. Best of luck in future grows and please let us know how it went. The silence makes me think something went wrong.