I had the sheets on the blueberries ;-) But just pulled all the mulch off the strawberries before it started to rain, they look good, there was only 1 leaf cluster that looked a little weird (light and kind of puckered?), no black centers (how long after frost does it take the damage to show?) and some berries forming. Just came in for lunch - guess I'm not going to get anything planted today, or put anything outside to harden off. I'm not complaining, we need the rain, I'll just have to work outside tomorrow when it's sunny and high 70's (weird weather)! @howelbama - Lowes has frost blankets?! I even called burlap manufacturer near me the other day, they sell shade cloth but no frost blanket. I've never seen any of the big-box stores carry anything like frost blanket or row cover, and the nurseries don't seem to either. Do you have a SKU?

Albert, I know that Reno-Sparks' average final frost date is around May 15, but in the outlying areas, in exposed and higher-elevation areas, I'd go with May 30. My working hardy-plant date here in the "banana belt" of older Sparks is April 1, semi-hardies go in starting April 15, and tender plants go in between May 1 and May 30 depending on how brave I feel and how much row cover I have handy for covering things when we get the gazillionth late freeze for the year. Lisa

I remember that time period very, very well. It is the only time I can remember that I just stopped watering the garden and said "I'm done!", and it was only the second week of June. I felt HORRIBLY GUILTY about it, but our water bill was already $300 a month and I was watering like a maniac trying to keep the foundation from cracking (it didn't) and the grass green enough to keep fire from getting too close to the house. Even after I stopped watering the garden, the water bill stayed high, but I thought it was better to have a high water bill than to spend thousands on foundation repair. The fires were horrendous. Prior to that fire season, out little Volunteer Fire Department, which was about 2 years old at the time, had maybe 40 calls a year, and had just moved into our brand new fire station after spending the first two years operating out of a very kind person's metal shop building. For us, the fires started in late summer 2005 and ran almost all of 2006. I remember that for 2006, we had 240 calls.....most of them were raging wildfires. I cooked meals for our firefighters, sometimes feeding them 2 to 3 meals a day, and carried them coolers of water and Gatorade constantly. I absolutely disappeared from GardenWeb that year....was not on it at all. I lost my daylily bed and blackberry bed because I couldn't keep them watered. Lost a lot of other plants as well. In the middle of all that craziness, we came home after a day of firefighting and the air conditioner had broken and our house stayed 85 degrees that night. We got it repaired in a day or so. AND, on a day we had 5 fires in our district and were out all day long....from about 9 a.m. to 11 p.m., our DS's best friend was in a fatal vehicle accident. It was the worst day ever. Despite the heat, the lack of rain, the wildfires and the fact that I quit watering the veggie garden AT ALL, all the eggplant produced until frost, as did about 80% of the peppers and maybe 10 out of a hundred or so tomato plants. I was thrilled because I didn't expect anything to survive. That year is why I always have 8 to 12 tomato plants in containers, because I want to have tomatoes if I ever have to stop watering the garden again. I am not sure I would ever completely stop watering again because it was just so distressing to feel like I gave in and let the weather defeat me. I mulch much heavier nowadays and use the soaker hoses more, and our water bill has never come close to being that high. In fact, it changed my watering philosophy and I water much less now. I think what I learned from that year is that the garden plants CAN survive on a lot less water than we think. In 2005, we had 20.65" of rain, but almost half of that fell in July and August, which set up the wildfires. The almost 10" of rain we got in those two months caused LUSH growth of everything everywhere, but when the rain stopped, that lush growth turned almost instantly into tinder for fires, and by October/November 2005 we were out at wildfires daily. So, too much rain is not always a good thing. That's the only time our home has ever been "threatened" by wildfire, and we had 5 fires within about 1/3 mile of our house. I hope we never see a year like that again, but this is Oklahoma, so I bet we will. Dawn

personally i feel discriminated. Did it ever occured to u that the majority of people who have criminal backgrounds are accused unjustly? did it ever occurr to u that the majority of these people were young at the time of the crime....and made bad mistakes without using their intelligence. we all make mistakes....the important thing is change.Everyone has the right of another chance...especially when u really want to change ur life around...i've never comitted no crime....but i'm married to a man who has a horrible past....criminal back ground...bad childhood...but if u meet him you'll notice that its impossible to believe that this man has done anything.My husband is a good father...a good friend....a good husband....and a good adopted son....he's not perfect...but he ain't the devil either...hes just made bad choices....i don't blame him because of his childhood...but i don't see what hes done....cute. i understand him...this man has changed his life around....he has lost so much....but he has gained as well...i believe god gave him an opportunity because hes sees what inside of this mans heart...who are we to judge so blindly...the most sad thing about this is that because of what hes done in his past....we are having trouble finding a house to rent....i've been through so much with this man to know what this man is really about...and i don't understand how naive people can be to just sit there and judge...instead of sitting down and try to find out what exactly is going on.we are good tenants alwayz have been, just trying to give a better life for our two children.....so before u decline someone, take the time to think how would you feel if someone rejected you without hearing your side first...because when i look at the eyes of this man it hurts me to know that its killing him and hes feeling unworthy...and he is worth much more than what people think..