Tomatoes and frost

I'm glad I didn't put any tomato plants out early this year. We wait anxiously for April 15 -- our average last frost date, but since that's an average, frost CAN occur, as it did last night. It wasn't a heavy frost, barely a sprinkling, but tomatoes, liking warmth above 55 ° F for their night-time temperatures, and soil temperatures in the same range, are not happy with frost, being of tropical origin.

My tomato, pepper, and basil plants are still in the mud room, waiting transplanting to either larger containers (with continued protection), or into the garden. They definitely need 'up-potting,' since they're in small pots, but we'll see. I need to look at the next week's weather forecast!

Our Clemson University Extension folks suggest May 1 as the first date to plant tomatoes here in Upstate South Carolina. Lots of people like to 'push' this planting date, but it's always fraught with potential hazards...