I was driving home right on the leading edge of the storm. Got home about 2 minutes before the hail arrived. Talk about a mad scramble moving trays under trees, grabbing 5 gallon buckets, closing the tunnels and covering the trellises with sheets of cloth or plastic.

Got good and soaked but I think I avoided most of the damage.

I kept looking. Mad scramble is the exact word for it. Problem is, there aint but one of me and dozens of plants and billions of hail stones. There is only so much I can do. I think most things will pull through, I had rows of beans 2 years ago completely stripped of any foliage that bounced back just fine, praying for the same outcome this year.

To think, I didn't see one piece of hail last year. 9 times out of 10 it shoots over us and hits just a couple miles east.

All in all, Jim Beam says everything will be okay, and he's an expert when it comes to every kind of stress.

This post was edited by ZachS on Tue, May 20, 14 at 18:36

The 4 feet high tunnels made fairly quick work covering up 5 of my beds. With the forecast for the rest of the week I think I'll leave the film over the top of the tunnels and leave the sides open.

Probably should pull some of the hardware cloth frames out of the garage and see if I can do something with them this evening.

Hope everyone avoided major damage.

Good grief! We were right in the thick of it here in south west Aurora area... We even had a tornado warning for a few minutes there.

We are lucky in this type of weather since we can easily move the potted plants inside off the balcony. But still! Being from Oklahoma, I'm used to storms.....that hail was something else though! Just amazing and freaky this high up.

Hope everyone's crops come through okay! Stay dry guys.

Sorry to hear that garbage starting so early in the season. I feel for you, Zach, and everyone that got that nasty H stuff.

I just set out some flower starts that were hail damaged.

They had just begun to be hardened-off and were in a part of the backyard that was protected from too much sun and wind. This is just me making excuses . . . I messed up twice, not just once. I didn't expect the hail the first nor the 2nd day. The 2nd time damaged every single leaf. They could have shrugged off the 1st storm.

They went back in the greenhouse. Not only that, I set them out of the direct sunlight in there just as I do freshly transplanted seedlings that are only a couple of weeks old. Like those babies, they stayed there several days before moving into more sunlight and then back to the sweet spot outside.

They were root-bound in their containers from all that extra time but starting over with hardening-off seemed like a good idea. I think they will be okay in the garden now. They had a tough start.

Steve

Well I'm about as ready as I can get this morning, before heading out for work, for the possible storms.

hardware cloth frames over peppers

hardware cloth frames over tomatoes

Best thing I could think of this morning is buckets over the tomatoes trellises. These are also partially protected by neighbor's trees.

The tunnels are ready though I don't like missing out on the moisture.

This post was edited by gjcore on Wed, May 21, 14 at 11:04

I dunno - when it hails here, it comes in sideways.

For what its worth, the local nursery owner, a guy with Masters Degrees in botany, plant science, etc, tells me that following hail damage, spraying the plants with diluted "Super Thrive" helps them considerably. And yes, he sells the stuff, and freely admits that it sure sounds like snake oil, but he says it really helps.

It probably helps the gardeners' mental state - thinking we're doing something useful.

We've likely some hail coming over the weekend.

/Dave, who still shudders when he thinks of the storm some years ago on Sept 10th, the garden full of ripe squash, tomatoes, peppers, etc etc, and we got 4 inches of hail which beat everything to a pulp.

we got hit hard too in Aurora near Hampton and Tower. My backyard spelled of onions BAD because the damage to the onion bed and the walking onions. =( everything else seems ok cause I covered it in time. THe onion beds were so big I really didnt know what to do with it. Hopefully my potatoes in container and the ground dont start drowning from all the rain and rot!! =(

Yeah, everything is covered here too, though the radar showing the storm today passing us to the left. I don't know what do with my onions either, so, I guess if it ruins them, ill be growing beans or something else in their place.

Great ideas for hail guards, gjcore!

We had threats of hail and tornadoes this afternoon, so came home and covered the tomatoes and some of my irises that had blooms or buds getting ready to open. My Jungle Princess iris had one in full bloom that wouldn't fit under the pot I had to use for protection, so I clipped it off and put in a vase. I absolutely love this variety - the color, size (the bloom is 8" across), and the scent!! Here's a pic of the one I picked (might as well enjoy it inside!):

Luckily, no hail - and hopefully we will keep that way!

I came through ok down here but I don't have anything tall that is blooming already. You guys up in the Denver area are always ahead of Colo Spgs, and that may have been a blessing. I don't think we got hit as hard either. Also, not being a veggie gardener...

We got hit so hard in SW CS, the trees and all blooming bushes are without leaves and flowers. Pine trees too, the outdoor grounds are solid green. It looks like someone came in with a weedwhacker across all the yards.

Larger than golf ball hail, would have knocked myself out trying to rescue anything outside. Whole neighborhood was hit hard, windows and anything plastic (gutters, fences) are broken wide open. And exterior paint stripped whether newly painted or not. My new car is another sad issue,

It will be interesting to see how all survives and recoups their growth.

I can't imagine larger than golfball hail, given what marble-sized hail does.

Thats heartbreaking.