Cold night ahead. Time to retreat to safety.
A cold dry night, in the 40s, is ahead...

... and a fresh lemon in hand for a cup of tea for the aching back afterwards πŸ˜€

I don't want to be picking up all of it's leaves tomorrow morning.Β 

are you worried about temperatures in the 40s? I thought we only had to be concerned when it got until about 35

I've only heard that below 35~40°F they might lose leaves, but I don't know this for certain. Just being cautious. I've lost mangos and papayas 3 years ago so I'm super cautious now. Once frost bit twice shy 😁 Eventually they will need shelter from the 30°s, but I'm going to acclimate them now. They may even grow faster when warmer too. I'm sure that the rooting clones like to have warm roots. 

@peteypyro I've got about 20 clones rooting out back and the root development is at a crawl now but extremely healthy. The usual stem rot has completely stopped. So now it's time for us to really pick up the pace and produce fresh trees for this coming year.Β 

Tempted to either begin indoor setups or move them to a more direct light source.

Are you planning on growing any cold weather crops this season??

last edited by will

just took a second look at that lemon tree! Home squeezed lemon juice all day long.Β 

@will I find that roots love warmth. Most cuttings will grow roots much faster when warm. Even some seeds like peppers need warm temperatures (>75Β°F) to even germinate. There are commercially available heating pads just for seed germination. Only a few watts but it is enough.Β 

Β  Of my 16 kratom clone cuttings, done 2 weeks ago ( see my "All A Clone on a Friday Night" post), 4 died (damping off fungi) but 12 are developing roots and are past their most vulnerable stage. Their open cuts are healing, and leaves are beginning to grow (a sure sign of roots developed below). You are correct that a warm sunny location will speed root growth, as long as the light is also kept well subdued (to reduce transpiration losses and burning). Lots of sun for warmth (the translucent filing box has a black bottom liner to absorb light and radiate heat) with lots of shade cloth for subdued lighting. They love it. Warm temperatures reduce fungi and encourage rapid rooting. Cinnamon and IBA hormoneΒ  heavily coated the stem's buried nodes.

BTW Will,Β  I've already got all of the winter crops in. Cabbage, lettuce, celery, tomatoes, beets, broccoli, spinach are all doing well, so far (fingers crossed).Β  Most are in the hydroponic section, but 200 feet are in soil. (Can't figure out how to do root veggies hydroponically yetπŸ€”πŸ˜—πŸ˜†πŸ˜‚πŸ€£πŸ˜ͺ)

Β  I hope that we both will have plenty of clones to populate the world with kratom everywhere. Sort of like Johnny Appleseed did onceΒ 

Β  I hope to have 20 kratom tress in the ground by spring, and another 80 by next autumn. I'm replanting some acreage of dying citrus with olives and kratom. Some fellow citrus growers in northern Florida tell me that Olive is the new Orange.Β  My first traunch of 5 year old olives are 25 feet tall now with trunks as thick as my thighs. Fast as Kratom?Β Β 

πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„πŸŽ„etc., etc.

Β  Go Kratom, Go.Β  (or Grow Kratom, Grow)

last edited by peteypyro

Cinnamon seems to ward off 'damping off'. Maybe cinnamon's hydrophobic water-repellent nature helps too. If your clones/cuttings are rotting at soil level, take the 'Cinnamon Challenge'. It really works with a good dusting.

These clones are only a few weeks old but are growing new leaves, a solid sign that they have developed new roots.