The Genius Reason Gardeners Need To Think Twice Before Throwing Away Empty Milk Jugs

When winter finally ends and the first spring flowers begin to appear, it can be super exciting to put out your patio furniture again (or dust off the pieces you were able to leave outside during winter) and start gardening. However, the problem with starting your garden in early spring is that there is always a risk of late frost or snow which can damage your tender plants and seedlings, even causing them to wilt and turn black with frostbite. While there are a few tricks for rescuing a plant after an unexpected snow, if the damage is extensive, there's really not much you can do other than wait and see. Luckily, there is a way to protect your plants from the cold before it comes and all you need are empty plastic milk jugs.

In fact, placing a milk jug over your tender plants at night when there is an expected cold snap is a great way to protect young plants by not allowing frost to settle on their leaves and by also creating a temporary and greenhouse-like environment to keep them warm. Furthermore, milk jugs are cheap and reusing them is a great way to keep them out of landfills and help the environment. So, how do you do it?

The first step in keeping your plants safe is to actively monitor the weather and keep a lookout for frost advisories and freeze warnings. Light frosts (between 32 and 38 degrees Fahrenheit) can damage young seedlings but are normally not cold enough to hurt cold-resistant leafy veggies like kale. However, light freezes (between 29 and 32 degrees Fahrenheit) can damage most tender vegetables, and anything 28 degrees and under has the ability to not just kill most tender plants but also damage cool weather leafy greens as well.

Once you've checked the weather and know which plants you need to protect, it's time to get your milk jug ready. To do this, you simply need to cut off the bottom (and leave the cap on) so you can place the entire jug over the plant you want to protect. You can also push it down into the dirt or pack dirt around the jug to keep it in place. While your milk jug coverings are helpful at night, it is important that you remember to remove the coverings in the morning when the sun comes out otherwise the plants may get too hot. Alternatively, you can also remove the cap of the milk jug during the day to allow for ventilation.