Medium!

“Remember to watch the weather as I make no statements about if we will have another cold snap.”

Farmer Geek-- you crack me up!

Farmer Geek’s last post spoke to the fact that it is time to start planting some veggies in your garden. But there was a caveat, as quoted above: cold snap.

For gardeners, the world is divided into zones, all based more or less on two critical dates: last and first frost dates. Cincinnati is in the southern region of zone 6. Last frost = May 15; First frost = October 15. Thus, most “summer” crops should be planted after May 15.

Since Cincinnati is ‘southern’ zone 6, and my little packet of bean seeds tells me to plant “after all danger of frost,” I am comfortable planting beans on May 1. (Comfortable, but I still wait until May 20.)

I really am a biostatictican. I read the same stuff you do, and I see that “last frost” is defined as the “average day” that the last frost will occur. And when I read that, I know that whoever wrote it was stupid.

There is no such thing as the “average day.” If you have three kids, what is their average birthday? ((March 12 + October 3 + April 7) / 3)) What does that mean? There *is* such a thing as a median. First and last frost dates are medians.

To calculate a medium, plot the date from lowest to highest. Cut the plot in half. The medium is the point where 1/2 the points fall over there, and the other 1/2 fall over... there. Over 50 years, last frost date is the date where 50% of the dates are over there (earlier), and 50% are over there.

Take your chances.
Marica Bernstein
http://NorthsideGuerillaFarmer.synthasite.com