Weather in Grafton?

[Ed]

Grafton is in New Hampshire, so the winters are cold, I get that. And the Summers are cooler than where I am, in New Jersey. But how cool are they? does it not get hot at all?

My main thing is: can you grow tomatoes and peppers up there? Esp. if you start from transplant (I would imagine from seed is out of the question)?

I don't know if I can live without my peppers - I might start getting the shakes

[Lloyd Danforth]

I have been assured that you can get Tomatoes and Peppers starting with sets to mature in Grafton.

[K. Darien Freeheart]

Yes, gardening with most "normal" things works.

NH has 4 seasons. The springs and autumns are mild. There are periods where it gets "hot" in NH summer, but those tend to be peaks of a few weeks at most, the rest of the time it's very temperate.

You should have no problem gardening if you plan according to the light available.

[Tom Sawyer]

If you are comparing growth to NJ...  alot of difference for the warm weather lovers. Some seasons they can do pretty well and then other times it is too cool and you don't get red tomatoes till well into August.

Further south 6 hrs of direct sun is enough for a garden to do well... up here 12 hrs. would be better.

Container grown seem to perform better, warmer soil etc. Making a microclimate that captures and holds some warmth like in front of a stone wall, hoop greenhouse, or other approaches... I used old aluminum roof panels as a mulch under peppers and that helped.

Johnny's Seeds is a good source on varieties that do better in the shorter season.

Greens and any of the cool season stuff does really well up here. Milder tasting greens later into the season.

[Pat K]

I have been to Grafton and confirm, yes it does have weather.

[Russell Kanning]

you can keep up with it here
http://www.wunderground.com/cgi-bin/findweather/getForecast?query=03240
and check the averages

last year it was tough to grow tomatoes outside

[Lloyd Danforth]

Last year we should have planted rice.

[Russell Kanning]

good news ... i can see blue sky

[Free libertarian]

Last year we should have planted rice.

No comment.

[KBCraig]

last year it was tough to grow tomatoes outside

Clicky linky:

Homegrown Tomatoes by Guy Clark

[porcupine kate]

Hello.

I haven't gardened in Grafton yet........ 
This will be my second year gardening in Manchester NH.
I did grow up gardening in NJ near the north end of the Jersey shore.   (most of NJ is zone 6)

What part of NJ are you in?   
If you are in the mountains in the  very northwest (zone 5) you will not have too much trouble getting used to gardening up here.  If you are in the very southern part of the state (zone 7) things are going to be different.
The evenings are cooler and the days are not quite as hot.  You will want to make sure you are on a south facing property for the garden.  Roger is correct that they will need as much sunlight as possible.  We have a ton of trees up here and you most likely will have to cut a bunch down to get the sun light you will need.   

Expect just as much clay or sandy soil as NJ.  Count on having way more rocks in the soil, small and large.
NH has mostly acidic like NJ.
You will find yourself learning quite a bit about cold frames and row covers. 
You will want to wait till Memorial day weekend to transplant those peppers without a cold frame.
Keep in mind that Grafton is zone 4 which means frost free from the end of May to the beginning of September.

Mud season.  That is what they call spring up here.
The ground freezes solid during the winter here and early spring is different here than in NJ.
CathleeninNH found this great explanation for mud season.
http://www.coldclimategardening.com/2009/03/10/mud-season-a-primer-for-newcomers-and-southerners/

There is a great gardening book The Vegetable Gardeners Bible by Ed Smith.
He has his garden in NE Vermont so everything is applicable for Grafton.  I am trying out a bunch of his ideas this year.  I was given the book by another porcupine as a wedding gift.  She had an amazing garden last year despite the crappy weather we had.
http://www.amazon.com/Vegetable-Gardeners-Bible-10th-Anniversary/dp/160342475X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1267387378&sr=8-1

There are quite a few gardeners up here and the Hoyt farm in Grafton has gardens that I am quite jealous of.   I think you will have no trouble growing peppers after you adapt to living in the Shire.

Kate