In my zone 5 microclimate, where the last frost is typically mid to late June, I do something rather shocking: I transplant tomatoes around Mother’s Day, and they survive weeks of cold snaps in my garden. Without frost cloth.
I avoid the “spring shuffle” that unpredictable weather from March through May brings on. You know, where the unseasonably warm days of “false spring” trick you into thinking it’s safe to transplant tomatoes outside, but then freeze warnings send you back out to the garden at night, rushing to protect new seedlings with upside-down buckets or blankets.
And just when you think you’re in the clear, it happens again… and you’re reminded of why you should’ve waited to plant.
But you can absolutely protect tomatoes from frost without frost cloth, buckets, blankets, wheelbarrows, or any other last-minute object you try to scavenge to toss over your plants. All you need is a simple plastic sleeve called a tomato teepee.
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How tomato teepees work for frost protection
I’ve been using tomato teepees ever since I moved to Central Oregon in 2017 and realized that if I wanted a decent tomato harvest before fall, I needed to get my tomato plants going early. This was pretty tricky without a greenhouse, and back then, I was growing tomatoes in pots so my options were limited.
I could cover them with upside-down 5-gallon buckets, but that wasn’t ideal because I had to remove the buckets in the morning and cover my plants again at night. I didn’t have an easy way to hang sheets above my plants, and they were too tall for hampers and other repurposed objects.
Then I discovered tomato teepees (which are not trellises, despite the name). You’ll sometimes hear them called by their brand names, like Wall o’ Water (the original teepee-style plant protector) or Kozy Coat.
They have lots of imitators online with questionable quality, so the ones I personally use are linked below. My oldest set is several years old!
Easy frost protection
Tomato teepee
Water-filled tubes trap heat during the day and release it at night to protect tomatoes and other sensitive plants from frost.
A tomato teepee (or water teepee) is a reusable, cone-shaped plastic sleeve with tubes that form the wall. You fill the tubes with water and place the teepee around your plant. The enclosure acts like a miniature passive-solar greenhouse by absorbing solar energy during the day and radiating heat into the air at night.
This lets you plant outside several weeks earlier and protects from freezing temperatures, cold winds, and even critters. Because a tomato teepee is open on top, plants still get plenty of sun, airflow, and rain.
What’s the lowest temperature a tomato teepee can protect against?
When properly used, a tomato teepee can protect plants in temperatures down to at least 28°F, which is the lowest temp I’ve tested my teepees at. However, the packaging I’ve seen claims tomato teepees can protect down to 22°F.
The water-filled tubes create a microclimate that keeps the air around the plant several degrees warmer, so the plant can survive a frigid night without damage. It won’t grow when it’s that cold, but it won’t die either.
How to use a tomato teepee
Some people shy away from using a tomato teepee because they think it’s too hard to fill with water, but here’s a trick I’ve learned that makes it easy: use a bucket.
Prop the empty teepee up around a large bucket or tub so it doesn’t flop over.
Use a hose or watering can to partially fill the tubes so they start to stand up. It’s easiest to fill each tube a little at a time, going around in circles until the tubes are about one-third to one-half filled. By that point, the walls of the teepee will naturally lean in from all the weight and create a conical shape.
You can then grab the top of the teepee to move it. Place the teepee over your plant, spreading the bottom edge out so it forms a circle. Finish filling the tubes with water and you’re all set.
Depending on your climate, you might have to top off the tubes with water every week or two. Don’t let all the water evaporate before you’re ready to remove the teepee, because the water is the insulation layer that retains heat.
Can you use water teepees in containers?
You can use water teepees around container plants if the containers are wide enough to accommodate them. I recommend a 20-gallon pot for indeterminate tomatoes with a minimum 16-inch diameter. (I’m a fan of these fabric pots, pictured below, for growing vegetables.)
Removal and storage
Generally, you should remove tomato teepees once nighttime temperatures are consistently above 50°F or when the the plant canopy starts to grow out the top.
If you let the plant get too tall, it becomes challenging to remove the teepee without damaging a vine. (And really challenging to corral all those vines inside a tomato cage.)
What I like to do is push most of the water out of the tubes first, which makes it easier to lift the teepee over the plant. Then I hose off the teepee as needed to get the gunk off, lay it flat on a clean surface, and let it air dry before I stack and store all the teepees in a bin for next year.
Do trellises go on before or after?
It depends. I usually place my tomato cages after I remove the teepees, and that’s what I recommend for most situations.
But when I use this stackable tomato ladder, I put that on first before sliding the teepee over the ladder and plant. The tomato ladder has a narrow enough footprint that it fits perfectly inside the teepee. You can see how that looks with this tomato plant that I grew in a 20-gallon fabric pot, below.
Can you use tomato teepees for other plants?
Absolutely! I’ve used tomato teepees around other frost-sensitive seedlings like peppers, squash, melons, and eggplant. (And it works for ornamental plants too—basically anything you want to plant early and protect from an unexpected freeze.)
Unlike frost cloth, it’s okay if the leaves touch the sides of the sleeve when temperatures drop to freezing. As long as the plant is safely tucked inside, it can survive a cold night as long as there’s sun the next day to warm the water again.
Can you leave the teepee on all season?
You could, but leaving your water-filled teepee exposed to the elements all season may shorten its lifespan since it’s just a sheet of plastic.
That said, I have left a set of teepees on my tomato plants for an entire summer because I was traveling for three months. I’d transplanted my tomatoes early but didn’t want to risk removing the teepees before the last frost.
The teepees stayed in place until after the first frost, and this image (below) shows what my garden looked like after several freezing nights in late September.
My tomatoes were very healthy and productive up to that point, but I think the dry summer and cooler nights helped keep the plants from overheating. (I live in a high desert climate, so your mileage may vary.)
The first year I tried teepees, I experimented with leaving them on my potted tomatoes for a whole summer, but folding the sleeves down as the season progressed. That worked, too.
So if you’re hoping to plant early without worrying about frost, I highly recommend trying tomato teepees in your own garden.
Easy frost protection
Tomato teepee
Water-filled tubes trap heat during the day and release it at night to protect tomatoes and other sensitive plants from frost.
