I have had success transplanting raspberry volunteers in April and May. I like to dig them up and move them when they have just begun to leaf out, with a few small leaves emerging. If possible, I will transplant during overcast weather, at the beginning of an overcast period, so the transplant will get 2 or 3 days to develop roots before the sun comes out. If I was obliged to transplant during the summer months, I would use a sun shade for several weeks to provide the plant with reduced sunlight.

Robert, So OKCE replaced Spencer in 2007? Now I am confused. Why did you use Norman's data instead of Spencer's old data that goes back to 1994? Is your weather more like Norman's than OKCE/Spencer? Just curious. I believe OU and OSU have the best Mesonet system in the country, but being an Oklahoman, I am prejudiced, of course. During bad fire years, I use their OKFire feature a lot and our county Emergency Management Director even showed me how to use one feature of it to input our data and see what the weather will be like as our FFs fight a large wildfire. It is wonderful because it can tell you when/how major wind shifts will occur, for example. Usually our Emergency Management Director will run the model and relay the info over the radio to the firefighters, but knowing how to do it ourselves makes us more independent (and the EM director does occasionally go on vacation, for example) and also lets us use smartphones with Internet access to acquire the data we need right at the fire scene. I know Scott uses the AgWeather feature some too. The OK Mesonet is very versatile. As far as datasets and developing some sort of predictive model, I can think of a couple of reasons that might explain why no one has created one. First, there's the issue of liability. No matter how many disclaimers they put on such a website warning people that the predictive model cannot guarantee stable weather after planting occurs and also doesn't guarantee success, there still would be people who'd want to sue because the model "told them" to plant, they did, and then lost their plants to late cold weather. You know it would happen. Secondly, I don't know how a model could take into account how wet or dry the ground is. Even if the soil temperatures are in the correct range and the air temperatures are appropriate as well, how could this sort of program account for different moisture levels at different soil levels. We can look at our soil moisture numbers on the OK Mesonet (or, LOL, stick a trowel in the soil and see how wet it is first-hand), or we can use Keetch-Byram Drought Index numbers (0=totally saturated soil, 800=totally dry soil) to judge how wet or dry our soil is, but I don't know if those numbers are widely available nationwide (they should be) or if they could be built into a predictive program. Because I have thick clay soil that holds excessive moisture for a long period of time, I cannot plant any seed if the moisture levels in the soil are terribly high or they'll rot before they sprout, especially in cold conditions. I know that, so I'd take my own soil moisture levels into consideration even in if I plugged in my data and got a "plant now" message. Less experienced gardeners might not understand how much cold, wet soil can harm their seeds. How do you put that into a predictive model? Finally, every seed varies in its response to soil temperatures, soil moisture and air temperatures. Some seeds can sit in the ground forever and eventually sprout. Others can begin to rot very quickly under certain conditions if they do not germinate within a fairly brief timeframe. I don't know how you could include data for every possible seed type. The best info I've ever seen in terms of seed germination temperatures was a table prepared by Tom Clothier that showed how many days it takes various seeds to sprout at different soil temperatures. I have found it very helpful, so I guess I'd better find it and link it here. Dawn Here is a link that might be useful: Tom Clothier's Seed Germination Data

Actually the best time is in the early fall. The soil has been warmed through the summer and they get a good start before going to bed for the winter. HOWEVER, you can duplicate these conditions and probably plant in April and May if the soil is workable. A week or two prior to planting, place a piece of black plastic about twice the size of your digging hole on the area and weight it down with stones or bricks. This should help warm the soil. Then dig and see if the soil you bring up from the bottom of the hole is workable. If not, repeat and try again. Amend as necessary and plant. A clear plastic tent (with venting) should also creat a little mini-greenhouse for you. I grew lettuce right through the winter this year using a plastic tent system. I intend to put in veggie very early this year using the same system. Good luck.

"My wife favors traditional tilling but I would really like to use raised beds. Thanks." Traditional tilling will cause alot more weed problems. Further, tends to destroy what little soil structure you may have, and absolutely will, if the soil is too wet. I favor raised beds and top dressing. I am also starting to use clover as a cover crop. It's nitrogen fixing, and attracts pollinators to your garden, but not pests. It usually won't die if you spray other broadleaf weeds with 2-4-D. If it spreads where you don't want it, you can kill it with turflon ester. I believe over time it will help raise the fertility level of my soil.