TOOELE, Utah — Several homes were damaged after a severe thunderstorm left hail the size of ping-pong balls all throughout Tooele on Wednesday. For homeowner Julia Howard, her garden was hit especially hard.
I love my garden here,” said Howard. “It’s just a piece of peace in your backyard.”
Their front yard was transformed from just grass into a garden growing tomatoes, squash, pumpkins and even strawberries and corn throughout the year.
"A variety of everything," she said.
According to Howard, the storm started off with just rain and some hail before picking back up heavier than ever before.
“We ran out with buckets, or towels to try and get something covered," she said. "By the time we grabbed stuff to go outside, twigs with no leaves were most of my tomatoes and my plants.”
The storm destroyed most of her plants.
“I’m going to have to replant most of my fall items I planted a few weeks ago, like my pumpkins and my watermelon," said Howard. "My grape vines are completely devastated, they were in their prime and now we might not get any grapes this year.”
Howard posted about the hail in her garden in a Facebook group, a few minutes after the storm came through.
“Most people got to see that and be like, oh this is coming like in a minute, I better cover my plants," she said. "So a lot of people were grateful to have that warning."
Taun Beddes, USU extension horticulturist, said the best thing you can do is get a tarp to cover your crops, secure it well, and protect them from hail and wind.
“We have until early October before our average first frost hits and so I’m pretty confident in vegetable gardens," said Beddes. "In general, things will recover. It may have destroyed some fruit, but be patient, and it should grow back.”
He recommended keeping an eye on your plants that were impacted.
“The number one thing with gardening is that there’s always something new that’s going to take your crops out," said Beddes. "You just have to roll with that damage.”
But for people like Julia, she said this hail won’t rain on her love for her garden.
“You just have to have hope," she said. "You just got to keep caring for them and nurse them back to health like you would a loved one.”
