Ya, I am in Space Coast area, moved here 3 weeks ago just before Christmas. It is cold, but nothing like what the North is getting!

It's 24F here at the moment. Cold for us. Also, snow flurries on and off all day.

Yikes, for sure. But really this isn't normal! We have a cold snap every winter but it usually lasts only a day or two. For our plants, this dip into the mid 20s is brutal.

Kate
(Welcome to the forum!)

Hi greenhouser2,
I don't live in Sarasota. I like to visit there and I have a son and daughter that do live there. I looked up the records for Sarasota in jan and I was surprised to see that they have had a freezing night on every date in jan save two. I don't mean to bum you out, it's a hell of a lot warmer than tennesee. Here's a link to that record.

john

Here is a link that might be useful: Sarasota Jan low temps

I'm in Sarasota, it has been cold but as everyone else here can attest... it hasn't been this cold for this long in years.

Hi
31 has been my local low so far lol but was very remarkable in that it lasted over 4 hours with a record daytime high of 48. Coldest I've experienced was 26 in 82
and that always memorable snowstorm that made it all the way to Miami. in 78. Another front is comimg in to night lows not so bad but highs are only to be 45!!
One of the most interesting things about florida winters is that they are almost never "Normal" lol Set several record highs in Dec .lol
All of Florida is subject to frost except Key West just doesn't happen every year and usually of 3 day duration.
gary

Thank you all for your replies. This does seem like a freak cold spell. I hope most of your plants can be saved. I've already made up my mind to get a greenhouse once we're moved and settled in. I had really hoped I could plant my old tropicals right into the ground in Sarasota but now I would fear losing them to a freak cold spell such as this one. HFGH makes a nice inexpensive 8X10' for under $1000 w/shipping.

http://www.weather.com/outlook/homeandgarden/garden/wxclimatology/daily/USFL0446 was a blank weather page.

Funny that wouldn't work for you. When I click on that url it works for me. If you are interested you migh try cut and paste. Nevertheless this is the coldest weather we've had since 1989 and that was for only two or three days. Your biggest problem with a green house here is keeping it cool in the summer.
john

Or having it blow away in a hurricane!

What type of tropicals are you worried about? Let's get more specific. What might be exotic to you, you may be able to find in a Florida Wmart. no joke.

I agree with coffeemom. I have seen all of my plants in Walmart, Lowes or Home Depot...granted that my yard isn't that big and I don't have acres of plants, none the less.

That URL worked in IE8, but not in MozillaFF so I got it. :)

I wouldn't use a GH in the summer in FL and I don't use mine her in TN in the summer either. It's only used in winter.

I have an assortment of orchids, several types of begonia, double impatiens, geraniums regular and scented, a large gardenia bush, tropical ferns, a tropical swamp lily, a few things that are nameless (lost the tags), about 20 cactus and succulents, a old cast iron plant, an old 2' tall Jade plant and a variegated snake plant my grandmother gave be back in 1956. I don't think any of these would survive a frost. They wont here in TN.

I'm in zone 10 so hopefully zone 9 gardeners can chime in after this weather passes.
For us zone 10'ers the reg begonias, double impatiens and reg geraniums are annuals. The summer heat and rains cause them to rot. They're gone by May.
The gardinia bush is a whole other problem.lol. Use the "search this forum" for gardinia. You might do better with one that's been grafted .
Bring your grandmothers snake plant and plant some of it outside. It will take off like you wouldn't believe. Keep some of it as a house plant for backup if you want.
Cast iron and jade and snake plants can be bought for under $5 and will get huge in very little time.
The orchids you can hang from trees and bring them in when it's cold.
If the ferns are houseplants you could use them on your patio or lanai. The swamp lily can go in the ground. It could possibly die back but will come back from the roots.
Keep in mind the ground does not freeze and we should be back in the 70's (80's for Broward)by the weekend.
Aside from the orchids that you would move indoors. and the snake plant that has family ties, if everything died you could buy replacement plants reasonably priced.
Welcome to Florida.

My attachment to some of these old plants is sentimental. Replacements wouldn't be the same. :) I have the Peace Lily since 1965 when my son was born. The old Asparagus fern is a mothers day present from my son when he was 7 yrs old. He paid .25 for it that he borrowed from me. He's 45 now. You can see why they mean so much to me. I can always keep them in pots but that would make traveling difficult as I wouldn't know anyone in Sarasota to water them when we traveled. We have a travel trailer and camp quite often.

The peace lily would do better in a pot on a shaded patio. You def don't want the asparagus fern in the ground as it's invasive and hard as heck to remove.
Move here, check out the lay of the land, and when you want to take off, we'll come up with some kind of watering system while you're away.
Just don't forget to bring the sunshine with you!

LOL!!! :-D No sunshine here in TN. It's bitterly cold and overcast again. The 2 small ponds are frozen over and the heaters in my 2 hobby GHs are running non-stop. I pray we don't lose the power as we often do in the winter.

I'm busy sorting through our things with three boxes by my side. One for Freecycle, one for Goodwill and one for the stuff I'm keeping. A big trash can sits here also, filling rapidly. We've accumulated an amazing amount of stuff over the years.

We moved to Sarasota on 12/31. Our yard was overgrown and we have been clearing trees and overgrown plantings since then. We have not begun to plant. I've learned a lot by watching neighbor's plantings freeze and other things do well. I want to plant Florida native plants and will add color in pots or with annuals, I'm a snowbird and the gardens have to make it on their own when I'm not here.
I'm with you with sentimental plants. I have a plant from cuttings from my great-great grandmother's night blooming cereus. It can go outdoors, but not all the time. I think they have some at Selby, but not outdoors. (Zone 11?) We do have a huge epiphyte succulent in the live oak tree.