Nope... Didn't catch me, I played the drag & drop game again.
I use Weatherbug on my computer and it beeps a warning of everything to be aware of.

Lou

not this time, but two freezes ago I messed up big time and lost my two biggest epiphyllum and my staghorns took extensive damage. I didn't hear anything about frost going into that cold snap and was shocked to see the damage the next morning.
Lori

After the first freeze we had here in Central Florida I saw some butterflies flittering around and had at least one hummingbird at my feeders. I was sure that we wouldn't have another bad freeze, so I bought ten blooming plants from a local nursery and repotted them in 3-gallon containers with good soil some natural fertilizers and some mycorrhizae. They did very well, so I bought 15 more plants and did the same with them. I put all of them in the middle of my yard in full sun.

Then a hard freeze was projected again. So I hauled them all in the garage, including three plants I had in twenty-gallon pots. Left them in the garage and then hauled them all out again three days later.

No freezes for three weeks so I purchased fifteen more plants and went through the same process again of repotting them in larger pots.

Last night there was a soft freeze projected. With so much at stake I had to bring all of them in again--I left the ones in the twenty-gallon pots out. My back was telling me that this wouldn't be a good idea.

This morning I took them out again. They looked quite happy, but I think I'm going to need a back replacement.

I have an order of five small fuchsias coming in soon.

I'm going to put these in smaller pots.

Carol - I think you live near me (you mentioned being close to Tropiflora) - I'm in The Meadows in one of the first homes built here -nice large lot and great for building gardens.In our area, it's very difficult to predict the low temps.and the local weather people aren't too accurate!
I never know whether I should pay attention to the "east of 75" weather warnings, as I'm about a mile to the west of 75 and 5 miles from the water. Just to be safe, I did cover last night and so glad I did when I saw the frost on the coverings - I quickly ran out and took them off, as it was 41 so I hope the plants don't brown on the tips. I usually put plastic on top, but the wind was so strong I gave up.
Can this please, please be the last cold snap?!!!
I hope your new plantings are ok
Hester

Tom -
Sounds like you had a fun time!!!!
I'm curious..what plants did you buy (I need a lot for my new house) and...where did you order the fuschia? Have you had them before and how did they do for you? My friend "up north" has sent me hers in the fall (cuts them back and puts dirt and all in a plastic bag) and I manage to keep them going until mid summer. Often wondered if I brought them in the house I could keep them through til fall.
I love them!
I would advise you to recline today, watch a little football with beverage of choice and congratulate yourself for saving all your plants.
That's my plan, anyhow.
Hester

Tom, you're my hero! I finally gave up moving my hyper tropicals in and out. I thought I lost my stephanotis floribunda (which my neighbor brought back from her mom's in Hawaii) but here it comes! It froze back, but seems to have naturalized over the years. I also have Hawaiian Woodrose (not baby woodrose, the real stuff) that bloomed last year, froze to the ground, but came back with such a vengeance that I had to prune it away from the pandorea!

Forgot and left my Kukui out, but it seems fine (macadamia relative)

I put most of my stuff under the big oaks. I use my elkhorn as a sort of general yard guide. If it's crunchy, I water, if it's droopy, too much water...If it's brown on the edges, I use fish emulsion fert. That and the laurel oak are good weather indicators!

I'll admit though, I DO drag my 14 ft plumerias in...I'm going to HAVE to plant them soon...they weigh well over 200 lbs each and I think I may have left a vertebra or two behind in the process!

Hester, I'm in South Gate. It's two miles to the water and five miles to 75. Not close enough to either to be of any help. This is my second winter and it's been a learning experience!

We did OK. Nothing big deal happened. The leaves didn't have frost on them as happened in December.

I've been talking to my brother who is a PhD horticulturalist about frost. Why do some plants manage better than others, etc.? Water moving from cells and back... You guys know this stuff, but it's new to me.

In New England, you have frosts, then a freeze and it's over. Here it is different, you have a frost or a freeze and not everything is fried. The micro-climates are really interesting.

I want one of these, maybe Lou of Floral City should get one:

http://rolexawards.com/en/the-laureates/rafaelguarga-the-fruits-of-success.jsp

And I read this:

http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/mg025

I've signed up for Weatherbug and ordered a thermometer with high/low memory. Nice to see what the low temperature was when you were asleep.

Carol B.

You guys (both male and female) must be really young with really strong backs! When we moved here from Miami - I was determined to have some tropicals. And I can remember running out in the late afternoon when it was 45 trying to cover things when we were supposed to have a hard freeze. Lots of fun (rolling eyes). After about 5 years - I stopped trying to fight mother nature. I still do buy tropicals - but only small fairly inexpensive ones for a butterfly/hummingbird garden that I'm prepared to lose every year (and pull out and throw away). Plant only after 3/15 (recommended date here - almost no chance of hard freeze here after then in zone 9A) - and when the plants die - they die - they die (sometime our first hard freeze is in February - sometimes - this this year - it's in December).

IMO - if you're new to the area - especially if you're in zones 9A or 9B - I'd see what normal weather patterns are like where you live. Not only what the low temps are during the winter - but how long they last (some plants are ok with an hour of light freeze - many others need 3-4+ hours to get hurt). And how often you get them.

And you have to remember not to prune many of those cold damaged plants until your last probable freeze date (like I have some hibiscus that have been damaged - they look like garbage - but I won't know until spring pruning whether I have to prune off a foot of deadwood - or take them down to the ground (if the latter - I'll dig them up and toss them - don't want to wait until August for flowers).

BTW - in the years we lived in Miami - and our folks lived in Lighthouse Point (east Broward) - we never saw a freeze (hurricanes yes - freezes no). But there are a lot of plants there that don't even like weather in the 40's. Still - I only remember a couple of days down there when the lows were in the 40's. Robyn

It went down to 24 here last night and my Weatherbug on the computer is saying upper 20's tonight. It was funny this morning watching the chickens use their beaks like ice picks when I went out there with a bowl of water.
I left every pot inside the utility room as this looks like a two day event.

Lou

Hester, I'm an avid gardener and have lots of different types of plants. For example I'm heavy into roses, camellias, and gardenias, but I really concentrate on plants to attract hummingbirds and butterflies. To that end I bought something like ten of the big red pentas, which are the best plant I have ever found to attract butterflies--hummingbirds like them also. I also purchased several salvias, which are again very good for both hummingbirds and butterflies. In very big pots I have two big Russelia equisetiformis, known locally as the firecracker plant. They are great hummingbird plants. Also in a large ceramic pot that I have to lug in and out I have a Cuphea Schumannii, which is a terrific hummingbird plant that the butterflies frequent also.

After that I just bought a bunch of flowering plants that would feed the butterflies.

I haven't had much luck with fuschias in the past, but several were recommended by someone in a hummingbird forum that I frequent. I ordered them from a place called The Earthworks Fuchsia Nursery.

I am taking your advise and relaxing today. I just turned off the football game. Too bad for the Bears.

Carol,
I just read about that rolex awards fan machine thing, if I put up one of those here my stupid peacocks would get sucked up through it and it would be raining pretty feathers and soup starter for weeks.

Lou

I forgot to cover the few plants that aren't in the house last night. Must not have gotten as cold as expected, because aside from some leaf and flower burn on the Thai Crown Of thorns plants, they all look fine. Of course, that can be deceiving. I surely hope I do not lose my two lovely large COT's because I got careless.