cool night?? last one I can remember was in April...

on frost covers, I get by with old sheets. Ficus, Hibiscus, and others came through just fine.

I just use old blankies and sheets too, but every year I think about getting some freeze cloth. Maybe this is the year...

The musicman: I guess cool is subjective - but after a really hot day 74 degrees feels "cool" to me. Looks like the next few nights will be around 72 - nice.

Solstice: I am just getting tired of all the odds and ends of blankets, sheets and towels - plus I can't seem to keep them totally on the trees. And somehow when there is a freeze warning I discover that my "stash of covers" is not enough to cover everything..... It would be really nice if the feeze cloths worked and I could just throw them over the trees and "staple" them into the ground "and sleep soundly knowing the trees and plants are all safe and warm". LOL

I use frost cloth, not on trees, but on other sensitive plants. I only cover here when it is going to drop below 28-29 for more than 2 hours. It works great.

It is most important to cover the roots and lower trunk of a plant/tree rather than the upper leaves .
A plant can recover from losing it's leaves to frost but not from having it's roots frozen .
Water the soil of your plants on the night of a predicted freeze .
If they are in pots , put them on the ground and under a table or the leaves of a bigger plant . Both help keep the potted plants a few degrees warmer .
Wrap Drip line in and trunk upward with blankets or towels .
Any fabric touching the leaves can transmit the cold and burn the leaves .
When possible , use a frame to keep cloth away from the leaves .
Sometimes , even the best precautions will result in damage .
I'm keeping my fingers crossed for another warm winter .

I used "Frost Cloth" on my young Mango and Lychee trees, they were less than a year old when the Jan. freeze hit...it saved all my trees that I covered. My backyard registered 28-29 degrees in wee early morning for a few hours.(depending on what part of my yard). I am planning on using it again next freeze(hopefully we won't get one, LOL) I also used C-7(25 cnt) Christmas lights for extra warmth on some of them, I ran out of plugs/lights so I didn't do all of them...I got this idea from members here in GW, and it really worked very well for me! I don't think it is EVER too early to plan...

Here's my set up
{{gwi:933055}}
This is what it looked like when the Xmas lights were on
{{gwi:933056}}
Here is my Tibouchina that I DID NOT cover at all, )o:
{{gwi:933057}}

Thanks to all of you - I am definitely keeping this thread handy.

Gatormomx2, I too am praying for a winter without frost.

Bihai, how long did you keep the material on the plants.

Puglvr1 - What great photos! How did you create the box frame- what did you use as stakes? Did you just lay the lights on the ground? This visual really helped.

What size of the freeze material did you buy?

We just bought an assortment of young tropical fruit trees that we aree planting in the ground and would like to be prepared in case of a frost this winter.

Thanks for all your help and photos.

You should be safer in Zone 10 . I am in zone 9 but have a much colder micro climate with freezes in the warmest winters in the low 20's . Brr !
Be prepared for high winds . When cold fronts roar through - they are often accompanied by ferocious winds which can rip off your best covers .
I think lights help although the experts pooh-pooh them .
Try it all - couldn't hurt !

Jstropic, my DH used 1/2" conduit(sp?)Pipe and PVC for sprinklers that we bought at H.Depot, and cut it with a hacksaw. I cleared all the mulch off during the day to catch as much sun on the soil, I wrapped the lights on the highest part of the trunk, and laid the rest of the Xmas lights on the ground, covered it up around 5-6 pm and turned the lights on around 7 pm and didn't turn it off till the outside temps got above 40 degrees. I was also lucky enough to get some of these plastic Xmas light stakes that were clearanced at Wmart, that I used to tack down the frost cloth, since it was windy that night. Main thing was to keep the heat from the lights inside. Make sure the cover goes all the way to the ground to retain the heat.

I ordered my frost cloth online, since the stores here only carried the very light weight ones. I bought the medium grade, I think it is 1.5 Oz. It came in 12'x50', you can cut to size. I'm sure there are others out there that are just as good, and come in different sizes.

You are lucky though since you are in zone 10, you should be a little warmer than me. I live 2 hours south of Orlando. It is a lot of work, but for me I love Mangos and lychees, so I really wanted these trees to survive so it was well worth the extra work...

gatormomx2 - high winds were my biggest problem in keeping sheets on trees. That was one of the main reasons for looking for an alternative.

publvr1 - Thanks for the information. I bookmarked the place that sells that size and weight so I will be ordering.

OK, one more thing checked off :)