My pepper plants are on their own, picked all the peppers last night. The tomato cages each get a 50 watt halogen bulb set at the base on a timer so the lights come on at 1:00 am. Covered it is enough to protect the plant down to about 22 degrees ambient.

Today will pick the citrus. They are ok at 28 for a couple hours but tonight they are calling for 24 and they will freeze. I really hate having to pick them as they stay so nice and fresh on the trees and just look so good. Oh well.

How abt. running the sprinklers starting abt. 2 AM or thereabouts ? and letting them run awhile, maybe until sunrise ? seems to work for the strawberry-growers..... also for low-growing plants, cover with old sheets and then with a tarp., makes a mini-greenhouse effect... and taller plants make a sort of teepee and cover it with a tarp, again the mini-greenhouse...... guess it depends on how much energy a person has to get out there and do all that construction ! ! sally

everything this morning looks rather sad, frozen and drooped....not sure how the covered tomato plants made out as I am not going out there.

I uncovered my tomatoes this morning so they could get some sun. They look sad :(

My covered tomato plants I am happy to say look perfect, no damage at all but of course each had a 50 watt halogen nightlight to scare away Jack frost..or is it Frank freeze? In either case they are fine.

It's all droopy around here too, whatever wasn't in my greenhouse tents are toast. When I went out at first light I could hear the heater fans whirring in the tents. I will go out later around lunch time and take another look when the sun makes them fully sag.

Lou

I have resorted to rolling my 5 gal buckets into hangar at night with a hand truck.
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w211/jbkerr/veggies/DSCN0231.jpg

It looks like we can breath again until Tuesday when an even colder air mass will be upon us.

OK, one of you geeks, how do I get photobucket to produce pics here on GW

bernie

Bernie- on the side of the screen next to your pictures on photobucket there is a box with computer codes on it. I think "html" is one of like five types of codes. You copy one of the codes (CTL + C) (I think it may be "html", but I could be one of the others, I don't remember) and then paste the code (CTL + V ) into your gardenweb message. When you hit the preview message button on gardenweb the code should turn into a picture. If it doesn't turn into a picture then it wasn't "html" but one of the other codes you should have copied.

You can tell I am not a computer geek. Someone else will answer this better, but in case speed is an issue try my confusing instructions.

Amberroses, your instructions are right. It is html code, copy (ctrl + c) then paste (ctrl +v) and it will turn into a picture on the preview page. You're a good "geek".
Sylvie

go to weather channel.com...usually on the money. going to low 20's tuesday....get ready.....rain on sunday, should be a good learning experience here....soaked blankets and twenty.....see what survives....screen room full, sheds full, i hate winter!!!!!!

For us weatherchannel.com says monday will be 31 for a low. Hmmm....isn't there something special that happens when temperatures get in the lower 30s? What was that? Oh yes, now I remember! It freezes at 32! For those of you who are inland or north of me and have already experienced the 31 degrees, what should I do? What is worth trying to save?

Wait, tbo.com says Monday will be 44 for a low. That sounds better so that is the one I will believe. I'll just stop looking at the weather channel. Happy warm thoughts.

well.... my tomatoes are 100% dead! I picked lots of green toms and waiting for january when I can start all over again! I guess it was below 32!

For the first time, I am discouraged. I had just induced one tomato plant to bloom and the other had five young ones with others appearing. They are all gone, my basil looks whipped, my lettuce is indescribable. my hibiscus crying out for help - when does one plant in this area? The heat got the tomatoes in April and now the cold has got them and it's not even officially winter yet! My only hope is in my congo peas which seem unaffected. I sincerely hope they will remain so after the next cold spell.
I thinkI will don black apparel for the next week and get this out of my system. Sorry folks!

We used a beach umbrella over the papaya and then draped a sheet over that. We used sheets for the rest but then yesterday we found a 10 x 10 canopy at a garage sale for $5.00! I think it will be great!

The trick this time around might be keeping the sheets in place in the 40 - 45 mph winds they are forecasting. Good grief!

Weather Underground says low 30's tonight for DeLand and Ocala with wind chills close to 20.
Monday night WU is calling for low 20's for both areas. Tuesday doesn't look a whole lot better.
This is the third year on a row of below average temps.
I have become a survival of the fittest gardener.
I have learned not to fret about the fried vegetation.
I try to remember how nice things looked this Fall and how many plants surprised me by returning from the dead.

How much will the Christmas lights under the frost cloth or blankets help? We have probably 20 strands of lights that DH says he is going to pitch - no desire to hang any outside anymore. I am thinking about laying them on top of my Pipevine then covering what I can with the frost cloth, h oping to keep it anchored in the wind is another issue in of itself.

As far as everything else - I give up - maybe its time to start completely over this spring - even more so than last year!

I think C-7 or C-9 Christmas lights(old fashioned) ones are best for heating under frost cloth. The very small ones don't give out enough heat to help??

Here's one of trees with C-7 Christmas lights w/sheets and frost cloths over them. But, as mentioned above the high winds will make it very difficult to hang them and keep them covered :o(

Of course, I'm so afraid of fires...I never sleep when I use this method! Even though, I know people use them for Christmas decorations for weeks...

The potted plants have been in the garage since last weekend but other than that, I am with Mary. It is survival of the fittest. The 8ft tall fire bush and tons of other plants that came back from last winter's 5 straight nights of freezing weather proved it to me. I had hoped the freezes would wait until after Christmas so my in-laws could see the garden but oh well. The only thing that gets a blanket cover is the pump, because no water comes from a frozen one!

Keep warm everyone!

Melissa

The potted plants have been in the garage since last weekend but other than that, I am with Mary. It is survival of the fittest. The 8ft tall fire bush and tons of other plants that came back from last winter's 5 straight nights of freezing weather proved it to me. I had hoped the freezes would wait until after Christmas so my in-laws could see the garden but oh well. The only thing that gets a blanket cover is the pump, because no water comes from a frozen one!

Keep warm everyone!

Melissa

there's an echo in the room

Weird. Or maybe I am just getting old and starting to repeat myself. And repeat myself.

M

I also have had the potted plants (most of them) in the garage for a week. I took them out yesterday and gave them a good drink and put them back. I will cover a select few plants in the garden with sheets and hope for the best. The cold is starting early this year, isn't it?

Our garage sale find + a few shower curtains from the dollar store. Not pretty, but functional.........Good thing I have a privacy fence....

Well, another gardener who I am now jealous of! LOL. Very smart way to protect the plants! I love the use of bamboo too.

I use bamboo for my tomato stakes and to build "teepees" around the plants to hold the sheets when it's cold though I can't get such beautifully large diameter bamboo as you have. I sure like your rig better!

Thanks captturbo. Hope I can find another canopy for the other bed!

mr_tlc & I found that bamboo by posting an ad on Craigslist in the wanted section. A guy who lives on the river needed his thinned out and gave it to us for free..... sort of....we had to go cut it down and haul it away.. saved him from having to do it and we got some great bamboo!

Mrs Tlc

You and Hubby are so creative! that bed looks very nice and the coverings for your plants probably worked great for you, they seemed so cozy there. Good ideas!

Silvia

Thanks Silvia :) I have to give DH most of the credit. I come up with the ideas but he does the implementing! I'm now on the hunt for another cheapo canopy. It really worked well!!

The greenhouse tents with a little space heater set on low worked really super, everything in my tents survived the 19.9F low I had here. Everything not in the tents is just mush except for the Cole crops and they didn't look all that happy about it. I think I live too close to Ritaweeda's frigid Brooksville.

Mrs tlc, nice job on that raised bed, it looks super, especially with the tent over it. All you need now is a camel tied up to the corner post ;-)

Lou

LOL - thanks Lou.. Not sure how my neighbors would receive a camel peeking over the fence, but I'm sure it would keep their X@#! cats out!

Lou - what did you make your tents out of? We didn't cover the ice cream banana because I wasn't sure how. It's looking pretty rough. :( DH thinks it will come back fine? I think it only got down to 34 here.

Mrs tlc,

I bought my greenhouse tents from eBay for just under $100 bucks each delivered. They come complete with shelving where I can put up my pots along each side. It is very easy to assemble the framework and I leave that up all year long as a place for my pots on the shelves. I slip the tent covering on each Dec and remove it in the spring. I use a small electric space heater inside the tent set on the low setting (750 watts) and it works great keeping the freeze away. They are 8' X 6' and 7' high at the peak. I've used them for 4 years now and they stand up well. The door is zippered on each side and I roll it up each daytime so it doesn't overheat in the sun.

Lou

Try spraying with a chemical call Freeze-Pruf.

http://www.liquidfence.com/FreezePruf.html?gclid=CJLwhtTP9qUCFddA2godTAqtZA

I used it last year and it really did work. This year I did not expect the cold so early so am ordering today.

Thanks for all the good ideas.

I was doing the recycling and saw a bunch of bubble wrap. I wondered if it helps to wrap tree trunks with this before you hang a quilt over a tree?

I was thinking of doing this when tenting isn't possible, I just bought a bottle palm to use as a Christmas tree, and will plant it after the holiday. I know it's cold sensitive.

After last week my back will never be the same!

Carol B.

I use old carpet padding or foam to wrap my Mango tree trunks then I throw frost cloths and blankets over them. I still get a lot of damage on the leaves and branches...I live in zone 9a, so far its kept the tree alive...I figure if I can save the graft/trunk it has a better chance of coming back in the Spring? I remove it the next day after the freeze is over...so it doesn't get fungus!

I brought in half of my tomato plants last week and you can surely see which were brought in and which were left out and covered. I told my husband today, next time there is a frost we will bring in ALL of the tomato plants!

Puglvr 1 Please post some "after" pictures of the mango tree

I was able to bring in 1/2 of my tomato plants inside the back room, so those did well. The others, that I had double covered, didn't fare so well. I snipped off the bad parts and I hope it does OK. Next time it freezes I will take the recliner out of the back room to make room for all of my pots!

This is only my second winter and I honestly don't know what "normal" is for weather in Sarasota.

Is anyone else (my husband helped me today and now his back hurts!) getting back spasms carrying pots in and out, rolling earth boxes into the garage and out again, and dragging quilts and clamps outside, back inside and all over again?

My back problems began after the last freeze and I had a bit of a gardening temper tantrum tearing out stuff that was mush and putting in some things I had hanging around.

I'm ready to plant only cold tolerant plants and give up gardening in Florida. The yard can look like my Cape Cod yard, minus the hydrangea.

My neighbors feel the same way.

Watch, next year we will have no freezes.

Carol B.

Florida has a huge range on temps, but the zone line information is not a bad guideline. The older gardens in your neighborhood can be an even better guide.
Some plants, like hibiscus, are notoriously temperamental about temperature and moisture, and have to be babied if they are going to do well, at least in 9b. Other things, even normally things that are considered tropical, can take a bit more.
This is certainly not the glamorous time of the year in most of our gardens, but with some research and patience, two things gardeners generally are rich in, in a few years you will have gotten a better balance of hearty plants to prima donas.

CarolB - I'm an ex-Bostonian/CapeCodder myself - so welcome! I've live here for several years now. These last two winters are highly unusual.

I have back issues from a car accident and many of my plants are in the ground. I take the 'survival of the fittest' approach. I only protect a few of the plants, like a tomoto and my baby Key Lime tree.

Also, I don't have the time to cover everything each time the artic blast drops down. You have to figure out what approach works best for you.

Most things do grow back eventually.....

Thanks saintpfla,

I had a bit of a grump festival going on. It was kind of cool taking quilts filled with ice off of the plants this morning.

Carol B.

It's a bummer to see some plants poop out from the cold. But, the interesting thing about Florida gardening is, when it's "on"...it's really "on".

The bigger problem will be the crazy growth and constant trimming/maintenance once the warm weather and the rains start up again.