Keepitlow -- frosts/freezes can be a real bummer. You definitely can lose an entire crop to the cold, especially on stone fruits (pears and apples seem a little tougher when it comes to surviving the weather). I have had quite a bit of success against cold as low as 27/28 degrees by hosing off the trees several times during the night. It really does seem to make an ice coating which helps a lot. I did this last year on April 26th and April 27th when most of my stone fruits and pears were in full bloom, and apples were just coming into full bloom. It dropped down to about 28 degrees the first night, and 30 the second night. I saved a very bumper crop of fruit this way, or at least, I believe I did. Perhaps they would have made it anyway without my intervention, I have no way of knowing, but I do know that I got a fantastic yield of fruit last year, despite those two hard freezing nights at just the wrong time. It's cold, hard work getting out there in the middle of a freezing night and hosing down the plants, but worth it IMO. One lesson I learned many years ago -- do NOT go out in the backyard in your pajamas and an overcoat with no ID to do this, especially if some well-meaning but confused neighbor is going to call the cops because something unusual is going on in someone's back yard. This actually happened to me -- the cops spent 10 minutes shining their spotlights through my yard while I hid behind my mulch pile in fear of embarrasment and/or getting handcuffed and frisked. Lesson learned -- get dressed and carry your ID just in case. That, and take plenty of replacement gloves, since they'll get wet no matter how careful you try to be. If you're going to go out several times, be sure to DRAIN the hose and take it inside with you between trips -- it's amazing how quickly a hose full of water can freeze solid on a 30 degree night.

One easy trick I stumbled upon was to build the simple teepee with wire or tomato cages or anything you have on hand and then drape a tarp (plastic or fabricc)over the teepee and extend it out in all directions away from the plant. If you have bushes or small trees in a row and really big tarp just drape it up and over what you can and then lay the rest of it flat against the ground. The soil will give off heat at night and the heat will collect in the tents made by the small trees. There can still be some frost damage where the leaves touch the plastic but it is amazing how much green you can save.

I don't do anything to protect trees from frost, with one exception, that being very small plants that have not yet had a good strong growing season to get established. I am protecting one tree at the moment, a friend's 18" tall Eucommia ulmoides that was just about to break bud when the last few cold blasts (one down to 14 F and the other to 17 F) came through. It was planted last spring and only put on about four inches of growth. The species is hardy here but its foliage has shown some sensitivity to late spring and early fall freezes. With this new little one, I didn't want to chance it not having the energy reserves to grow a replacement set of leaves. What I am using is two 3 gal. plastic containers, the bottom cut out of one, and both lined with bubble wrap. Nested upside-down, they form a sort of teepee over the plant. So far this arrangement seems to have worked pretty well. There is a slight blackening on the edges of the tree's bud scales, but the buds overall remain plump and green. BTW Toronado, how did the Gum Bumelia tree do for you last season--the one Missouri Wildflowers sent you by mistake in place of the Nyssa you wanted?

Hi Leon:I am not using the boat ,anymore because,I can't launch it,to water,after I had Back Surgery,in 2006. But I used it before and had good fun,going fishing on Delaware river tributaries. As for the pruning,I really used the tree to get some extra Money. I sold all those cuttings,on Ebay,and,I am sure whoever grows it will be very Happy with the results. I know I am. Best Regards