At what temp do I need to protect from frost in early Spring?
mcreswel4952
8 years ago
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I dont get it. I covered my trees to protect them from frost/snow
Comments (21)Umm, no. You posted this Friday, April 9, at 12:00 So dh spent about 4 hours yesterday morning putting up wood stakes around each tree and took gigantic, thick, black contractor trash bags and placed them over the stakes so they didnt come into contact with the trees. So the trees were covered Thursday morning. The Weather Channel reports Thursday's weather in Cassadaga as: April 8 Actuals 72°F 42°F 0.42 in. It's not that I really want to make a big deal about this, but consider it a learning experience. I've spent a lot of time over the years trying to convince people that there are significant differences between roses and tomato plants. I've never before met anybody who seemed equally confused about the difference between a maple tree and a tomato plant :-) Basically, while pure water freezes at 32 °F, if you start putting stuff in the water, like salt or alcohol, the freezing point gets lower and lower. Hardy plants put various sugars in the water so they can stand below freezing temperatures. Snow isn't an issue unless it's so heavy that mechanical breakage becomes a problem. According to my car, it can snow any time the temperature is below 40°F. It can definitely snow at temperatures well above damaging cold. To put this in some perspective, I keep a bunch of roses in pots in the garage because they would not handle my winter temperatures outside. When they go out in the spring, they are usually about 2-3 weeks ahead of roses in the ground, and used to conditions considerably warmer. In other words, they are going from about zone 8 to zone 5. They handle freezing temperatures just fine, and I only bother bringing them back inside for forecast lows below about 27°F. That's to give some wiggle room in case it really goes below about 25°F. For something I expect to be fully hardy here, like a tree, I wouldn't start worrying unless it got noticably colder than that....See MoreAt what night low temp do I need to be concerned?
Comments (34)Duh, Now I see the confusion about the lights. HUGE difference in heat output between the two types. It probably takes 10-15 of the ones shown in the picture to equal one of the old style I was talking about. The big issue I see with the little ones is that they are wired in series and one bad bulb causes the whole string to go out. A single 13 watt CFL causing 15 degree temp rise makes sense. It might raise the temp more in our lower humidity. 5-1-1 sounds much better for holding some moisture than Gritty. I'm making Gritty work for succulents out of direct sun but everything else needs more water retention in my sunny/hot/dry climate. When I had 30 plants in black plastic pots this Summer, I struggled to keep them happy. Putting them in a East-West line and shading the end pots helped a bunch. I think the low humidity makes a big difference because the sun bakes plants here much harder than my previous house on the beach. Our average rainfall for June, July, Aug, Sept is a TOTAL of 1/4"....See MoreSoil Temp for Early Spring Sowing
Comments (1)I use a soil thermometer and this chart to plant in the spring. http://tomclothier.hort.net/page11.html Since your in zone 4 and I am in zone 6 I really can't say much else. If you don't have a soil thermometer , I've heard of people using a meat thermometer. This post was edited by veggiecanner on Wed, Apr 24, 13 at 21:16...See MoreEarly A.M Protection from cold
Comments (7)Thats real similar to what I made last yr. 'cept we're lots cooler so I double walled it and no slits. Opaque plexi for the top which came off early every morning, every time it was above 50 and no rain. My plants did very well in it ... Think a cold snap made me bring them in a night or two but then right back out. Mine is sheltered from wind on two sides and I used some extra plastic kinda loosely folded for a little insulation in the bottom. I don't have a max/min themometer but what testing I did do had me pretty happy down to near freezing outside with nary even a warm milk jug. Crude but effective and did double duty as a potting table....See More
jim1961 / Central Pennsylvania / Zone 6
8 years agomcreswel4952 thanked jim1961 / Central Pennsylvania / Zone 6
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8 years agoYeah, like Patty says... Pots over roses... I forgot those. :) I have two new babies from Heirloom roses that are doing great. Crazy me planted them already, so I just put a pot and a rock over them and they are cozy. I leave the airholes open because it's in the 20's, but tonight I will give them an extra blanket.
Yes, that is snow on the ground... What was I thinkin' ??!!!
Rebecca
mcreswel4952 thanked User
summersrhythm_z6a
8 years agolast modified: 8 years agojim1961 / Central Pennsylvania / Zone 6
8 years agosummersrhythm_z6a
8 years agolast modified: 8 years agoUser
8 years agoUser
8 years agolast modified: 8 years agoTHIS is why I am planting 6 more Perdita!! She is way ahead of the game and will be the last hurrah as well!!!
She's getting a pot and a rock on her head as we speak!!
Rebecca
Alana8aSC
8 years agosummersrhythm_z6a
8 years agoUser
8 years ago
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