Whether you’re growing a fall food garden or tending your backyard tropicals, frost changes everything. When it arrives, and how cold those first early mornings are, dictate how long plants will survive outdoors. So, if the weather outside is starting to get frightful, do your landscape a favor: use frost covers to protect your plants from freeze damage over the winter. Available in bags and row covers, frost protection fabric keeps snow and ice off of foliage and branches, preventing burning and browning. Frost protection is most useful when used preemptively—place the fabric over your plants in anticipation of worsening weather conditions, and you may spare your plants from those particularly damaging early and late frosts.
Avoid planting tender species in open, exposed areas or in low spots where cold air settles. Better to put them near a south or west-facing wall, which absorbs heat during the day and radiates it at night. Fences, boulders and shrubs also can serve a protective function for nearby plantings.
Tips To Protect Plants and Trees from Freezing. Why worry?
Frost injures plants by causing ice crystals to form in plant cells. This makes water unavailable to plant tissues and disrupts the movement of fluids. Frost-damaged leaves appear water-soaked, shrivel and turn dark brown or black.
How to protect plants from frost
When the weather report calls for freezing temperatures overnight, you don’t want to be rushing outside in the dark to cover your cold-sensitive plants. Here are some tips for being prepared.
Prepare for Winter with Frost Protection Fabrics
These modern fabrics share similar characteristics that make them ideal for protecting plants in situ. First the material must be lightweight in order to avoid crushing plants and distorting the foliage. Second they must be porous enough to allow rain to come through and reach the soil. Third they must be dense enough to keep warmth inside unlike sheet plastic that offers no insulation, blocks oxygen transfer and supports copious condensation on the inside surfaces.
1. Frost Blanket Protection for Trees
The Frost protection fabric creates a microclimate by capturing daytime heat and the lost soil temperature at night. All this without suffocating, crushing or breaking the plant as a plastic bag would do.
2. Frost Protek Garden Bed Cover
Use early season to transition plants from the greenhouse to the yard and get a strong start. Use mid season to protect from wind and storms. Use late season to extend the growing season and maximize your crop yield and enjoy your decorative plantings. Protect tomatoes, annuals, berries, citrus, vegetables, flowering shrubs, and more.
3. Frost Protek Tall Cover
Easily drape over plants and tighten the double-pull drawstring to quickly secure the cover in place. Tall Plant Cover is 72 inches (6 feet) tall and 67 inches (5.5 feet) wide; circumference of drawstring opening is 134 inches (about 11 feet). Fabric color is light sage green. Reusable and recyclable. Washable. Air dries quickly.
4. EarthBox 00175 Sage Green Frost Cover
Extend your growing season by protecting plants from light frost and pests. Ue with or without staking system. Cover lets UV light and air through. Color: sage green.
5. Garden Cloche Tunnel Plant Cover
The Large Garden Tunnel Cloche is meant for medium to large plants that are more mature and have strong roots. These large plant covers will help with trapping in the moisture during the summer months and providing the ideal environment for the plant to produce vegetable/fruit. Vegetable/fruit on the plant will be protected from pests and animals, such as caterpillars and rabbits. Large Garden Tunnel Cloches have the benefit of covering multiple plants that are located near each other in your garden. These quality plastic plant covers cover much more area and allow ample coverage and protection.
Plants are classified according to the minimum temperatures they normally tolerate. “Hardy” plants tolerate some amount of short-term freezing, while “tender” plants are killed or injured by freezing temperatures. Citrus, avocados, bougainvillea, fuchsias and succulents are among the tender plants. If you are in an area prone to frost or freezing, consult a reference such as the Sunset Western Garden Book to learn the hardiness of various species.
If you see signs of frost damage, do not prune off the affected parts or dig up the plant immediately. This is especially true for palms. Wait until the weather warms up in March to see whether new leaves sprout. You may see healthy new growth at the base of the plant, at which point you can prune out the damaged parts. If no regrowth is noted, remove the dead specimen and replace it with a more cold-tolerant species.
Extend your garden enjoyment: strategies for growing edibles later into the season
Palram Nature Series Mythos Hobby Greenhouse
The Mythos 6’ x 8’ Silver series greenhouse is sure to catch your eye! If features a rust-resistant, brushed aluminum frame and heavy-duty galvanized steel base that is designed to stand the test of time. Your plants will love the diffused light from the clear, twin-wall polycarbonate panels and have the added benefit of twice the heat retention of single-layer panels. Your plants will love it when you water them from the fresh rainwater that you collect from the gutters. Save money by starting your plants early from seed and extending your season by protecting plants from fall frosts. Get growing today and let the Mythos help you bring your green dreams to life.
Portable Green House Greenhouse Birthday Gift
This Mini Greenhouse offers the perfect solution for those smaller gardens that cannot accommodate a conventional greenhouse. It can protect your plants from too much heat or cold, shield plants from dust and gale, and help to keep out PESTS. It has a strong powder coated steel frame and Transparent PVC cover with zips for easy access and ventilation. Easy to set up.
Flower House FHPH150 PlantHouse
This portable, pop up greenhouse is perfect for extending your growing season and protecting your plants. The Unique Flowerhouse pop up design make Greenhouse set up the easiest it has ever been. Screened vent openings allow for optimum air circulation very important for the health of your plants. Closing the vents will promote and maintain high humidity levels desirable for a superior growing environment. The Gro-Tec material is UV resistant for longer life and is constructed with rip stop protection. Solar heat from the sun heats your greenhouse during the day while an electric heater is recommended at night and in cloudy or snowy conditions.Folds up easily into a compact storage carry bag for transport, setup and take down have never been easier! Includes shade cover, stakes and free storage bag with shoulder strap.
Portable Flower Garden Greenhouse
This open portable greenhouse utilizes lightweight, yet sturdy, PVC coverings built over a powder-coated steel frame. The combination of these two elements is an incredibly durable final product that can be moved from location to location, fitting in tight spaces as available. The zipper door allows for easy access and ventilation while it also can be sealed in to maintain the internal climate. Perfect if you want to reduce excessive heat or cold and keep your seedlings safe throughout the seasons. Start your backyard gardening today with this Outsunny greenhouse.
