So, keep an eye out for your local weather forecast and get your plant coverings ready when temperatures are forecast to dip to 32 degrees F and below.
Once temperatures drop below 40°F, you may want to start covering your plants with a frost blanket depending on what you're growing, which we'll get into in just a bit. Freeze – A freeze is when the air temperature is 32°F or below.
Cover Plants – Protect plants from all but the hardest freeze (28°F for five hours) by covering them with sheets, towels, blankets, cardboard or a tarp. You can also invert baskets, coolers or any container with a solid bottom over plants. Cover plants before dark to trap warmer air.
As mentioned earlier, watering plants several hours before a freeze is the first defense against damage. During a temporary cold snap, cover entire shrubs with burlap, sheets or blankets for insulation.
The easiest way to protect from a freeze is simply by covering plants with a sheet or a blanket. This acts like insulation, keeping warm air from the ground around the plant.
When Should You Cover Plants? Cover your plants at night and remove them during the day when the temperatures rise above 32 degrees F, so that the soil can warm up again. Some outdoor plants won't survive the harsh conditions of winter, bring them inside and use these tips for caring for them through winter.
How to Protect and Cover Shrubs in Winter. Melinda: Broadleaf evergreens are the most susceptible to winter damage in colder regions like yours. Hemlocks, less hardy and newly planted needled evergreens, and shrubs exposed to drying winds and winter sun also benefit from protection.
Any gardening expert will tell you, (contrary to what you may believe) that pruning encourages new growth just when the plant is trying to go dormant and new growth doesn't have enough time to harden before the first frost and freezing temperatures hit. Pruning at this time of year will severely weaken the plants.
During excessively cold temperatures
It's minor, but it could impact the look of a plant or create a haven for insects and diseases later. Don't prune when the temperature falls below 25°F.
However, know that even if air temperatures are as high as 38°F, frosts may occur on the ground and on plants. It's better to protect plants just in case!
Plants may need covering if there's a long period of 25-degree weather, but they probably can survive a very short-lived cold snap during the night, Reeves said. Calm nights are actually harder on plants than nights with light winds.
Should I cover my plants at 36 degrees? As a whole, all tender plants should be brought indoors or protected with garden fabric to prevent frost when it is 36°F outside. For cold-hardy plants, this is entirely optional. But it's better to err on the side of caution when the temperature falls below 40°F.
Hardy plants can be hardened off when the outside temperature is consistently above 40° F. Half-Hardy plants may be hardened off at 45° F.
I did some research and found out that houseplants need to be taken indoors before overnight temperatures dip below 45 degrees. Most tropical plants suffer harm from temperatures below 40 degrees. Well, we have temperatures forecast to dip into the 40s again on Thursday and lower 40s on Friday.
Some plants can survive outside even when temperatures hit freezing. Others need to be brought indoors when temperatures reach the mid-40s. Be sure you know this before you plant.
Winter is usually the best time.
Dormant pruning is usually done in late winter, six to 10 weeks before the average last frost in your area. You can prune shrubs at any time of year if it's necessary—for example, to remove broken branches or dead or diseased wood, or to remove growth that is obstructing a walkway.
DON'T prune during fall.
This can weaken and damage the plant—especially if there's an early frost.
After “how?", the second most-asked question we get about pruning is “when?” (Or, "Can I prune this now?") The rule of thumb is to prune immediately after bloom for flowering shrubs, in late winter or early spring for non-blooming shrubs (particularly for heavy pruning), and not after mid-August for any shrubs.
Use stakes or another support to keep the covering from directly touching the plants. Covering plants helps protect them from a freeze because it helps retain heat radiating from the soil and keeps them warm overnight.
Cover with a burlap sack: After wrapping a shrub with twine, encase it in a burlap sack or commercial shrub wrap if cold, high winds are a threat. The burlap weave is wide enough that the plant can breathe, but it keeps the worst of the biting wind at bay. This covering also protects the shrub from browsing deer.
Four to six inches of bark mulch, straw, or shredded leaves - especially when placed around newly planted trees or shrubs - keeps soil temperatures constant and prevents plants from heaving out of the ground due to cycles of freezing and thawing.
You may wonder how to protect plants from frost when they are planted in the ground? One method – which is useful for larger garden plants and shrubs – is to cover them with horticultural fleece. You could use blankets or bubble wrap, too, to create a protective cover.
All tender plants will appreciate being covered when it gets frosty out, even if you live in an area with generally mild winters. Prepare covers for all of your tender plants before freezing winter sets in.
Container-grown trees, shrubs, and perennials can also be over-wintered by placing them in a moderately cold location (temperatures from 20 to 45 degrees Fahrenheit) over the winter months such as an unheated structure. The cold temperatures will keep the plants dormant until spring.