Oh no....frost...help

We have a frost warning tonite...I have so much coming up. My big concern is my nectarine tree, it is in full blossom. It is just a baby, planted it last year
It is only about 4 feet tall. Can I cover it with a garbage bag???? How about climbing hydrangea? I hope the rest can survive. It was in the high 80s a few days ago....What do you all do?
Meems

Unfortunately I have too much everywhere to worry about covering them. I'd be out there all day wrapping and unwrapping! LOL Most people around here throw bed sheets over their plants. That has proven effective even for the ones that get their annuals out too early. :) Good luck!
Michele

Meems,It's better not to put a plastic bag on your plant if you're getting a hard frost.It doesn't protect that well and turns the leaves black where they have touched the plastic.I use sheets,quilted mattress covers or any heavy material I can find.

Im with Michele-to much to cover here. Apricot tree to big for a cover!! Saysarasara whatever will be will be saysarasara!!! I did kick some dirt over a blue hydrangea! Its snowing now-I hope it keeps on snowing-but its suppose to quit! If it has a lil blanket of wet snow-that would be real nice(mother nature)
***Blankets or sheets,plactic or tarps. remove when sun is out!
***If you cant cover all your plants-and want to do something-Set those alarms for just before sunrise,get out your garden hoses and fire away! Spray everything with a mist of water.
***Electric heaters
***Lights and torches
***Prayers!
Good luck to everyone in this situation!!

Our nectarines are in full blossom,
my lilacs, too.
We're just keeping our fingers crossed.

In our Master Gardener's class, we were told some interesting factoids about freezing temperatures. As I recall, reaching actual freezing temperatures for less than a half-hour will only affect a small percentage of your fruit tree crop; of course, the lower the temp, and the longer it stays there, the more blossom/fruit damage it causes. But actually getting a few cold nights isn't too bad because it naturally thins our your crop, and you don't have to do it later. (Of course this same instructor would most likely tell you to pinch off your blooms anyway - a young tree needs to put its energy into getting bigger and stronger before it starts producing fruit :)

Regardless, with a young tree, 4' tall - I'd try to cover it with a quilt, cloth tarp or something lightweight, but that can reach the ground all around the plant. You might try putting four tomato stakes (or something similar) around the dripline, and letting the weight of the blanket fall on the supports rather than carried entirely by the tree.

The climbing hydrangea, if it's fairly small, should be fine - they typically aren't going to bloom the first few years anyway. Just make sure the roots are mulched.

Do like I do...just keep telling yourself "it won't happen", "it won't happen"...lol It usually doesn't...and when it does, it's usually not that bad and everything makes it through ok.

I would do the sheet thing, If you have tall stakes and could tent over the tree and let it drape to the ground-would help. I think the hydranga should be OK, but if you have extra cloth stuff-throw it on. Our weather in the midwest has been stranger this year than I can ever remember. I have gotten to the point, that if it isn't in a pot, or just setting bud- I just pray: otherwise I do get out the yards of dusty row cover and just drape away over anything I can.

Everything survived! Thanks so much for the info.... I used bed sheets on what I could and used a pillow case over the little tree. Hope we have seen the last frost...
Meems

My apricot tree got hit-its like 1/2 n 1/2!! Just means I wont be making apricot jam this year-just eating them off the tree! Everything else did fine.
As I left the garden the other night I told the plants:
"hang on tight this may hurt a bit"