Hard Freeze Warning for Southerners!!

Yesterday my DH came home from work and he go outside to put some plants in my GH and most of them already in there so I brought my babies brugs inside my home everything look good so far. Here is cold today not as bad last night worse with wind all day.

At 7 am this morning, it was around 20 degrees outside. My GH was a "toasty" 37-42 degrees, depending on where I was measuring. Whew! The extended forecast looks like we're in the clear for a few more days, with lows ranging from the upper 30s to upper 40s.

Here on the Mississippi Gulf Coast
(10 miles north of I-10) a chilly 29 at 4am. Just now up to 34. First frost & I am over it, counting the days till spring. GH held temp of 50.

Hoeybee

Great observations on some differences, Drew. I can say that because I was born in Florida!

I traded the warmth for beautiful mountains full of trailers and trash, but with a several-year bypass through bigger northern cities offering more variety of things than one can count.

Don't you really wish you could have siphoned up some of that gas?

Temps got down to 30º last night, up to 38º now. Too cold for my blood.

Yesterday, I moved my few 'too tender' plants to a spot against the wall on the patio, protected from the north. I'm just realizing that I forgot to move the Anthurium ... *sigh* They look ok, still covered with flowers ... I guess time will tell if the error was fatal or not.

Cheri'

I like your idea Badseed....looking forward to seeing those
pics! Funny reading how some people think +30F is cold...
we can go from +80F to +10F in 24 hours...always a bit of
a surprise but bearable. But when -40F and windchill
arrive then it is CCCCCCOOOOOOOOOOOLLLLDDDD! Skin freezes
in less than a minute...cars plugged in whine and refuse to
start and we all look so fashionable with layer upon layer
of sweaters, coats, scarves, boots, longjohns etc. And
our disposition starts matching those of a bear who has
just woken out of hibernation. The tar pot is getting
warmer! ;)

We had -16 degrees Sunday night, and blizzards Monday night. Ugg! It's gonna be one long, long winter. This is very unordinary even for here. It has warmed up a bit though. It got to high 20's today and they say mid 30's tomorrow. Nighttime temps haven't dropped below zero again either. I can't imagine what January is going to be like, because that's typically our *bad* month.

Oh Joan, you really get some bad weather there. That's just too cold for this time of year. :(

Oh Molly, did I read that zone 10 correctly??? Alright, where's the tar?!?!?!

When ya'll start talking about -20º the words "not fit for human habitation" come to my mind. I just gotta wonder what is so fabulous there that you would tolerate that?
Then I think about the mosquitoes and assorted other bugs, the hurricanes etc. that we deal with here and wonder if you think the same thing about us.

Prolly not ... LOL

Cheri'

Sundry you left out snakes we only have good ones here so it gets a bit chilly here once in a while.

Better be chilled by a freeze than killed by a fifty foot snake that takes over your boat. Ernie

MOLLY, I can't resist this thread either (grin). I'm a few miles north of you and the huge Oak trees here have thinned their leaves, they never get bare. But, it means I can't take my morning garden stroll in my nightgown now, too shocking to the neighbors, you know. My Petunia baskets are gasping for breath they are blooming so much, and my Impatience are absolutly shameless about being such show-offs. All these "northern-types" will have their revenge when their spring comes with the rebirth of their gardens and we are praying for fall to start ours again. But I wouldn't trade my year-round green grass for all the beautiful snow pictures. BTW, the cold front is supposed to put the temps in the high 40's tonight. Have to get out the long-johns.LOL

Pati; We are looking forward to that cold spell for the weekend. We have to put another layer of shingles on the roof. We've been waiting for the rainy spell to be over and for the temps to cool down. Now the time is right.

And I can't stay away from the garden centers. I stopped after work today, just to look, walked away with 2 trays of flowers and plants I just had to have. Bright blue lobelias, some rose moss purslane, Black Magic Alocasia and a sedum I just had to have and no one knows its name. And not to forget the chenille plants. My yard isn't measured in acres, but in feet and inches.... LOL. Before the next year is come and gone, my Scotty may not have to mow a lawn again. So may flowers, so little soil., Better go plant them now, daylights burning away......Molly

Don't laugh - Florida could have a freeze, too.

I am interested in buying "frost blankets" and thought I would start on Dave's site to find the best places (prices).
I have really saved a lot of money by checking here first.

My area of Florida has not had a "real" freeze since the 80's so I expect to see one again soon and I want to
be prepared.

Thank you for any help

I was really surprised to see this thread come up. My last posting being in another house/town/lifetime.

Now I am in zone 8b, although still in Florida the air can get very cold for a couple months during the winter. I lost some plants even in my greenhouse last February, lots different than in Lauderdale. My gardening habits have had to make a major change to colder winters and droughts all year except in July and August.

Animallover, where is Debary, FL?

Molly
:^)))

Molly,

Debary is 20+ miles north of Orlando and about 20+ West of Daytona Beach. Nice place.

I am in zone 9 and we haven't had a freeze for a long, long time. I want to be prepared and that
is why I am looking for the frost blankets now. I have spent too much time/money making my
tropical paradise & don't want to lose it.

I know the Northerners are laughing at this because a temperature of 30 doesn't even seem cold
to them but could certainly do a lot of damage in my yard.

Animallover,

I have heard that a frost blanket only makes about a 5 degree difference and that might be exactly what you are looking for, but most people will put a sheet or light blanket over the plants they want to protect, even up here.

I have protected young citrus trees using the the blanket method. Keeping the dew off keeps the frost off. Although I must admit, I did heavily mulch a lot of things this past winter, making a deep mound around those plants. Then I gave them a blanket in a teepee.

Molly
:^))))

Molly,

Thank you. I have used sheets; however, I find that the frost blanket will cost a lot less than buying more
sheets for the plants. I have 2 acres and 1 acre is mostly tropical. If there is no freeze or just a cold
30-32 for an hour or two then most plants here will survive. I have seen the 28 degree weather although it
was in the late 80's and lasted a couple days and did tremendous damage. I don't want to take a chance.

This area never had a hurricane for over 40 years and then we had four in one year. Time will tell if I am
wrong and I hope I am. After 4 hurricanes I bought a full house generator. I hope we never have another
hurricane or freezing weather but I will be ready for both unless a hurricane destroys everything..

Am I nuts?

Is Florida facing a freeze warning in August?

(scratches head)

:-)

wuvie,

Maybe to question 1 and not likely to question 2

On the other hand it might be better to discuss this REALLY early.

LOL, true.

Better to be prepared. :-)

Wow, didn't take me long to log on this thread...was panicking..imagine, if you all were worrying about a freeze up..I know what I should be doing up here in the north country..lol..thank goodness I saw 2003..lol sure got my adrenaline going..

Awwwww,

Be nice!

Ha ha! Betty, I just now noticed that.
This thread is from four years ago, no wonder I was confused!

LOL

I know, with the way the weather has been changing..I saw thread 'info' and thought OMG, what a change..but anythings possible..thank goodness this wasn't...lol
but, it is a reminder of things to come....