Gardening and Landscaping Stack Exchange
Gardening and Landscaping Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [frost]

Covering of ice caused by locally sub-freezing temperatures.

Frost is formed when water vapour freezes and forms an ice covering over the ground and/or plants. Typically frost forms when the air temperature drops below freezing (0C, 32F) - this is an air frost.

Moisture evaporation can cause localized drops in air temperature close to the ground. This results in a ground frost where frost is formed even though the air temperature a few feet above the ground remains just above freezing.

Frosts can damage plants, crops, and fruit. Use this tag for questions about hardiness against frosts, and how to protect sensitive plants against frosts.

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What's a good alternative to Incandescent Christmas lights for frost protection?

I understand that gardeners used to wrap trees in Christmas lights to provide frost protection as incandescent lights gave off quite a bit of heat. Try as I might, I've been unable to find any outdoor rated incandescent Christmas lights (that will…
davidgo
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How can I determine if cactus seedlings are dead?

I planted some notocactus seeds sometime in September and many have germinated since then. A few weeks ago, there was an incident where some of my succulents may have experienced frost and I can't be positive which ones (other than the obvious…
jeremy
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Protect flowering fruit trees from frost

Possible Duplicate: When do I need to protect a fruit tree from cold, and how do I do it? We have several cherry trees and an apple tree in our back yard. Due to the very warm March we had (in Minnesota), they are all covered in flowers. In a…
David Oneill
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Auckland Rural Zone and Confusion about Frost Protection

The more I look into it, the more confused I'm getting about frost protection. Any advice to help me get a grip on the issue would be appreciated. I have a property in Dairy Flat, which is rural Auckland, New Zealand. Our temperatures tend to get…
davidgo
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Protect apricot blossoms from frost

Possible Duplicate: How can I protect a peach tree from cold? Popcorn is popping on my apricot tree, but there's supposed to be a frost tomorrow. The trees are marginal for the valley I live in as some years the frost damages the blossoms and…
Tom Mayfield
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To water or not to water a plant right before near frost temps in mid-Spring?

Is a plant, whether in the ground or in a pot outside, more resistant to frost damage when it's soil is drier or freshly watered? context: mid-Spring right as hardwood trees are budding. I'm mainly interested in potted young deciduous trees but…
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Why did our frost only affect random plants?

We had our first frost the other day (the growing season has been long this year). Anyway, I noticed that some plants were seemingly randomly affected more than others. For instance, I have two Pepino melon plants growing right beside each other…
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Saving a Tree With Frost Damage

I have a friend who left a Redwood (Sequoiadendron giganteum) sapling out in the cold and snow a few months ago. It's still alive- it has some green needles still- but it's slowly getting browner and browner. What can be done to revitalize it? It's…
Michael Hoffmann
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Does wrapping fruit increase its temperature?

I was watching a video on how to grow Wax Apples (Jambu) and the farmer said that wrapping his fruit in paper bags would increase the temperature by 2 degrees Celcius. Can someone scientifically explain this? I understand how a mammal has warm blood…
JoJo
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Understanding USDA Hardiness Zones and meaning of Frost Tender with respect of Zone 8

I live in Rural Auckland, and some early mornings in Winter the temperature drops to -4°C (although on a cloudy night temperatures above +4°C are more common). I would have thought that temperatures of < 0°C would preclude me from growing a range…
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How to protect potted vineplants from cold temperatures?

I have two vineplants in 40-litre-pots on my rooftop garden. This will be their first winter outside and I want to protect them from freezing to death. I live in an area where there are a lot of wineyards (southern Germany), but our winters can get…
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How to protect a lawn against frost?

It is winter time in Sydney Australia and the first frost came this morning. Is it true that the sun rises and the frost crystals act like magnifying glasses and that is how the grass is damaged? How do I protect my lawn against frost? A friend…
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Will mint die if planted within a month of early frost?

I'm trying to propagate my mint plant, intending to eventually transplant the main growth (maybe next year). For now, I've taken some cuttings and I'm waiting for them to root. As of writing, it's now end of August. According to my local area notes,…
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How much frost is too much frost for a fiddle leaf fig

Recently, I received a fiddle leaf fig from someone who could not care for it. They had been keeping it outside (Zone 6A, formerly 5B) for the summer and, unfortunately, I didn’t get to it before three or four days of (what I think of as) mild frost…
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How to protect pea plants from cold?

I live in northern Mississippi, where I think it is usually fine to have already planted pea plants. I did so and they have recently started coming up and are still very small (less than an inch tall). Unfortunately, we are supposed to have…
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