Low temperatures are being forecast for this weekend in much of Texas as a winter storm slides through the Dallas metro area. Time to talk about protecting outdoor plants from Texas frost. One day it’s 55 and sunny. The next, it’s 32 with frost on the ground. Welcome to Texas ya’all. Fluctuating temperatures are a common occurrence around here. Back to the pending freeze tomorrow. You may need to protect your outdoor plants and flowers from the freeze and/or frost.
The warmth we’ve had may be enough to keep a plant from freezing during a short cold snap. For added protection, you can protect plants in a freeze by placing a sheet or blanket over the plant and then putting a piece of plastic over the sheet or blanket to help keep warmth in. Never cover a plant with just plastic, however, as the plastic will damage the plant.
You can cover larger plants (trees and shrubs) with old bed sheets, burlap, or commercial frost cloths (avoid using plastic). For best results, drape the cover over a frame to keep it from touching the foliage.
Be sure to uncover them in the morning when the temperature rises above freezing.
Stay warm friends since the Groundhog Day rodent, Woodstock Willie, did see his shadow and predicted six more weeks of winter weather from February 2nd!