Keeping the Plants Frost Free!

Most of us here in Western New York may have gotten a little too excited too soon by the summer like weather. But really, who can blame us? It was floating between 70 and 80! Then last night, in true WNY fashion, we were at 30 degrees and everything was freezing. Farmers were putting tents and blankets over crops to prevent them from killing the early blooms. They even added heaters and fans! But do you need to go to that extreme to keep away the freeze?

The answer is actually pretty simple and for some of you...you may actually be on it right now. The answer? A sheet! But hey, what about that tarp you have? Won't that work? According to garden shop owners, plastic is actually worse than doing nothing at all. The plastic will create a "freezer burn" effect that will kill the plants so stick with a sheet. Hold it down with a few rocks, and don't remove it until the sun has had plenty of time to warm it up.