Prepping the garden for the cold

It's coming. The cold that has been advertised for the past week will be here tonight. There are some plants that will not survive without your help.



This morning I prepared my yard for the cold. I brought all of my potted plants inside. Any non-native or tropical plants growing in the ground will have to be protected. I have a small kumquat tree that I planted last spring. The plant is rated to 10 degrees, but since this is it's first winter in the ground, I will probably lose it if I just let it be. I covered the small tree with a rubber bucket. This will keep the temperature around the tree a few degrees higher than the air temperature, and may be enough to save it. I did the same thing to an oleander bush that I have. This one is on it's second winter, but died back to the ground last year. I really want it to get bigger and flower in the summer, so I am trying to keep it green this year.



My herb garden has hardy herbs that are still growing, like mustard greens and parsley. I also have some herbs that grow year round that will likely survive the cold, like rosemary, sage and oregano, but just to be safe, and since this garden is so small, I am covering it all. I have draped the herb garden with beach towels. This will hopefully keep the warmth of the ground close to the plants, and keep the extreme cold away.



Finally, my vegetable garden.... I am currently growing broccoli, carrots, kohlrabi, cabbage, collard greens, onions and garlic. I am probably going to lose the broccoli and carrots, so I harvested anything edible. I have already had a bunch of broccoli, and the plants are pretty much done producing anyway. The kohlrabi may die as well, but they are not ready to be picked. I am leaving this and hoping it survives. The cabbage, collards, onions and garlic are tough enough that I think they will survive the cold. I am a little worried about the collards, but not enough to take action.... I am just going to leave the veggie garden unprotected and see what happens. I am going to start planting spring veggies next month anyway, and will need the space!

I have pictures that I will post when I get to work this afternoon. Does anyone know if I will lose my collards?

A few other ideas:

* I have also piled mulch around the bases of some other plants in my yard, to try to keep the shallow roots from freezing.

* When a light freeze is expected, I will sometimes run the sprinkler in the evening to get water on the plants. The water will freeze before the plant, and will keep the plant a little warmer. This incoming cold snap is MUCH too cold for this trick to work.

* Along the same idea, a bucket of water placed next to the plant will keep it a few degrees warmer. When water freezes, it releases heat, which can be absorbed by the plant, keeping it a bit warmer.

Any other ideas, please leave a comment. Good luck everyone!

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