Surviving The Frost For Your Plants

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It’s the end of summer, but it doesn’t have to be for your plants.

KVRR’s Sarah Brechbill found out what precautions you should take to ensure your garden is in it for the long haul.

For some, a garden is like a baby, caring and tending for it all season. But all that hard work can end in just one cold night.

“If there’s a chance, don’t risk losing them and take the proper precautions,” says Vice President of Shotwell Floral, JD Shotwell.

Shotwell suggests starting to cut down your more sensitive plants, like perennials and impatiens.

“It’s a little easier to clean up in the fall than it is in the spring,” says Shotwell. 

“My garden is on the way down I’ll be cutting it back probably this weekend because I do know what’s coming,” says Shotwell Floral Store Manager, Claudia Koppelman. 

If frost is in the near forecast, grab an old bed sheet.

“Throw a light blanket over or a bed sheet and what you do is you want to cover it up. What it does is it keeps the warmth of the ground in there,” says Shotwell. 

Thelma Johnson didn’t bother with the bed sheets. Instead, she kept it simple.

“We planted flowers in large pots and when they said frost is coming we moved them in doors and put them in the sun rooms,” says Thelma Johnson of Fargo. 

“When the leaves start to blacken on vegetables you know it’s almost to their end. But you can take them inside. They’ll just require extra light and fertilizer.”

And don’t underestimate the power of a thick blanket of snow.

“We had low snow cover last year and we lost a lot of perennials. So if you’re fearful of that you can cover with leaves too,” says Koppelman. 

All to ensure a blossoming, flowering Spring. Sarah Brechbill, KVRR news.

Most plants are able to handle about 33 degrees.