[NAFEX] Frost protection
Amlie & Hayas
tamlie at netscape.com
Tue Apr 3 20:45:21 EDT 2007
I think that you might run into more of a problem if you have clear,
sunny, calm days. The sealed clear plastic bag might act as a
greenhouse and really get the plants going, especially if there's no
ventilation at all in the bag.
Tom
At 11:56 AM 4/3/2007, you wrote:
> > Every time I used a single sheet of anything for frost
> protection, I learned I wasted my time and the plant I tried to
> protect got fried by frost to the same degree as unprotected plants
> got frosted. One sheet of anything, whether it be plastic or bed
> sheet or(?) is worthless. TWO sheets, however, can trap an
> insulating layer of air between them affording some protection.
> > ...
> > ...
> > Another option is to cover them with visqueen
> (plastic). Visqueen is clear and will let light through while
> protecting the blooms from frost.
> >
>
>
>Well, they're still forecasting mid-20's here for the next five nights,
>so I bought some visqueen-type plastic and also some clear 55 gal.
>plastic bags (commercial bags for 55-gal drums). I thought I'd put TWO
>plastic bags (for the insulating layer of air) over the bushes and very
>small trees, and TWO sheets of clear plastic over the larger fruit
>trees, grapes, etc. I hoped that would insulate them well enough, and I
>figured that, since the clear plastic would let light through, I could
>put them on today and take them off next Sunday.
>
>However, I just talked to the master gardeners at my county extension
>service, and they tell me that plastic is the last thing I should use,
>because plants need to breathe. They said that this would do more damage
>to my plants than the freeze. Is that true?
>
>I really can't remove all this every morning and install it again every
>night. Maybe I could take them off for a breather after a few days? Or I
>could loosen the plastic at the bottom every morning, to let some air in
>during the day. What do you think? I really need some advice here,
>because I'm all set to start working on this stuff. Do I need to worry
>about my fruit trees and bushes not getting enough air for 5-6 days?
>
>Thanks much,
>
>Bill
>Lincoln, NE (Zone 5)
>
>--
>For me, it is far better to grasp the Universe as it really is than to
>persist in delusion, however satisfying and reassuring. - Carl Sagan
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