North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

[Dan Nave <nave1@comcast.net>]

A report on a short book by Dr. David Williams on DMSO notes the following
concerning use of DMSO for frost protection for humans and plants (see below).
DMSO (Dimethyl sulfoxide) is a sulfur compound which has solvent properties.
It is used to treat cells that will be frozen and for certain medical 
conditions.
It is popularly used on horses (and some people) as a liniment for pain and 
inflammation relief.



"DMSO's first major use was to act as a type of antifreeze to preserve
tissue. Keeping this in mind, it should come as no surprise that it can
perform miracles on frostbitten tissue. In one animal study, if DMSO was
applied prior to the tissue freeze, damage was practically nonexistent.
Amazingly, humans using DMSO up to 24 hours after the freeze showed total
recovery without any gangrene or necessity for amputation. DMSO should be
applied within 12-24 hours of the freezing, however, it works even better if
applied before freezing. A 70-90% solution seems to work best prior to a
freeze. In acute incidents when it is necessary to apply the DMSO after the
freeze, a soak may be indicated."

"Williams goes on to say that DMSO may be very helpful for orchard growers
when frost comes around. Spraying the fruit or young plants with .5%
solution of DMSO has saved plants experiencing 4 hours of 20*F weather.
Interesting!!"