You know....I have so much stuff that has come up, I'm just not going to worry about it this year. My poor hickory trees never recoverd from the late hard freeze we had last year. The dead leaves and flowers hung on dead branches all summer, and now I clean up hickory twigs daily. They had only 1/3 of the normaly amount of foliage last year. If they get hit again this year, I'm going to have to break out the chain saw and cut them down. Wouldn't it be nice to have normal weather sometime?? lol!

Last year we had a freeze in early April. I did not think my stuff would get damaged -- but it did. Stuff like camellias, hostas, grapes & dasies got some light foliar damage but recovered.
The blueberries and azaleas were much less happy and I had a reduced crop and NO flowers :(

This year I'm wondering about my english peas and my tiny lettuce and radish sprouts. I am definitely covering the blueberries and azaleas, but I wonder how many times I will have to do that - how cold is too cold?

seahorse

I'd be a lot more worried about stuff if it was to get down into the 20's (like last year). Your peas and lettuce will be just fine, seahorse. They can handle down into the teens without much damage. If they're getting big, you could throw a sheet over, but if they're still small they'll outgrow any small damage in a matter of days. Sweet bubby will be a-ok, as will dianthus. I doubt the blueberries will be damaged- i'm not covering mine for just 30. We did cover last year and still got 1/2 a crop, but it went down to like 23 - big difference. I'll probably try to sheet over the figs since a freeze will get the brebas (first crop), and maybe some of the kiwi branches, though they're still barely leafing. I think i'd be a little worried about the hostas, & ginger lilies, esp. Maybe mound some leaves up? The hydrangea will probably lose it's leaves and first set of buds, but since it's an everbloomer, you'll get more flowers. I'll cover 1 of mine that's not everblooming. Last year, even with the horrid hard freeze i still got blooms on my oakleaf hydrangea so i think it will do fine. I'll also cover my tree peony buds, which are quite far along. the regular peony foliage should be ok, i think. I think & hope my apple, cherry, plum and pear fruit flowers/buds will be ok, since most have already set fruit for the year. Fortunately, my persimmon hasn't leafed out yet. I almost lost my tree last year.

I just pray we don't get more or harder freezes later yet. I know we're a couple weeks out from the average last frost still, but everything is so early this year, I'm hoping ma nature will oblige since she's been such a tease. 'Course after last year we all know her fickleness.

I should've mentioned that I'm most concerned about the Hydrangea because it's a recent transplant. I think I'll cover it just to be on the safe side, it's had enough stress as it is...

My hostas are in containers, but they are starting to poke their little heads up. Should I be worried about the containers? If so, I can bring them in, but they're at the very end of the driveway and they're quite large, so they weigh quite a bit. But I'll bring them in if people say I should.

Should I be concerned with my lilacs? I have 4 that I bought and planted last year, right before the late freezes ironically enough, and they're only about 12 inches high. They do have leaves and some look like they'll flower any day. They are heavily mulched. Should I cover them with a sheet? They're pretty small, so I'm worried about putting anything heavier on them.

How will the verbena do?? Again, all of mine are heavily mulched, as are my Salvia. Should I be covering these guys? I know it's only 30, and only for one night, but seeing that everything is looking so happy right now, I want to keep it that way.

Thanks for your advice and assistance.

Azalea's? Do you think? India Hawthorne (which is in its 2nd year and still may not bloom, but that's another question for another post)? And it may sound silly, but do you think I should pick all of the daffs? (Last year really was incredible. And the effects, as mentioned earlier, were a reminder all year! At least we're not peach farmers, so it's all relative.)

Turns out it wasn't so bad here. I had different readings all over at my house though...one wireless thermometer in my bedroom showed the outside temp at 34 degrees...a wired one in my basement showed 31.8...and then my car showed 29 on my way into work...

I ended up covering the hydrangeas (it was easy and I didn't want the transplanted one to get stressed) and mounding up a little mulch over the ginger lily and the hostas.

Here's hoping this is the last brush with a freeze that we get...

I covered my bletilla since they were heavy in bud and i lost them last year, my figs (with old socks!!), a few branches of kiwi, a small hydrangea, my patio nectarine and my tree peony. That's it. Unlike last year when it looked as though a laundromat exploded, and frankly didn't do much good anyhow. Not sure what the official temp was, but i know 2 of the 3 sources i watch for weather wanted right at 32 or 33 last night, so i wasn't too worried.

I like the idea of covering the fig blooms with socks...

I'm glad because hubby looked appalled when i told him!! He said he'd never be able to be seen in public again. This was all fairly tongue in cheek of course, but i think he was surprised. I thought it was a clever way to reuse the socks that he goes through like water that are beyond repairing. Bonus is they're black and thick so it should help warm up the branches in the morn. Figs don't really bloom, but they do have brebas, or overwintering tiny immature fruit (which are coming out now), and if those get frozen off you have to wait for the next crop instead of getting 2 crops.

I took tender/potted stuff in and closed my eyes to the rest.

22 here where I am in Pickens County. I had nothing to worry about because all I have in the ground are Cole Crops.

half Nosed Jack and the Dawg

I didn't have any damage at all- even on the kiwi branches i didn't cover. That tells me it didn't dip below freezing for us, because they blacken immediately.

No damage here from what I could tell either...

Looks like the freeze got the new leaves on some of my hydrangeas. One small one may have lost all its green, which worries me as I lost one completely last year the same way.

I covered my spring magnolia 'Jane,' and moved stuff in pots into the garage. The magnolia looks okay. We just put it in last spring.

A little too early in the season to affect us up here luckily. My yard got ravaged last April. Hopefully we don't have a repeat next year!!!

That freeze last spring affected way up into New York. I think it was historic in it's effects. I certainly hope we're not in for that again!!

We were getting baby grapes on our grape vine. Second year and we were so excited! Covered everything but forgot to cover them. Now they are frozen and brown. Are they toast?

that would be my guess but you can just wait and see. If they are toast they will fall off pretty fast. Sorry! If they have only been in the ground 2 years it maybe a bit soon anyhow. For most very permanent fruits they advise you wait 3 years before you let it set fruit to get the plant really well established before you let it go through the stress of setting fruit. So maybe ma nature did you a favor, inadvertently.