Fall's First Frost

I woke up this morning, only to find the Eastern 4-H Center shrouded in frost...which means that flowers and other plants will began to die. As macabre as it may sound, it's only the natural process of things. Flowers die with the promise of a return - if it's a perennial, anyway. There are some things you can do to prolong the lives of your garden variety annuals and perennials. Cover them with warm fabric, newspaper, or a tarp. This will keep the dew from settling directly on them and it will prevent the air from freezing the droplets, which is death to many plants.

This morning on the news, a Jacksonville roadside stand reported a Mum Thief. The only person who would steal flowers, is the kind of person who would steal them and give them to his mother, which is double-bad. So if your a mom, and you have been getting Mums everyday for a month, please turn in your son.

Nevertheless, there are still additional things you can do to keep your plants toasty for a few more weeks...

1) When you cover your plants, do so during the day - and use a dark cloth to absorb the heat, and to trap the heat underneath.

2) I have never seen a frost in a hurricane...water can't settle if the wind is blowing, so try putting an electric fan around you plants...if it isn't raining outside.

3) If you have potted plants, the roots are susceptible, too. A frost freezes the cells in the plant, so warm the potted plant with a mink coat. If you don't have a "Mink", use bubble wrap or something less chic.

4) You could just go ahead and pour warm water on your plants...as the water evaporates around the plant, it will keep the air temperature above freezing (right around the plant). However, if the temp is below 25 degrees, you are only murdering your plants.

Since I currently file Single Status on my tax forms, I also have no garden. There are several reasons for this...the plants at the grocery store rarely freeze. This is where I pick my plants. I can also pretend that the produce department at Food Lion is my own private, yet cooperative garden that I share with others, and pay to retrieve my food.

Personally I like a good frost. It begins to eliminate several parasitic insects that live within mammals, especially squirrels. Mosquitoes also fall back quite a bit with the first frost. This winter is expected to be rather brutal which is good for mosquito elimination. Last year's cold winter really bit into the biting fly population, for which my forehead is grateful. Other animals, not including humans, like frost, too. Frost will weigh down seeds, dropping them to the ground. They are much more accessible for ducks, songbirds, and deer. These vegetarians are then fattened for the carnivores of the swamp like the fox, red wolf, and bear.

You can control the world (actually just your garden), with a little research. Frost is natural, and Mother Nature has a plan for everything...and she always wins, too!

Enjoy the day...