Florida Freeze - Wrapping up. . . .the plants by Jane Tolbert

Florida evokes images of warm, sunny beaches in winter months while the rest of the country braces for dire conditions. Most of the time the weather is warm and sunny, but we have our seasons.

In the summer months, we haul out our storm shutters (now hidden somewhere under Christmas decorations). In the winter, we get out patchwork quilts, blankets, sheets or just about anything to protect our large plants during a freeze. We drag in the numerous terracotta pots of begonias, impatiens, and mystery plants and stash them on the back porch or kitchen counter until warmer weather returns. We discover that the grapefruit, kumquat, and Persian lime all have roots that have grown outside the pots into the ground. Those plants that remain outside will be tightly bundled.

The process of protecting plants begins when the weather forecasters announce a cold front and the possibility of a freeze. We dig into trunks, take linens off the guest bed, and try to protect gardens before we too are exposed to wind chill. For days at a time, flower beds and fragile trees are decked out in personal bedding--stuff that usually is not aired publicly. . . .at least not since the elimination of clotheslines.



Day 2 of the Cold--Strawberries at $1.97. . . .

Statewide, freezes are taken seriously. Agriculture ranks second just after tourism as a major Florida industry. The agribusiness represents $100 billion. Of course, these crops need more than a grandmother’s quilts and guest room sheets for protection.

Since the state began keeping data on weather (from the 1830s), freezes have reconfigured the geography of citrus growing. Each successive freeze pushes the zone further south. And I remember the Christmas freeze of 1989 that decimated acres of citrus in central Florida.

Currently, we have a week of cold, an unusually long period by Florida standards, according to weather forecasters. The media have been running wild. Days one and two of coverage focused on the potential crop loss, particularly strawberries, which were to be harvested. The media also used the analogy of a boxing match in headlines that read something like this: Florida gets past round one in the freeze and prepares to slug it out. . . . In day three of plunging nighttime temperatures, weather still makes headlines. Yesterday’s (Jan. 6, 2010) from around the state read like this:

- Miami Herald – “South Florida cold to stay through weekend”
- Gainesville Sun – “Cold snap gripping Gulf states threatens Florida crop”
- Florida Today (Melbourne) – “Cold's grip tightens as Brevard hits record low temperature”
- News Herald (Panama City) – “Experts: Cold snap doesn't disprove global warming”

While earlier stories carried photos of heavily bundled school children, the more recent stories have photos of ice-covered oranges. The implication--Florida had entered the next ice age. But the caption explained the use of micro-sprinklers to coat the plants in ice actually protects them.

Will the cold weather keep my friends from visiting? After all, our low night low is higher than their daytime high. Or is the fact they have seen the bedding strewn on lawns and plants that might keep them away.