Last week, here in Indiana we set a new record! No, it wasn’t for World’s Best Radio Show (yet,) but it was the COLDEST day ever recorded for May in the state. Unfortunately, most of our beautiful spring plants had to face that 27 degrees unprepared.
After a hard freeze, at first, most perennials will appear okay. However, a few days or even up to a week later you may notice major wilting. This past week we’ve had a lot of questions about just that. Plants seem to be fine, but started to wilt and die off what seemed like randomly.
“It can be a few days, people will forget what happened last Saturday, then all the sudden ‘boom’ you got problems with your hydrangeas, or other perennials.”
Pat says that it’s usually the new growth coming in that is at risk when an unexpected freeze hits.
“The freeze is what nips new growth, because new growth is usually what’s at risk, like when we had 27 degrees last week. Anything tender like that.”
The good news is, you shouldn’t have to worry if it’s just a bit of freeze damage.
“(New growth) It will shrivel up and fall, but you should get a second growth.”
If you want to help along the new growth, just give it a little TLC and it’ll spring back in no time!
“Your plants should be fine. And any shrub that got nipped, just trim it up a little bit. When you trim it up, it’ll stimulate growth and help it recover. Plus, if you haven’t fertilized, fertilize as well.”
Bonus tip: If you’re not sure if you have frost damage, scrape a bit of the bark to see if it’s dead. Cut back until you see green underneath the bark-that’s a sign of healthy wood! Buds below the cut that weren’t damaged will still bloom.
For more Home and Garden tips, check out our highlights from our last show!
https://omny.fm/shows/home-garden/home-and-garden-show-5-17-20
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