Is it too early to talk about Frost Protection?

My Sugar Apple lost a few branches and some died back do to the cold last year. It did not get any kind of frost protection but this year I am planning to do all I can to minimize the damage. The tree is in the ground and is about 4ft tall.

What kind of steps can I take to protect it from frost?

I have read that applying a fertilizer high in Potassium and no Nitrogen starting October 15 will help. Also spraying Kel Seaweed solution. Does this make sence?

I am also thinking on covering the tree with some kind of frost cloth but don't know where to get any. I have checked Home Depot but no luck.

Thanks in advance for the help.

The following thread was started by RaCor on September 29, 2006 at 10:59 am PST

You can get different weights of a remay type material from groworganic.com in North. Calif. I've used Agribon 50 and it's survived for 3 seasons now and still looks like it'll last at least 1 more or maybe 2. I use pvc/rebar in the ground to make little domes and cover the more delicate trees from Nov.-March.

However, it wasn't enough to protect some cherimoyas. I had 3 die to the ground and lose their grafts, including a Booth. But it hit an unusually cold 21 deg last Feb.

This year some of the white sapotes are getting too big to cover this way, so I'm going to use strips of the same Agribon fabric to wrap the trunks and larger branches. I saw this when I was in China, they used burlap. Rather decorative actually. I'm wondering if wrapping might be more effective protection than covering.

A couple of years ago, I also bought some cloud cover but have never gotten around to using it.

The above followup was added by Mike Lee on September 29, 2006 at 2:04 pm PST.

Thanks Mike,

I was looking for a good frost cover like that Agribon 50. The prices look good too.

The above followup was added by RaCor on September 29, 2006 at 3:22 pm PST.

winter just finished here, (australia) and it was 35 degrees Celcius (dunno what that is in yankee, but it was bloody hot for mid winter

The above followup was added by mal on September 30, 2006 at 9:48 am PST.

seems like.

The above followup was added by Stan on September 30, 2006 at 10:41 am PST.

Mal and Stan,

Even in Southern California we get a few days where the temperature may reach 30-32F.

The above followup was added by RaCor on September 30, 2006 at 6:32 pm PST.

that sounds just like home.

The above followup was added by leonel on September 30, 2006 at 6:51 pm PST.

Hi All,

This is my first year growing acerolas and pepino dulces. All of my plants/trees are in 15 gallon containers. What is the best way to protect them from frost? They are still small enough to drag into the garage at night. What should I do?

Thanks for your advice.

Angelique

The above followup was added by angelique on October 01, 2006 at 6:53 pm PST.

Angelique,

I would just drag those containers underneath the eaves of your home. If a really severe cold-snap threatens, you can put them in your garage.

I've never grown acerola, but I suspect that it is significantly more frost-tender than pepino dulce. My garden is in an inland East Bay location, and I've kept pepino dulce plants alive outside through about seven winters. (Of course, the last big freeze we had was in 1998, before I got the plants.)

My pepino dulce plants do have some microclimate benefits: they've been kept on a small slope, which allows for some cold-air drainage.

You also might want to look into purchasing some "floating row-cover" material, which can give your plants a little additional protection if you don't have any advantageous garden-microclimates to play around with.

The above followup was added by Ashok on October 02, 2006 at 7:32 pm PST.

Thanks Ashok.

The above followup was added by Angelique on October 03, 2006 at 6:15 pm PST.