© What to do after Freeze provided by WWL Radio New OrleansHappy birthday fellow gardener. After a series of severe frosts and temperatures remaining below freezing for long periods, we can certainly expect some loss of tropical plants in our landscapes.
As you tidy up your gardens next week, here are some insights on damage assessment and repair. Don't be disappointed. You'd be surprised how many tropics survive (especially when protected) and recover by the following summer. Each loss will be an opportunity to buy new stations. Is it surprising? At Christmas you can get a gift certificate from a local nursery. Regardless, I hope you find the following information useful. Let me know if you have any questions.
What to do after freezing
Put potted plants outside unless you plan to keep them inside for the rest of the winter. Plants don't mind being brought outside and inside as needed during the winter. Potted plants that have been incorporated can be returned to covered porches and patios where they will grow naturally.
After freezing, remove the covers from your plants. You can leave the plants covered in covers, leaves, or plastic for several days without damage, but the covers should be removed to allow them to lighten. Temperatures will be comfortable and warm next week. Be prepared to cover the tropics (even the damaged ones) during heavier frosts.
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Do not prune for a week or more after freezing. It often takes a week for all the damage to become visible.
Damaged growth of herbaceous or non-woody tropical plants such as reeds, elephant ears, birds-of-paradise, begonias, hepatines, philodendrons, and ginger can be pruned back to living tissue. This pruning is optional and is more for order than for the plant. However, if the affected tissue is scaly, sticky, sticky, and foul-smelling, it should be removed.
If you have never prune before, consider supporting or pruning these tropical grasses in spring, after the threat of frost has passed and before new growth (late March) begins.
You can remove damaged leaves from banana plants, but don't cut the stem unless you're sure it's dead. It looks brown and limp, feels loose on the ground, and bleeds profusely when punctured. Exceptions would be banana plants that produced a bunch of fruit last year. They will not produce new growth and will have to go back to the ground to make room for new shoots to appear this summer.
In general, it's a good idea to postpone hard pruning of woody tropical plants like hibiscus, tapuchina, angel's trumpet, croton, ixora, shefflera, copperwood, and rubber tree until new growth begins in spring and you can do it more precisely. Determine which parts are alive and which are dead. . Fallen leaves can be collected from woody tropical plants to keep things clean.
If you can clearly identify the dead branches of a tree, you can prune them. Try cutting the bark with your thumb. If the underlying tissue is green, it's still alive. If the tissue is tan or brown, the branch has died. Start at the top and work your way down to see how far the tree has died. But pruning affected plants will not help (pruning is optional), and you can safely wait.
