Frost, freeze likely this weekend; what you can do to get ahead

In March, this wouldn’t be a big deal. In May, a frost or freeze could be damaging.

Frost in Wythe County Sunday morning (Bertha Shelton) (WSLS)

ROANOKE, Va. – While the cold may not bother Elsa, it will bother plants this weekend. Already, a Freeze Watch is in effect Saturday morning for the New River Valley and the Highlands.

Freeze Watch - Saturday morning

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Outside of that, temperatures will come close, but probably won’t reach, freezing. The wind should help prevent that from happening in Roanoke, Lynchburg and Southside.

By Mother’s Day morning, the wind will calm down enough to where we all drop into the 30-35° range. Some mountain valleys may even drop into the 20s!

Weekend low temperatures - 5/9 and 5/10/2020

In March, this wouldn’t be a big deal. However, we know a lot of you have poured money, time and love into your gardens. We want them to be protected this Mother’s Day weekend.

In a recent story with 10 News, Greenbrier Nurseries pointed out some plants that can withstand the cold and some that cannot. (See graphic below.)

Plant vs. don't plant in the cold

A more expansive list of plants vulnerable to the cold can be found here.

You can also find more tips on how to protect your plants from the University of California here.

Virginia Tech has specifically looked at how to protect strawberries from frosts and freezes.

An expert from the Virginia Cooperative Extension offers three pieces of advice here.

The reason why we’re putting more emphasis on this is because this could be one of the latest freezes on record for a few areas, specifically Southside.

Latest freeze on record

It will start to feel like May later next week, but for now we just have to (as Elsa says) “let it go.”

More forecast details found here.