Freezing temperatures are returning at night after a month of record high temperatures. Patrick O’Malley, horticulture specialist with Johnson County Extension, gave us some tips on how to keep your garden plants safe through the cold nights. He says the best way to protect plants that are sensitive to frost, like tomatoes, peppers, and some flowers, is to cover them with a sheet before the temperature drops.

This helps to trap the heat from the ground around the plants. Plastic sheets don’t work because any part of the plant in contact with the plastic will freeze. He says many plants are hardy, like carrots and cabbage and will last through temperatures as low as 28 degrees.

28-25 degree temperatures will harm apples on apple trees, but not the tree itself. He says if a plant is damaged by the temperatures, there isn’t much you can do except trim off the damaged parts and hope the plant recovers.

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