Frost damaged flowers?

Question

Along the walkway to our house, there's a patch of flowerbeds, which is almost completely in shadows all the time. It's got some impatiens, some violets, and some other flower I can't remember the name for that looks like the impatiens, but with rounder leaves, and a woddier stem.

One night, there was a vicious cold snap, and about two thirds of the flowers in the bed got frosted pretty much to death. Since I live in Southern California, I wasn't really expecting this, and don't really know what I can do about it.

While tips for prevention in the future are welcome, I don't expect this to happen too often, so I'm mostly worried about what I can do to get them looking better again in the near future. Please help, they look horrible!

Answer 1

Are there any healthy non damaged leaves present toward the bottom of the plants? If so, use a sharp knife to cut the plant just above the good leaves. Hopefully they will restart for you. If all leaves are browning or black, they're toast and you will have to wait til next season. For future use, if extreme cold is forecast, throw some plastic bags (black garbage bags work great) over the plants an hour or two before sun down. Make sure to pin down the edges with stones or a little dirt. Heat will gather inside and keep the plants from freezing if it doesn't get to cold. Also works on bushes and cold affected shrubs. Take it from someone who lives in Minnesota.

Answer 2

First just cut back the impatents back to the ground level. They will come back in the Spring, for the others you do not identify the plant family. So I must assume even though normally do not use this word.
The other plants maybe annuals and may just need to pinch or prune back, also. If Roses or other type of deciducious plants they should bud or blosoom out by March or April.
Then counsult with your local Nusery Plant person. That is Certified in your area of plants. Then also get some Fetizler to help get your plants going also. The best is normally a slow time
release type for most plants. Good Luck and Green Growing.
Now the best ways to prevent when the local weather reports Frost Time there is two types of thoughts;
Some is use Tomatoes Wax type Tents:
The other is to either take a old newspaper make small Tent like with some 1/4" X 8" wood stakes or dowels pick-up at local Craft store or Garden Shops,Home Depot or Lowes. Then place the
newspaper on the dowels leave approximately 1" to 1"1/2" gap between the ground and the bottom of the newspaper. If you do a home made shelter on small ground cover plants.
If you have Citrus trees or other Young trees need to cover them also. Especially when the Prodiction is the Freeze is between 26 degrees or cooler for at least 6 hrs or more low temperature.
Also wrap your exposed water pipes with either foam or again cheap way newspaper wrap. The foam wrap again can be purchased at any local Hardware outlet, Home Inprovement Centers. So Good Luck.

Answer 3

The flowers that you mentioned, impatients, violets and most probably begonias are very cold sensitive flowers. If the cold affected them, burned them, they will not survive. You can wait and see if they bounce back but don't hold your breath. If you have begonias these might because they have shoots that sprout from below as new growth, if they get their strength back. As for the others, I don't think you will be able to save them. If this happens again, if the weather drops suddenly, you can cover them with a plastic sheet to protect them. This will keep the warmth in the ground. I live in Canada and do this to extend the life of the flowers for as long as we can when the nights get cold but the days are still hot. Eventually when the frost comes they're done.

Answer 4

You can try and save them by cutting off all the dead leaves(wilted) and flowers.If the frost wasn't that bad it might not have gone down to the roots. If there is any life left in them, you should see some new leaf growth in a week or so. If not,you'll have to start over with new plants. In the future if you know it will be cold, you can simply cover them with newspaper, plastic bags anything.

Answer 5

we've a lavender plant it is been becoming in our backyard for numerous years. It has survived some brutal winters (under 0 F temps) and continues to be becoming fantastically. My spouse prunes it, and this 12 months I cut up it up into 3 clumps. It hasn't been heat long sufficient for foliage on lavender. supply it some weeks.

Answer 6

plants go through shock after stuff like that and will probly die, as for the future prevention cover with a light sheet, works for baby trees should work for flowers

Answer 7

wait until spring. the ones that are green are the only ones alive so pull out the dead ones and replace them.