does ice melt harm plants?

Answer 1

Melting ice is just water, however if you are referring to the salts that are put on ice to make it thaw, then yes it hurts plants. Too much salt is bad for your plants, however they are many plants that can tolerate high salt content, i.e. the ones that live on or near beaches.

Answer 2

Yes and no.

Ice melting is what causes spring floods, the physical force of the flood waters can do a lot of damage to anything in its path.

The only way I can imagine directly harming plants due to ice water melting is something dissolved in the melt water, a natural or man made toxin.

Other than those two ways I don't think that ice melt would harm a plant unless it was a freak weather pattern that the species was not accustomed to (e.g. freezing citrus crop in California this winter).

Answer 3

Actually it's the freezing that causes the damage. You just don't see it until the thaw. The freezing causes ice crystals in the plant that ruptures the plant cells. Then chemistry of the particular plant cells do act somewhat as an antifreeze, so some plats are more resistant to cold than others, but the damage is already done before the ice melts.

Answer 4

melting ice normally is the start of plant growth