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WHAT THE FRIGIDE COLD CAN DO TO A PLANT: In extended hard freezes, the water in between and within the cells of the plants will freeze, causing the cells to expand and rupture resulting in damaged plant tissue. This type of damage is typically irreversible. What is freeze damage? The effects present themselves differently depending how exposed the plant was and what variety the plant is. Sometimes it is just a matter of foliage damage with cold burned leaf tips and discoloration. In other cases, freeze damage to plants appears all the way into the roots or crown structure. This is the hardest type from which to recover.

BE PATIENT, ASSESS THE PLANT & DO NOT PRUNE YET: 

• Don’t start pruning just yet, or remove plants from the landscape 

• Resist the urge to fertilize – until April 

• Be patient and keep watering 

• While you might think a plant is dead wait a while, you might be surprised. 

Considerable patience will be needed in the evaluation of damage to landscape plants. Typically, it is easy to determine the fate of some plants, but diagnosing the long term effect of cold damage to shrubs and trees is much harder. You may see some shrubs filled with areas of brown and drooping foliage while others will wait a while then begin to shows signs of stress. Some may also lose their leaves due to the freeze experience, but will leaf out again in Spring. Be patient do not go straight for the pruners. It may take several days, weeks, or even months for plants to show any sign of damage if there was any at all. 

For woody plants look at the stems. You can check for life on woody plants and perennials by scratching the bark of stems and look for green color underneath. If you find green, your plant is still alive and doing well. If there is no green, or the stem is Split, Brittle and Pealing, it is probably dead.

WATER: It is best to water your cold-shocked plants as water will help them recover from the trauma and stress. When plants experience a freeze moisture is removed from their tissues and watering helps them to rehydrate.

FERTILIZE: Fertilize your shrubs around the 1st of April, after all danger of frost has passed.