THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, October 30, 1994 TAG: 9410280091
SECTION: HOME PAGE: G1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: ROBERT STIFFLER
LENGTH: Medium: 70 lines
The area's first freeze may be fast approaching, which means you should be preparing now.
The average date for the first freeze at the Hampton Roads Research Center on Diamond Springs Road is Nov. 16. That's only two weeks away.
That date varies throughout the area, being Nov. 3 in Suffolk and Dec. 1 at Cape Henry. On the Outer Banks of North Carolina, it can be two weeks later.
But the cool nights of the past week indicate that it might be earlier than usual, so be prepared.
First, bring in all houseplants. Some, such as gloxinias, which are greenhouse plants and are rarely grown outdoors in this area, should be brought indoors at once.
Move the houseplants to a low-light area in your home to adjust to indoor living. Or you can bring them in only at night and put them back outdoors on sunny days. Remember that most houseplants are tropical plants.
They can be injured by low night temperatures, even though the temperature may be well above freezing.
Inspect your plants closely for insects and do any spraying needed, either with insecticidal soap or Sevin or Orthene, before bringing them indoors.
``If a pot has been in contact with the soil, you may want to soak it in a bucket of water for several hours to drown any insects that entered through the drain holes,'' recommends Diane Relf, a horticulturist at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg.
Clean dirt and dust from the foliage with a warm, damp cloth. Also wash your windows where the plants will spend the winter. This will help provide more light. Growth and metabolism slow dramatically after plants are moved indoors, so don't fertilize. Check soil moisture frequently and water only when necessary.
By allowing time for the plant to adjust to its new conditions, it'll be much happier indoors for winter. Don't be surprised if your plants shed some leaves. That often happens as part of their adjustment.
If you have mums, marigolds or other flowers in bloom in your yard, you can throw an old sheet over them to protect them from a freeze. Be sure to remove it early each morning.
In your vegetables garden, cover tomatoes each night with burlap, canvas, blankets or sheets, again removing them each morning. Before a predicted killing freeze, pick mature tomatoes and store them in a dark cool place, making sure they don't touch. They'll ripen slowly.
Peppers can be picked and frozen, and they're as good as using fresh ones when cooking anything requiring peppers.
Summer squash, melons, eggplant, cucumbers and okra cannot withstand cool nights and should be picked before a heavy frost. You can store such vegetables in a refrigerator until needed.
Cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli and brussels sprouts can stand some cold. When it really gets wintry, cover them with Reemay cloth and often they'll survive through the winter.
Kale, spinach, parsley and parsnips usually survive all winter in local gardens, but it's smart to mulch them heavily with pine straw. Again, Reemay cloth, available in home and garden centers, works just as well and is often easier to do than mulching.
Clear nights with no wind mean freezes are likely, so watch the skies and listen to weather forecasts in the days ahead. ILLUSTRATION: ROBERT STIFFLER/Color photo
Gloxenia and most tropical houseplants should be brought inside now
to avoid cold damage.
by CNB