12-28-10 Frost Report

Another frosty morning at Deering Bay Yacht and Country Club's Garden!  The weather we've experienced this December has been unseasonably cold.  According to the National Weather Service, this December has been the coldest on record for Miami in 115 years. Even the New York Times poked fun at our cold temps in this article.

On the night of the 27th, I put some water in a shallow dish to demonstrate just how cold it gets near the garden.  You'll see how it formed into a solid block of ice the next morning.  When planning a garden it’s important to understand that different plants tolerate cold better than others.  There are two categories for cold tolerance; hardy and tender.  At the Club, we planted more of the frost hardy plants and as a result have had little damage.

It’s also helpful to the budding gardeners out there to understand what conditions frost forms.  Look for frost to form on a clear, calm night when the temperatures hit 39 degrees or lower.  Frost will NOT form on a cloudy and/or windy night, so remember that for next time we face a frost.  After a major cold front like this I look for cumulus clouds moving in off the ocean.  That wind pattern, winds out of the east, usually tells us that the ocean breeze will once again moderate our temperatures.  Enjoy these pics from the garden and stay warm my friends!

Tim