How to protect your crops or garden against frost

FREMONT COUNTY - Farmers and gardeners around Eastern Idaho are preparing for Monday night's frost advisory.

Brett Reynolds is a farmer in Ashton with 3,000 acres of land, 600 of which are dedicated to potatoes.

"If we had a frost right now and it was severe enough, you would see the potato market just go crazy," said Brett Reynolds.

Reynolds says the potato market had a late start this year, so if the frost ended the season early, this year's spuds could be duds.

"If they died right now, some of the guides would not have enough size to be able to make it up into the diggers right now," said Brett Reynolds.

But farmers like Reynolds are taking protective measures.

"One of the biggest things is we're trying to keep the fields soaked up and wet. We're going to be running our pivots tonight at a fast speed to help with the frost. And also with the rain we had last night will help a little bit," said Steve Reynolds, Brett's brother and co-farmer.

The reason putting water on your plants before a frost is helpful is that it helps warm them up by acting as a buffer to the intense cold.

"What of the things you want to keep in mind is that your warm season crops... They're very sensitive to a light frost, so if you can cover them up," said Lance Ellis, University of Idaho Extension Educator for Fremont County.

When it comes to your garden, there's a few plants you want to be sure to cover up tonight including pumpkins, zucchini, and tomatoes. These are all at risk... For those of you with apple trees at home, apples will not be so much affected by the possible frost. That's because apples have a high sugar contact which helps protect them against frost.

"A light frost tonight is not going to harm your apples, but instead it will start the process of changing its sugars, so the apples will become sweeter. A lot of apple varieties need a light frost to change their sugars, otherwise they will have a lousy flavor and will not taste as good," said Ellis.

81-year-old Joleen Parkinson has had a garden for about 60 years.

"I'm really not too concerned about the frost tonight because the beans will freeze, but I've been picking beans now for two weeks. The corn is just about ready so I don't think it will hurt the corn. It will kill the zucchini and the pumpkins, because they're not ready," said Parkinson.

So be sure to water your plants, and cover them up if you can.

Earlier Monday the weather service had issued a frost watch, but that was later changed to a frost advisory. The advisory means that conditions are prime for a frost to occur.

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