Dealing with Cold temps

chromer

Well-Known Member
Hey guys, I've noticed lots of posts about frost worries since i joined the site a while back.. at this time of year its right up there with the "hey guys, is this ready to be harvested?" (which is almost always 'no').. but i digress.. living in southern Ontario, we have our share of cold nights and there have been frost warnings 3x in the past week or so (and i honestly dont lose a wink of sleep over it).. it's something we have to deal with so here are some tips for other people who are worried about frost killing their crop

#1.. don't worry.. just cause your blazed out of your tree and you start getting paranoid that your plant(s) is gunna turn into an icicle overnight doesn't mean you should run outside at 2am in your boxers to cut the bitch down 2 weeks before it's ready to be cut..

#2.. in my experience, it actually HAS TO FROST before damage is done to your plants(AND, IMO i've had light frosts that haven't hurt my plants at all).. i live in Canada, i know the difference between cold and freezing, 36`F/2`C is fine for your plants, THEY WONT FREEZE.. YOU are the one who should chill out

#3.. plants can handle the cold weather, unless you live in NorCal (or somewhere else warm) and theres a freak cold snap, your plant will be conditioned to handle cool temps (ie, mid to high 30's/1-3`C).. marijuana is hardy, u dont have to baby it.. like I said, if the temp doesnt get below 32/0` there wont be a problem..



OK, so now on to the actual problem.. the forecast is calling for a frost.. WHAT DO I DO???


Again, before you go outside in your boxers at 2am to cut down your babies, be proactive..

#1 rummage around your house (or even the salvation army) and get some old blankets/bedsheets (i don't trust garbage bags).. wrapping burlap around your plants also works

#2 water the ground around your plant(s).. the moisture will evaporate and be released into the surrounding air around your plants, raising the humidity of that air.. thus making it physically tougher for it to freeze and making it tougher for the plant to 'freeze'

#3.. gently put your bedsheets/blankets over the plants, it's easiest if you have stakes around your plants so the plant itself doesn't have to bare the entire load..
During the night, the ground will release heat that will be trapped by the blanket, keeping the inside of the blanket warm relative to the outside :)

#4.. get up early, check the thermometer, it'll prolly read above freezing (unless you get up at 3am) and take those conspicuous blankets off.. you should be ok



Still worried that they got frosted??

Spray cool-cold water on the plants, this will thaw them out without shocking the leaves/buds (which will happen if you spray them with hot water)


Hopefully that solves some uneasiness in the forums.. maybe it'll even solve one persons' problem.. if it did, then i did my job :)

:peace:

if i missed something or u have a better/different technique, by all means, add it
 

ease8

Active Member
i hear plants can weather temps even below 32 F as long as it doesn't get below 28 F (hard freeze) AND as long as it warms up a bit during the day and they get enough sun

any truth to this?

edit: +rep, thanks for the helpful post
 

ease8

Active Member
by the way, for those of you who religiously watch the weather for frost advisories, here's a little information for you:

--A frost advisory is issued when temps may drop into the upper 20s and lower 30s briefly, but not long enough to end the growing season.

--A freeze advisory is issued when temps are expected to drop below 29 degrees for several hours, putting an end to the growing season.

"growing season" here refers to other plants, but cannabis is quite hardy and should be affected in much the same way (or better off)
 

CaNNaBiZNeSS

Well-Known Member
good post bro, im also in southern ontario, and i can assure you are by you posting this

"just cause your blazed out of your tree "
only us motherfuckers actually say blazed out of your tree, good shit man good shit.
and i dont really worry bout the frosts, fuckem i got 6 little outdoors and every monring i check them and they are nice and purply, too bad the buds are tiny but ima just make some nice hash with all of them, i got nuff herb to smoke.
 

ThunderLips

Well-Known Member
Well Said! I have invited you and other Canadians to our Canadian Social group... I myself have been dreading the hard freeze coming... I have posted a few pics of my outdoor in the group as well.
I have also woken up to a minor frost and the plants are doing just fine. But this season has been soooo dissapointing, Im not packing on the weight like i thought and im not sure if waiting until November is smart.
 

DryGrain

Well-Known Member
Low tempuratures can also bring out the color in purple strains. Tell that to the guy in his boxers at 2am freaking out because his plants are cold. :)
 

burger

Active Member
ive actually heard from quite a few people that frost is good for them...apparently they make them tighter and tastier!
 

norcalkronic

Well-Known Member
great posts! lots of helpful relevant info. I like the saran wrap design... no insulation but still would seem to be effective.
 

Bonerary Pill

Active Member
well.. It frosted last night, real good, my plants froze a little, I'm not too too worried, but what signs will there be of damage? if they have been damaged, should I harvest? I also am in SouthernOntario, close to barrie area.....
 

Sjerpsy

Well-Known Member
Dude I live in Elmvale lol! Where you at??Compare some smoke this year!!!?....I bet your shits purple but i think soon as the leaves start to die off is when its getting too cold...i have one out thats about 2-4 weeks into flowering and I'm just letting it go as an expariment...its -2 so it says on the A Channel News ;) .... and its going to get up to 16 today, that sunshine should counter act the frost i'm thinking...took these yesterday...purple,but all looks healthy...
 

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MissBehavin

Active Member
I'v got a little advice for people for next year....

I tried a little experiment this year. Try starting your plant indoors. Make sure your flowering for a month before the summer soltice, and plant within days of it. Shave off the time you need to spend outside and you'll be happier.
 

Sjerpsy

Well-Known Member
I got this one in the ground june-july,when i got the seeds...would have started it at the beginning to mid may if i had the option..this baby would be lookin real nice with another month or more
 

RollaFatty

Well-Known Member
took the mittens off my ladies this morn..
There was a very very hard frost last night
but the covers did there job:)
 

Bonerary Pill

Active Member
sjerpsy, well those will be looking nice in a month ortwo, but do you really think we'll have that nice of weather until then?
 

Sjerpsy

Well-Known Member
nope not at all,just kinda takin this one on the chin,its the best looking plant that i've grown...very dissapointing..i'm just gonna let it die to see how much they can take for next year...altough it frosts here regularly now,the temps are supposed to be around 17-22 celcuis during the day for about another week or so...that should be just fine,after that i dunno, lookin iffy....
PS: Making hash/oil outta this whole plant just not sure how yet...
 
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