Do Cotton Sheets Save Fruit Buds?
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These are my dwarf fruit trees covered in fleece and cotton sheets during our last cold spell.
Do Cotton Sheets Work to Safe Fruit Buds?
This last cold spell was four days long. I didn't know at the time it was also part of the coldest spring in Missouri's recorded history. I have been trying different materials to see which ones work the best to protect my fruit tree flowers from getting nipped during this late winter freezes.
Over the years I have tried bird seed bags, corn bags, a variety of blankets and settled on cotton - sheets, pillow cases and lightweight fleece blankets. I will cover them with plastic bags if rain is in the forecast but without a chance of precipitation its all about keeping the flowers from getting blasted.
After four days, I wasn't sure if they had been covered for too long or not so as soon as there was sunshine and temperatures in the evening over freezing, off came the sheets.
My uncovered dwarf fruit tree flowers are none worse the wear for being covered in cotton.
After giving the dwarf fruit trees a few hours to enjoy the sun, I went back to check to see how the covered flowers were doing.
These are dwarf patio peach trees.
Dwarf patio peach trees made it through this last freeze covered in cotton pillow cases.
One of my favorite spring-blooming dwarf fruit tree is the apricot, the vibrant pink color is just lovely.
My lovely dwarf apricot required two sheets to give it full coverage from the last freeze.
As I was heading back to the front of the house, I saw honeybees visiting the recently uncovered blooms.
One of my honeybees visits the dwarf patio peach tree blossoms saved by cotton sheets.
That made all of the effort to cover up the trees worthwhile!
Charlotte
