Winter's Finally Here

SEBRING - It felt like beach weather last week, but as you're picking up this newspaper from your doorstep or out of the rack, you'll wish you had a skull cap, gloves and a scarf to go along with that jacket. The National Weather Service in Ruskin predicts temperatures to dip into upper 20s by tonight until Thursday morning, bringing in the coldest weather seen in Highlands County this season, and possibly a hard freeze that's rarely seen south of Polk County's so-called "frost line."

At least you can dress up for this. For farmers, it's a bit trickier as citrus groves, nurseries, caladium farmers and even local diaries get ready for it.

"We're concerned about the potential lows that are forecast," said Ray Royce, the executive director of the Highlands County Citrus Growers Association.

Nurseries spent Monday moving their more delicate plants indoors. The woodier plants will be watered and frozen over, said Mike Waldron of Hidden Acres Nursery. The near-record heat has not helped Waldron as he prepares for the cold snap.

"That's (the warmth) going to encourage new growth. Some of that new growth pops out, especially the plants that we need to freeze in (for the current cold snap)."

For those plants, it becomes a matter of how long the freeze lasts. The weather will warm back above the freezing point after Thursday morning, but depending on how long it goes, Waldron worried some of the plants could get "cold burned" ends.

So, what do we do?

Royce suggested that citrus farmers should make sure they have plenty of diesel fuel, and they should also make sure their irrigation systems are working. The larger citrus trees are protected by the relatively warm water as it raises the canopy temperature, even though smaller trees can also be protected if that water forms an ice covering, he explained.

John McMichael, a forecaster with the National Weather Service in Ruskin, suggested that homeowners should bring in their outdoor pets by then, move any delicate plant they have indoors and cover un-movable tropical plants in cloths. Cover yourself in multiple layers of clothing if you're going to be outside Wednesday or Thursday morning.

Also, watch out for wind today if you're going on your boat. The winds are expected to reach up to 25 mph.

And what about cows?

"Cows like cold weather," said Joe Wright, president of the Southeast Milk Cooperative.
Even though he said that beef cows might take cover from the cold, milk cows actually enjoy it. Wind, on the other hand, can agitate them.

The biggest concern though is the possibility of the grass freezing over, since that's what the cows eat. Unlike citrus crops and most ornamental plants, there's little preparation that could be done to protect the grass.

It's a similar situation for caladium fields, but Don Bates of Bates Sons & Daughters was not concerned.
"I don't see this cold snap being that long," he said. "We should be in pretty good shape."