I hate living in an apartment!

malik

Just when the temps get to a consistent low and the trees are tucked in for the winter, my apartment center decides to pressure wash and repaint the balconies! This puts me in a terrible state because I have to clear off my 30 some trees to let them do it.

Here is my question...can i blow my apartment center up and get away with it? (just playing). Ok really, I am wandering what is going to happen to my trees when I bring them inside for that day and then return them back into the cold temps? I think i only have to move them in for a day, but I don't want to shock them. Any comments welcome.

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Joanie

You could move them into the kitchen and leave the refrigerator open all day, going full blast. That ought to keep them cool.

Joanie

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Cathie

They will be fine, even for 2 days, once they've gone dormant. And no, do not get yourself on the hook with the landlord for a new fridge!

jfecme

Just turn off the heat for a day.

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malik

Ha...you know i would do that , but I would lose my future wife in the process!

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Hasaki

malik,
yes, you can bring them in for a day but if you are in Nashville it is too early to put trees in(winter storage) for the winter. My trees(and I'm in Ontario) will stay out on benches till temps get in the -5C range. Today it is 52F here...

malik

I've always learned that you should start with winter protection when the night drops to 32f or below. It is cold enough to freeze the roots right? I went ahead and got some styrofoam boxes and stuck the trees in them(without a lid ofcourse. Then i mulched them in with pine bark. Could this have a negative effect this early in the winter season?

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"History will be kind to me for I intend to write it" -Winston Churchill

rockm

I agree with Hasaki. It's too early to put anything away for the winter just yet. I am in Zone 7 (which is, I think, the same Zone as Nashville) I usually wait until Thanksgiving weekend or even the first weeks of December to put anything into winter storage.

You are still at the mercy of building management, but the later you wait, the chances they will be doing outdoor work declines. It it's truly cold they aren't going to be pressure washing...


"I've always learned that you should start with winter protection when the night drops to 32f or below. It is cold enough to freeze the roots right? "

Not really. You can start protection, but doesn't necessarily mean it's a good thng to do. Just because nights are below freezing doesn't mean roots are frozen or are even exposed to frost. Since daytime temperatures in the fall tend to be onthe warm side, root masses soak up the heat and never freeeze through at night, even if temperatures dip welll below 30.

Just because roots get frozen for a few nights doesn't immediately plunge them into dormancy either. Root growth can continue long after leaf drop, as long as soil temps stay above freezing--or thaw reliably in the daytime.

Hasaki

malik,
I don't worry till night temps get consistantly below -5C-ish. Even when in storage my trees go down to -10C sometimes and they are unmulched sitting on benches in a garage with lights.