Caring for Your Houston Landscape After a Freeze

It froze. Now what?

• Wait to uncover your plants until the air temperature is above 40 degrees Fahrenheit. Don’t shock your plants by going from warm to cold.

• If it's still winter and might freeze again, leave the damaged foliage on the plant. Yes, it's ugly. But it's the best protection you can give your plant against another freeze.

• If you're confident this was the last freeze, cut off the damaged parts of the plant. Keep your cuttings in a nearby pile so pollinators can use them for food and shelter.

• If a tree branch looks dead, scrape the bark. Green under the bark means it’s still alive and should be left alone. If the branch is black, brown, or mushy under the bark it’s dead and should be pruned at the point where it comes out of the main branch or trunk.

• Use Microlife's Ocean Harvest fertilizer on the remaining foliage and roots to give your plant the nutrition it needs to grow back strong.