Frost Damage in Vegetables and Landscape Plants

By Ann Hazelrigg

Most Vermont gardeners realize warm-season vegetable crops like peppers, corn, tomatoes, basil and cucumbers aren’t safe in the garden until May 31. Luckily, this saved a lot of vegetables from the frost and freeze damage we had on May 18 around the state.

If you did have some warm-season crops planted, they are likely to have been killed and will need to be replanted. Some of the more cold-tolerant crops in the garden during the cold snap are probably showing signs of damage.  

I have seen a fair amount of dieback of tips in onions and cold damage on brassica crops. Since the roots are well insulated by the soil, these plants will not die even though the damaged leaves may die and drop.

Just watch the new growth of the plant. As long as it is emerging green and healthy, the plant should recover just fine and provide you with a good harvest later in the season.

There has been a lot of media coverage of the devastating losses to our apple and grape crops around the state. Data is currently being compiled now to assess the impact and breadth of the damage.

Although not economically important, our landscape’s ornamental trees also were impacted by the low temperatures. Typically, the new succulent growth of trees and shrubs are more vulnerable to the lower temperatures, so you may see blackening of leaves and dieback in branch tips as well as wilting in the new growth of conifers. 

It is very hit and miss throughout the state and even site to site. I have seen leaf damage on birches and chestnuts, yet the crabapples, maples and oaks are fine in the same area. It just depends on the species of tree involved, the stage of growth and the microclimate.

The good news is that most trees and shrubs, if damaged early enough in the season, will produce new buds and grow just fine.