Winter’s icy grip refuses to loosen its hold on the Philadelphia region as a Freeze Warning and Frost Advisory blankets the area from 2am until 9am Friday morning. Meteorologists are sounding the alarm for residents to take action to safeguard their treasured gardens and landscaping.
The bitter cold forecast has gardens and farms on high alert. Temperatures are projected to plummet well below freezing overnight, with thermometers potentially bottoming out in the bone-chilling upper 20s in parts of the Lehigh Valley and New Jersey. Even urban areas like Philadelphia itself won’t be spared, with lows around 40 degrees at midnight before crashing into the 30s by 3am.
This dramatic cold snap poses a severe threat to any tender vegetation left exposed and unprotected. The National Weather Service is urging everyone to take freeze precautions – bring potted plants indoors, cover outdoor gardens with frost blankets or burlap, and delay any planting of warm weather crops until after this Arctic blast passes.
Friday’s frosty start may catch some green thumbs off-guard after recent stretches of mild spring weather lulled them into complacency. But this harsh freeze could devastate unprepared plants and wipe out a season’s worth of growth overnight. Landscape companies are bracing for a flood of emergency calls from panicked clients.
The good news? This frigid intermission should be short-lived. Once the Freeze Warning and Frost Advisory expires at 9am Friday, temperatures will rebound into the pleasant 60s under sunny skies. Looking ahead, the warming trend really takes hold this weekend with highs soaring into the 80s by Sunday.
But first, Philadelphia must endure one last wintry gasp. Residents would be wise to take all necessary precautions now to protect their plants and avoid a costly freeze disaster. Cover up or bring indoors anything you want to survive until spring’s warmth sticks around for good.
25
