Lowcountry farmers prepare for freezing temperatures this week

RIDGELAND, Ga. (WTOC) - With cold temperatures coming in, local farmers are preparing their crops and livestock for the first winter chill of the season.

One Ridgeland farm’s priority over the next two days is to get plants ready for the drastic change in temperature.

“Gonna pull frost cloth out and cover our most tender crops that we have. And so we did some frost cloth pull out today, but that’ll be tomorrow’s big task,” a farmer said.

Whippoorwill Farms owner Marissa Paykos has already begun preparing for the incoming below-freezing temperatures.

“And so today it was a warm day, and now tomorrow it’s about to hit them with like a frost. And so it sends them into a little bit of a shock, which is really the big issue,” Paykos said.

‘Christmas lights underneath of blankets’: Local farmer shares tip

Paykos said Sunday’s most important job was picking the sweet potatoes because after Monday, they won’t make it.

For gardeners facing unexpected frost, Paykos offered an unusual tip.

“Christmas lights underneath of blankets, you know, you can put them on the ground and around your plants. That actually makes a huge difference because of the little bit of heat that it does give off,” she said.

“It ices over on some of the plants but once it thaws off, the plants bounce back and are actually in better shape,” Paykos said.

Some crops benefit from cold, impact on livestock

Some plants may actually benefit from the cold weather.

“There’s lots of frost hardy vegetables that we won’t even be touching with frost cloth. Like collards, for example, just get better tasting after a little bit of frost hits them. Kale, carrots, radish, all of those things can survive the frost,” Paykos said.

Whippoorwill Farms livestock doesn’t need much preparation for the colder months. All they need is some wood chips, hay and some snuggles to stay warm all winter long.