Yikes, we are supposed to get down to the mid-40's next weekend! I am not sure I have ever seen it get that low the first week of October. Now what do I do? I have hundreds of orchids and hundreds of other tropical plants and I really didn't want to start their move into the greenhouses this soon.

To make matters worse, I will have a house-full of people staying the weekend for the MSU-Texas A & M game and won't be able to accomplish a thing on Saturday. Woe is me!

All you can do is hope they are wrong, Ken...

Unfortunately I can't take a chance. The plumeria will be fine (I think) but my orchids are going to have to come in. Those plants alone will take a full day or more and I also have to get all the fans/heaters in place. Then I have to remove all the shade cloth and replace it with my solar blankets.

Speaking of which. I think I will leave all the large plumeria that are potted in 5-25 gallon pots in their pots. That would include a handful of monster-sized plants with huge root systems. Those three original, 25+ year old plumeria have 4-6" bases. Though I keep them all trimmed back to 5-6', they would be in that number. My plan is to put them along a wall in my garage and let them go dormant, losing all their leaves and withholding water until spring. I have several LP heaters or could use 1500 W electric heaters in case I have to heat the garage. I would still bag up the smaller plants, without soil and without light, as I have always done. Perhaps leaving the larger plants as-is will give them a quicker rebound when spring arrives and I start watering and putting them back outside. The 12-15 seedlings that I started this year will go on the porch and I will continue to water them. They will get a bit of early morning sun but just bright, indirect light otherwise. The porch will soon have to be winterized and heated, serving as another "greenhouse".

I would say, start packing them, ...we had that wild wacky weather come out from nowhere yesterday..heavy downpour and luckily the hail we got is the smallest ones, just like sand that easily melts as it hits the ground. That sudden low has moved to our east..to the mountains where there were snow forecast..so I bet that is that same low as it continues to head east, that will eventually hit your area, and it will be colder for you.

Don't you just hate how the weather rules our lives?! Best of luck, Ken. I bet it won't stay down in the 40's for long, not like it will later on anyway.

I just don't know whether I should take the chance that my orchids will be harmed/killed even though the temperature will only be in the 40's for a few hours (then warming up to the 70's) and then a repeat the next morning. After those two nights/mornings, the temperature is back up to more normal ranges. I have never brought them in this early but then again, I have never left them out with even brief temperatures that low.

As I said, I am not worried about the plumeria. They should be fine and the low temps. will only speed up their dormancy.

Yeah, a little dicey for the 'chids..pretty much I go roll down and roll up my plastic foil when I see forecasts of low 40's here. But I have a much smaller collection, so it is easier to manage.

I can't cover eight, 75' tall trees with anything tarev. I'm stuck between a rock and a hard place.

Yeah..that is too bad..well..hope for the best. It may not be too bad right away..as long as no hard freeze. That will be your real kiss of death for your plants.

75' tall??????????????????????????

Huge, old oak trees, Hetty.

Hopefully your orchids are not out in the open. If they are under your huge oak trees, the oak trees will keep them protected. Just keep them on the dry side.

All under huge oaks.