Specialist: Crops could be hurt by freeze

By Staff
Jason Cannon
The freeze that ripped through Franklin County the last two nights might have done a little more than just put a nip in the air.
Extension Specialist Tim Reed said many local peach trees had already begun to bloom, leaving them highly susceptible to cold weather.
"Apples tend to bloom a little later than the peaches so I think we're okay there," Reed said. "The main thing we were worried about were the peaches."
Once peaches have begun to bloom, Reed said, they lose their ability to withstand colder temperatures.
The older the bloom, the more likely it is to have sustained some damage.
"The good news, if there is good news, is that we don't have anyone in the county who produces a high yield of peaches for commercial distribution," he said.
"That's not going to console the homeowners who may have some damaged trees, but it's not a county wide catastrophe."
One thing that may have helped prevent tree damage is ironically one thing that made Monday night and last night seem so cold: the wind.
"A good breeze keeps air moving and it makes it hard for frost to settle," he said.
"The temperature, per say, isn't really what damages the bloom, it's frost and ice."
Soybeans and wheat, two major crops in Franklin County, Reed said, should have been able to make it through the cold snap virtually unscathed.
Reed said it could take several days for any freeze or frost damage to make itself known.