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How To Use Bubble Wrap To Protect Your Garden From Frost
By TIFFANY SELVEY
When a surprise frost is headed your way, you may start scrambling for something to use to protect your plants from damage, and bubble wrap is one thing that can do the trick. Its air-filled pockets can give your plants an extra layer of protection against cold temperatures, but you have to be careful that the plastic doesn’t touch the plant.
Moisture can get trapped beneath a layer of plastic, and when that moisture freezes, it can damage tender plant leaves. When you use bubble wrap to protect your plants, make sure you leave plenty of room around the plant, so it does not get damaged, and remove the plastic as soon as the possibility of frost has passed.
To protect container plants from roots to tips, wrap the entire outside of the container in bubble wrap, starting at the base, and secure the sheeting with duct tape. Prevent the plastic from touching tender green leaves, using tomato cages, wooden stakes, or extra PVC pipe as a frame around which you can safely wind bubble wrap.
For in-ground plants, use the heat slowly released by the soil to create a mini greenhouse, once again building a frame and making sure the bubble wrap doesn’t touch any green parts. To protect a few small plants, you can cut the bottoms off of empty milk jugs or two-liter bottles and place them securely over each plant, pushing them slightly into the soil and covering them with duct-tape secured bubble wrap.