CHARLESTON, W.Va. — West Virginians who were ambitious and got flower beds planted and early plants set out in their vegetable garden will need to take precautions to help them survive this week. The National Weather Service in Charleston has issued a freeze warning for much of West Virginia for Monday night and into Tuesday morning.
“This isn’t unusual at all, in fact we’re probably going to see the potential for frost and freeze headlines for the next couple of weeks,” said Meteorologist Simone Lewis at the Charleston Weather Bureau.
The weather service put out the warning for tonight and tomorrow morning. Lewis said it was likely to extend another day or two depending on conditions.
Typically “frost free day” in West Virginia’s lowlands is between April 25th and May 5th. The higher elevations have the freeze potential stretch into mid to late May.
Lewis said the damage to plants takes a while to happen and typically comes in the early morning hours near dawn.
“It does take a couple of hours of ideal conditions including light or calm winds, cold temperatures, and a clear sky for that frost to begin to form,” she explained.
The best protection for tender flowers or crop plans in a garden is a cover of some kind until the sun rises the following day.