Frost Covers for Plants

$262.98

FREE SHIPPING

Our Frost Covers for Plants is a geotextile fabric that is made of 2.5 ounce spunbound fabric with a built in UV inhibitor. This fabric protects the plants from cold weather and frost. This product allow air and water to flow through the fabric. All seams are sewn, not glued, for a higher quality performance.

The Frost Covers for Plants keeps the temperatures higher below the fabric than above it. This cover helps to lengthen the flowering and harvest time. Available in multiple roll size options.

Product Specifics

  • Material:  Polypropylene
  • Size: Various
  • Free Shipping
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  • Volume Pricing Available - orders $6,500+
  • Questions? Call (800) 520-7731

Frost Protection Fabrics

  • Resists UV degradation
  • Allows air, water, and nutrients to pass through the fabric
  • Keeps air below fabric warmer than air outside of it

 Specification Sheet Download

Shipping

  • Ships for Free (standard ground, see map)
  • Expedited shipping only available on orders over $2,000 
         Call: (800) 520-7731 for pricing and ship times

Shipping estimates shown on the map pertain to this specific product only. Frost Protectoin Fabric orders typically ship same day if the order is placed before 12:00 noon CST. Transit times displayed in the map are listed in business days, and are approximate. Transit times are subject to stock levels at regional warehouses.  The day that the order is shipped is not counted as a transit day.

Covering Plants with Frost Covers: An Overview

Most gardeners turn to frost covers to protect their flowers and vegetables from frost, damage caused by cold weather, and to keep pests from showing up in their gardens.

Because this cloth is very lightweight, it can be directly laid down on top of your crops or placed above using wire or PVC hoops. You can easily create a low tunnel with frost cloth to give young seedlings a good start in the spring or to extend the fall season. Please read on to learn about frost cloth and how to use it in your gardens.

Frost cloth in garden

Frost Blanket in Garden

About Frost Cloth

Frost cloths or covers are known by other names including frost blankets, row covers, and garden fleece. These lightweight cloths are made from spun bonded polypropylene fabric. Gardeners are always on the lookout for better ways to care for their gardens and grow stronger, healthier plants. A gauzy fabric is a chosen favorite among gardeners to prevent frost from attacking their plants and destroying their delicate tissue. It's excellent for sheltering plants from serious conditions like high winds, heavy rain, and hail. This cloth will prevent less damage caused by insects and wildlife such as rabbits, squirrels, and deer.

For many years, people used old bed sheets as insulation but were not able to provide enough light for their plants so these makeshift covers were removed more often. Then frost cloth came on the scene designed specifically for use in gardens. Read on to learn more about frost covers and the different kinds and weights to help you find what will work best for you and your plants over both short and long periods of time.

The Different Kinds Of Frost Covers

Most frost cloths or covers come in three kinds - lightweight, medium weight, and heavyweight. Just be sure to get what works best for you. We'd strongly suggest choosing lightweight as it's the most flexible. Read on to find out which kind is the right choice for you.

Lightweight - Lightweight frost covers are great for all kinds of gardening needs. It can be used in the spring and fall for protection from cold and in the summer to prevent insects from moving in. This extremely lightweight fabric offers great light by allowing 85 to 90% of light to penetrate through. It can be left in the garden for as long as you wish. Lightweight fabric is perfect for sensitive spring seedlings like tomatoes, melons, and peppers. These cloth covers trap in heat and create a microclimate around plants to encourage them to grow strong and healthy over the growing season.

Medium-weight – The medium-weight frost covers provide several levels of protection so they can be used in the spring and fall when light to heavy frost is predicted. Medium-weight cloth only allows 70% of sunlight to pass through. Because this is not enough light for plants to grow and flourish, it should be used only for a short time during frost and freeze conditions. This fabric is good for mid to late-autumn conditions to protect cold-hardy plants like carrots, spinach, scallions, and kale. By this time of year, plant growth has slowed down significantly so the reduction of light will not affect the plants.

Heavyweight – This is the most durable of the cloth fabric materials offering freeze protection to vegetables. As it only allows in 50% of light, it's better to use it as a temporary frost or freeze protection during the spring or during late fall and is also good for winter protection.

Frosted Cabbage

Cabbage with Frost

The Best Ways For Using Fabric Covers

There are two ways to place frost covers in garden beds. The first is placing the fabric covers on top of the plants. The other is to float the fabric on hoops over the garden. Many gardeners prefer to float the lightweight fabric on hoops because laying them directly on the plants can lead to damage if there is a serious frost or hard freeze predicted. Also, by laying the fabric directly on the plants during a cold snap, the fabric can freeze on the plants. In the long run, you are better off placing the fabric on hoops especially if the forecast is calling for a hard frost.

Frost Protection Using Fabric Covers

Being a gardener in the spring when temperatures are still unpredictable in colder climates can be a challenge. You have to keep an eye out for negative weather forecasts to ensure you cover your garden beds before something hits. Having frost covers will help you protect your garden plants while waiting for frosts and freezes to pass. The advantage of lightweight fabric, you can leave it on for a longer period of time than medium or heavyweight fabrics. The problem with medium and heavyweight fabrics, you will not get a decent amount of light passing through while waiting out colder temperatures for days and even weeks. The lightweight fabric is good for needed light and can be removed and stored away once the threat is gone.

Frost Blankets on Plants

Frost Covering on Plants

Frost Covers For Controlling Pests

Using lightweight fabric over vegetables like potatoes, cucumbers, squash, and cabbage will prevent pests from getting in and harming your plants. Used along with crop rotation, this fabric is perfect for stopping pests like Colorado potato beetles, cabbage worms, and cucumber beetles. Directly after planting, make sure you tack down, bury, or weight down the edges of the fabric to prevent pests from getting under the edges. Lightweight fabric will allow for plenty of air and water to pass through as well as 85% to 90% of light transmission.

Keep in mind, there are vegetables like squash and cucumbers that must be pollinated in order to produce crops, therefore, do not overlook pollination. When the plants begin to flower, you have to remove the fabric. On the other hand, if you are growing certain vegetables like cabbage and potatoes, you can leave the fabric in place until harvest time.

Delay Plants From Bolting

Bolting means when the flowers of plants go to seed too early. There are several ways you can slow down or even prevent the process.

In late spring when the days are longer, plants like spinach and lettuce will start to bold. In turn, the flavor and quality of your crop will be less. To delay this process, you can use frost cloth by creating a low tunnel with wire hoops and the length of a row cover. This will block a good percentage of light to slow down bolting for days and even weeks. You can also use frost fabric to establish consecutive crops or for Fall planting.

During early to mid-summer, the weather will be hot and dry making it difficult for seeds to germinate. Blocking off sunlight after planting will help the soil hold moisture while lowering the temperature below the cover. Once the seeds have sprouted, remove the covers.

Plants with ice

Plants in Cold Weather