Don’t be fooled by the uptick in temperatures from Jan 21 to Jan 22. The entire region is facing a large amount of cold air, starting on Friday Jan 23, dropping temperatures into the single digits over the weekend all the way to Wednesday (Jan 28). This is accompanied by snow and freezing rain, from Friday to Sunday.

The coldest predicted night in the ENTIRE SEASON is from MONDAY (Jan 26) to TUESDAY (Jan 27) 

This is the time when in most areas floating Row-Covers are paramount to protect your strawberry crop. The crowns of strawberries – if well adapted to low temperatures – are usually cold hardy to approximately 10°F. Once your crowns are injured, you will NOT harvest a strawberry crop! Given the latest up-and-downs in temperatures, and weather in the 70s just two weeks ago, I would not bet my money on our plants being well adapted to temperatures even in the teens. The predicted single digit temperatures are always lethal to strawberry plants, no matter which cultivar or how well adapted they are.

For more information please follow this link to the NC State Extension Strawberry Growers Information Portal.

For more information about Field Crops, Commercial Horticulture or Livestock production, contact Broughton Goodson at 252-232-2262 or broughton_goodson@ncsu.edu.