Wisconsin Plummets to a Hard Freeze

MADISON, Wis. (CIVIC MEDIA) – The first hard freeze for the entire state of Wisconsin hit on Tuesday night.

The National Weather Service has issued Freeze Warnings for southern counties, as the north has already been below 32 degrees within the past few weeks. Temperatures bottomed out in the teens near Black River Falls.

Besides it being cold, widespread frost was seen on surfaces, which threatened plants.

Here’s a look at freezing thresholds:

• Light freeze: 32° to 29° F
• Moderate freeze: 25° to 28° F
• Severe freeze: 24° F and below

Killing frosts are temperatures below freezing which kill your plants. Most fruiting vegetables like tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, squash, etc. will die without protection from even a light freeze, but most leafy greens thrive in frosty temperatures; for example, kale can survive temperatures down to 10°F.

If you have any vegetation or sensitive plants outside, it’s that time of the year when you have to pay attention to the weather forecasts and bring them inside or cover them up.

As for the pesty pollen, that should ease after this as well.

It takes a moderate freeze of 25° to 28° F that lasts for several hours to kill off the preponderance of allergenic plants and give your immune system a break.

And even the coldest of places don’t promise the same degree of allergy relief in winter that they used to. Climate change is prolonging summer and making winters milder. If you look at climate records from the early 1900s, you can see that winters in cold states are now about 5 degrees warmer than they used to be.

Other research published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences shows that pollen seasons have lengthened by 20 days in the U.S. since 1990 and contain 21% more pollen.

As for the bugs, like mosquitoes…

• Below 50°F: Most mosquitoes become less active and some die. 
• Below 32°F: Most mosquitoes die or enter diapause, a type of hibernation. 
• Hard Freeze: The majority of adult mosquitoes die.

However, some species of mosquitoes have adapted to living in cooler climates and can survive in temperatures as low as 20°F or even 0°F. These mosquitoes have winter hardy eggs that can survive under ice and hatch in the spring when the water temperatures rise.

With the cooler weather here for just a short time this week, it’s expected to strike again around Halloween.

Now is the time to prep your house. Make sure to spray, so spiders don’t make their way inside your house.

The Better Business Bureau also recommends:

• Drain water hoses and store them in a garage or shed.

• Clean your gutters.

• Inspect your roof.

• Test your smoke and carbon dioxide detectors.

• Check your windows and doors for air leakage.

• Organize your garage and store patio furniture and other outdoor items inside.

• Sweep your chimney.

• Reverse your ceiling fans.

• Schedule HVAC maintenance for your heating system and protect your pipes in unheated areas.

You can visit bbb.org for more home maintenance tips. 

Remember to keep safety in mind when using heating in your home.

• Keep portable heaters three feet away from anything flammable.

• Always plug a space heater directly into a wall outlet.

• Do not use an extension cord.

• Be sure to test your smoke and carbon monoxide alarms and replace batteries if needed.