Lost a whole row of succulents after a freak frost last week

I had about 15 echeverias lined up on my porch that I thought were fine since it was only supposed to dip to 32. Woke up at 6am to check on them before work and every single leaf was black and mushy. I tried moving them into my garage with a heat lamp for 3 days but only 2 of them might survive. My neighbor warned me that cold snaps hit harder when there's no cloud cover but I didn't listen. Has anyone else had luck saving frozen succulents or do I just need to start over with new ones?

3 comments

3 Comments

gray_morgan8d ago

oh man that sucks, bad luck with the cloud cover thing. I had a similar thing happen with some jades last winter, the leaves turned to complete mush overnight. just start over honestly, once the tissue is that damaged from freezing it's pretty much done for. the two that might make it are probably the ones where the roots or stem core didn't freeze all the way through, but even then they might slowly rot over the next couple weeks. better to grab some new ones and maybe bring them inside next time if the forecast says anything under 40.

max2238d ago

Ain't it funny how everything from plants to old phones die the same slow way once the damage starts? @gray_morgan

lily_torres318d ago

That paper on plant freeze tolerance I read said the real killer is ice crystals forming inside the cells, which is why mushy leaves mean it's basically over. Once the cell walls rupture from freezing, no amount of heat is gonna undo that damage. Maybe grab some frost cloth for next time and keep them covered when the temp drops below 40?