Going below freezing tonight...can anyone tell me how to protect flowers in a window box?

[Sugarcoated]

It's heavy and sort of high up the wall so I can't take it down and bring it inside and the flowers are spilling over the side, lobelia, vinca. I googled and not getting much on how to handle window boxes.

[Baitball Blogger]

1. Easy Peasy.

Just get an old bed sheet and cover them. Don't use plastic. Actually, we don't use plastic in Florida because the situation reverses in during the day and the plants get overheated during the day.

[Viva_La_Revolution]

2. you can toss a sheet over it

that might help with a light frost. or you can replant with something cold hardy that you can enjoy a little longer. I like pansies.

[dixiegrrrrl]

3. You know those waffle weave blankets?

they are light but they do the trick in a light freeze.
Depending on where you live, the actual freeze time might be only a few hours (typical of southern cold snaps).

[Sugarcoated]

4. Thank you so much for your quick responses!

[HopeHoops]

5. Sheet, pillow case, plastic sheeting (or even a garbage bag), cheese cloth, etc.

Most things aren't killed by cold, it's the frost. Vincas are particularly susceptible to even the lightest frost. We had just enough to put crystals on the windshields last night and I can tell just by looking at the vincas. The blossoms are still fine, but the leaves went yellow. The peppers tend to get hit pretty hard too, but it wasn't quite enough frost to do them in. We harvested the last of the basil yesterday. It turns wilts and turns brown if you even SAY the word "frost" around them.

Another trick is a light misting with a hose before the sun hits them. It won't work for the vincas, but for most plants what actually kills the leaves is the sunlight on the frost. Moistening them down melts off the frost so they are simply wet when the sun hits. We've got plants in window boxes and pots all over the place (too many to cover), so we sort of let things go about this time of year. Actually, it's rather late to still have vegetables setting new fruits, but they are. And some of the annuals never noticed last "winter" - they bloomed continuously and throughout THIS season. In NH, I had a single yellow pansy plant that just refused to die for YEARS! When the snow melted off, it was still there, blossoms and all. That was weird.