Is this a good idea? Its getting colder here in So. Cal, in the 40's. I have some tropical fruit trees in containers and was wondering if its safe. I placed plastic bags over my Manila mango and my papaya trees. The bags have a few holes in them for ventilation and I staked the tree to avoid the bag from collapsing down. The pot is not protected though. Should I also insulate the pot? What is the best way, other than Christmas lights, to protect tropical trees from the cold weather while outdoors?

Clear plastic is not a good cold protectant, if exposed to the open sky. Indeed, with some kinds of plastic, the temperature underneath will be lower than outdoor ambient, on a cold night. Something opaque would be better. If it gets cold enough that you need to insulate the pot, then it is likely cold enough that you'll need very substantial protection for the top as well.

We'll be down to 31 F tomorrow night. The bark was still slipping a couple of weeks ago and I grafted and budded several of my trees. Now I'm afraid the cold snap might get them.

Phillip

I thought putting plastic bags over plants would be similar to being in a greenhouse. How would it differ?

What about wrapping bubble wrap around the pot? What would be some other effective methods of protecting containerized trees from the elements other than Christmas lights?

I have some 2year-old sugar apple seedlings in 10 gallon pots. I wrapped the pots with 30gal black, plastic trash bags, each pot get 4 layers. I wrapped them loosely, and hope the air trapped in between will provide some more insulation. I also wrapped the tops with clear plastic like Hilltop did. I hope some will survive, I love these plants, I growed them from seeds .
Henry.

I have some sugar apple seedlings that are about 5 inches tall. They are in self watering containers I made from soda bottles. I just brought them inside since they are small.

How tall are your 2 year old trees? When do you expect them to fruit if they didn't already?

I wasn't sure at what age they fruited. I'll probably do the same and trim my trees when they get taller. I also want a short, branching tree.