The Florida agriculturist. [volume] (DeLand, Fla.) 1878-1911, 1879-02-26
The Late Cold Weather.

The Rev. T. W. Moore, one OF the
largest and most successful fruit
growers in the State, has addressed
the following article to the Florida
Mirror
FRUIT Cove, Fla, Jan. %.
Having travelled over much of the
orange growing portion of Florida,
since the cold spell, l have, in each
section, carefully noted the effects of
the frost upon the citrus family. l
herein give you the results of my OBJ
servations.
In no place have noticed any dis
astrous effect, either upon plants or
fruit In a few instances, where the
plants had been growing vigorously
and had recently made new wood.
the tips of the branches showed evil
dence of frost, and some of them
were killed.
In your city the only plant of the
family that showed much damage
was a young lime, which had been
stimulated to late growth. The lime
I have found the tenderest of all the
family, then following in order, the
citron, lemon, budded orange, and
last, the seeding orange.
My observation, extending through
a term of years, convinces me, that
the orange, if properly managed, is
not easily damaged or killed by frost.
That you: readers may see the ne
cessity of taking the proper precau-
ton against bad effects of frost,
will state the method and cause of
damage done by FROST to living plants
as well as to animals.
| All living, physical beings of which
we know anything, are kept alive by
the circulation, called sap in vegeta-
bles, and blood in animals. These
fluids permeate, the living part Of a
living being. The epirdermis or
outer skin Of Che animal or outer
bark of the plant, takes up these
fluids by absorption, and not by Cir
culation, as theinner organisms, and
hence are not so fully charged with
the circulating fluids. The outer
skins or banks, serve a double pur-
pose. While they are regarded by
psychologists, as dead matter, as the
nails of fingers, or shell of the oyster
they are to certain extent porous,
allowing the escape Of the more
watery or thinner parts of the fluids,
and also serve to protect the vital
parts from too close contact with the
atmosphere, which would prove dis
astrous to the tender and sensitive
organisms within. Now it is an al
most universal law that fluids expand
on freezing. The outer bark OF
plants and outer skin of animals not
being fluids do not expand but rather
contract on freezing. The same is
true to less degree of the vessels
that contain the fluids. This con-
traction of the outer bark or vessels
of fluids in plants, and expansion Of
the fluids within cracks and, when
the freeze is heavy, splits both the
bark and vessels containing the fluids,
thus allowing the air to penetrate
and poison the sap. It is this that
occasions thai burning sensation,
when the hands are frosted. sensa-
ton, similar to that realized. when
the skin is burned off.
From what has been stated it will
be seen that the damage done is in
proportion to the amount of sap con-
tanned in the plant at the time of the
freeze. Nature has provided against
this damage in deciduous plants in
checking an active circulation as the
Winter approaches. In some trees
that do not drop their leaves nature
has found another remedy. In the
pine, cedar, ETC., the resin contained
in the sap not only checks the flow
OF sap and prevents it freezing SC
readily, but flows into the rupturef
occasioned by frost and so acts as a
salve to the injured tissues. The or
ange, not being deciduous and con
tanning but little resin perhaps only
when its oil has become oxidized)
was designed for a tropical OF, semi
tropical plant. Hence, when IL is
subjected to heavy frost the gardner
must make provision where nature
has failed that it may not suffer dam
age. But before passing to this part