Pull containers under trees to protect from freeze/frost?

[Woyote]

Living here in zone 9a, we rarely get temperatures below 30F, and hardly ever get snow (that sticks to the ground for any length of time). I wonder if anyone has had success pulling their containers under trees with thick evergreen canopies to provide protection from frost or freeze?

It snowed here last year and the only thing that was coated with snow in the morning was strawberries, and they didn't even flinch. Antifreeze in their vessels, right?

[ButterflyLady29]

Not under evergreens but I've put mine under a big Sycamore. Right now I've got still blooming Mimulus under my big old Sycamore. I don't know if I would trust it for tender more tropical very precious plants with 100% protection. But if you put the pots under the evergreen then cover them with a sheer curtain or a sheet it would be enough to protect them from frost.

However, the cover won't work to protect against a freeze. Even a short freeze can zap very tender plants. My Pentas didn't survive under cover while the slightly more hardy geraniums and lantana did survive with no damage.

[rainbowgardener]

but central OH is real different from zone 9 AZ. Plants there should need only a little bit of protection.

[HoneyBerry]

I'm in zone 8A, a little cooler than what you have. I used to have some plants in pots and had to pull them indoors during the winter months. It was a hastle but it was worth it because it saved them. I put them on the porch one winter and covered them with a plastic tarp at night. This was riskier than putting them indoors, but I figured that on the porch the filtered daylight was good for them. I felt more in control of the situation when I had the potted plants indoors. It wasn't for very long, so light deprivation didn't seem to bother them, as they perked up just fine when I finally put them back outside.

[ButterflyLady29]

The level of protection needed is directly related to how cold the temperatures get. A hard freeze will still kill tender plants while they would survive a frost with minimal protection. It depends on if the tissues of the plants form ice crystals.