How your freshly gardened plants will fair in the upcoming weather

AUSTIN (KXAN)  –  Austinites and others in Central Texans will wake up to some pretty cold temperatures Friday morning—some potentially even seeing snow flurries.

The low temperatures sweeping into Central Texas this St. Patricks Day morning are a little later in the season than we might usually see, according to KXAN meteorologists. 

If you recently filled your garden with fresh flora, you may be feeling a little concerned about this aberrant weather. KXAN talked to Senior Horticulturist Julie Marcus from the Wildflower Center about what folks can do and expect.  

“I would take a little extra care of plants that have just been put in the ground,” Marcus said. “Even if they are native plants,” Marcus said.

“Definitely make sure they have a good layer of mulch… or if somebody has a light sheet they want to put over some of those new plantings and if they are still in containers, I would probably bring them in the house,” she said.

Plants in Central Texas have undoubtedly had an unusual first quarter of 2023. Because of a warmer than typical January, many native plants, including bluebonnets, have started to bloom early. 

“This January, of course, it was warm. And so they're like, ‘Whoa!’ and they just keep growing and growing and growing,” Marcus said.

But even though some beloved Texas natives are blooming a little earlier, Marcus does not sound worried about them being affected by this upcoming storm. 

“They are used to those fluctuating weather conditions,” Marcus said. “I have seen bluebonnets spiking encased in ice. Sometimes they'll droop over but then they will pop back up because they are native plants; they are conditioned for that,” she continued.