Mid-February 2021 welcomed south Texas with a cold event that we haven't seen since the mid 1980's. Temperatures hit single digits and sustained freeze for days. What is going to happen to the plants as things begin to thaw out? The answer is a mixed bag. We won't know the extent of damage to plants until the plants start to come out of their winter dormancy. Many plants and trees were beginning to bud out as the weather had begun to warm leading up to this snow storm. Some plants will die, some may fare mostly unscathed and some will take time to recover.
If you took precautions and cared for your plants leading up to this big storm, then you did all you could. Don't beat yourself up too bad as there is only so much that can be done to protect the plants in your garden. We will need to wait until the warm from spring causes new growth to appear on the plants to fully recognize what plants will be fine and what will need to be replaced.
If VHS installed your plants and you are wondering what to do this spring, here is some helpful information.
Be Patient- Some plants will begin to put off new growth and some will not right away. This does not mean the plants are dead, they could just be in a deepened state of dormancy. This could last as late as mid-April or even later. It won't do any good to reach out about your plants sooner as we won't know if a plant is dead or not until we know most plants have begun to put off new growth.
Help Us Help You- If you have plants that you suspect have died, make an inventory and plan to send us as much detailed information as you can about the plants. No need to call the office, email your project manager for fastest results.
Be Understanding- The spring is a busy time for us here at VHS. We care about your garden but we will also be busy serving new clients. We will need to work your plant replacement in with our current work schedule
Be Realistic- Freeze damage is not covered in your warranty. Please remember this when reaching out to your project manager so we can quickly process your replacement request. Your replacement cost will need to be determined by your project manager. If you have a handful of plants that need replacement, you may want to consider replacing them yourselves this coming spring. It will be cost prohibitive for VHS to send out a small crew or even a technician for just a couple of small plants.
We here at VHS want to help the best way we can but we are a small business that services hundreds of clients each year and have been doing so for over 20 years now. That can add up to a lot of calls, texts and emails to take in and timely respond to each. If you do reach out and do not hear back within 24 hours, please put in another inquiry to make sure we received the first one.