SANTA ROSA, Calif. – North Bay is bracing for a cold snap with temperatures expected to drop near the freezing mark.
Parts of Marin, Napa and Sonoma counties are under a freeze warning from the National Weather Service on Saturday from midnight to 8 a.m., the prime time to protect the four Cs of winter weather safety: people, pets, plants and pipes.
For Joe Little, freezing temperatures are a harsh reality he’s not prepared to face.
“I haven’t thought about that yet,” Little said.
The 35-year-old told KTVU he has been homeless since February and has nowhere to go.
He doesn’t worry much about his friend who uses a wheelchair and is also out in the cold.
“I’m going to try to help him and keep him warm, make sure he has a blanket, and then go from there,” Little said.
The team at King’s Nursery in Santa Rosa, family-owned since 1896, protects their most vulnerable plants when temperatures dip into the 30s, by bringing seedlings and potted plants indoors.
“Know your garden. Know your plants,” said Scott Goodman, a cold-weather care expert described by King, who suggests spraying citrus plants that have new growth with pine tree extract, such as Welt Stop, to add an extra layer.
“Double protection,” Goodman said. “Wilting leaves and frost are your first line of defense.”
The King’s team then covers the plants with frost sheets, a kind of blanket, something you can’t find at Bennett Valley Ace Hardware on Friday.
“Within two hours, we sold out,” said Jesse Lewis of Bennett Valley Ace Hardware.
“Every twenty minutes someone comes [asking] “Do you guys have frost blankets?” “No, we didn’t think it would arrive this early,” Lewis said, adding that it could take several days to get stock back.
Another hot commodity, pipe insulation, was in stock Friday, while at least one hardware store shopper took in the changing weather.
“It’s been a welcoming atmosphere because it’s been pretty hot here lately,” said Brendan Taylor of Santa Rosa, who often works outdoors as an electrician. “I might have put on more clothes.”
Both the owners of Battaglini Estate Winery and a representative from the Sonoma County Farm Bureau told KTVU they don’t expect the freeze to threaten the local wine industry.
The grapes have already been harvested, and they don’t expect any other crops in Sonoma County to be affected.
