The freeze threat in North Bay is causing popular hardware stores to sell out
SANTA ROSA, California. – The North Bay is bracing for a cold snap, with temperatures expected to dip near freezing.
Parts of Marin, Napa and Sonoma counties were under a prime-time freeze warning from the National Weather Service Saturday from midnight to 8 a.m. to protect the four P’s of winter weather safety: people, pets, plants and pipes.
For Jo Little, freezing temperatures are a harsh reality that he is not yet ready for.
“I haven’t even thought about that,” Little said.
The 35-year-old told KTVU he has been homeless since February and has nowhere to go.
Small concerns about his friend who uses a wheelchair and is also outside in the cold.
“I’m going to try to help him and get him warm, make sure he gets a blanket, and go from there,” Little said.
The team at King’s Nursery in Santa Rosa, a family business since 1896, protect their most vulnerable plants when temperatures dip into the 30s by bringing seedlings and potted plants indoors.
“Know your garden. Know your plants,” says King’s self-proclaimed cold weather expert Scott Goodman, who suggests spraying fresh-growth citrus plants with a pine tree extract, such as Wilt Stop, to add an extra layer .
“Double protection,” Goodman said. “The Wilt Stop and frost plates are your first line of defense.”
The team at King’s then covers the plants with frost cloths, a kind of blanket, something you couldn’t find at Bennett Valley Ace Hardware on Friday.
“We sold out within two hours,” said Jesse Luis of Bennett Valley Ace Hardware.
“Every twenty minutes someone comes in and asks, ‘Do you have frost blankets?’ No. We didn’t think it would arrive this early,” said Luis, who added that it could take several days to replenish supplies.
Another popular product, pipe insulation, was in stock Friday as at least one home improvement store buyer embraced the changing weather.
“It was fun because it’s been so hot here lately,” said Brendan Taylor of Santa Rosa, who often works outside as an electrician. “Maybe I have some more clothes on.”
Both the owners of Battaglini Estate Winery and a representative from the Sonoma County Farm Bureau told KTVU they do not expect the freeze to threaten the local wine industry.
The grapes have already been harvested and they do not expect other crops in Sonoma County to be affected.