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| Freeze Damage to Bougainvillea |
A. It is not just simply a matter of what the low temperature was. Plant losses due to freezing temperatures involves how low the temperature got, the time of year low temperatures occurred and for how long or how many hours. Relatively mild freezing temperatures can cause considerable damage if they occur early in the fall or late in the spring.
Also, 25° F can be much more damaging if it lasts for 1 hour vs. lasting for 15 minutes just before sunrise. On top of this, freezing temperatures accompanied by strong winds will be much more devastating.
You should have seen some new growth coming from the base of the plants by now. If not, you will have to replace them. This winter was hard on lantana and, in some locations, they did freeze out or severely die back.
In the future, you should be able to cut them back to 2 to 3 inches in height and they will come back nicely. Don’t forget to fertilize with a good quality fertilizer that encourages flowering such as a rose fertilizer, tomato fertilizer, fruit tree fertilizer, etc.