Does it seem warmer to you? Maybe it should, since statistics show that the average temperature in Southwest Florida during February is nearly two degrees warmer than during January. On average, the latest frost of the year occurs between January 21 and January 31, and statistics also show that the
90 percent frost date for Punta Gorda is February 13, which means that during nine
out of ten years that there will not be a frost here after Valentine’s Day eve.

Statistics notwithstanding, when we saw that the weather forecast for Sunday evening predicted temperatures in the low 30s, we draped bedsheets over our tomato plants to ward off possible frost damage to the leaves and fruits of those cold-sensitive plants.