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How many have tried washing the frost off your pumpkin plants? The trick is to spray them before the sun shines on them. You will see where you did not wash all the frost off later in the day. How heavy a frost it will work on , I am not sure. I tried it once when I had nothing to lose because the leaves were white and you could see where only the part of the leaf died from not getting frost off. that section.
A hard freeze and frost are two different cups of tea.

4/28/2019 6:31:30 AM

Central Illinois

Is it because you're reducing the amount of time the frost is on the plant?

4/28/2019 9:39:50 AM

http://www.madsci.org/posts/archives/1998-02/887039171.Ag.r.html

This might explain some of what goes on. It has its limits. Mist or fine spray is better than heavy wash is better than heavy stream according to different sites. You can't be too early . Also breeze has been mentioned as helping prevent.
If it is so cold that it freezes the plants too bad , it is usually game over.
Hopefully some with more plant knowledge will chime in to the pros and cons.

4/28/2019 11:08:45 AM

Bethlehem CT

That link gives a good explanation of what is occurring. I remember taking a weather class in college and learning about a property that water possesses called "the latent heat of fusion. " As water freezes it gives off heat. Every winter when you hear about damaging frost to the citrus crop they show footage of the plants covered with icicles on the news. That ice is what is actually saving the crop. It sure looks devastating though.

4/28/2019 3:13:37 PM

Central Illinois

If this is what I remember they are constantly applying a spray of water if the air is 31F and the water is 50F then the plant stays at 50F. They dont allow any freezing at all

4/29/2019 9:57:20 AM