Wednesday night temperatures are forecast to dip near freezing in the higher elevations just west of the Shenandoah Valley and the National Weather Service has issued a Freeze Warning until 8 a.m. Thursday.

Franklin resident, and TV3 Weather Watcher, Dave Ellis says the freezes have hurt his fruit trees before.

"Several years ago the freeze really damaged the flower blooms and from there we didn't have hardly any pears that year," says Ellis.

This year, it's not something Ellis has had to deal with and neither has the Friends Hill Greenhouse in Franklin.

"This is actually the first time this year we have had to cover stuff up. I think last year we probably did it six or eight times," says Jeffrey Conlogue, the owner of Friends Hill Greenhouse.

At the greenhouse, Conlogue takes everything he can inside, but what he can't, he actually just covers up with some thin blankets.

He says that's enough to protect it from a frost, but a freeze would be a different story.

"The frost damages stuff, but if you have a freeze, that's a different animal. You're going to have damage anyway," explains Conlogue.

He adds that bringing stuff in is the best thing you can do, but for fruit trees that are too big, freezing temperatures and frost can mean trouble.

"Fruit trees on a night like tonight, if you're trees are in bloom, then you're probably not going to have very many blooms left, if you have a frost and a freeze. Every bloom equals a piece of fruit," says Conlogue.

Ellis explains he's not too worried Wednesday night because his trees are further along.

"It's past the bloom stage, so the freeze probably won't affect the fruit because now it's covered by the leaves," says Ellis.

Within a month, Ellis plans on being able to pick some peaches.

Conlogue says frost can still occur in the higher elevations through May, so he advises people to watch pay close attention.

The last freeze or frost last year was May 10.

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