This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated.

AURORA. Colo. (KDVR) – Two words that will strike the fear into any Colorado gardener’s heart: cold snap. 

As Colorado prepares for its first fall cold snap, gardeners and landscapers throughout the state are preparing to protect their plants and vegetables from cold temperatures.

When the ambient temperature dips to 32 degrees or colder, you got yourself a cold snap.

“It’s cold enough to freeze water. It freezes water in the leaves of the plant, bursts those cells, and it’s basically like a burst pipe in your house,” said Milo Salisbury, a horticulturalist at Nick’s Gardens.

Take heart as some plants are more frost tolerant than others.

“Snap peas as well as any of your leafy greens for the most part, your lettuces,” said Salisbury.

Flowering annuals and potted plants for the summer can not take the cold. Salisbury says bring them in.

“Bring them in for the night, just because we’re going to get a little more warm weather right after this and so it’s probably going to be cold for the night,” said Salisbury.

Now, what about your tomatoes?

“Harvest your tomatoes right now because they are not going to make it through this,” said Salisbury.

When in doubt, cover them up.

“You might be able to put a frost blanket on them and that might protect them from a little bit of frost,” said Salisbury.

And make sure you put on a coat, too.