Keeping warm as the temperatures drop

AUSTIN (KXAN) - Highs in the 80s make it easy to forget it's December. But the turn of the weather Monday and Tuesday is a quick reminder.

Accordingly, people are preparing for the colder weather.

Already, it  looked like Christmas at The Great Outdoors Garden Center on South Congress Avenue. But overnight Sunday, it was beginning to feel a lot like Christmas, too.

In anticipation of freezing temperatures and their effects on plants, they've got ways to keep you covered.

"One thing we recommend is a product called insulate. It's a woven fabric designed to keep the plant about six- to eight degrees warmer than the air outside," said manager Merrideth Jiles.

And, 'tis the season for another bright idea:

"The good old fashioned Christmas lights -- not the new LED lights, but just the cheap ones -- will put out a little bit of heat in lots of places," said Jiles. "So, you just wrap them all around the plant, plug it in, and it's just going to add maybe three- or four degrees, which can be really crucial here in Austin."

Jiles said you can throw a sheet over your plants, and that does the trick. He warns, though, do no use anything plastic. He says that can make matter worse.

Plants aren't the only ones wanting to stay warm.

Cary Ard owns the online business, AustinFirewood.com. He and his workers spent Sunday at one of the company's wood yards hauling off truckloads of firewood to dozens of homes.

"The orders have been coming in because everyone knows the cold weather's coming in, and so everyone wants to get ready and get their fireplaces going," Ard said

The cool-off means a big pay-off.

"Cold weather definitely makes it a good hit, and we get a spike in business. And that's how we're able to go," Ard said.