<p style="text-indent:0px; line-height:12px;"><span style="font-weight:bold;line-height:130%"> Wilmington, NC</span><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">By Eric Anderson<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">3.22.13</p><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><p><img class="small-cropped-image" src="https://cdn.andnowuknow.com/legacySmallCroppedImages/strawberry-freeze-march-22-2013-cropped.jpg" alt="IMAGES 3-21-2013" />The National Weather Service in Wilmington North Carolina has issued a freeze warning for a large swath of Southeastern North Carolina, putting strawberry growers in the area in frost-prevention mode.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">As North Carolina strawberry crops have just set their blooms, they are vulnerable to frost, which could cause a later start to production, growers in the area told AndNowUKnow. Prevention measures include the use of overhead sprinkler systems to keep the frost at bay.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">The warning will take effect from 11 p.m. Thursday and stretch until Friday at 10 a.m. Temperatures are expected to dip into the mid and upper 20s Friday morning.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">The unseasonably cold subfreezing temperatures are expected to wane in the next few days, and if growers can make it through the icy temperatures, production should remain on schedule to start in April.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">Stay tuned to AndNowUKnow for updates on the freeze.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><a class="btn btn-sm btn-primary col-lg-12" style="white-space: normal;" href="http://www.wect.com/story/21759639/nws-issues-freeze-warning-for-se-nc" target="_new">Freeze Update </a></p><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">
