MANATEE COUNTY - With Thursday night's cold weather, a Manatee County fruit farm is trying out some new technology to protect their investment.

When it comes to covering your plants from freezing temperatures, it can be a real hassle.  But now you can forget about the blankets.

"We have quite a big investment in our plants here in our garden area and our pavilion area."  As the sun gets ready to set, the temperatures start to drop as well.  And at Mixon Fruit Farms, workers are preparing for the cold night ahead.

They're using a machine called Jack Frost that whips up a protective foam for protection.  "Basically just spray it on and it stays on for 12 hours, and then it dissipates.  The next day when the temperature gets above 45, it just dissipates so you don't have to wash it off or anything.  It is an organic material and hopefully it will be less labor when we learn how to do it properly," says farm owner Dean Mixon.

Workers tested the Jack Frost system last week when the temperatures dropped below freezing.  Some flowers, like roses, stayed in bloom.  "Just last week, we done these.  We would not have these blooms if we did not foam them," says Sam Mixon.

And the other plants that weren't covered?  Well, some didn't make it.  "The foam...you have to build up from the bottom and it won't hang.  And that is why the vines are dying...are burnt," says Sam.

The plant and flower pavilion at Mixon Fruit Farms has been open for one year now, and keeping the quarter of a million dollars in plants beautiful is a must.  "We do quite a bit of events here, and trying to keep them healthy."  Healthy for the weddings planned here later in the month.

If you're wondering about the orange groves, Mixon says there's no need.  He says he isn't worried about the temperatures affecting his crop...at least for tonight.  A little cold weather actually helps.  He says it keeps the citrus colorful and sweetens it up.