It appears local farmers were spared from the freeze that threatened to decimate the crops of beans, corn and squash, which are just days away from harvest, said Charles LaPradd, Miami-Dade County's agricultural manager. 

"When you get them like this -- there's a field across the street that's bad. This field is not because the cold came in in pockets. It got cold, then warmed back up, then got cold again. It's just really localized," LaPradd said.

Farmers spent all night watering their crops to keep them warm as the temperatures flirted with freezing. Growers said most of their plants were hardy enough to withstand the chilling temps.  

"If they'd a been younger at the time, it probably would have killed them or hurt them so bad they never would have made anything," said Jody Johnson, co-owner of 5 Brothers Growers.

Workers are picking the beans out of his fields Wednesday, slightly sooner than planned. The plants themselves only sustained minor damage. Dark green, wilting leaves are a sign the cold has taken a toll on a plant, and patches of dark green can be seen across many of the fields in extreme western areas of the county. 

"The growing season this year has probably been the most magnificent growing season I've ever seen," said Robert Moehling, owner of Robert is Here, a long-established produce market and farm in Homestead. 

Moehling said mild to warm temperatures so far this season have been good for local farmers, almost too good. He said supply of produce right now outweighs demand. 

"There's enough damage that some people might have gotten hurt, and the ones that didn't get hurt, they will thrive a little better because prices will come up," Moehling said. 

It will be a couple days before we know the cold, hard truth about the effect of this winter blast, but agricultural officials don't expect consumers will be chilled by prices at the grocery store. 

"I don't know that there's going to be such a disruption that it's going to be tremendously affected," LaPradd said.

Broward issues cold weather advisory

The threat of cold weather is not over. On Wednesday, Broward County issued another cold weather advisory for 6:30 p.m. Wednesday to 7 a.m. Thursday, citing the National Weather Service's prediction of low temperatures, including wind chill, in the mid-40s.

Homeless people can go to one of three locations before 6:30 p.m. Wednesday for transportation or access to cold night shelters. They are Pompano Beach City Hall at 100 W. Atlantic Blvd., on the southeast corner; the Salvation Army at 1445 W. Broward Blvd. in Fort Lauderdale; and the Broward Outreach Center at 2056 Scott St. in Hollywood.