Increasing the duration of freezing of Kharkov winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) demonstrated that severe injury does not occur to plants at a freezing temperature (−6 C) well above the lethal temperature for at least 5 days, but progressively more damage occurs as the temperature approaches the killing point (−20 C). High levels of cold hardiness can be induced rapidly in Kharkov winter wheat if seedlings are grown for 4–6 days at 15 C day/10 C night, prior to being exposed to hardening conditions including diurnal freezing to −2 C. The cold hardiness of Kharkov and Rideau winter wheat seedlings grown from 1-yr-old seed was greater than that from 5-yr-old seed. Cold-acclimated Kharkov winter wheat and Dover winter barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) demonstrated the capacity to reharden after varying periods under dehardening conditions. The time required to reharden and the maximum level of hardiness attained by the plants was dependent on the amount of dehardening. Considerable rehardening was observed even when both dehardening and rehardening were carried out in the dark.