Monday, January 3, 2022

Winter, thus far

Those who define seasons by the astronomical calendar—and thus consider winter to be the weeks from December 21st to March 20th—are only 2-weeks into winter. But, if you're on meteorological time—as I am—then winter spans the months of December, January, and February. This means we are 1/3 of the way thru my least favorite season. Hurray!
  
In late November Andrew and I put up the bamboo frames he made to keep some of the backyard succulents dry.

I can lift the plastic on the ends, or sides, for air-circulation as needed.

They offer no added warmth, but a dry agave is much happier in the cold than a wet agave.

So they make me happy too!

Fast forward to Christmas weekend. Since our planned holiday had been cancelled (COVID exposure within my family) Andrew and I decided to get a fancy hotel room downtown; a change of scenery to boost our spirits. We took a walk on Christmas day along the Willamette River, it was grey and cold! 

The high that day was only 42, but it was balmy compared to what lie ahead. Forecasters were talking about historic lows in the bottom teens—some mentioning single digits—and highs below freezing for several days. Seriously plant damaging weather.

Of course when I suggested a walk along the river I had a destination in mind, a couple of planting circles filled with "exotics." It had been awhile (years) since I'd visited them and wanted to see how they were doing.

These plantings always send me thinking of my first few months in Portland, back when I discovered them and realized what cool things I could grow here. Of course I wasn't savvy enough at the time to realize that these plants benefit from a warm microclimate along the river and at the city's edge.

Still, I think these were the first palms I saw in Portland—now I have four planted in my garden and another waiting, to be planted out this spring.

Abutilon blooming and melianthus looking happy...

Back home on Sunday morning, the 26th, there was a dusting of snow in my garden...

Just enough to make even the most die-hard snow-hater (me!) think it looked pretty.


It melted that afternoon.

Monday ended up being the only time my garden stayed below freezing during the day, with a low of 26 that night and eventually warming on Tuesday to 35. Tuesday also brought a fresh bit of snow and provided a nice "now and then" photo moment. December 28th...

October 2nd... I knew I'd been keeping this photo on my phone for some reason.

The snow was heavier this time, a couple of inches at least. This palm—a Trachycarpus wagnerianus—looked quite festive with it's snow cover.


Right after taking this photo I cleared the bamboo frames of their snow-load. Snow can be so heavy and destructive, especially when it's wet or a layer of ice (which we thankfully did not get) falls.

A peek inside...

Down near the patio there are more bamboo frames and an Echium wildpretii under a trashcan.

I didn't do much to protect plants in the ground with this cold-snap, but I did wrap this, my largest echium. It should flower in the spring and if possible I'd like it to stick around for that show.

The containers that were still outside (many are in the basement garden for the winter) were all tucked into the shade pavilion greenhouse where they could stay snow-free and warm thanks to that small electric heater. Of course I worried that we might lose power but thankfully that was not an issue.

Okay not quite all the containers were moved or covered with bamboo frames. This trio, for example, stayed in place. Sometimes you just have to say "que será, será"...

Euphorbia rigida should bounce back and continue to open those blooms.

The agaves dealt with the snow in their usual stoic fashion. Although it's been very wet these last couple of months, and wet combined with cold is not a good thing for them. They'll be sulking soon I'm sure.

Snow on the Poncirus trifoliata branches.

Thank goodness our neighbors to the north weren't going anywhere, the Mahonia x media 'Charity' does lean when covered with the slightest bit of snow.

The yellow blooms provide a nice pop of color though.

Once the snow melted and the temperatures were predicted to stay in the high-20's (or warmer) overnight I took the covers off the echium, it looked happy.

But then again the others around the garden—all 6 of them—don't look too bad either (excuse the photo-bombing Salvia discolor with it's brown leaves)... 

A little worse for wear, but still alive!

Ditto


Thankfully here in Portland the garden-altering cold that was predicted never did come to pass. The lowest temperature in my garden was 25F, and things were only under freezing for around 24 hours. Unfortunately my friends up in Seattle were not so fortunate, they spent multiple days below freezing and saw temperatures in the teens. This is an unusual occurrence as we're usually the colder (snowier, icier) location. 

I'll end this post with a shot of what's become a substantial planting of Aristaloe aristata. along with a few agaves and friends. I did throw a piece of frost cloth over them, it was easy and they stayed a little warmer. One third of winter down... two thirds to go...

All material © 2009-2022 by Loree Bohl for danger garden. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited and just plain rude.

23 comments:

  1. TropicalPDXJanuary 03, 2022

    The big feather palm in the round garden by the river is a Butia odorata x Jubaea chilensis. That's a pretty rare palm for any sort of public planting.

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    1. Lance Wright (https://gardenriots.com/) is responsible for getting a lot of unusual plants into Portland public plantings.

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  2. I'm so happy that those destructive temperatures didn't materialize--and that the rest of the winter will stay equally mild.

    I love all your snow photos. Agaves in the snow, what's better? Especially when it's species that can handle it.

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    1. I am starting to worry about some of my in-ground agaves. It has been so very wet!

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  3. Alas, we are hunkered down at home due to the high rate of the virus here. Family holiday gathering cancelled and our annual NY's brunch cancelled again. Aaargh. Unlike you, I was thrilled to get some snow. Our temps are plunging and my plants need that snowy protection.

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    1. When they were predicting the ultra cold temps I too was hoping for snow, an odd thing for me!

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  4. Nice to hear that someone else considers Winter to be their LEAST FAVORITE season. Here's to Spring!!!

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  5. Oh I wish I could share your optimism as being 1/3 through winter. Alas, April is our time but we can get snow right through into May too. Makes Spring very rushed. The photo of the Trachycarpus reminds me of a giant bird's wings protecting it's young. Very pretty dusted with snow.

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    1. Yes! A giant bird. I knew there was something in that photo but couldn't put my mind on it. Also, I know I am lucky that my winter is short. I used to consider February a possible spring month as well, but the last few years it's brought some of the coldest temps of the season.

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  6. I have to say the palms look very dramatic covered in snow! The plastic-covered bamboo frames are a great addition to your garden winterizing scheme but I'm glad you missed the worst of the forecast lows in your area. I hope you've seen the worst of winter's weather this year and that most of your plants sail through the remainder of the season unscathed.

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    1. Thanks for the wishes Kris, that would be wonderful!!!

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  7. Beautiful photos, as always!
    Re: the bamboo frames - do you anchor them down so the wind doesn't blow them over? Thanks!

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    1. Yes, they are attached (zip ties) to rebar stakes.

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  8. The snow is not so good but it sure is pretty, the photos with the Arctostaphylos especially. Happy the cold was not overly extreme in your area. My sister visited my nephew in Seattle and it was colder there than at her home in Alaska!

    A nice idea to treat yourself to a hotel stay and a chance of scene. Keeps the spirits up a bit. Yet another Covid surge--sad.

    Happy New Year! Best wishes for a mild rest-of-winter.

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  9. It is definitely pretty-but I'm glad it's at your house and not mine.I'm an LA girl for sure! I love your bamboo hoop houses-I caved and bought a little mini greenhouse/coldframe for some of my potted succulents.I'm happy with it and it will fold flat for summer storage.

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    1. The problem is, I'm an LA girl too! Ha, I've just never lived there. I remember talk of how affordable in-state college tuition was in California, there was the briefest talk of my living with my Uncle and his family to gain citizenship. Oh that I'd done that...

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  10. I go by my own calendar. As days start getting longer after winter solstice, I see spring everywhere (my stinky hellebore is bursting with life). I may be slightly delusional, especially since we were blanketed by snow shortly after, but this is how I cope. The snowy skirts of the palm are magnificent and Andrew's contraption so clever. If you manage to avoid an ice storm this year, you'll be golden.

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    1. I think that's a great method, delusional or not. I hope your plants made it through the horrible cold alright.

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  11. When our new little garden became covered in snow, Marty remarked sadly, Guess you have to start over! Nay, nay, these are all hardy down to 15 or so degrees, I brightly reassured him -- but who knows, since they're all still very small in size. The fluffy snow seems fairly harmless -- unlike ice storms! So far, so good. The palms in snow are stunning images!

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    1. It will be interesting to see how your baby plants do. Fingers crossed they'll all be okay. Fluffy snow is something we rarely get here, it's usually the wet stuff that bends and breaks things.

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  12. Here in the colder suburbs of Phoenix I have covered with frost cloth all my non native plants in pots. We froze a couple of days (below 32º for about 3 hours). I am amazed your succulents (especially the Agaves) do as well as they do with more frost for more time!

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