BRRR!

What do I, as a gardener, dread most of all? When the weather forecaster says that the temperatures will drop below freezing. Living as I do in zone 8b it is just too tempting to grow plants that do well in Zone 9 and 10. Further more we live just west of the city, where temperatures are frequently about 5 º colder due to fewer roads and buildings. And we live on the slope of a hill where frost rolls down into a frost pocket. It doesn't deter!

I think we all knew we were in for a cold blast last night but the precipitation was a surprise. The chatter of my gardening friends on Facebook was as though no-one had ever seen snow before. It's pretty, yes, but listening to our pool pump at 4 pm really did have me worried and rightly so. This morning there was solid ice on the birdbath. Or at least one of the 4 that are positioned in different spots around the garden.

A weather event like this is a good time to take a walk around the garden and make a note of different microclimates. All the other birdbaths had ice on them but just a thin layer, easily broken with the tap of my finger. Those areas of the garden don't get quite as cold. One is closer to the house and another, even in a place that gets no sun, is sheltered by a high wall. These are places to plant marginal plants for your zone. I risk some marginal plants in these areas-the rest have to be protected in some way.
Most of the snow had melted by the time I got out there this morning.

The greenhouse, potting shed and garage are packed to to the gills. I added a shelf this year when I came across the 4 supports for the spare window box. They were easy to attach to the wall and a piece of wood, painted makes for a sturdy shelf-and more room for plants. In the greenhouse the sides are ringed with gallon jugs of water. A small heater keeps the temperatures above freezing.

More tender plants go in the potting shed. All the citrus are in there.

Brugmansias, plumerias and various cactus and agaves are in the garage.

And something is out in the cold. It's been a long time since we had to run a car to get the ice off the windscreen. The snow, falling on warm surfaces and then freezing made for an icy sheet.

And a few came into the house. They were the ones that were on the patio near to the doors.

Lots of blankets and blankets covering outdoor plants. Last year I purchased these from Gardeners' Supply using them in the early spring.  I am really happy with them. They fold flat for storage and seem to be quite sturdy. An early planing of peas were covered with one last night. They come on packs of three and you can browse their season extenders here.

The top on this model unzip for flat folding.

I have a multitude of covers, all picked up at garage sales, from packing blankets to the real thing. Most of them were out last night.

One of the things I didn't think about was the two small fish and water lily ponds. Both were iced this morning. I am concerned about the fish in there. I boiled up some water and added hoping the fish would come to life so zi can see if they survived. Later this afternoon I will empty the containers and transfer the fish to the large tank which has a fountain. I hope I won't be starting a war.

Another 2 nights until we are in the clear but at least the sun is shining today. Some damage takes a few days to show up so I will be out checking over the next couple of days and recovering again tonight.

But what are a few frozen plants when so many have last everything they own. I am thinking of all those folks in the fire-stricken areas of California. So sad for the residents, birds, animals and plants. Hopefully the winds will die down and the firefighters will manage to control a further spread.

JUST WHEN YOU THINK IT WILL LAST FOREVER

Just when you think it will last forever summer is over in a flash. Jack Frost pays your garden a visit and takes away with him much of your lingering color.

We have had two freezes in the last two weeks. The first one dipped into the 20s.  It was just for a few hours but what a difference those few hours made. Gone are the tithonia, gomphrena, most of the zinnias. The garden is taking on her winter cloak. A sudden bareness.

Yesterday, in a more sheltered, shady spot by the front entry gate, it was time to deal with the mountain of potted pothos that had grown during the summer, trailing and rooting alongside the wall. After taking a few cuttings, to root in a glass jar, I sat down and began a serious cutback. I was just pointing out to a visitor last week that I never sit on this bench. I was wrong.

It was the perfect place to sit and do the job. I also trimmed the tips of the A. demettiana, which will go inside for the winter. I'm not the one who has to carry this inside and I'm very cognizant of things that could cause eye damage these days.

Then I turned my attention to the sunken garden pulling out the faded zinnias and the masses of gomphrena.

What lies beneath would make a good title for a posting. So many things come to light after removing the summer planting. This ice plant can now enjoy the spotlight.

Billowing mounds of alyssum need to be cut back so that they will once again take on a more compact form.

It isn't easy to cut back flowering plants but I am thinking now of spring. I want my alyssum to look like this one which was cut back to nothing several weeks ago. Although I love the deep purple one I have all shades from purple down to white. It is another of my reliable re-seeders. The bees love it and it perfumes the air with its sweet honey fragrance.

While crouching down removing errant seedlings and weeds I noticed that the blue gilia, Gilia rigidula, is once again in flower. I have never seen this plant in a nursery and I don't know why because though a delicate looking and diminutive plant it is as tough as nails. Several plants on the chalky hillside have gone without water all summer and although not blooming like this one are starting to leaf out again. It seems to seed readily although I have yet to see the seeds. This one is growing by the rock in the center of the sunken garden. The soil is poor and dry and the constant shedding of the surface of the stone makes for a very alkaline soil.

I am certainly going to try to propagate this little beauty.

MORE THAN JUST A FROST

We may have already had a couple of light frosts in our garden, this year, but last night was a real freeze. Today will be a day for removing a lot of damaged plants. Even frost covers couldn't cope with the temperature drop. Every leaf is frozen. Some will recover but many will have succumbed to irreparable cell damage. Already, as the sun warms up the air the leaves and stems are collapsing.

I hope the greenhouse offered a little little protection. I didn't use the heater hoping that the sun warmed bottles and gravel would protect. I have a self watering tray in there and the fabric on the top was frozen. We shall see. Too cold to work outside there now. I'll wait until the temperature warms up a little.

A VISIT FROM OLD JACK

I always pay attention when the weather man says there is going to be a freeze in the hill country but not in the city. We are only 7 miles from downtown, but frequently the coldest spot in the area. So last night I covered and brought in and picked.

I picked all the peppers, squash and tomatoes.

Glad I did.

Some plants, like this Berggarten sage, don't mind the dusting of ice crystals.

But the basil is a different matter. By tonight the leaves on this plant will have turned black.

The bees will no longer want to visit the flowers on this Thai basil plant, which I photographed yesterday afternoon. This weekend I will have my work cut out pulling out all the damaged plants. Winter is finally on the way.

MAKING CHANGES

My husband gave this little Halcyon pot to me, as a gift, some years ago. I may not live every day as it it was my last but I do garden as though I am going to live for ever. What gardener doesn't?

So, today was one of those days. In fact it has been one of those weeks. The slow realization that many of the plants that were so damaged by our incredibly cold temperatures, did not make it.

First came the star jasmine, Trachelospermum jasminoides, which grew on the trellis by the study window. Every leaf was brown. It has been cut back to bare wood. Will it send out new shoots or should I replace it. I'm giving it the benefit of the doubt right now but I may just go ahead and replace it. I also removed all the citrus, which were in pots along this window. I think they are all dead. Time to replace. I simply cannot live without Meyer lemons in my kitchen.

What is really strange is that a similar vine at the front door, and on the NW side of the house, has not one brown leaf. The only difference between this vine and the one at the back of the house is that this has pale yellow flowers and the one at the rear has pure white flowers. I don't think it is Trachelospermum asiaticum but it may be.

Last week I cut back the butterfly iris at the front of the house. Today it was removed along with the rest of the planting in front of the window. The Indian hawthorne, Raphiolepis indica,

was planted along with the iris 8 years ago. When I removed the iris it left gaping holes on either side of the hawthorn. I bit the bullet and decided to have a fresh start.

I am feeling quite liberated. The area doesn't look as bare as I though it would and I am thinking about a complete change in look.

More agaves and grasses. In the meantime I have planted some Mexican feather grasses which I had removed from a planter in the vegetable garden. This week I shall give some thought to the new planting. David and I discussed replacing our home made disappearing water feature with a tall pot. I may be going shopping this week.

GETTING TO GRIPS WITH FROST DAMAGE

There will be no butterfly iris flowering in my garden this year. In place of the normally green stems and leaves is nothing but a brown mass of dead vegetation.

I have been looking at it for 2 weeks wondering what I should do. The answer came this morning when I heard Sheryl McLaughlin on the Sunday morning gardening program advising a lady to cut the foliage back down to about 3" So today's job is just that.

There is a problem though.

In the center is growing a healthy stand of Indian hawthorn, Raphiolepis indica. Over the years, as the girth of the iris has grown, the hawthorn has become thin and lanky on the side. Now I am not sure what to do. Over the next day or two I will have to decide whether to pull out everything and start again with a new planting or try to salvage what I have. If the former I will not be planting the iris again. It grows too quickly demanding removal every few years. I would like to find something which doesn't demand so much attention but will provide a green foundation planting. Nothing springs to mind right now other than pittosporum and Indian hawthorn. Suggestions anyone?