Still some cold nights ahead, but things are looking up!

DBoweMD · Post by **DBoweMD** » Apr 13, 2007 8:48 am

Joan,
In Chardon where I work, the parking lots had plowed piles of snow about 6 or 7 feet high, and they have not nearly melted away yet. My yard still has a little snow left where I shoveled.
I was able to check out a very important seedling in my yard that was leafing out a little and it got frosted pretty bad, so I hope the internal unexposed leaves are OK. That one was a winter 2005-6 seedling of Cinnamon Sticks x Plantaginea with red petioles and some white markings on the leaves, one of those random 1 in 10,000 ones to get variegation from non streaked parents. It's still very tiny, has not flowered. The first leaf did not show the white markings this year.
Oh and Florida was fantastic!

newtohosta-no more · Post by **newtohosta-no more** » Apr 14, 2007 8:02 am

Wow, Dave! Still hard to believe how much harder you got hit than we did. But then again, we are just south of the "snow belt". I hope your seedling will recover. I've got several eyes poking out that the leaves are probably going to have to be removed. They appear to be quite limp now after that last frost and snow.
And glad you had a good time in Florida! I need a vacation really, really bad!. I didn't take one last year because of my work situation. The office I work in is very small and our secretary (of 23 yrs.) retired, so we had a new person start mid year. She's doing a fantastic job and she and I get along famously, but I didn't think it was a good time for me to take off that early in her employment. She was still learning the ropes. Maybe this year hubby and I will manage to get away? One can only hope!

thy · Post by **thy** » Apr 14, 2007 6:38 pm

Joan and Dave

Next issue for the travel agency: "Bring your garden with you".. think the tickets would have been sold out this year

Here the frosts only took some shots of a tree peony, curled montana Aureomaginata and didn't even damage the flowers on my japanes cherry tree- The Bride .. so it was nothing to talk about... but yours... darn I wish there were something I could do...............

newtohosta-no more · Post by **newtohosta-no more** » Apr 14, 2007 8:04 pm

I guess all you can do ,Pia, is learn to roll with the punches that Mother Nature gives us. Good thing hostas are tough plants. They may not look as good this year, but they'll spring back in later years.

DBoweMD · Post by **DBoweMD** » Apr 16, 2007 8:37 am

The seedling I mentioned is doing well, and I brought it inside to get a jump start for the summer. It looks better now than when I first examined it.

My Sagae, Liberty and Montana Aureomarginatas in pots were up about 3-4 inches and got frosted but look OK, not full mush. Probably will be a bit ugly. I brought them up to the house now so they can go in and out of the garage when it's really going to be cold.

eastwood2007 · Post by **eastwood2007** » Apr 16, 2007 10:52 am

Pia, darn, I wish there was something you could do, too!

I got lots-o-mush...I need to get out today to get them trimmed up as Spring has hit, I think, and it is supposed to be in the upper 60's and 70's this week. All the plants are going to be so confused!

I want to get them trimmed asap cuz I don't want to risk damaging any new growth coming out.

Question to you all: On the ones that are mostly mush should I just trim them to the ground, or do I need to leave any? If a shoot is damaged on top, but not the bottom, do I cut it all off or just trim it? Not sure how to explain what I see out there....

renaldo75 · Post by **renaldo75** » Apr 16, 2007 11:01 am

Charla - on mine that were mush a couple of years ago, I just cut everything off at the soil level. You'll discover that the new leaves produced are still coming out of the eyes that produced the earlier leaves. And those 1st leaves will look like you took some scissors to the ends. Everyone says that cutting them back to the ground will force the new eyes to develop & that's where the next leaves come from, but I didn't find that to be the case at all. If any dormant eyes were forced by the cutback, they didn't produce leaves until later in the summer. If that happened, it didn't happen on very many. Maybe it would if the eyes had finished producing their flush[es] of leaves, but this early in the season that's not the case.

eastwood2007 · Post by **eastwood2007** » Apr 16, 2007 11:07 am

Thanks, Renaldo. Most of mine are mush to the ground, but quite a few still have green half down from the top to the ground. We'll see what happens! Geewiz....it is painful!

renaldo75 · Post by **renaldo75** » Apr 16, 2007 11:15 am

Yep - been there/done that.....

It got less painful after the 1st 100 or so - or maybe I was just numb.

oldcoot · Post by **oldcoot** » Apr 16, 2007 12:11 pm

Temperature is to drop tonight to low 40's and stay there each night until Sunday. Daytime temps will only be in the 50-60* so not much warming up there. OC got his new Hostas in from Chris this week -end, and he is afraid to set them out in the yard. Can He open thiem up and keep them wet until he can plant, or what does he do. Sure was glad to see the Liliums he sent me, looks like they may just be the only ones OC has this year. Rest of his look BAD. We have had several long hard rains which seem to have picked them up some, but OC thinks that anoher shot of cold air will just finish them off....at least for this year.

PLEASE, keep that cold weather up NAWTH where it belongs. It doesn't belong here in the Sunny South, OC begging

playinmud · Post by **playinmud** » Apr 16, 2007 2:39 pm

OC, its mid-April and this is unusually cold for even the North this time of the year!

We're just finishing up with the Noreaster ...we got 8 inches of rain yesterday (everything is flooded) and now they're calling for another storm on Thursday that will bring snow.

But my tulips haven't even sent up their buds yet, only leaves poking out. The quince bush is full of tight buds. Only thing in bloom are the daffodils. The hostas are all still tight little buds on their crowns.

Hope it warms up for all of us soon!

renaldo75 · Post by **renaldo75** » Apr 16, 2007 11:07 pm

All of the pots got removed from my hostas today before they baked. Beautiful spring day here - sunny, low 70's.
Nite time temps in the 40's the rest of the week. Spring is back. Still lots of questions about trees, etc. - crabapple leaves & buds are all dead, lilac leaves dead - some buds look ok, others not sure.

Some of my hostas were mush but not nearly as many as I expected. Mounding the soil up on the ones that were still not very tall seemed to work pretty well. Unfortunately the soil settled & some of the hostas grew up through it...so some tips are not good. Will just have to wait & see what happens next.

eastwood2007 · Post by **eastwood2007** » Apr 17, 2007 12:02 am

OC, I think 40's is okay for most of your plants unless you have set some tropicals out.

I hope everything turns out okay. When I got my box from Chris I put my hostas in pots. They are already sprouting and I got to put them outside today. I may post some pics tomorrow.

PIM, I know you must be anxious for spring, but I am so very glad your all your hostas are still under ground. I mean, really, really glad!

Renaldo, I am glad you were able to save some with all your efforts. I have a few close to the house that are okay...Stiletto, Lemon Lime, and all my minis are okay. I'll have to try to analyze what if anything I did differently. I spent time today cutting them all off...that is really a drag with all the HVX precautions! What a mess! But it is all looking up from here, right?

renaldo75 · Post by **renaldo75** » Apr 17, 2007 12:13 am

I sure hope so!!

But I have a new disaster in the making that I'm dealing with now. All of my hostas on the west side of the bed under the crab apple tree have been moved as of today. I don't want to go into it now - too tired & more digging to do tomorrow. Maybe in my next lifetime I can look back and laugh at all the crap that's happened to me in this one... Or I could just be a bug that gets stomped on. That'd be quicker.

playinmud · Post by **playinmud** » Apr 17, 2007 9:29 am

Oh Renaldo!

I hope everything turns out okay for you. When the dust settles, and you're finished moving your plants, I hope it will all look wonderful and that you'll be pleased by the work you've done.

And maybe you'll want to vent and tell us what happened to cause this mass transplanting effort.

renaldo75 · Post by **renaldo75** » Apr 17, 2007 9:51 am

In this case 'when the dust settles' doesn't apply.

But 'when the mud dries' does.....

Libby · Post by **Libby** » Apr 18, 2007 10:28 am

Renaldo, as a hosta freeze victim myself, I can't help but wonder about the mud trauma. I'll be watching to read about the incident when you're up to it!

eastwood2007 · Post by **eastwood2007** » Apr 18, 2007 10:55 am

Renaldo, how ya doin' today? Are ya okay?

renaldo75 · Post by **renaldo75** » Apr 18, 2007 11:01 am

Am I ever OK??

Most of my improved soil on the west side of the crab apple garden found new places to be yesterday. Have a little more to move today. Then the real fun begins. I'll take some pics.

Hallson Gardens

Still some cold nights ahead, but things are looking up!

Weatherman is geting ready to hit the south again