Did everyone cover what they needed to for some frost?

[Chris_W]

We covered everything that was up a somewhat, but lots didn't get covered that I'd like to in the display garden, so things there might not look that great. I think my biggest loses will be the lilium since they won't come back this year after a hard freeze, but the hostas look to be fine this time around. Montana Aureomarginata is up the most, but we have 3 areas of them, all covered, so there should be enough to choose from for the early orders. They are calling for frost tonight, but the wind is gusting to 25 mph, supposed to blow all night, so I really doubt that any frost will settle.

Tomorrow night, though, they are saying 20s, so hopefully you are getting blankets, sheets, boxes, and anything else together for tomorrow if you are going to get that cold too. This is probably just the beginning since we still have 2 months to go before we are out of danger. I'm ordering another roll of frost blankets tomorrow because as more hostas come up we'll have even more to cover

Good luck everyone!

Chris

[kaylyred]

You're scaring me, Chris. So far we haven't had any frost/freeze warnings in Wisconsin. I've got my fingers crossed. Seems almost inevitable, but I can hope.

Only a few of mine are beginning to unfurl right now, which is probably thanks to my eastern exposure which tends to keep things on the cooler side here in the spring, despite the lack of leaves on the trees. (My daffodils, for instance, always bloom about a week later than my neighbor's down the road, who has them in an open southern exposure.) Still, I've got 'Chain Lightning' unfurling, and 'Twilight' just starting to open up. 'Sagae' has tall pips up, but not unfurling yet. 'Red Dragon' is starting to open up, too. Everything's coming up wicked fast. The hellebores (just plain ol' hellebores, nothing fancy) are blooming their heads off.

I was thinking of hitting GoodWill and seeing if I could score some cheap sheets. Last year's actually blew away. We had calm and a hard frost, followed by a low pressure system moving in and the winds picking up, and when I got up in the morning the hostas were fine but the sheets were long gone, despite the rocks I held them down with.

[thy]

Sorry to hear you had a hard frost, things are just up way to early in your neck of the World.

No hostas here, no lillies only daylillies and peonies are started to grow for real and daylillies can handle a light frost.. have to find blankets for the treepeonies.

Flying blankets Mine only have moved around inside the garden.

Hope you will all stay free for the frost
Pia

[viktoria]

Fortunately the hostas are not yet up here. Some trees and shrubs, however, have started leafing out, and that is where I expect the most damage if tonight's forecast of 18 F turns out to be accurate.

Viktoria

[Chris_W]

Wow, Viktoria, 18 degrees? Sure glad your plants aren't up early! We got lucky last night because the wind never stopped blowing and although it got to 32 there was no actual frost. Tonight should be different, though, as they are saying it should be freezing before midnight and stay that way. Hopefully we'll still have a light breeze since we are up on a hill.

[HostaDesigner]

I've had success with using the sprinkler system if the temps are only low 30s or upper 20s. I set it to spray for a couple minutes, every 20 minutes, between 1:00am and sunrise. I figured the water is at least 55 degrees from the ground and would take longer than 20 minutes to freeze again once sprayed. Compared to the air temperature, it's like a shot of warm water. However, If the air temps are into the mid 20s, then it's a risk to the sprinkler system.

[Tigger]

Way too much up, and too much to cover, here. Predictions for 29°F tonight. Of course we're still 4 weeks away from anything close to an "official" last frost date for our region, but I'm not expecting a freeze.

I may make another post about this, but I was stunned to look through iPhoto from last year, and realize that the pics I took last Thursday (first day of spring) are a few days more advanced than the pics I took on April 12 last year! The jeffersonia diphylla bloomed and shattered this weekend, when they were blooming on April 22 last year.

[ogrefcf]

Lowest low forecasted next week is 37. So I hopefully, I avoid the frost. Good luck everyone else, I hope no one loses any plants.

[kaylyred]

Everything's at least a month ahead this year for us too, Tigger. I have actually never seen my daffodils blooming in March, and they're almost finished already. The flowering crab apple is in buds and will bloom very soon. Magnolias and forsythias are in full bloom around here. My delphiniums are up to about a foot high already. Hostas are springing up more and more by the day. Even though it's chilly today (40s), I can tell they're up more than yesterday.

I suppose this makes up for spring not seeming to come at all last year. Gotta admit, though, I'd rather have spring arrive on its normal schedule without the freakishly warm weather.

[redcrx]

I'm putting what I can back into my garage. And I turned on the sprinkler system.

[gesila9]

We used every pot, bucket, and cardboard box and finally resorted to getting sheets from Goodwill to get everything covered up. Moved some of the plant markers to make some tents around the tender leaves. I'm going to be sewing sheets together in the shape of the beds to make it easier to cover things up in the future.

My living room is full of plants!

[HostaDesigner]

Hope everyone had good luck. We never dropped below 36º here. Whew. 4 miles away was still under a freeze warning this morning.

[Chris_W]

We got to 30 last night - but the wind never stopped blowing out of the east/southeast so it felt warmer because of it. As long as the wind blows across the extra warm ground we should have been okay. But down the hill? Things don't look bad. Bleeding hearts are wilted but don't appear to be complete mush so they will recover Lily stalks are frosted, but don't appear to be completely killed down either. I'll just need to see after it warms up, but this wasn't as bad as it could have been Most of the hostas are covered, but a couple spots blew off in the wind, so we'll see. I was worried last night and had trouble sleeping, but feel better now

[Tigger]

It was just over 32 when I looked at about 7:30, so I think we're safe. All the plants in pots went back into the shed or into the garage (many in the back of the station wagon--any flat surface!). It looks like upper 30s/low 40s for the next few nights.

Chris, I'm glad your stock didn't seem to suffer too badly. An odd kind of farming you practice, huh?

[kaylyred]

A couple years ago I woke up to find my hellebores and bleeding hearts completely blanketed in frost--they sparked!--and I assumed they were goners for the season. But to my surprise, the minute it warmed up they sprung back to life and you would've never known the frost got them.

We're supposed to have some patchy frost Wednesday night with a low of 32. So far, though, I think most of my hostas can be covered with large containers or boxes--none of them are fully unfurled yet. Most of them are in pips, which I won't worry about.

Question: I've heard that pips usually don't freeze or get frost damage, but 'Sagae' is up pretty far with the pips ranging from 3-4" tall (a guess, but a close one, I think). Think I should cover it just to be safe? That's a big 'un that'll probably require a blanket.

[thy]

Karen, they can get damaged tips if the frost is hard enough.

My hostas have surwived with no damage down to minus 2 C ... just a bit od frost - can't figure it out in F. why don't you change to the 100 system It is so easy: 100 is boiling and 0 is the frost limit minus is frost

Then talking about the minus 2 C I have never thought of the wind

The light weight blankets are good, they can touch the leaves without transporting the frost to the plant. Plastic may not tuch the leaves at all.

Hope none of you have severe damage.

Great pics and stotrries by the way

[Bob Scott]

Here's a fast ans simple conversion chart

http://www.csgnetwork.com/tempconvjava.html

We tried to go to the metric system some yrs ago but to many industries fought it. To many changes in machinery, tools, etc to make.
My dad was a tool and die maker at the time. All the metric should have gone to the younger fellas in the shop but they gave it ti the older guys. That meant dad had to purchase a TON of new tools to do the work and that was just a few yrs before he retired. Needless to say he was not a fan of metric.

[thy]

LOL Thanks
I have used the one on the HL often and know 32 F is 0C and 44 or 42 is the temp hostas need to go dormant and the 70' are nice but from mid 80' it is to hot.

Why did you have to change tools ect ?
Heere timber and plumming things have been in inches until one or 2 years ago, now it is in the metrics, nothing have changed exept for the numbers it is called. A thingy for a waterhose was called one inch and now the same thing is sold as 25 millimeter = 2.5 centimeter = one inch
Way to many things I do not understand not to mention a cup.. what size of cup and do it have to be bumped or is airholes okay

Sorry, back to topic, saw the first tiny red tip of a lilly today

[redcrx]

Brought mine in again tonight. I did get a lot of damage from the last frost.

[chohio]

We did get a freeze here. I only covered a few Hosta that were actually unfurled, like Liberty that was up pretty high, with upside down pots. That's as much as I was doing. Everything looks decent here so far after the freeze. The majority are showing eyes, although I still have 5 or showing nothing yet. So things are moving along, earlier than I prefer but that's gardening for you.
Cher