Basically I'm going overboard with winter protection in zone 9b. Our lowest winter temp (that I can remember) was 26° for a few hours in early morning hours. Typically in the "winter" (December-February) our high is 62°/low 40°. It's really a few rainy days followed by a cold morning freeze that can cause damage or sudden death.
And what else would I do with myself if I couldn't fuss around outside, time in the sunshine is always better than mopping floors & cleaning toilets :).
So, as I posted a week ago - I was setting up winter shop in front of the garage. It dawned on me, what the heck am I doing - I have a mostly empty greenhouse?! Look at the sad state of affairs! This greenhouse probably has a year or two left in it's brittle plastic walls.
After, not really cleaned up so much as filled up! It's difficult to lift big pots over the lip of the bottom door, but I managed to heave the tri-headed Pachypodium lamerei up & inside.
They can make it through mild winter outside, but lose all their leaves.
Giving a little winter protection is a nice jumpstart come spring.
This contraption is better shown from inside the guest bedroom (or to us, always Sophia's room :). Dr has his own ideas of ownership of this room.
It is the wonkiest covering, but it will make clipping up frost fabric a breeze. For the Pachypodium geayi and my favorite fuzzy Pilocereus.
Back outside, bigger pots were drug over to this warm alcove. I can clip frost cloth up if needed, but usually this area is a-o.k.
With the 1" of rain predicted I threw together a PVC frame with a clear tarp to keep newer starter plants on the dry side. Smaller amounts of rain, I won't bother pulling the tarp to cover. Mammilaria and others that detest winter wet got slid under the table.
Close up of bulb Strumaria truncata. An odd little raspberry colored cataphyll supports the leaves. The bloom can be pure white or slightly pink. The bulb needs to be kept completely dry in summer, easy to do here!
And the last pop-up, a 4'x4' box for the in ground Pachypodium lamereis. I hammered rebar into the ground, to thread the pipe onto.
Last year I strung Christmas lights around these to keep it warmer overnight. I don't think I'll bother this year, but who knows what I'll do in a month?
Next up is attaching panels to the shade house. Protection for the orchids mostly. Honestly, this is where I should've started. The slope feels colder than the other areas. Yes, please mock me for saying it's cold here - I deserve it!
The front remains a work in progress. I did get another yard of soil and a ton of rocks delivered. I'm tempted to get one more yard of soil.
I just need that tree down now. And realistically I should wait on planting much of this until late February. Patience and I have no relationship. Drat!
Will be visiting Portland briefly, to see parents, in-laws, cousins, etc. Every day I'm on "aloe watch" for buds, exciting! I guess this Gasteraloe "Thais" doesn't quite count, but it is cheery nonetheless.
Will you be cooking the big dinner, or do you go to friends/relatives? Does anyone go to a restaurant?
With all the succulents and cacti you've invested in, I can understand you being cautious about winter's colder temperatures, even if I don't share your pain. My area is classified as 11a. I vaguely remember morning frosts now and again when we lived in Santa Monica and, later, Redondo Beach, but I can't remember temperatures anywhere near freezing in my current location. Still, I consider our temperatures "cold" (even now when it's sunny and 58F) so I offer no criticism for your outlook. When I see people walking about in shorts without a jacket, I know they're not native to this area ;)
ReplyDelete11a- you truly do live in a paradise! It was 58° here today too, and yes it felt cold to me. I'm quite sure I'm overreacting, but I don't mind. My son has yet to switch from shorts to pants this year, haha.
DeleteWell, it seems like you have a great system going there. I love all your rock work...it really complements all your great plants! So true: "Time in the sunshine is always better than mopping floors & cleaning toilets." Amen!
ReplyDeleteWhen it doesn't get cold, of course 40 is bitterly cold. Similar temps here. If the high is going to be something like 62, everyone breaks out their parkas. No mocking.
ReplyDeleteYou keep busy and do a thorough job and I can picture you cuddling up to your "fuzzy Pilocereus."
ReplyDeleteI think cold is all relative to the most tender plants that we each have in our gardens. For me, that would be anything colder than 10F. But that is nothing compared to where I lived in WI where it would often drop down to -20 to -40F.
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