The 2019 Garden, Landscape, and Other Stuff Thread...

[taldesta]

Looking good Taldesta. Big storm moving into the Mid-Atlantic and New England area (US) this weekend. I suspect you will get hit with this one too. We're South of the impact area for snow and ice. Where I am they are predicting about an inch of snow.... I suspect the mountains will get that and we'll get a coating.

It will be a while before you warm up those gas trimmers. But I'm glad you made a choice to deal with the weeds. I'm good with battery trimmers. The latest ones are like 30V (and much more expensive for the time being). I even see 60V stuff now for blowers and such.

Electricity is the way of the future. Of course you have to generate it first. VW is building a factory in my area to build electric cars in the US. They are saying 1000 jobs. (It's a big deal here.) I think the market is expanding but they still need to get the battery thing improved.

Yeah, our forecast is following your storm. It may hit hardest Southern Ontario ... but we are ready for it here as usual - winter prep, always ready.

Great news re VW build!

 

[annr]

We received a minor amount of snow and a strong coating of ice. Temps are between 4–8 deg F.

The salt is not very effective and chopping the ice doesn’t do much either.

All of the desiduous trees lost their leaves months ago, except ONE.

Our neighbor has a tree whose leaves turn brown in the fall and do not fall off the tree until spring—despite 50+ mph winds. At first I thought the tree might be dead, but eventually the leaves fell off replaced by new green ones.

Anyone know what kind of tree keeps its brown leaves in winter?

 

[eisman]

Well it's quit raining for a bit so I got out and have been clearing leaves and deadfall. It's the end of January, so I guess we'll not get any snow this year. Rare to get it past this date, but it has happened. Put out the Mason bee houses; maybe too early, but everything's starting to come up. These are crocus, just starting to come thru.

Daffodils are all coming up, I'll have a couple hundred easy. I think I see tulips too, but it's still pretty early. My Camellias have just started to bloom.

Just a minute or two after I took this pic a hummingbird made his trip to them. I'm seeing more hummers now, and they have no problem telling me to get away from their feeders. I was worried that moving a feeder one under the gazebo by the hot tub was a bad idea, but it worked well; it never froze. The electric heated one has been very popular!

 

[eisman]

I was raking up this afternoon and kept getting buzzed. The birds were hanging out in my Perris, and on closer examination I found out why. The blooms are opening. In January? Crazy early. This years going to be interesting...

 

[taldesta]

We received a minor amount of snow and a strong coating of ice. Temps are between 4–8 deg F.

The salt is not very effective and chopping the ice doesn’t do much either.

All of the desiduous trees lost their leaves months ago, except ONE.

Our neighbor has a tree whose leaves turn brown in the fall and do not fall off the tree until spring—despite 50+ mph winds. At first I thought the tree might be dead, but eventually the leaves fell off replaced by new green ones.

Anyone know what kind of tree keeps its brown leaves in winter?

Hey annr, around -20F here over last two nights, including the super blood wolf moon eclipse - so bright it was ghostly with the long shadows of the trees cast across the snow landscape. Crisp!
Today again the school bus runs are cancelled due to the cold. They worry that the little tomato faces will suffer frostbite with the wind chill ... while they wait for the buses that won't start. Love it. Snow and warmer temps are coming in tonight - it's always one or the other - shovel or slog wood for the fire.
My best guess on the tenacious brown leaves would be oak.

 

[taldesta]

Well it's quit raining for a bit so I got out and have been clearing leaves and deadfall. It's the end of January, so I guess we'll not get any snow this year. Rare to get it past this date, but it has happened. Put out the Mason bee houses; maybe too early, but everything's starting to come up. These are crocus, just starting to come thru.

Daffodils are all coming up, I'll have a couple hundred easy. I think I see tulips too, but it's still pretty early. My Camellias have just started to bloom.

Just a minute or two after I took this pic a hummingbird made his trip to them. I'm seeing more hummers now, and they have no problem telling me to get away from their feeders. I was worried that moving a feeder one under the gazebo by the hot tub was a bad idea, but it worked well; it never froze. The electric heated one has been very popular!

Looking positively tropical, eisman
Last week Dez was in for her canine wellness exam and her vet and I were talking about Busby. She offered to put me in touch with a hummingbird bander she knew. Honestly, I don't want to know his outcome following release - they are fragile creatures that literally fly in the face of and against great odds.
But, it is comforting to know that, should he be blown off course and criss-crosses the continent, there will be a heated feeder awaiting him

 

[annr]

Hey annr, around -20F here over last two nights, including the super blood wolf moon eclipse - so bright it was ghostly with the long shadows of the trees cast across the snow landscape. Crisp!
Today again the school bus runs are cancelled due to the cold. They worry that the little tomato faces will suffer frostbite with the wind chill ... while they wait for the buses that won't start. Love it. Snow and warmer temps are coming in tonight - it's always one or the other - shovel or slog wood for the fire.
My best guess on the tenacious brown leaves would be oak.

We’re in a relative heat wave? The main problems are the residual ice and snow that don’t get properly removed or shoveled at all—quite dangerous! Will be in the 50’s tomorrow and later in the week. Melting!

I was thinking oak too. The tree is located in the backyard a few houses over, so I can’t get a good look. Oddly, this is the only tree out of many ( there is a large wooded hill behind us spanning about one block.) I'm betting you are correct.

 

[annr]

Out the back window, no leaves (normally filled in 100% with leaves):

Out the side window, the alledged oak tree.

 

[22-rimfire]

My best guess on the tenacious brown leaves would be oak.

Yep, Red Oaks hold their leaves until the buds push the leaves off in the spring. The other oaks that I am familiar with loose their leaves in the fall like most decidous trees. Have on in my back yard.

Hummers in January and you aren't in FL or South Texas.... amazing.

We have some daffodils that are budding up. But it has been pretty cold at night the last few nights.

Added: Mid February Daffodil blooms are not uncommon here. Traditionally that is about the end of "winter" here with an occasional cold snap. The warm weather growing season starts around April 1st although we had two frosts after April 1st last year. That was unusual and my garden got a late start.

 

[taldesta]

It's a snowblower, shovel and snowshoe day here ... finally a good, deep base of the white stuff came in overnight. See you on the other side

 

[zzyzzogeton]

For any who have fruit trees, now is the time to think about the application of dormant oil spray. Dormant oil is used to help reduce (it won't completely prevent anything) mites, scale and other insects that overwinter in bark cracks or lay their eggs in bark cracks for overwintering.

Here in central Texas, the time is NOW. Spraying needs to be done before the trees bud out, and with our wacky weather, our fruit trees can bud out any time from late January on. It depends on a combination of when enough chill hours have occurred and the weather warms up long enough. I've had peaches bloom in January when we've had cold Novembers and Decembers. Usually a poor to nonexistent crop since we almost always get freezes to kill the blooms and any immature fruits in February and March.

Some people say they don't use dormant oil unless they see they have a problem. That is too late. If you have a bad enough mite or scale problem that you can see it, you are past the point of needing to treat it. The goal of DO use is to PREVENT the issues from growing large enough to cause issues.

 

[22-rimfire]

Turning much colder here tomorrow with a threat of some snow... it's winter. Noticed that my tulips and later blooming daffodils are popping out of the ground now in my one bed. Hopefully the tulips will survive the cold weather that is predicted.

 

[taldesta]

OK - it's another morning on the snowblower ahead of me here - the sixth run at it, so I thought I should post some of the cheery indoor greenery that has been either over-wintered, grown from seed or rooted from cuttings. And you thought all I did was stack wood, throw logs on the fire and babysit a hummingbird ...

Frigid weather.

This winter I kept inside only two small geraniums potted along with a small verbena as well as the two original coleus plants (cut back) that had made such a huge, vivid red/orange statement on the porch last summer.

Rooting English ivy in the same container of water as cuttings from the coleus plants was successful in producing healthy new growth. It's in the 'auxins' as my gardening guru says! It will be interesting to see if the newly rooted coleus plants develop the same mature colours of the originals, which is what I hope for.

Rootings



Original plant



Thunbergia (black eyed susan) from seed just steadily climbed from its windowsill pot to wrap around the 'owls' that keep the birds from hitting Busby's window. It has actually put up one blossom so far.



Nasturtiums from seed seeking sunshine along with small geranium that puts up little blooms every day - lively against the white landscape.



Chenille cuttings are now blooming - another successful use of English ivy to promote roots.



Happy winter folks

 

[annr]

Talk about a green thumb! Kudos taldesta !

 

[taldesta]

Well, thanks annr ... yet to put a shine on an overcast day ... I must admit that all plans to clear snow went awry. Every one.


Those who are unfamiliar with cold and snow may be offended by the graphic content that follows

OK - shovelling of the porch and the roof raking of the tarp shed and clearing its sides went well. Cleaned off the van and shovelled the snow out a couple of feet for the snowblower to take care of. Looking good. But, even with electric start - even after warming up under a tarp with a propane heater - the snowblower would not start after so many days of frigid temps.

The trailer is way distant and snowbound so I had to load the snowblower into the van. That meant digging out the door to the tarp shed to pull the ramps ... and then to jockey one heck of a heavy piece of equipment that is fighting deep snow all the way and (with hatch door propped with a shovel because it won't stay raised in the cold temps) drag that heavy sucker uphill into the van for transport. Thought I would go on my a$$ a couple of times, but not.

I packed a snow shovel. I knew I could get out because it is basically downhill and then, on the run, look both ways and gun it to make it over the roadplough leavings at the end - then a hasty 90 degree right turn to avoid going into the river. Done.

My fantastic repair guy says four days. OK.

On the way back from town I thought I s h o u l d stop, shovel the roadplough leavings before trying a run back in and up the lane. I didn't.

I almost made it right to the house. Tomorrow I will start my day with the traction bars after a good night's rest.

 

[plumberroy]

I am setting outside beside a fire from a massive elm tree that died. A friend dropped it in my garden spring before last . Health issues kept my from getting it cut up last winter . This is the last of it . I can grow a garden this year. Kind of sad though, the tree was here long before the neighborhood. I have burnt most of it in the garden putting it back into the soil it came from.

 

[eisman]

Well here it is, February, and it decides to snow. Snow? I need to cut the grass. We had two days this past week where the sun actually came out for more than a couple minutes. I got home just in time to take this pic. First night I've seen it light out after work this year.

Everything's coming up, the fruit trees are building blossoms, and the birds are having a field day. Had a red breasted Sapsucker in the plum tree the other day but no camera. Hummingbirds are really getting aggressive, had one try to get into my garage today when I was working there.

 

[eisman]

And then this morning I had this guy under the deck cover:

Probably because his normal food supply looks like this:

Now I know you guys from cold areas won't find this weird, but it's not normal for the Puget Sound in February.

 

[taldesta]

And then this morning I had this guy under the deck cover. Now I know you guys from cold areas won't find this weird, but it's not normal for the Puget Sound in February.

Very weird! but awesome that that tiny bird and friends have some shelter, food - not to mention a heated feeder in inclement weather.

No - the hummingbirds here leave generally a month or more before snow, and weeks before the frost kills all the blossoms - the nectar supply. They are gone around mid September from here.

 

[taldesta]

Turning much colder here tomorrow with a threat of some snow... it's winter. Noticed that my tulips and later blooming daffodils are popping out of the ground now in my one bed. Hopefully the tulips will survive the cold weather that is predicted.

Hope the tender buds made it through the cold. It kills me to think of daffodils in Feb - in a good way It sends me back into the seed and bulb catalogues stacked on my reading table.

While I did manage to get the van up the hill and right to the house on Sat, the snow has been too sloppy with the recent mild temps for it to make the run back down to the road until perhaps today. That's ok, the snowblower should be ready for pickup any time now. We need some good freeze for traction. Weather is so turned around.