The weather this week has repeatedly threatened to earn us our zone 7 rating by dropping overnight into the low teens. Lows of 8ºF were predicted earlier this week, but it didn’t happen: it might have been as cold as 13ºF or 15ºF, so this is so far still technically a zone 8 winter. On the other hand, the overnight lows don’t tell the whole story. Daytime temperatures have not been above freezing for days. It was with a real sense of trepidation that I uncovered this morning the most protected of the cold frames, the one with things such as Nerine, Leucocoryne, some Oxalis and other dubiously hardy plants. I only took a quick look, but everything I noticed looks fine. Those North American Fritillaria which are so advanced (about the only thing left for them to do is grow a bit taller, tilt their buds and bloom) also look fine. There is a plant of Ipheion ‘Alberto Castillo’ just about to bloom. As long as it’s sunny, I keep this frame open a crack to avoid too much heat building up. On a day like today, although the official air temperature is still below freezing, the sun is warm on the skin. I also checked another cold frame; this one is out in the open. This frame houses Parma violets and some odds and ends. There is a big Arum korolkowii in this frame (it has not bloomed here yet; the name used is the one under which it was received). The foliage of the Arum is down curved and looks hard. I didn’t open this frame. Daytime temperatures are predicted to be above freezing for the rest of the week, and overnight lows will probably not be below 20º F – that’s more like it for this time of year. Jim McKenney jimmckenney@jimmckenney.com Montgomery County, Maryland, USA, USDA zone 7, where Lachenalia liliflora has started to bloom under the plant lights indoors. My Virtual Maryland Garden http://www.jimmckenney.com/ Webmaster Potomac Valley Chapter, NARGS Editor PVC Bulletin http://www.pvcnargs.org/ Webmaster Potomac Lily Society http://www.potomaclilysociety.org/