Surprising survivors

Surprising survivors
Rick Buell via pbs (Sat, 06 May 2017 13:07:41 PDT)

'tis the nature of global warming, methinks.

I'm no expert, but with this trend of weather changing on a global scale, not only do we tend toward lower lows, but higher highs too, and those wide variations can be experienced in-between, apparently.

Here on coastal CT, we're on the warmer edge of zone 6b, but last year, there were 2 consecutive nights of -10°F. There were lots of broken pipes, to say the least. This past winter, we barely brushed +5°F, a cinch.

The attached link will show you a 1936 usda zone map for the US, from a gardening encyclopedia I have. Back then, my area was a solid 5a, quite a change for 80 years. Referring back to 19th century manuscripts, the Boston area could expect snow going into May, which would be a phenomenon now....I guess the weather will keep throwing curves. Bletilla sounds great...I'd be out putting a basket over it, if that would protect it from frost....
Rick Buell
New London, CT

1936 usda zones, US:
https://dropbox.com/s/0djelof7d9x3sxw/…
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On Fri, 5/5/17, ds429 <ds429@frontier.com> wrote:

Subject: Re: [pbs] Surprising survivors
To: "Pacific Bulb Society" <pbs@lists.ibiblio.org>, "Pacific Bulb Society" <pbs@mailman1.ibiblio.org>
Date: Friday, May 5, 2017, 6:13 PM

Dear All,

I don't know if this observation falls
under the heading of "survivors", but, here in North Central
West Virginia, where it used to be designated USDA Zone 6,
the climate has become quite inconsistent. Over the last few
winters, low temps have varied between -11 F and +10 F. But
more impactful on my outdoor plants has been the early
spates of abnormally high temps (60-70's F) in March
followed by more normal 20-40's in April. It's "supposed to"
stay cold until April!
I have a nice clump of Bletilla striata
right next to a clump of Erythronium 'Pagoda'. Two years
ago, the bletillas were hit so badly by a late freeze that I
got only one flower stalk, but the erythroniums, which were
budding at the time, bloomed beautifully. This year, after a
warm spell in March, and then a freeze in April, the
erythroniums did almost nothing, but the bletillas, though
they suffered frost damage, look like the are going to do
"what they are supposed to do"

Best wishes,
Dell

Dell Sherk, Salem WV, USA
--------------------------------------------
On Sun, 4/30/17, Jane McGary <janemcgary@earthlink.net>
wrote:

Subject: [pbs] Surprising survivors
To: "Pacific Bulb Society" <pbs@lists.ibiblio.org>
Date: Sunday, April 30, 2017, 1:57 PM

This is my offering for a topic of the
week.
Hope to hear from many others!

This is the time of year when those
of
us who garden in climates that
experience winter frost take stock of
what has survived the trials of
winter. In western Oregon we've had a
winter that was slightly colder
than normal, with several periods of
snow cover (one of about one week),
and very heavy and prolonged
rainfall.
This was a real test of plants
known to be marginally hardy here.

I don't have a heated greenhouse,
though I move a few potted plants
under lights in the garage in winter.
My bulb house is never more than a
degree or two above ambient
temperature, since it has a roof but
no
solid sides. I also moved many bulbs
into the open garden last summer.
Some of them are mentioned in books
(mostly books published in the UK)
as requiring frost-free cultivation.
Nevertheless, some marginal species
are now in growth and even in flower.

I didn't mean to plant Ornithogalum
reverchonii (from the French
Riviera) in the open, but I mistook
its
bulbs for Ornithogalum
narbonense. Yet O. reverchonii is
opening its crystalline white flowers

now; the foliage, which is
winter-growing, is a little bedraggled
but
definitely alive. Amaryllis
belladonna
turned to mush, but new leaves
have emerged -- I may never see any
flowers but it's not giving up. The
shining yellow flowers of Anemone
palmata (from Portugal) light up both

the rock garden and the bulb lawn.
Even
the Crinum plants given to me by
another PBS member last year are
putting out new growth; I did mulch
them heavily but thought they were
gone
for good.

Most everything in the bulb house
survived (low temperature, 18 F),
except for some Babiana. Another
African species, Oxalis obtusa, is all

too lively -- I even spotted one that
got into the open garden,
fortunately back in the shrubbery
where
it can't do much damage. The
lovely North African Asphodelus
acaulis
dutifully produced its
peach-colored flowers in early March,
a
little later than usual. I think
the survival of marginal plants under
a
roof is aided by the fact that
their foliage is dry; on the other
hand, they got no snow cover. I
suspect that the many species I'm
trying in turf also enjoy a little
extra protection in winter, when the
grass here is in active growth.

So far the only big Alstroemeria
outdoors, A. angustifolia, has not
made
an appearance, but in the bulb house
the little species Alstroemeria
hookeri came through fine, despite
being in growth during the cold
snaps. I'm also happy to see
Alstroemeria patagonica there, but it
is
more cold-adapted, though not really
easy to maintain.

The first Calochortus here is always
Calochortus uniflorus, and it's
opening now. Others are in bud. Most
of
them flower rather later than
other bulbs. I have sometimes thought
that native bulbs from the Pacific
Coast of North America are
particularly
well adapted to surviving
extra-cold winters.

Have you had any pleasant surprises
like these? Let us know.

Jane McGary

Portland, Oregon, USA

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