What a difference a day makes
Neighbor’s sycamore—pretty good fall color for Austin
Yesterday’s high temperature was a humid 80 degrees. With all our windows open, we tried to catch a slight breeze and not resort to air conditioning in November.
Yesterday the neighbor’s sycamore hung onto its orange leaves, its white limbs shining through.
Yesterday another neighbor’s front garden, relandscaped last summer in preparation for selling it, had grown full, the purple fountain grasses waving to remind us that it’s fall, not summer.
(If you’ll remember, here is what this house—never a beauty but much-improved now—looked like in the summer, with the paint color still under consideration but the bold, unusual garden already planted by the floral designer who lives there.)
Last night a blue norther blew in, dropping 1 1/2 inches of much-needed rain (it’s still drizzling) and causing temperatures to plummet into the 30s. It’s 38 degrees on my porch right now, and forecasters expect it to get colder instead of warmer all day, with a freeze tonight. My back-porch screen door keeps blowing open and slamming closed in the strong northerly gusts.
Yesterday it was fall. Today it’s winter.
Tender succulents in pots must be covered during freezes. A sad sight, but it’ll be brief. We’re supposed to be in the 60s again by Saturday.
The ‘Belinda’s Dream’ and ‘Marie Pavie’ roses are heavy with buds, and a handful of roses have opened, but this may be their last day if we get the expected freeze. I’m still hedging my bets on that though, as I garden in one of the warmest spots in town.
I like winter, probably because I’ve always lived in the Deep South and never had to deal with much of one. Snows are rare, exciting events. Ice is less rare, not much fun, but still interesting. I’m thrilled to be able to wear boots, a scarf, and a coat when I go outside. Come on, Old Man Winter, let us feel your bite for a few more days.
What preparations did you make in the garden against the cold? Aside from bringing the potted plants in, I don’t have good cold-weather tactics. I did put floating row covers over the winter vegetable garden and tried to cover some of my newer, frost-tender plants. However, I didn’t even wrap the bananas or manage to get the duranta out of their temporary spot in the front planter. All of the leaves fell the windy day before the cold and I threw bags of leaves over the various tradescantias and aloe. Looks like it will warm up only slightly before we are hit with more cold on Sunday.
mss @ Zanthan Gardens
I do very little to prepare for a freeze. If it’s expected to get down to 31 or 32, I usually do nothing because it won’t get that cold here, in the Camp Mabry area. But if a harder freeze is expected, like last night, I cover my faucets and put my two hoses in the garage, I drape sheets over my potted succulents on the front porch (easier than moving them) and over a tender aloe that’s too big to move, and I move about 5 other potted plants into the greenhouse. Oh, and this time I protected a recent cuphea transplant from Annie by putting a clay pot over it.
My garden did get a light freeze last night. The basil is toast, some roses are touched with brown, and the yellow bells, Mexican bush sage, and lantana got burned. That’s about it, though. The purple coneflowers are still blooming (last year a few bloomed all winter), and some of the more-protected roses sailed through. How about your garden? —Pam
Once those plumeria and the lemon were safe I let most of the rest take their chances. Frankly, I was glad to see those pitiful peppers and basil plants get whacked! Most of the leaves are down now. Lots of yard cleanup today – maybe some photos this weekend.
Pam, sometimes I just want the sensation of being cold, of needing a comforter and wearing sweatpants to garden instead of shorts. But not a real Northern winter – seven years of living here has made me a wuss, so I don’t want a bite, just a nibble!
Annie at the Transplantable Rose
You’ll notice I asked for winter’s bite “for a few more days.” Nothing long-term. I enjoy Austin’s mild winters too. —Pam
This is interesting — like summer in Maine in reverse: we get a few really miserable hot stretches, but it’s rare when the temps hit 90+ more than a couple days in a row. Shorts and tank tops are pretty much in storage by September 1.
(Humidity, though, we got — sometimes the most awful summer weather is when the percent moisture and the temperature are the same number, even if the temperature is in the pleasant range.)
To be honest, I’ll take cold weather over hot: it’s easy to warm your body up with clothes, not so easy to cool it down without being arrested 😉
Yes, I expect it is like Maine in reverse. I’ve experienced two heat waves in Maine, out of about 5 summer visits. They can be unpleasant, as you said, especially with the lack of A/C in businesses and homes. But on most of my visits, including one October trip to Acadia National Park, the weather and scenery were gorgeous. You live in a beautiful state.
I can’t imagine what winter would be like there. I’d probably be shocked at its length, though during Austin’s summers, cold sounds pretty good to me. (Cold meaning 60 degrees, of course.) This time of year, however, all the way through April, can be nearly perfect in Austin, with a few cold days here and there to remind you that it’s winter in the rest of the country. —Pam