Last day of spring
Spring has been unfurling new glories every day, like this beautiful Texas redbud in full bloom on Anderson Lane. But today — boom — an Arctic cold front is blowing temps down into the upper 20s.
Yeah, that’s completely normal for this time of year. But it comes at the end of such a mild winter that plants have leapt forward by a few weeks into spring. The coming freezes will kill flower buds and maybe new leaves, and it’ll burn back plants like Mexican honeysuckle that are in full bloom in my garden. So I’m whining a bit. Truthfully, maybe a lot. But after all, the first lesson of gardening is, you’re not in charge. The second lesson is, plants are resilient, and they’ll recover.
Still, grrrr.
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Digging Deeper
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Hi Pam,
Early freeze in the fall and late freeze this spring! Thank goodness “plants are resilient and will recover”. I have lots of trees in my yard and many times they protect my plants from freeze and frost. Hope that happens this time. Lynda
Trees can definitely help hold in warmth from the soil and keep things a few degrees warmer.
I feel your pain. Plants are as far along here because it has been so cold but there are trees budding. It is currently snowing and supposed to get down to 8 degrees tonight. Geez… The poor garden will be in shock. We shall revive just as the garden will.
Ooh, 8 degrees — I cannot even fathom that. I’m surprised to hear you have trees budding already in Indiana though!
Good title! Intriguing.
🙂
Grrrrrr indeed! As Lynda notes, this seems particularly unfair when you all had an early freeze cut short the fall colors. Maybe you’ll get a gentler-than-usual summer to compensate…
It would all be worth it if that could happen – ha!
Loved the title as I had to stop by to see what you could possibly mean. Though I am sympathetic, my garden still looks like January and it was 7° when I got up this morning. Tomorrow’s high is supposed to be 8° so at least all the snow is protecting the garden. But we are starved for some green. Even a view of bare dirt!
I hope you get it soon, Linda. Didn’t Wisconsin have an unusually long winter last year? You deserve an early spring – or at least a normal one!
and buds on fruit trees?
I hear that peach growers in the Hill Country are worried about their crop.
We’re about to get hit with temps in the 20’s on Tuesday. We’re not as far along into spring as you but lots of delicate new shoots, foliage and buds are about to get zapped here too. I’m whining too.
Sometimes you just have to wallow for a little bit before carrying on. 🙂
I’m sorry, Pam. That’s disappointing to say the least.
Yes, it sure is. But of course the garden will bounce back. As I keep reminding myself.
“Grrrr” indeed…I think whining is the bare minimum when it comes to this situation. I myself am throwing in a quantity of colorful curses.
One of the Austin bloggers mentioned on FB that she was like Hugh Grant in the early scenes of Four Weddings and a Funeral, muttering copious F-bombs while covering her plants. It cracked me up!
I’ve never had peach trees in full bloom during a freeze….. I’m sad about the possibility of losing all my peaches next summer 🙁
Aaaarrgh…the weather!
Nooooo!
Exactly the same situation here in central Georgia. Yuck.
I’m sorry. 🙁
Pam, here in Dallas it has not risen above freezing all day (Monday). So far, the flowers in my garden all look normal, but I know that won’t last. I’m completely with you – Grrr.
Next week we can all think positively and move on. But this week is for teeth-gnashing. 🙂
Pam– just wondering if the cold snap will affect the wildflowers? Sorry to bring this up since it’s so trivial in the face of y’all losing trees, beloved plants, etc… But my husband and I are flying down to ATX next Monday hoping to see the glorious wildflowers 🙂 Thanks & best wishes!
Carolyn, I don’t know exactly. The hard freezes this week will likely kill off the flowers currently blooming on Texas mountain laurel, redbud, and plum, but perhaps those that hadn’t started blooming yet may yet do so. I’m just not sure. As for wildflowers, I think you’ll find smatterings of bluebonnets, but the bigger show will probably happen later in March. Check out the Texas Wildflower Report on FB: https://www.facebook.com/TexasWildflowerReport/posts/10158564964794062?__tn__=K-R
Many thanks Pam — I didn’t know the wildflowers had their own FB page!