Garden Update: Freeze Dried

Tough love for my plants this month. I did not make any effort to shield them from night temperatures 32 degrees or below over the last two weeks. Time will tell the consequences of my neglect but my philosophy as I adjust my gardening skills from coastal southern California moderation in all things to foothill northern California expremes is " Survival of the fittest".

Right now, my favorite plant is narcissis. Rynveld's Early Sensation is just what it's name says. They started blooming in early January and are still going strong through the freeze. It is the second year for these bulbs so I know that they can handle our weather extremes. Other bulbs are coming up but not yet ready for prime time. I need to plant more of these guys next fall.

Next on my favorites list are my cymbidiums. One pot of my miniature green, King Arthur, was blooming before the freeze and now , to my amazement, a second pot has a bloom stalk. Only one pot looks like it might not survive the winter and it was marginal before. The plants seem largely unaffected by the temperatures. I did nothing to shield them but they do receive full sun during the day. Last year I did not get them to bloom. I am hoping that the others will follow King Arthur and flower this year. Now I know that they can survive here, my next challenge is persuading them to bloom.

Among the other plants, I can do nothing but wait and see what comes back. Because it has been so dry, I watered all the pots on Saturday after reading in the paper that the combination of cold and dry is very stressful, Now we will see what happens. Nights are staying above freezing so I think that the worst is over in terms of temperature. We do need rain.