Wow, this is a cold snap!  They said on the news this morning that this is the coldest December on record…and it’s only the 6th!  Sheesh!

With these cold temps so early, I think a lot of home owners may have been caught off guard and some plants went to the great garden in the sky last night.  Lots of companies have email freeze alerts that you can subscribe to, so you’re not caught off guard.  I get mine from The Contained Gardener, a local company that specializes in plants in containers.  Not only do they send out freeze alerts, they also send out a great newsletter with useful information on your potted plants and offer classes.  Check them out….http://www.thecontainedgardener.com/

I will admit that I am a lazy gardener.  If a plant is going to kick the bucket on the rare freezing nights, I probably have stayed away from it.  I don’t have interest in covering and uncovering a plant.  You have my respect if you do want to devote that kind of time to your plants. If you’re going to cover your plants, make it worth it!

For instance, don’t cover plants that are going to die anyway.  Red Bird of Paradise (Caesalpinia pulcherrima) is a great example.  It’s supposed to die back to the ground every winter, so covering it is really not necessary.  You will not end up with a better looking plant next year, if you are able to keep the cold away.  You’ll probably have a leggy plant that is not as full as it would be if you had allowed it to follow its natural pattern.  Same with Yellow Bells (Tecoma stans).

Also, don’t bother covering plants that are able to handle the cold.  Most of our typical desert plants CAN withstand an occassional freeze.  Think about plants you see in unimproved areas, such as washes or public areas.  No one has time to cover those plants.  These include plants like barrel cactus, prickly pear, aloes and agaves.  (I’m talking normal conditions here, not like the stretch we had in February, which was an extreme for our climate.)

Also, if you’re going to bother covering your plants, do it correctly.  Use the proper frost cloth and drape it all the way to the ground.  The plant itself doesn’t have a warming mechanism.  The hope with covers is to trap under the cover the radiant warmth the earth absorbs during the day.  If you just drape a towel across the top of a shrub, it may not be very effective.

You may even want to consider if you want to keep pampering these plants.  I know of few people with extra time on their hands.  No one will judge you if you decide your time is better spent on other things than covering and uncovering plants.  Or considering potting up your  more fragile plants and bringing them indoors or putting them under a porch or other sheltered area.

For further information about landscape design and improving your exterior spaces, contact Rachel Gioannini, Casa Serena Landscape Designs at 520-955-1861 or www.casaserenadesigns.com

 

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