Frog at the door.

My wife found this tree frog the other night, just outside the front door.  It was about 36F and dropping.  I'm sure it found its way home before frost set in. But what is most amazing to me is this was three days after subzero weather with highs in the teens.
Wildlife is amazing!   

Pacific tree frog

My Yucca faxoniana, shows the damage done as the weather warm again.

This is heavy damage but it could live.

This is the one I thought should have died by now.

This is Agave americana protoamericana, no heat just a plastic cover.

This is from many a sucker from a plant I bought awhile back, so maybe it is getting hardier with each surviving sucker? 

A new test subject, Echinocereus ledingii

Looks good!  So far?

And the hardiest of all the Opuntia basilaris!

You can get these from Plantasia Cactus Gardens

And another cool O. basilaris I got from a friend in Canada, Thanks Jay!

Yucca rostrata, looks like it will be ok!

These are very hardy here, but don't do much in my garden.  Maybe I should water them?

Y. gloriosa variegata?

And the sucker/clone from my big Y. brevifolia

I meant to cover this and never did, has some winter damage? 

My big Yucca brevifolia, come out of the cold spell looking like a rose!

My Yucca glauca

Yucca rostrata, yellow center, but looked the same last winter.

This small one is as old as the other two, but in a low spot in the garden.  It will be moved next year.

And a hybrid yucca I started from seed.  Thanks Time for the seed.

As you can see, looks good! 

j-tree, looks good!

Also looks good!

Yucca schidigera, I doubt this will live, never been hardy here before.

Dead! 

Echinocereus reichenbachii

Echinocereus inermis

Echincereus mojavensis

Sclerocactus parviflorus

Took my wife to Boise and took a few pics.

First a FYI, temps are just about back to normal....Yes! 

Took my wife for her doctors appointment in Boise.  The trip is about a 110 miles to the west and is about 1400 lower in elevation than it is here.  Boise is a Zone 6b/7 depending on the zone maps, but I would say a long term zone 6b.

Looking over Mountain Home towards the south at the Owyhee Mountains.

I one lived at the base of that range, a nice comfortable zone 7.  

As for the norm, I could not stop for yucca pics, but found these by the place we ate in Boise.

Nolina sp.

A nice Yucca rostrata!

And what looked to me as a clump of Y. filimentosa and recurvifolia.

The City has some nice Y. recurvifolias, but I can never stop for pics!

And closer to home, the rest stop by Bliss. 

And just to show people just a small portion of the windmills going up around the state.

Not sure what I think about it?

I know they kill lots of birds of prey here!

A cold day in...

A day above freezing with sunshine would be nice. How about a day with highs in the 20's.  At this point anything above 0 Fahrenheit at night any thing above the teens in the day would be a good start.

I complain so much in the winter I almost forget to post the good.  Today, although in the teens was a nice day.  And if you could stand where the snow was off the ground it almost felt warm, and the snow did start to melt on the south side of the house.

 Spring may be far away, hope is here now! 

      

Micro climate on the southside slowly melting away the snow.

A cactus sees the light.

Agave utahensis kaibabensis, I've been putting a towel over it at night.

Echinocereus reichenbachii v. albispinus, hiding in a snow cave. 

My biggest Yucca faxoniana, with cold damage.  

Echinocereus fendleri

Echinocereus mojavensis

Echinocereus triglochidiatus v. inermis 

A small pissed off Yucca rostrata that I should have covered from the snow. 

Yucca rostrta, top turning yellow

Yucca elata, looking fine

J-tree, Yucca brevifolia, looking fine

Yucca elata, looking good.

Thin leaved Yucca rostrata, some frost damage.

Damn you winter! Damn youuuuuuu!

Have I ever told you how much I love winter.  I look forward to it every year. As a matter of fact I start thinking how wonderful it is way back in August, and then as the days get shorter and the nights colder I think about it even more.  Oh how I love you little wonderland of pure crap!

Our nights are back below -0F and our days are in the teens and single digits. This is the only time when I think snow cover may do some good. 

    

Echinocereus triglochidiatus mohovensis

cylindropuntia

Yucca brevifolia

And even though the sun is out, still only 5F outside!