A cold start going into the new year. Temps are below average and have not reached freezing for over a week. The sun has been locked away in a blanket of fog that has snowed a constant frost down for over 4 days straight.
Most of my plants are locked in a blanket of snow, which in it's self is not all bad, but if the snow turns into ice and is locked in around the plants for long periods can cause tissue damage, mold, and rot.
I have had better luck with cold dry winters than I have ever seen with warm wet winters. This seem to be a winter in between the two.
Southwest plants are good at taking very cold temps, but not for long periods. A day without wind and a bright sun can warm plants fast even if temps barely hit freezing.
Bring on the Sun!
Yucca elata
Yucca rosrtata
Yucca faxoniana
I took the shop vac outside and vacuumed the snow out of the crown, the best I could.
Yucca brevifolia
This snow should have no harmful effects. As you can see, no heavy snow around the spears
House Finches, and American Goldfinches
Of course, small birds bring in predators
American Kestrel
American Kestrel
What we have to do! But even here on locally native plants that are used to the extremes, an 18" wet snow that took 10 days to melt, did major damage on those natives. Not the insulating help that more mesic plants growing up in Denver got with such weather!
ReplyDeleteSo true David.
DeleteAaron;
ReplyDeleteI Just found your blog and have been chain-oggling all of them; thanks for your close documentation of Yuccas et al in the North, and the introduction to Plantasia in Twin Falls.
What is the deeply glorious spherical mound of cactus that is in the fifth picture posted on July 4?
Kenton
Sorry for the slow responce.
DeleteIt is Opuntia fragilis.