Paula came over and we planted many things, as well as doing some trimming and raking.
The semi-dwarf Arkansas Black Apple arrived. We planted it and pruned it to ensure it will have lower main branches for ease of picking fruit. The hose there burst in the freeze (I didn’t drain it) so we’re using the break to water it. We trimmed up the garlic (this picture), as well as Salviagreggii and mealy blue sage. The potato experiment results say don’t plant potatoes when there’s about to be a major freeze. There was a lot of rot and slime. We put the leftover seed potatoes in that I had saved from two weeks ago. Four varieties of cabbage for Paula’s fermentation needs and Wes’ occasional soup needs. As soon as they sprout, the best seedlings will get covered with a jar to protect from bunnies. They seem to be tasty for bunnies. We also planted assorted other cool weather things (greens and carrots).Better than nothing, Briar says, but why don’t we do something fun instead?
Well, on the way out to walk the dog, I started lifting up some tubs and towels to let things have sun and see what survived. I’ll go out again later and see about the kohlrabi and one cabbage as the chef wants them for dinner. Any feedback on whether to trim back the damaged perennials (irises, garlic, rosemary) would be appreciated!
The saffron leaves seem intact. Strawberries with the saffron seem okay too! These were all under a towel and a tub. The cilantro was under a tub. It died. The leaves of cilantro in the cactus planter also died, but there appeared to be some live bright green at the base. We’ll see if it grows back. This native plant rosette (I think Gaillardia?) seems fine and i didn’t cover it or its neighbors at all. It had more snow on it during the coldest cold. The oregano in the herb bed by the plant window looks a little worse for the wear. It had two plastic tubs over it. Some leaves look damaged but some seem maybe okay. Both the front and backyard faucets and pipes seem to have survived!!! That’s a relief. I opened both slightly for a few minutes, just in case to clear any bits of ice out, but it was all liquid coming out that I could see or hear. Whew! Front yard strawberries seem overall okay on the northwest side. These had towels and tubs in the center, and just towels around the planter base. Even the un-toweled leaves seem okay so far. Other parts of the bed had an aluminum trash can lid and leaves over them. I’m feeling pretty optimistic. The irises by the mailbox got frozen. Anybody know if I should trim them back or just let them regrow on their own? Most of the rosemary is now a very dead looking brown-green, but at the base of at least one there is still life (the brighter green branches) so I hope they can all grow back. Presumably insulation from snow helped the base. Like the irises, the garlic is very unhappy. I hope they too will grow back from their roots.
The Peruvian ground cherry I had been nursing along with towels and tubs and a hot water bottle every night succumbed to freezing last night (it was 3°F outside this morning around 7:30am). I have lots of babies in the plant window though.
Strawberries and oregano are under the tubs. There is some sedum along one wall and those poor little standing cypress along the back wall. Foil and tissue under the regular foam cover, which is now covered by newspaper and cardboard, with a gallon jug of hot water sitting at the base. We’ll change out for new water before bed.
The wind seems to be from the northwest and the front yard confirms that.
The most exposed strawberry patch has a good layer of snow! The sheltered nook on the south side of porch is full of snow too. Looks like a pretty good blanket on the raised beds too!
