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.
Garlic under the snow from Thursday. Front nook from Thursday. Dog for scale. Front nook on Friday. Dog scale not cooperating. Melting progress in front nook as of Friday night. Dog cooperated this time. Front nook early afternoon Saturday. Plant window and herb garden from Friday. The Norman official temperature made it to 32°F.Plant window and herb bed as of early afternoon Saturday. Backyard cactus planter, cilantro, and strawberries/saffron bed coverings on Friday. Not related to melting, there were two crows eating suet mix on Friday. Front yard raised beds beginning to be exposed again on early afternoon Saturday.
This picture is from yesterday (Wednesday) showing the additional inch or three of snow on the herb garden-to-be! Morning walk. The raised beds sure are buried! Only Gram’s favorite mousie will play right now. Good thing it’s walk time now!
You can just see the new currant in front of the brush pile on the left and the elderberry by the frozen bird bath on the right. Checking on the coreopsis, thanks Briar! Still working on the coreopsis. A good angle on the rosemary here. Raised bed covered well! I think we got 7-8″.
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!
We woke up to a snowy world! Briar has seen snow before and enjoyed it but was hesitant at first this morning. She got over that soon enough and subsequently went insane with happy bouncing.
Briar examines the herb bed. Only seeds there except a single low growing oregano from Judy under the bucket. You can see the plant window in the background. Briar passes outdoor stratification native wildflower seeds in little pots. Heck of a cold stratification this time! The front yard raised beds with Salvia greggii in front. One of our four rosemaries. The garlic! Snow whiskers! You know it’s cold when your breath freezes on your snoot! Lots of little plants safely under the snow now. I feel a lot better about the impending -9°F etc coming up in the next few days now. Below: safety. Above: bouncies!!
Wes requested rosemary to season dinner this evening.
Wild boar loin with carrots and onions in mushroom sauce seasoned with rosemary. A side of ciabatta bread (courtesy of Paula) and deep-fried potato cakes containing mozzarella, jalapeño, and onion.
