Re: Winter survivors report
----- Original Message -----
From: "david feix" <davidfeix@yahoo.com>
To: <medit-plants@ucdavis.edu>
Sent: Wednesday, February 14, 2001 8:08 AM
Subject: Re: Winter survivors report
> I was wondering how those people in the group
> gardening in England have come through the winter so
> far after the earlier bad freeze you received,
> although 2 months may not be long enough to know the
> survivors and losses
Hi David et al.
Down here in London, we were fortunate enough to miss all the snowstorms
this winter. There have been a few sharp frosts, down to -8C on a couple of
nights. Most of the time, however, it has been raining, at least it seems
that way.
As for the garden, well that seem to have come through the winter relatively
well. Shrubs such as ceonanthus, fremontodendron and callistemon, which
might struggle elsewhere in the UK have survived without any problems. A
Phygelius and Penstemon Digitalis have come though this winter. I have
tried these before and they failed to come through their first winter, so
this is encouraging. Diascias have been a bit of hit and miss. One or two
new introductions died with the first frosts, whereas others, noteably Ruby
Field (no relation) survived and even continued flowering well into
December. The only noteably casualty so far is Freesia laxa. This bulb
usually seeds itself freely around the garden, germinating in the spring.
This year they decided to germinate in October. These seedling coped with
light frosts (0C to -3C) without any problems, but most died in mid January
when the frost were much sharper.
My biggest concern though, is for the dormant bulbs. October saw some
severe storms which caused flooding throughout the UK. While the floods may
have gone, the ground has remained waterlogged. My concern is that many of
the bulbs, as well as some of the perennials, may have simply rotted away in
all that water. Some of the hardier bulbs are beginning to make an
appearance, but only time will tell how the rest coped with the winter.
David Field
London UK.
