Re: Sydney/Southern Calif/SF Bay Area Climate Comparisons

Lee,

Thanks for the climate comparisons, it is nice to have
official confirmation of Berkeley/San Francisco as
zone 10a, although with the fog and chill of summer,
it feels considerably colder sometimes.  The windows
are staying closed at night lately, although I haven't
turned the heat back on like some people I know... 
Interesting to note that extreme coastal Southern
California is actually milder than Sydney.

I knew I should have clarified my statements on
Plumeria being poorly adapted in California, I meant
in coastal northern California, where it is a struggle
to get it through the winter in areas mild enough in
winter, which usually aren't hot enough in summer to
get it to bloom well.  Does much better in an enclosed
sunporch situation with lots of all day sun.

David Feix in cold and damp Berkeley, where it is
about  55F and high fog cover(no drizzle)


--- Lee Poulsen <wlp@ampersand.Jpl.Nasa.Gov> wrote:

> This is what I found from some Zone maps for SE
> Australia vs. California:
> 
> USDA Hardiness Zone: Sydney Z10, Blue Mountains -
> Z8, Melbourne - 
> Z10, Canberra -Z9a
> Number of days above 15 deg. C ("Growing Days"):
> Sydney - 240, Blue 
> Mountains - 90, Melbourne - 180, Canberra - 120.
> Heat Zone (Avg. number of days above 30 deg. C):
> Sydney - Z4 (30 
> days) @ coast to Z6 (60 days) inland, Blue Mountains
> - Z1 to Z3 (<1 
> day to 14 days), Melbourne - Z4 @ coast to Z5 (45
> days) inland. 
> Canberra - Z4
> 
> vs.
> 
> So Cal:
> USDA Hardiness Zone: San Diego and Coastal L.A. -
> Z11, L.A. - Z10b, 
> inland valleys - Z9b to 10a.
> Heat Zone: Z2 (1 to 7 days above 30 deg. C) for San
> Diego or coastal 
> Los Angeles to Z8 (90 to 120 days) in San Gabriel
> Valley (such as at 
> the Huntington Gardens) and to Z9 (120 to 150 days)
> in the San 
> Fernando Valley.
> 
> No Cal:
> USDA Hardiness Zone: Bay Area - 10a, Monterey Bay -
> Z9b to 10a.
> Heat Zone: Z2 along the Pacific coast of the Bay
> Area and in the 
> Monterey Bay, Z3 (7 to 14 days) for San Francisco,
> Oakland, and 
> Berkeley, Z4 for the rest of the Bay Area
> 
> >
> >We can't grow and bloom trees like Plumeria and
> >Delonix outdoors here, although people in southern
> >California do succede with Plumeria and get the
> >occasional flower by the end of summer, but nothing
> >like where they are better adapted.
> >
> 
> Either there are some adapted varieties around So.
> Cal., or the 
> weather isn't as non-optimal for Plumerias as might
> be thought. I've 
> seen a number of fairly large specimens in
> neighborhoods around and 
> south of Pasadena (inland southern Calif. valleys)
> and at one house 
> right next to the intersection of the 60 Freeway and
> Atlantic one 
> exit east of Interstate 710 in East L.A. there are
> several big plants 
> that were fully leafed out and in full bloom with
> large bunches of 
> flowers at the end of each branch last summer in
> July and August. And 
> Aloha Tropicals offers a cultivar named 'Pasadena
> Sally' that was 
> found in an old area of Pasadena 
> <http://www.alohatropicals.com/PCP-92.htm>. So I
> don't think they're 
> as mis-adapted as many might think, and I used to
> think.
> 
> -- 
> --Lee Poulsen
> Pasadena area, California, USDA Zone 9-10
> 


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