Anyone see this! some nice pictures
http://garden.org/forums/view/...

Thanks Julia! I love salvias (especially) and didn't know there was a forum for them. I need to check the list of forums more often.

So funny wrong link It was semps. I'll get the right link.
http://www.flickr.com/groups/s...

haha I was wondering why the agastache! haha

Great link Spring!
Also Happy New Year all!!

Yeah, I didn't want to start off the new year looking at agastache...but maybe I should since I am on a NO SEMPS Lockdown until May ...

Great site, I bookmarked it. Lots of neat ideas!

Both links are wonderful Julia. Lots of great things to see and get ideas from.

That link makes more sense. But I do like the other one too!

Well, I guess I'm going to find out how tough these little plants really are. Yesterday morning at 4:00 AM the actual temperature was 20 deg. F below zero. It did warm up to the single digits, but by noon the wind was really bad and we had wind chills of 55 deg. below zero!!! Wind chill warnings remain in effect until Tuesday morning. Monday the high for the day is supposed to be 15 below zero. We're breaking all sorts of cold temp records.

Each of my semp beds is covered with varying amounts of snow from a few inches to a few feet. I'm really hoping these winds don't blow the snow cover off them - especially the raised beds. Last weekend DH threw some snow on a couple raised beds because one day of sunshine melted most of the snow off them. So this is making me more than a little nervous.....

Chris,
That is just beyond cold. Sure hope the snow stays in place and all your plants stay warm under the blanket. On Tuesday will it warm up?

Chris,

There are some "sissies" that can't take the cold but you are lucky the snow arrived first to cover the plants. That will definitely help. Here we went from lush wearm rains to WINTER in a heartbeat and record cold with NO protection. It has been an education as to which ones do well and which ones look damaged. Was leased that most of my lines are pretty healthy. However, things derived from 'Commander Hay' or that line are almost always damaged.

Maybe these sort of conditions are good for us every now and then so that only the hardiest plants are preserved and used as parents for the next generation.

Kevin

Interesting about some not doing well over winter. Any chance of getting a picture of a semp. that is winter damaged. I just always think that it's my error but maybe not!
What other semps have others seen that my not be good parents?
Commander Hay is one.

In my very wet/cold winter weather, if find ones like Lilac Queen end up with a lot of damage. But I do have to say that they eventually recover as soon as the warmer/dryer weathers arrives. I have never totally lost them.
I should go out and see if I have any damage from the single digit, no snow conditions we had last month (Dec).

Crazy weather all over this year. You're right Kevin, this will definitely single out the sissies! I'll be sure to make notes in the spring.

Good luck Chris and hope you and your family stay warm!!!! I'm not missing MI (WI) weather at all!!

Weirdly in the seedling rows it just seems to be the one or two that is affected whereas the other seedlings all look fine. The ones that are affected went BLACK and are just MUSH now. I pulled most of them out as I don't want those in my gene pool even if they recover. I don't need a yard full of wimps!

Some of our semps do come from the lower areas near the Mediterranean and those seem to be sensitive (like the parents of 'Commander Hay'). However, these genes seem to be floating through other populations. Admittedly this has been a WEIRD year here. The plants were very lush after a warm and wet October and then BOOM right to the Arctic. I don't want to see that ever again.

Oddly enough Lynn I have several hundred seedlings from 'Lilac Time' and they all look fine. Most of them are from crosses to 'Jungle Shadows' and that is one that shows no winter damage. Maybe that's a clue for me in further crosses: use only the rock hardy and you won't be sorry! I love the shape and color application in 'Lilac Time' and would like to see that in other colors. You'll see in the spring if I was successful.

Was a pretty day here yesterday and got a lot of work done in the yard. I'm not quite ready for spring but close.

Kevin

I envy you getting some yard work done. Only 4-5 more months and I'll be able to do some yard work too.

I'll look forward to your spring pictures again Kevin!

To be sub zero here tonight but slight warm up later in week. It is up one day and down the next.
For now, my plants are all covered in 2-4 inches of snow but that won't last too long,
4 or 5 months seems forever...... But this year I will not uncover them until after Mother's day.
or so "she" said