I would keep that Aloe in a container Chris. It will just be your ongoing maintenance for it, to protect it from the winter fluctuations.

Chris, Could be bad in your zone but like anything, location matters. Could you try come spring a pup of that Aloe and see if it survives your winter. Keeping the mother plant safe just in case.

mcvansoest said:Chris, how low are your lows generally? If wet, that Aloe probably gets damaged in the high 20s, if dry it can probably take mid to low 20s, without too much damage (some frozen leaves and or flower spikes), once well rooted it might survive lower Ts, but would get severely damaged. That is assuming you reach above freezing Ts during the day.

Generally in the 30s but could go lower depending on fronts that blow through. Could make it into the teens. As far as moisture goes it's really unpredictable. I think my best bet is just to get a larger and hopefully sturdier pot in the spring and repot it. It'll just have to be something I can manhandle into the greenhouse.

tarev said:I would keep that Aloe in a container Chris. It will just be your ongoing maintenance for it, to protect it from the winter fluctuations.

That's what I've decided to do Tarev, I'd hate to lose it after I've had it for who knows how many years. Right now it's looking sad as even though it's in the greenhouse it really needs to get out and get some sun.

Stush2019 said:Chris, Could be bad in your zone but like anything, location matters. Could you try come spring a pup of that Aloe and see if it survives your winter. Keeping the mother plant safe just in case.

Good idea, it's got plenty of pups. I may take just one and try it.

That's good Chris, just need to monitor and help our succulents get through every winter.

How true, mine are all stuffed in one greenhouse but it's been so ugly since yesterday I've had the heater on since about 6 yesterday afternoon.

Spring is finally here for us in the desert. This is the very last day of having to go out and cover my plants. After tonight I can remove the covers permanently as it will be in the low-mid 40s at night. The sun is back also

I'm concerned about 2 plants. I'm hoping they're just pouting. It has been a double whammy though with the cold and wet happening at the exact same time. Tomorrow, I'll be able to dig these up and have a good look at their base and check their roots.

How are things going for everyone else? Anyone getting a break when it comes to the weather, rain or gloom? Plants surviving?

Have a great day all
AG

Hi AG! Wish it was here for us. It looks like it's going to be getting better for awhile but I've had to use my heaters for the last day and 1/2 since I have other plants in with my succulents/cactus. At least today the sun is out and the greenhouses are heating up well.

My orchids are spiking like crazy and my baby Adeniums are ready to pot but I'm waiting until March some time to do it. My tomato plant is full of buds and more baby tomatoes are starting to form. Just wish a whole bunch would come out so I can make a salad.

Speaking of vegetables, I was out on the patio with guests the other day and I got a bunch of them to try the leaves of a native Dudleya (edulis = edible) ... best time to do this is right after a lot of rain, like mid-winter. I'm not normally one to snack on my own succulents but that particular one is tasty. I'll tell you when you don't want to try it, that's late summer after months of drought and encrusted with dust. Yuck!

Today I was falling in love all over again wth this Echeveria. It's basically full size and yes, there are drops of nectar within the interior of the flowers. Hummingbird's delight! I had one this size years ago but various disasters consumed it and its offspring... this spawn of spawn was the last rosette I had. The cycle of life is surging, finally.

Chris.......
Wonderful news on those Orchids and congrats on the greenhouse getting warmer. Envious of those 'maters. Supposedly they grow out here but I haven't tried. I may give it a shot soon.

Baja........
Such pretty blooms from so tiny a plant. Of course jealous that you can grow succulents. Glad you were able to save part of the Echeveria. They grow and spread fast so it won't be long before you have more. Have a shelf available to put it on so the hummers can enjoy it and the critters not. Speaking of critters, so the rabbits aren't the only ones that find succulents tasty. Interesting. I'd be game for trying it as long as it did not taste anything like a green bean.
(Green beans........EWWW My childhood nightmare.)

All.........
As for me, tomorrow will be great weather wise but today it is very windy and cold to go out today in the yard. Oh darn. The weeds will have to wait. I did get out yesterday. Plants are thriving and I was amazed at my Owl Eyes. One is even growing a new 'arm'. Two of the Echinocacti are off the hook with growth. Best surprise was the A. 'Blue Glow'. Typically a solitary plant this one has grown a pup!







Pup on the bottom left.


Have a good day all.
AG

We are still getting chilly overnights in 33F to 37F range. But it warms up nicely to 60F to 69F, with lower humidity at 35%. Nice cool and dry days that my succulents really love.

Echeveria Paul Bunyan is in recovery mode:
19Jan2017 - looking so soggy already from the rains before:


29Jan2017- looking much better, but will still need to further callus those cold/wet injured tips:


These Aeoniums bowed so low after getting too soggy and wind whipped this January:



With the recent dry days and nice daytime warm-ups, both are recovering slowly:
Just have to stake the stem on this one, to help it a bit go sturdy again:


This one is slowly facing up again to the direction of the sun:

I wonder if you are getting some part of the Santa Ana winds that blow hot, dry air toward the coast from inland through SoCal and northern BC. They change the way the Aeoniums look here. My Aeonium cuttings all look terrible after a day or two of dry air. A few were whipped around the patio by the wind, which deflated them even more.

Tree aloes in flower...



Pair of Aloe ferox seedlings flowering together. They mark the sides of a future path.



I'm hoping some of these plants go to seed.

No we do not get the Santa Ana winds, we do get the Diablo winds, that's why there is a big wind farm area here at Altamont Pass.
Very nice and green this time due to the good winter rainfall, fog and chilly overnights.

Spent all day yesterday rearranging my whole entire yard for one plant. YEP, one plant.

Was all excited to get a new sun loving AZ appropriate Agave. Went to the front yard to plant. So I went outside all giddy and raring to plant.

O.K. did anyone ever notice desert plants are like puppies and children? They're so cute when they're little and you bring them home. It is great fun to watch them grow up and see what they'll do next. Then the bigger and older they get the more of a PIA they become.

So....stood catatonic out in the front yard. You could see the hamster in my head dying of exhaustion from trying to turn the wheel. Continuing to stand catatonic that mental hamster got a second wind. I had a brainstorm.

"Ah-Ha! I found THE ideal spot for this new plant BUT there's something there. I can move what's there. That's not so bad.

But wait. The plant I want to move is medium size now and will get bigger. That means it's going to be getting in the way of two huuuuge plants."

"Let's see. I need some shade and these two huuuuuge plants (Octopus Agaves) are now of an age where they can live and enjoy the laser beam sun. So to accommodate their width, it wouldn't be hard for me to move this one smaller plant over here to the left and that one back on the right. NOW I have room.

I finally have room for--Uh-Oh! for only one of the Octopus Agaves!" Oops!

Hmmm.....What to do, what to do with that second Octopus Agave? Ahhh...if I move this here to the left and that there over to the right I'll have more room for the other Octopus Agave! These plants are small and real easy to shuffle. Problem solved.

Oh...but wait. There's more. Now there's those two rather large holes in the back area of the yard where the Octopus Agaves were.

O.K., let's see, let's see, let's see. OH! I got two decent sized Agaves in pots that need shading. Those can go in the Octopus Agave's spots. Done. Now I've got several large pots filled with a ton of dirt and no plants in them!

Five hours later----as in 5 hours later---- I threw the shovel in the yard in disgust. Went inside took a shower and had two consecutive stiff drinks. Fell asleep at 8:00p.m.

Got up this morning and the shovel is still out in the middle of the yard. The Octopus Agaves are still in the ground awaiting their move. The rather big and getting bigger Agaves are still in their pots.

As for today I'll be digging two new rather large holes in the empty spots in my yard that I created. I'll also be wrestling two rather good sized plants out of rather large pots putting them in the preexisting holes.

And how may I ask is your day shaping up?

Once I'm done with the last of this, most likely 5 hours from now, I'll be in traction for awhile. When I get out of traction you'll hear from me.

AG

The trouble maker that started all of this.


The two Octopus Agaves. The A. de--meteesia in very large red pot taking one of their place.


The other good sized (unhappy) A. potatrum going in the second Octopus Agave's place.


The one rather large hole and pile of dirt next to the rocks where the one Octopus Agave is going. OF COURSE the fire sticks and small Agave up front have to be moved.


Me after I'd done with all of this and have finished drinking my dinner. Haven't decided on Vodka or Scotch yet.

This amusing story - one that is very familiar - deserves an acorn!!

That sure is a lot of loving effort AG! I sure will not have that ton of energy..that is why I just use containers, so I can move my plants around much easily.

What does count, I hope you are finally satisfied for now of all the changes you have done! Till your next new addition! The evolving fun of gardening!

AG, that indeed looks like a lot of work! I would like to caution you about moving plants from shady spots to non shady spots... come summer your big shade adjusted plants might not like their new sunny spots that much. They will probably adjust eventually but not without loud protests (ie. scorched leaves), which might drive you to dig them up again.

I tend to try and limit moving plants that I have put in the ground and that are showing signs of adjusting positively to their spots, because every time you dig up a plant it will experience significant transplantation shock and will have to start the adjustment process to its new spot again. So my advice would be to think twice before actually moving a plant.

A decent reference for what takes full sun in the Phoenix area is here:
http://www.agaveville.org/view...

Keep in mind that the main poster lives in Fountain Hills at significant elevation, so what does well in the full sun for him has on occasion taken me some time to adjust properly here in the Mesa heat island, but generally the Agaves listed have taken the sun well after an adjustment period, which you should expect almost all plants to need especially if they are bought from a BB store garden center. If you go to a nursery and you see the plant looking good in full sun, then that probably translates well.

It is true though that many of the plants tend to do better in our summers when in the ground compared to being in pots in similar conditions. However, as Tarev points out it is way easier to move a pot around if a plant shows signs of distress.

Your A. potatorum just does not like our winters very much, my potted one looks very similar to yours, it will be fine once it warms up at night. I have one in the ground that did not look quite as sad, but still showed some stress.

Good Morning,

NOPE...not done! Half way there. Today the back yard. Tomorrow trying to figure what to put in those empty pots and what to do with that surplus of extra soil in them. Also raking the rock back into place. The day after tomorrow the weeds! Arrrrrrrrrgh!

O.K. all................

Please weigh in on my logic and reasoning in regards to my planning:

Let's see....got Octopus Agaves moved. The one was moved to the back yard. The other was kept in the front yard but moved to the full sun area up front. The mature size of the plants, and our warm, gentle sun right now (Feb-May) should be enough transitioning time to adjust to the incrementally increasing sun and temps. Of course shade tenting as necessary.

Got my two plants, A. de-meteesia and A. potatrum in the Octopus Agave's former place. I believe taking these out of there pots and planting them in the ground was a wise move. I was surprised at just unhappy both of these plants were in their pots. Despite the tremendous rains for days on end that we had recently, both of these plant's in their huge pots were bone dry except a few inches from the bottom where the roots did not touch at all. The roots were also getting rather crammed and coiling against the side of the pots.

Aside from that little trouble making A. geminiflora that started all of this ruckus another reality dawned on me. I probably would have had to make a major move like this at some point due to a separate issue I failed to consider originally.

Those Octopus Agaves will get bigger. They will also grow that huge stalk. I had those against the front of my house! I also have 4 Agaves (Century Plants)

They are a variegated A. americana, A. weberi and two A. medio alba picta. In one year these plants have doubled in size. Another year they will be bigger yet. Each year thereafter they will start to become obscenely huge, space gluttons and pupping machines.

Now or later some major move would have happened. Since my stupidity does have some bounds. I will never-ever move those agaves.

They're just fine where they're at. Their present location makes them easy to navigate around in the yard. They are not in the way of others homes. In general these agaves will be more accessible for removal when they have outlived their usefulness.

I made the sane choice. I moved the surrounding smaller plants a few feet away and out of the agaves' way. At the present moment these few surrounding plants are small. Another year or two these plants will be problematic. They'll be bigger and not so portable.

These small plants are in their original and well established sun/shade zones they've resided in presently since the day I planted them. They're still residing in their comfort 'zone' and only a few feet away from their original spots close to the agaves.

So that concludes this portion of the front lawn show.
Today....the back yard!

My husband has become unreasonable and draconian. He imposed back yard sanctions against me. How dare he!!!

His demands were I share well over half of the yard with the dog. Not just half but well over half! He has also established emanate domain over the largest, most spacious part of our patio. Commandeering it for BBQ grills, his prep table, storage cabinet and other silly things he amuses himself with that are not plants.

He expects me to strictly adhere to this executive order. Well, that's what he thinks is going to happen anyway.

Yeah. Right.

AG

Tarev..........................
You are correct in your advice about the pots. Part of the reason why I have so many. They served as my 'zone' tolerance tests and allowed me to move them accordingly.

My mistake was in buying plants that were small and happy in the pots but, as par for the course with me, failing to plan for the future and advanced size and thus removing these agaves and aloes once they outgrew their happy home.

Yet one more reason why I'm playing plant Jenga for the next couple of days and moving little-ish things to make room for the larger plants that I have no intention of ever moving again-hopefully.

I've decided my pots are going to be limited to aloes/agaves that max out at 3-4 feet tall x 3-4 feet wide. There are also the option of exploring many different Euphorbias, Mammillarias, Trichocereus and such. Your advice reminds me to think smart and buy wise.
Thank you!


Thijs...............................

I agree with your advice and wisdom. Bust out the shade tent no matter how big and sun loving the plant. It is transitioning during this time when our weather is advantageous but summer will be a complete shock to its system.

I'm sure you read my thing above about keeping my smaller plants in their original 'zones' and moving them only a foot or two away from where they were placed when I bought them. Again, thought that was a relatively sane move. Yes? No? As these grow, I have no intention of moving them either unless it is absolutely dire.

Yep.....the A. potatrum does not like anything below 40 degrees and becomes quite pouty. This is one plant I cover fastidiously to keep it comfy. I'm getting the impression as you that in the ground yields better results.

The sandy/clay soil holds moisture far longer so watering more often is not necessary. Also due to the shape of the leaves I've noticed a lot of rain water does not get to the plant when it is in a pot. In the ground this is not an issue.

Any 'agave/aloe' expert that lives outside and resides outside of either your or my area I take with a grain of salt as to their plant selections and care advice. To give an analogy, we live in Hell. They live in Purgatory. Basically clueless as to what we have going on here and addressing our unique climate situation.

I focus only on C.G.'s temps and predicted rainfall and take into fact the soil in my yard. You and I know all about that hot mess. Four different types in one yard all two feet away from each other.

I have been systematically making list of plants fitting for our area that say 'loves full sun' and no shading to very little needed. I've been honing in on lake of fire plants. Just a few:

A. parryi (any variety), A. ovatifolia, A. v. 'Shark skin', A. geminiflora.
My favorite 3 are : A. zebra and A. v. 'Blue Glow'.
None of these plants listed will become 'monster' plants and would be quite happy in large pots. That also means they are easier to move as Tarev suggested.

My other favorite is the A. vilmoriniana --with prior consideration for placement and its size!

Of course I don't take this happy in the sun thing 100% seriously either but I do feel these choices of plants are far more apt to be and well suited once adjusted/transitioned.

AG