Deep freeze in Austin
February 03, 2011
The monster winter storm of the upper Midwest has extended its icy claws all the way down to Austin, giving us a taste of real winter (send it back!) and making a miniature ice-skating rink of the stock-tank pond.
Some of my evergreens are beginning to resemble wilted spinach, like this pink abutilon, which had been lush and lovely with sweet, bell-shaped flowers.
The poor Aloe striata has lost the urge to bloom. Please, no Viagra jokes.
A little screech owl sat in the door of the owl box this evening—a cozy spot for a cold winter night.
All material © 2006-2011 by Pam Penick for Digging. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited.
It seems odd to see ice in your garden Pam. I hope everything fares well.
Me too, Lisa. Thanks for the *warm* wishes. Hope you’re staying warm too. I know Indiana got walloped by ice. —Pam
Love that last little owl photo – too bad about poor aloe…
Well, we’ll focus on the owl and forget about the poor aloe, shall we? Nothing to do about it now but hope for snow, a rare treat for us here in Austin. Tonight is our chance… —Pam
Yep, I definitely did not garden plan with the idea we’d ever get this cold! Just hope for the best and see how things look this weekend, right? Your owl is adorable and has the right idea.
Hope for the best—yes, that’s all we Austin gardeners who push our zones can do now. Hope your garden comes through OK too, Amy. —Pam
Frozen pipes here this morning. Folks at Wilson Plumbing were super helpful over the phone. We opened the taps, put our space heaters under the house, and now are flowing again. thank heaven. Will be careful to drip tonight. Wilson said that hot water pipes actually freeze before the cold pipes do. Stay warm, Pam!
Whew, close call, Julie! Our hot water pipe froze yesterday morning too (it runs through the attic), but we were able to thaw it out quickly with heat lamps. I’m always mystified that Austin plumbing code doesn’t require adequate insulation for these cold winters, which we do get from time to time. —Pam
It will be allright – remember, your USDA Z 8b means years of that climate, not one year of weather. 8b = years averaging lows of 15-20F, that with some winters somewhat colder or warmer. You all may have just had abnormally warm winters for so long, unlike us. I like a past Zanthan Gardens’ post that summarized your cold weather.
You are nowhere near your all-time record of 0F-ish. We are, and all will be fine!
And I think it will do more to prove how many plants are very tough to the occasional cold blip in both our places, than it will to disprove them and bring back a blah, 1 dimensional plant palette. So there!
What a soothing comment, David. Thanks for that reminder! Of course, it can’t quite soothe my mind about all those zone 9 plants I took a chance on, but ah well. Gardening, like all exhilarating activities, is not without risk, right? —Pam
Oh Pam, this makes me sad! You have so many things that just can’t take that kind of weather. How could you possibly cover them all? We’re used to it and though we don’t like colder-than-normal, there’s nothing in my garden that would be in danger like there is in yours. I hope you warm up SOON!
You are right, Kylee. I can’t cover everything, nor do I try. My most tender plants are in pots, and I brought those inside days ago. I have a few tender in-the-ground plants (Mexican weeping bamboo, aloe, etc.), but the majority of my garden plants are tough natives or well-adapteds. I’m only boo-hooing about the ones I took a chance on, but most things will be fine. BTW, I hope you’re staying warm. It’s COLD up at Our Little Acre! —Pam
I’ve left this comment a couple times… not sure if it’s being spammed or what. But, I think your garden has a lot of character, even if frozen. Love the photos.
Weird about the comment trouble, Marc, but thanks for trying again. I’ve been reading your tweets about keeping plants warm with Xmas lights. Hope it works and everything comes through OK in your Austin garden. —Pam
We’re using Christmas lights on some tender plants too. I’m also keeping fresh water out for the birds, replacing it as it freezes. We’re having fun watching as they flock around. So odd to see ice in the daytime here.
All will be well…soon Spring, very soon…take some cuttings of the Abutilon and root them…….hang in there!
Pam, so sorry to hear Austin has been hit by such a freeze. Hoping the Mexican weeping bamboos got a good toe-hold in to withstand the temps.
At least the owl has a warm box to stay in. It rained, then sleeted, then snowed here, and it is supposed to snow again this afternoon. Poor critters and poor plants. At least I had not planted my spring garden yet!
Oh no…so sorry for the freeze…eek! I’m crossing my fingers that the plants will all snap back when warmer temps return.
Your plants look just like mine. It would almost feel better to me if we lived up north where we just wouldn’t see our plants during winter. It’s too painful!
Oh no, the cold reached down to you? Wow! Send it back indeed. That owl is adorable. What a nice treat to see it in the birdhouse.
We dodged that bullet here, thank goodness. I hope this winter starts to break soon.
Give the frogs ice skates!!!! I feel your pain. We had ice for a week. The Koi pond, the water fountains and the dog bowls all were iced over. I will wish some warm weather your way!!!!!