Here comes the hard freeze for 2024

[Kievnstavick]

Reaching about 19 degrees F this morning and tomorrow is supposed to be 16 degrees F. Thankful I am not having a freeze-thaw cold snap as it should be below 32 until Monday.

I just moved most of my potted and trees I am more worried about just on the ground and close to the house. I did that to get off the benches and keep them out of the wind as much as possible as I was more concerned with the wind chill. All of my stratifying seed trays are also on the ground to prevent the seeds themselves from freezing.

Covered my in garage grow tents in another layer of 6mil plastic to preserve as much heat as possible since the garage is not going to heat up too much during the days. My wrapped grow tent should be fine maintain temp (I was just concerned about the lights off time dipping too low in temp) while my drop cloth covered shelf will get colder sooner. My schefflera was the only one I was truely concerned with staying in the garage, so I has taken residence on my kitchen counter for the night.

 

[ShadyStump]

We get a few days like this every year around here. It's just a couple weeks earlier than average.

Think I'll throw a tarp over my trees for the wind, but I'm otherwise not in a mood to worry about them.

Work is very likely canceled for Monday, and I haven't been camping in over a year. That ain't right, so if I find a place with a decent layer of snow I might go this weekend.

 

[ShadyStump]

BTW, anyone had eyes on @berzerkules or @Alaskanrocket recently? Haven't seen much of either for a while, now that I think of it.
Came to mind because they would have have a very different perspective on the weather you're all panicking about.

 

[Cajunrider]

BTW, anyone had eyes on @berzerkules or @Alaskanrocket recently? Haven't seen much of either for a while, now that I think of it.
Came to mind because they would have have a very different perspective on the weather you're all panicking about.

No panic really. Just managing risks to my trees and my house. The risks for my house is real because of the construction practice in our area. Last year we lost water service for days after a hard freeze.

 

[ShadyStump]

No panic really. Just managing risks to my trees and my house. The risks for my house is real because of the construction practice in our area. Last year we lost water service for days after a hard freeze.

Fair. Here we don't worry about the pipes until the forecast shows single digits for a while, unless you live in a mobile home of course. Then it's low teens.

Didn't realize there was that big a difference in building practice. Seems to me if you're on a solid foundation with your pipes underneath the house they should still stay above freezing.

 

[Hartinez]

Definitely don't want to push them to break buds early. The needle I'm trying to thread is with my two new field grown trees from Dylan Ferreira -- they've basically just gone through a winter repot so they shouldn't freeze, but I don't have an unheated garage space to ensure that.

I think my compromise will be the seedling heat mats, but plugged into this thermostat control. The top of the tree will stay at whatever the temperature in the shed is at. The seedling mats will turn on 35 degrees and below, then turn off at 45 degrees. I'll check up on the temperature in the shed for the next few days before the cold snap

Hey wood. Rather than a seedling heat mat, I’d consider Heating cable. It’s affordable and you can get really long runs of it. It has a built in t-stat that kicks on when temps drop below freezing. I’ve used it the last couple years on fall collected trees with great success. the following winter, those same trees go directly on the ground and are mulched in and take the cold here in the high desert just fine. I know @mattspinniken uses it on his collected trees in Michigan also with great success.

We are currently at 17f where I’m at and all my trees are outside, on the ground, mulched in, watered in and bunched up. That’s about it. Everything from shimpaku to piñon to winged elm to Yatsubusa elm. I’m confident everything is going to be in peak health when it’s wake up time. I used to bring some trees in my garage or shuffle things in and out. But at this point, if a tree can’t take my zone and the lowest lows it offers, I don’t want it. I only have 2 ficus and a nippon daisy from @Pitoon that come in during the winter.

 

[Gollum169]

I see this as a low-stress event. I don't really care to keep a tree that dies due to my winter care.

You don't live where the air can hurt your face, do you?
22 below zero wind chill right now and it's only blowing 9mph.
Saturday
A chance of snow. Widespread blowing snow. Mostly cloudy and cold, with a steady temperature around -8. Wind chill values as low as -37. Blustery, with a northwest wind around 29 mph, with gusts as high as 44 mph. Chance of precipitation is 50%.

Why do I live here?

 

[ShadyStump]

Why do I live here?

Because the Californians haven't invaded yet?

 

[coachspinks]

Fair. Here we don't worry about the pipes until the forecast shows single digits for a while, unless you live in a mobile home of course. Then it's low teens.

Didn't realize there was that big a difference in building practice. Seems to me if you're on a solid foundation with your pipes underneath the house they should still stay above freezing.

Having lived my adult life in the south, I didn't realize the differences until I started visiting different places in colder climates. There are a lot of multi story houses and house s on crawl spaces in the south. Too many have pipes on exterior walls. In preparation for Wednesday mornings low teens I will turn off all outside water and drain those pipes. We will also leave faucets dripping over night. Leaving the faucets dripping is probably overdoing it but last year when it dropped below 10 degrees, the pipes to our upstairs bathroom froze. The pipes are on an outside wall. They never should have done that but it is too late now. Luckily, when they thawed nothing leaked. I'm not taking that chance again.

 

[Deep Sea Diver]

Whew! Glad we don’t have to worry about that issue during cold snaps!

It’s getting middling cold here…. nothing like South Dakota though!

Darn rabbit chewed up a dozen pre bonsai last night. Used a hole in the fence caused by a large tree branch falling during Mondays windstorm. Argh!

Otherwise the trees are all mulched into beds, cold frame or cold greenhouses for the during. Was gonna take done the Christmas lights now we are back from our trip. Maybe wait a bit.



Stay Warm
DSD sends

 

[ShadyStump]

Having lived my adult life in the south, I didn't realize the differences until I started visiting different places in colder climates. There are a lot of multi story houses and house s on crawl spaces in the south. Too many have pipes on exterior walls. In preparation for Wednesday mornings low teens I will turn off all outside water and drain those pipes. We will also leave faucets dripping over night. Leaving the faucets dripping is probably overdoing it but last year when it dropped below 10 degrees, the pipes to our upstairs bathroom froze. The pipes are on an outside wall. They never should have done that but it is too late now. Luckily, when they thawed nothing leaked. I'm not taking that chance again.

That explains it. I didn't think there was anything in they States newer than the 1950s or 60s that didn't have all the pipes underneath in the crawlspace. That's a bit nuts to me.

 

[Wood]

Hey wood. Rather than a seedling heat mat, I’d consider Heating cable. It’s affordable and you can get really long runs of it. It has a built in t-stat that kicks on when temps drop below freezing. I’ve used it the last couple years on fall collected trees with great success. the following winter, those same trees go directly on the ground and are mulched in and take the cold here in the high desert just fine. I know @mattspinniken uses it on his collected trees in Michigan also with great success.

We are currently at 17f where I’m at and all my trees are outside, on the ground, mulched in, watered in and bunched up. That’s about it. Everything from shimpaku to piñon to winged elm to Yatsubusa elm. I’m confident everything is going to be in peak health when it’s wake up time. I used to bring some trees in my garage or shuffle things in and out. But at this point, if a tree can’t take my zone and the lowest lows it offers, I don’t want it. I only have 2 ficus and a nippon daisy from @Pitoon that come in during the winter.

Danny Hart to the rescue! These should be perfect. I'm confident that these two Styrax could survive the upcoming temperatures without issue after a season of healthy growth

 

[Deep Sea Diver]

Frisky out there!

Hummingbird feeder. Mixed up food five hours ago with warm water.

Stay warm folks!

Best
DSD sends

 

[Hartinez]

Danny Hart to the rescue! These should be perfect. I'm confident that these two Styrax could survive the upcoming temperatures without issue after a season of healthy growth

You know this Ryan! Hope it works for you!

 

[Dav4]

I just shoveled 5 inches of concrete off my driveway because it's supposed to briefly switch to rain here before dropping below freezing (with more snow) and staying there... actually much lower... for at least the next week and probably longer. I know it's pretty but... .

 

[Pitoon]

I just shoveled 5 inches of concrete off my driveway because it's supposed to briefly switch to rain here before dropping below freezing (with more snow) and staying there... actually much lower... for at least the next week and probably longer. I know it's pretty but... .
View attachment 524216View attachment 524217

First pic looks like a nuclear bomb went off.

 

[ShadyStump]

First pic looks like a nuclear bomb went off.

Now that you mention it...

 

[Orion_metalhead]

First pic looks like a nuclear bomb went off.

I have a coffee table book with blast photos from all the US nuclear tests from the 50's on.... definitely looks like a nuclear blast.

 

[_#1_]

@ShadyStump if memory serve me well, you're in Canon City? I thought I've seen somewhere that area has the mildest of winters compared to the rest of Colorado?

I was in penrose the whole summer in 2021 and man the weather was great compared to Philly summers. Cracked the window open and still sleep with a blanket on, in the middle of summer! But I relocated to Houston before experiencing winter.

Will say, Colorado is very scenic to say the least!

 

[ShadyStump]

@ShadyStump if memory serve me well, you're in Canon City? I thought I've seen somewhere that area has the mildest of winters compared to the rest of Colorado?

I was in penrose the whole summer in 2021 and man the weather was great compared to Philly summers. Cracked the window open and still sleep with a blanket on, in the middle of summer! But I relocated to Houston before experiencing winter.

Will say, Colorado is very scenic to say the least!

Yup
We always get a harsh freeze like this in the mid to late winter. This is a few weeks early this year.
This year has been the coldest winter in a while, but normally highs in the 60s and 70s isn't unusual. That does mean extreme temperature swings, though. From 70 to 20 and back again or similar isn't weird at all. We really have to watch the southwestern exposure in winter here. That angle of any tree around here is utterly brutalized between the temp swings and a UV index of 10+ many days.

Then I could go on about summers, but I don't think anyone is in the mood for a complete climate description.