Boreas - Day 5

A bit unseasonable cold has landed upon Texas this past week.  Historical weather data will tell you this is not the coldest Texas has seen this time of year but I bet this is the longest spell for this time of year. Then, if you add the number of days without sunshine... grim.

Ok, ok, I did see it for a brief moment Sunday morning. Then it was gone.

This year, my sweetie and I decided to construct a greenhouse with some real bones. So far the temps inside have been in the 40's.  Some sunshine would be a real boost for us and the greenhouse.

No freezing temperatures here so far but the temperature has remained steady in the mid 30's since last Friday.  Sunday, we hoped to hop into the jeep for a trip out west to see some snow but so far no snow and really not any ice. 

Fingers crossed for now.

Hope the weather is nice where you are.

It's Time For....

Some fall bloomers to show off their stuff:

 Salvia miniata (Belize sage - from Belize and the Mexican state of Chiapas)

 A native poinsettia (Euphorbia pulcherrima variety originally from a region near Taxco Mexio)
As you may know, this is not the bloom but the bracts changing colors due to the daylight length change.
The bloom is actually the small green buds in the center of the color in this photo.

Fragrant Mist Flower (Eupatorium havanese aka White Boneset) 

blooms just in time for the monarch's arrival here in Texas. 

 I found one this spring and am being rewarded with blooms right on time this fall.

 

Time for Basketball season.  Salvia discolor (Andean sage from a small area of Peru) may not bloom for me unless I manage to keep it warm enough.  Blooms well in San Antonio in a protected area.   The bloom appears black (saturated purple and supposedly smells like blackcurrants), just beautiful with the silver on the stems and reverse of the leaves.  Local horticulture guru, Keith Amelung calls it the San Antonio Spurs Salvia since this salvia shares their colors and it blooms at the beginning of basketball season. (Go Spurs!)

Time for some new growth (?). I had rescued a small arbequina olive tree and have it growing in a pot (for now) and not certain what is happening at the petiole (where the leaf and stem meet). I know it is not supposed to be blooming as harvest is supposed to happen in the fall. I am just thankful this little tree is growing something.

Time for A little rest.  Been sidelined a bit for the week (doctor's orders) so I had a bit of time to sit and though it would be a great time to post. I actually feel better now than before the doctor's visit, isn't that the way it goes? Ah, modern medicine.

Time to prepare for winter.  It will be my 3rd winter in the loft garden. This year I have acquired a "new to me" greenhouse. It has a little wear and I may just build something more permanent instead. Seems a bit big for the area.  I may use that roof top you see sitting on the ground just past the greenhouse for the new permanent structure.

Time to say a little prayer for those on the East Coast awaiting the arrival of Sandy.  I have been through quite a few hurricanes and I feel for you all. Hopefully, the winds will not be as severe and the other storms will diminish before Sandy arrives. Take care.

One Project Down

I will admit I did not have much time to put the proper efforts into last winter's greenhouse. So this winter I have a few alterations.

I got the frame in place and the sunscreen roof reinforcement in place a few days before. Checked out the wind gusts (from the north and the south) and this location seems to be safer.

This day I will a few distractors to my building.

Finally a good showing. I have waited for these guys all summer.

Got the plastic in place and ran out of sunshine. Brrrr.

This year's model is one whole piece of plastic I recycled from my temporary part-time seasonal employer's greenhouse last spring. (Did I mention I am still working there? It does keep me off the streets.) Finishing had to wait for another day. Whenever I had time the weather was very windy and/or moist. So it sat like this for days.

Then one day last week, I got all my materials gathered....

faithful companions watching (see Spice in the bush?) and

these guys had become ....

beautiful Gulf Fritillary inside the greenhouse.
"Go on. Enjoy the sunshine. I have work to do."

more on the fence outside the greenhouse...

Shelves from a damaged delivery to my employer with the addition of some pallets my sweetie cut down for me. The soda bottle collection for a sorry attempt at a heat sink. (The bottles will collect heat in the winter sun and then radiate warmth in the greenhouse at night.) It seemed like I had a mountain of them when they were inside the loft apartment. (Drink up, sweetie!)

I left my hose inside the greenhouse so watering on warmer winter days will be easier.

Easy access to the only water spigot on the whole property.

Hmm. Not much different in appearance but the bottom and 3 sides have been secured with lumber now and it seems to be holding up to the wind. I will come up with some other handy door piece before winter comes.

Update - Frozen in Fort Worth

There is a bit of celebratory dancing in the loft this morning as I have discovered life after Frozen in Fort Worth.

I did not pull any plants out of the greenhouse until after the storm. Later, I did manage to bring inside my Brazilian orchid and a heirloom crinum knowing they would be the most difficult to replace. I did not have much hope knowing the amount of cold they had suffered.

A new shoot from the roots of the Brazilian orchid (Bahinia forficata)

some buds along the main trunk

In this pot of scavenged bulbs from the frozen carnage of the greenhouse are awakening daylillies and cannas. If only this big brown crinum bulb would show a little life, my little rustled treasure. I keep squeezing it like buying an avocado -- still firm, not too mushy. As any good gardener, I still have hope.

A Bit of a Roller Coaster Ride

I was downloading the photos from my cell phone and had a rehash of the emotional roller coaster known as my life of the last 3 weeks.

From the greenhouse in a cozy little spot at the back of our rent house (January 28th)...

To the storm of 31st..

Discovering the hoopla of the Super Bowl...

To the snow of February 4th...

To brightly colored tomato cages on the 14th...

To the tear down of my greenhouse today. (If anything is still alive it will survive without any covering in the future. Yes, the thermometer is reading 80 degrees. )

To the knowledge that Spring is coming again. My Texas red buckeye (Aesculus pavia) is indeed budding for spring!
Hope you all had a less exciting month so far.

Frozen in Fort Worth

Currently at 8:10 this morning my outdoor thermometer reads 19.5 degrees F. Winds NW at 30 mph. My greenhouse thermometer is reading 23.3 F and I am pleased as punch it is still standing.

When my sweetie got home (from working second shift) he came in the bedroom and quietly said, "What do we need to get out of the greenhouse?"

I immediately sit up. "The greenhouse? Why?"

"The NW wall is gone."

I could be a fireman, except I forgot my gloves. Got dressed and immediately spoke my plan of attack without even seeing the situation. Got outside to indeed see the wind and the sleet were working on downing the whole structure.

Got (what I previously thought was) a ginormous tarp out of the truck and my sweetie found some rope. (These things come in handy when you move so much.) Got the gaping wound of the greenhouse covered with the tarp and realized my fingernails felt as if they were going to come off.

I yell into the wind and run to find my gardening gloves. I realize my fingers are useless at this point and run upstairs to bath my hands in warm water until the feelings return. Back into the wind.

My sweetie, who is prepared with his gloves, has tucked the tarp under the strapping and has the south side secured. I help secure the bottom and we are done. Except, now the wind is circling around and beating the SE side pretty hard. (I will insert here -- this is all being done in 6" of mud and rain run-off from the loft roof.) Re-adjust and re-attach - at this point I say we are done.

It's not pretty, it's not warm, but it's still standing.

This is pretty much the view out our window today. Temps are still falling and the wind is howling.

Hope y'all stay, warm where ever you are.

UPDATE: 1:30 PM

Just saw this on the national news. Super Bowl party tent at the Cotton Bowl in Fair Park (Dallas) has collapsed. They are not certain if it was due to the storm winds or weight of the snow. My sweetie points out to me, "If the professionals had a tough time, you know it had to be a bad storm." My sweetie knows just what to say.

Update: 2/4/11 - Greenhouse is standing but one wall gone for good. Some what intact but plants are history. Temps have not been above 19 degrees since this posting started. The "dusting" of snow we were to receive last night was 7" here. Crazy weather. Warmer in Alaska.

Greenhouse Update = Blooming!

A couple nights we have gotten into the high 20's here at night and my rusty thermometer keeps reading high 40's and low 50's inside the greenhouse. I had a panic moment and told Santa's helper (my sweetie) that I was going to break down and purchase one of those remote thermometer things. Hopped on Amazon, made my selection and the package should be arriving by Friday. Just in time for the next real cold front with slight possibility of flurries.

Meanwhile, I brought the last of the plants from the house in New Braunfels (250 miles south of here - just in case you are just now joining this adventure). Opened up the greenhouse to toss them in somewhere.

Well, I guess everyone is doing well.... there are blooms!

Butterfly canna

Mexico Midget tomato flowers (inside the circle)

Key Lime with flowers (I also have fruit on the same plant)

Red trailing lantana (growing basically in the shade)

My plumeria have not dropped their leaves!

The wind during the day has been pretty gusty so I have not opened up the greenhouse. Daytime temps inside the greenhouse have been 90 to 100 degrees so I have created a hot humid terrarium. Just what my tropicals would like in December.

I guess that rusty old thermometer is still doing a good job. It will be nice to verify the temps between the old and the new, just to make certain.

Backyard Lighted Snow Globe

Temps into the low 30's last couple nights and no wind. Three 250 watt chicken brooder lights are keeping me about 50 degrees so far. I may have to get some bubble wrap if the wind decides to blow this winter.

The Temporary Greenhouse

It's done. Finally. No more worries.

Since this is very temporary (November through March - maybe April) I use heavy duty tape to secure the panels.

The helper with his eye on me the entire time. My sweetie has camera duty.

"Hey, are you done? Are you leaving me in here?"

Oh, no. I'm not done. It rains here.

Must reinforce the roof to keep it from sagging and filling in with water. In years past I had done this before fastening the roof plastic.

Improvising with the shade cloth from the old house's back patio. I underline the roof plastic and pull the rope as tight as possible. This should keep the roof from sagging. I think this will keep it a whole lot cooler on those days that reach into the 80's during our winters.

I also believe this will make my roof a little more durable to any antics from Mr. Squirrel.

The roses will sit out this winter. They will be fine, although they look a little lonely now that all the other plants have been moved inside.

Rain due tonight. Highs tomorrow will only be in the 50's. I am keeping my fingers crossed. Hopefully I will not be out there rebuilding the whole thing tomorrow afternoon.