Here comes the pain

[GGB]

Guess I'm mulching everything in ice cubes this week

 

[rockm]

I have a couple Acer palmatums that the buds are starting to enlarge and will probably be moving by the end of the week if they are not already. I was debating repotting them this spring. I do have an unheated shed I could stash them in when the freezes come around again. What do you think? Repot when the buds begin to open.. wire them in steady and shuffle in and out of the shed?

Just outside DC here.

My elms look to be waiting it out so far...

The problem with repotting now in the warm spell is that in doing so, the root mass is warmed up more quickly when it's exposed. That can accelerate the process even more. I tend to try and let things sit until it's absolutely necessary. Deep mulch and cold pits can lag temps at the root zone for a while, but not a week...

 

[Ruben Bouwmeester]

Any of you guys seen any floaters going by with polar bears on them?

Here in Holland, one in a snowstorm!!!

 

[cbroad]

Checked if anything else is moving when I got home from work: 3 Chinese elms and a Korean Hornbeam are also waking up ???

 

[GGB]

All is quiet in PA so far, but if things are breaking bud in Maryland I guess it's only a matter of time

 

[Velodog2]

No matter how loudly you yell that this isn’t spring yet, it doesn’t matter. The trees don’t have ears, and denial is not just a river in Egypt.

 

[Ingvill]

Any of you guys seen any floaters going by with polar bears on them?

Sure have!

We will have consistant freezing temps until at least mid March, then it will bounce up and down for a good month.
Then there's the matter of 2 metres of snow needing time to melt.
Not to mention the several metres below ground that's frozen soild.
By the time it all warms up, you can bet there's another snow dump from mother nature in April/May....and spring will be officially cancelled. Again.

So you lovely Texans & Californians & Whatnot complaining about your weather, should just bend over and.....

 

[sorce]

AccuWeather gives a 90 day forecast, completely ridiculous...

Over the last 3 years I've found the far forecast to be quite accurate....
A month out can be about 1 day off but the temps are pretty spot on.

I heard an NPR story about how the system here sucks ass.....
And the British system is far superior.

Dunno which Accuweather uses.....
But our forecasting.. Yeah.....same as our infrastructure.
Can't dominate the globe and keep spending billions on controlling depleting natural resources which are unnecessary anyway by fixing our own shit....you know what I'm saying!?

Shit..

It done snowed more and rained away before I even realized it the other day.....

Long as its wet.....
I'm doing my trees like Smoke....
Ignore!

Sorce

 

[petegreg]

The Arctic Vortex was broken again and we're awaiting really cold end of March. Few days with temps below zero and nights down to -20 ℃. Fortunately trees are still in a "winter mode". Those (subtropical) in a cold room are pushing, are safe and I've already started repotting.

 

[petegreg]

February, of course...

 

[JudyB]

Crazy here, didn't get below 65 last night, and only a few temps showing up at night in the next 10 days in the 30's. Mostly mid 50's and 60s for the future day temps. It was 75 here yesterday. I'm in full repotting mode, but I can protect thank goodness.

 

[cbroad]

Over the last 3 years I've found the far forecast to be quite accurate

I don't know about that, I remember looking at it in October and it said we wouldn't be getting any snow this winter. Meteorology is about as good as fortune telling...

 

[Nybonsai12]

Crazy here, didn't get below 65 last night, and only a few temps showing up at night in the next 10 days in the 30's. Mostly mid 50's and 60s for the future day temps. It was 75 here yesterday. I'm in full repotting mode, but I can protect thank goodness.

Hi Judy, with your greenhouse where you offer protection what do you do about lighting in this type of situation after repots where they will remain inside, do youuse supplemental? allow the days natural light only?

I've had no choice but to do nearly all my repots over the last few days. I can offer protection so i'm not worried about freezes but the conifers won't be getting full sun for nearly two weeks and instead will get only a few hours per day until i can start shuffling them in and out again.

 

[JudyB]

I have tons of supplemental lighting, I just turn it on and make it summer in there once the leaves start to open. I don't really shuffle anything but my pine. And I could probably not shuffle it, and don't if the day is cloudy at all, as it's brighter in there if it's a cloudy day.

 

[Smoke]

So you lovely Texans & Californians & Whatnot complaining about your weather, should just bend over and.....

I can't speak for Texas, but a lot of the world will pay big bucks for fruit and nuts this year from a cold snap here too. I'm not worried about my trees as their small and do not really suffer from short freezes, but farmers fruit and nut trees do and I know several farmers that have already lost this years crop. Really tragic to watch your livelihood turn black and fall off the tree.

 

[JudyB]

I can't speak for Texas, but a lot of the world will pay big bucks for fruit and nuts this year from a cold snap here too. I'm not worried about my trees as their small and do not really suffer from short freezes, but farmers fruit and nut trees do and I know several farmers that have already lost this years crop. Really tragic to watch your livelihood turn black and fall off the tree.

This is terrible but really sort of what I've been expecting to see long range as part of the climate change scenario. How we deal with this and learn to be flexible, and how to make new crops will tell the tale of our culture and existence as a society.

 

[miker]

Long-term, 15 day forecast for my area has temps in the low 20s next week. We will get to 80 or over today and tomorrow. EVERYTHING is going to move quickly. I can only pray buds don't open this week...

Interesting that things are moving in Ohio and Northern Virginia and not SE PA (I am really thankful). I mean seriously, everything is still deeply asleep here as of today and we are certainly not colder than basically anywhere in Ohio and only a bit more consistently cold than N VA.

Further, we should be having chilly late fall like conditions over the next 10 days (after today's summer weather) and I see no reason any my potted stuff should start to move if left in the shade, near the ground where it is. I am sure buds on all the landscape and forest stuff will slowly start to progress though.

You have some super(!) nice trees, Rockm, might be time to look into a dedicated room with a cold bot for your deciduous stuff, if this has become a yearly problem in the spring. That way you can maintain an appropriate temperature for the entire duration of dormancy until temperatures outside are truly safe. This would eliminate concerns about extreme killing cold in winter and killing freezes after growth commences in spring. Just set the thermostat, put each tree in the room after leaf drop and keep them watered.

 

[Velodog2]

This is terrible but really sort of what I've been expecting to see long range as part of the climate change scenario. How we deal with this and learn to be flexible, and how to make new crops will tell the tale of our culture and existence as a society.

Or when the crop is not something as expendable as almonds. Something like corn or wheat.

 

[rockm]

Interesting that things are moving in Ohio and Northern Virginia and not SE PA (I am really thankful). I mean seriously, everything is still deeply asleep here as of today and we are certainly not colder than basically anywhere in Ohio and only a bit more consistently cold than N VA.

Further, we should be having chilly late fall like conditions over the next 10 days (after today's summer weather) and I see no reason any my potted stuff should start to move if left in the shade, near the ground where it is. I am sure buds on all the landscape and forest stuff will slowly start to progress though.

You have some super(!) nice trees, Rockm, might be time to look into a dedicated room with a cold bot for your deciduous stuff, if this has become a yearly problem in the spring. That way you can maintain an appropriate temperature for the entire duration of dormancy until temperatures outside are truly safe. This would eliminate concerns about extreme killing cold in winter and killing freezes after growth commences in spring. Just set the thermostat, put each tree in the room after leaf drop and keep them watered.

Ha! I am not going to invest the room or the money for a cold room. The climate is what it is. I Already pay heavily to store a live oak in a cold greenhouse for the winter. Everything else is going to have to rough it.

It was 85 degrees yesterday in my backyard. Some stuff is still tightly closed. Amur maples went from tight to open in two days. We aren't forecast to be below freezing for a while, at least until next week, then things get dicier.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news...uld-peak-early-in-d-c/?utm_term=.ee1258c1363e

 

[Dav4]

Fwiw, every tree I own in a pot, including my pines is moving right now, with the possible exception of my water elms. Many of my in ground tridents have leaves as well. There aren't enough sheets in my neighborhood to cover them all in case of a freeze, so...