I suppose, as you can see from the forecast for the next few days, that we are finally leaving winter behind here in Kansas. Ninety-one degrees, that's 91°F(!) predicted for tomorrow. It is a wonder to me, sometimes, that I can grow anything at all here in the Flint Hills as I look at the temperature fluctuations that my poor plants undergo. Just for grins, I checked back over the past 43 odd days at the official weathersource.com data to the first of April to see how many days that the maximum temperature hit 70°F or above here. In the past 43 days, there were 10 days at 70° or above, with five of those days very early in April, from April 5-9th. On April 10th, the maximum temperature was 35°, a 38 degree difference in highs in 24 hours. On the 13th and 14th, we were back to the 70's and then on April 18th, the high was 39° again. On April 21st, there was a single day of 70°F, snow on April 23rd, and then on May 7th and 8th it was 76° and 77°, dropping back a little bit into the 60's before our current warm spell.
So, out there somewhere in my garden, I've got a bunch of new little rose plants that have barely seen the 70° mark in weeks, that haven't had to develop much in the way of a root system, and now they've got to survive at least a solid week in the 80's and even 90's. And, although the drought is easing here, there are a bunch of already-stressed mature plants who will be whipsawed further by the temperatures and wind. I guess ProfessorRoush is going to be doing some watering, whether he likes it or not.
I'll remind my readers that on April 23rd, 20 short days ago, at 9:10 a.m., my garden looked like this:
And now the temperature is going to be 91°F tomorrow? I'll put those temperature fluctuations up against any other spot in the country, maybe in the world. It is no wonder that the commercial horticultural test plots in Kansas City are so popular; as one K-State horticulturist is fond of saying, "the big nurseries know if it performs well here, it will perform well anywhere in the United States." Listen up, all you mail-order nurseries, now you know why I want plants sent sooner than your Zone-conditioned schedules, in order to get new babies acclimated before the hot weather hits. So don't give me any grief the next time I want band roses a month ahead of when you want to send them. You know who you are.
Hi,
ReplyDeleteThis is off the above subject but I felt I had to respond to your writings on Sally Holmes. I live in Oregon, zone 7/8, 60 miles from the coast. I have Sally in my backyard in dappled shade and the bush is currently 8 feet tall and is in the process of being attached to a trellis. The buds are a beautiful apricot and the flowers themselves are blush pink in the center. This past winter (Jan-Mar) when we had what was a bad freeze ( 25 degrees) it was still blooming. I wish you had better luck with it, and I also wish people that write professionally would seriously take into account the fact that not all zones are compatible with roses. I loved looking at your roses and reading your blog. I've bookmarked it:)
Well, the genus Rosa is one of the most widespread in the world,with species native to all continents except for Antarctica, so I'm not sure about your zone compatibility statement. What is true is that some roses are better adapted to some climates than others. And, sigh, almost all roses grow better in Oregon than here in Kansas. I've been to Oregon and found that I can't recognize roses that grow in my own garden...so much bigger and fuller there. So I'll concede that Sally Holmes has her place in the world...in England and in Oregon, evidently.
DeleteFrom snow to 90's in 20 days is quite the warm up! I often wonder how little plants (or even big ones) can survive in such drastic fluctuations. I, too, get discouraged buying perennials from some mail order nurseries when they don't deliver plants until it's so very hot here. One popular perennial nursery I've completely stopped buying from because the plants just couldn't adapt.
ReplyDeleteI have too.
DeleteA little over a week ago, we had a temp fluctuation of 37 Friday night low to an 81 Saturday afternoon high here in Texas. That's just too wacky for May around here. We've had several record breaking lows for this time of year here and believe me, my gardens are confused and looking puny. This Texas gardener shares your frustration!
ReplyDeleteHit a nerve, didn't I?
DeleteOn a positive note...I was gifted with the "Empress of the Garden" book for Mothers' Day and love it! So much fun to read about not only new roses, but a more in depth description of those I already grow. I've read and enjoyed several you have suggested in past posts so when you mention a book, folks should pay attention. Thanks!
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