Musings on a Microclimate

The first real cold snap in the little garden is over, and the results are encouraging.  As you can see, temperatures dropped a little below freezing.  They crisped not only the flowers, but also the leaves and branches on the bougainvillea bush that grows against the west side of the house.  (Not to worry, it is fairly sure to come back strongly from the roots.)  Other than the wall, the location offers little protection either in winter or in summer.

The garden itself is on the east side of the patio.  The patio roof shields it from the west, the house wall gives it a little shelter from the north, and a slope allows colder air to drop away more quickly.  That, at least, was the idea when I chose the location.  My experiment with microclimate seems to be working thus far, with tender plants sustaining little or no damage from the frost.

I was rather concerned about the succulents, in particular Senecio "Blue Fingers" in the newly planted corner at the bottom of the garden.  Perhaps a few marks from the cold, but nothing to cry about.  It is looking very vigourous, and the broken-off section that I poked in next to the main plant is settling in well.  I covered both with a bit of hay - the only thing I could get hold of in a hurry - when temperatures dropped low, but no other protection was needed.  I'm not even sure it needed the hay.  Perfectly pleased with itself!

A plant that I had questions about trying at all is the Russelia.  Native to Guatemala and Mexico, it is definitely frost-tender though it is said to come back well from the roots if cut down by a little too much cold.  I positioned it right up next to the patio as I thought the concrete would hold some warmth for it.  I did not so much as cover it with hay, but it has breezed through the cold snap lush and green, as if unaware of anything unusual.  It has, however, held its many buds closed for weeks longer than I expected.  That may have been due to the cold.  Just a few are open.

The newly-planted Penstemon parryi received a little protection.  It is an Arizona native and fully hardy, but I thought it might be damaged simply because it was so freshly planted.  It seemed to feel a bit suffocated under the hay and is much happier now that its stalk is out in the open.

And throughout the garden the flower buds are unscathed.  The rosebuds, predictably, had no objections to a mild freeze.

The Tetraneuris, in the new corner with the Senecio, is smiling.

And the buds on the young Eremophila "Valentine" are still plentiful.

Pardon me for gloating a little.  The results from the first microclimate test are very satisfactory!