Been a while since I checked in here...

Wxman- Looks like you got/are getting what we had Wednesday night. Frost in outlying areas several weeks early. Record low here actually. We hit 36.9 briefly for the low at my place Wednesday night! Glad I don't live north of the twin cities where they saw upper 20s! It was nothing though, tomatoes even look fine following it. Bananas- no problem. 49.7 low last night and warming into the weekend, so it was only a one-night event. We have at least a couple/few weeks before digging up the bananas. 6-8 more weeks until the trachies will need to be covered. I did cover the pool for the season yesterday though. Have to get well ahead of all those damn maple leaves dropping or it is a real mess. We went from 90f and A/C on Monday to having to turn on the furnace for the first time this season on Wednesday evening. Tis the season...

On a different note- It looks like we will probably be picking up a house in Z10b this fall. We have an offer in on a short-sale awaiting the bank's approval. Now is the time before real estate continues to rise again in SW Florida. They dropped and bottomed out much earlier than most of the rest of the US. To be able to buy an ocean front home with dock and lift in the back yard (gulf access on the mouth of the Caloosahatchee in S. Cape Coral) for less than 1/4 of what they sold for in 2005 is just too good to pass up. I think it is going to get very interesting for my palm hobby. Maintaining tall coconut palms/royals/foxtails at one place, and my cold-hardy stuff here in MN. 35f was the all time record low there.

Sounds great! Keep us updated and share photos. We'll grow tropicals vicariously.

Kory

Can you pick me up a house too! 8)

Congrats...a house in a 10b zone.
That's all our dreams 😀

My LaCrosse wireless remote in the heated palm hut kept kicking out last winter...an hour later it was back on.
Will try Lithium batteries this year, hope that works better.

Barb

Only fell to 39.2F on Wed night and 43.8F last night. Had a frost advisory last night, but it never verified.

Thank god.

Growing season continues...

Hardyjim, great pics of how you overiwinter. Do you fill the snow fence with leaves? or encase it with something?

I'm new, and going to try and over winter 1-small(1ft) seedling in wire, filled with shredded leaves, and the other (about 2 1/2ft) tall in insulated, 1x1 enclosure I have yet to build and fill with a lot of mulch and light bulb.

If I don't kill the one big one, I'll over plant the rest I have (3 big ones) in the ground in the spring.

Scott/Omaha

Kory

Can you pick me up a house too! 8)

8) Actually if someone wanted a place that didn't have to have a dock with ocean access, like across the street from the gulf access homes in the same neighborhood, there are 3/2/2 2000sqft houses for $65k that were built in the 2000s. Really nice ones with enclosed pools for under $100k. I just can't get over the fact that the houses that actually sold for $500+k in 2005/2006 are in the low to mid $100s now. And the quarter-million+ not on the water homes are well under $100k now. Investors are really starting to scoop them up though. I can't believe the banks are still in business when all these short sales and foreclosures are selling for hundreds of thousands of dollars less than what is owed on them.

If this all works out (fingers crossed) I think I'll have the greenest jungle of a yard down there before long.

Hardyjim, great pics of how you overiwinter. Do you fill the snow fence with leaves? or encase it with something?

I'm new, and going to try and over winter 1-small(1ft) seedling in wire, filled with shredded leaves, and the other (about 2 1/2ft) tall in insulated, 1x1 enclosure I have yet to build and fill with a lot of mulch and light bulb.

If I don't kill the one big one, I'll over plant the rest I have (3 big ones) in the ground in the spring.

Scott/Omaha

If you are going to use a light you probably don't want leaves in there.

You need to wrap your palm with burlap so the leaves are not touching it.

Then pack in leaves then put a cover on the top to keep it dry.

I added a layer of bubble wrap,then foam insulation and then another bubble
wrap layer covered in plastic.

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I opened it up when warm enough to let them breath.

Ok, so you just wrap the trunk with burlap, and leave the fronds alone, other than tying them up and together?

How did you create the "dome" at the top? Of all the pics I've seen, I really like yours. It's simple, not expensive and sure looks like it could work. Problem for me with other palms I have..is height. Already they are over fence height, but they are in pots that I will put in garage this winter anyway.

I had planned on leaves for a mulch(shredded) maybe a foot or so deep, and then hang the light from above. Maybe a 40w? light?

Also planning on buying and getting put up a 6x8 greenhouse on a concrete pad I have. Not going to put plants in it yet this winter, but simply hang a 100w light bulb in there with a wireless temp sender as an experiment. One other forum member said a 100w light kept his same type greenhouse in the high 20's at the coldest, and the coldest he got at his house outside was mid-teens. I see too that you can now buy a miniature halogen table light 250w for under $10. Might try that too, and see what temp I can keep it inside. Then, depending on what I find...decide to store potted plants in there next winter.

It's all about trying things I guess and sharing with other members. Your pics are a HUGE help though. Big thanks.

Scott

Scott,
yes, Jim is a huge help.
Here is a round of applause for him
:hello1:

At 6 a.m. today it was 4.5C (40.1F).
BRRRRRRR!

Bet the Bottle Palms, Foxtails, Spindles, Triangles, etc. didn't enjoy that!

Barb

Thanks Erik 🙂

I was referring to your leaf cage if that is what your talking about????

I don't think one light is going to provide much if any real heat in that size enclosure.

I got about 10F above outside temp with a 100wt spot and a 40x40" unbrella
G-house-it all comes down to insulation.

The "dome" top is a trash can lid,it has 2 layers of 1' bubble wrap and
a burlap coffee bag to keep moisture from tripping on the palms/also
to help with insulation.

This winter I will use the same structure for the Washys but I will add a few more
lights and a little more height.

I like to make what I use and always have some way of ventilating it...with
how cold the last few winters have bee I have not been able to do it much
but every little bit helps!

Temps for the last 72 hours, starting with the 16th (this morning was 3C at teh airport
Max Temp: 15.9 °C
Min Temp: -4.1 °C
Mean Temp: 5.9 °C

15th

Max Temp: 12.9 °C
Min Temp: -2.4 °C
Mean Temp: 5.3 °C

14th

Max Temp: missing
Min Temp: -0.3 °C

2 days after this

Max Temp: 30.3 °C
Min Temp: 8.2 °C
Mean Temp: 19.3 °C
Precip Accumulation: 0 mm

The Colocasias/alocasia, all musa and all houseplants were outside. Everything survived, aside form the pumpkin, and cucs, and a few other annuals, so no butthurt. But I can say, the temps in my back yard werent quite as bad. The lowest I recorded was -0.3C. A seedling I tinerans was covered in frost, BUT, 2 days later, is growing (the leaves are toast, cept the new growth). I caught everything else before they went dormant, dug em up before the coldest (I have to assume some places in my yard got to -2C jsut because of temp variations).

I think its quite interesting the Itinerans seedling survived at all. It was covered in frost, yet is now actively growing inside!

Barb, My Ficus Elastica took the cold no problem, no defoliation at all. You palms are fine! FYI, Pygmy Date Palms, can be hit by light frost and not stall. Mine is still going since the temps rebounded! And my money tree is perfect as well.

How did everyone else handle this massive temp drop?