April 25, 2021- a freeze in April-it happens

There is a reason you do not plant tomato plants in April.

We had a freeze Tuesday night. I wonder what is the line between and frost and a freeze? It is out there somewhere.

Whatever it was, it had been predicted for a week. Back to back nights with temperatures in the upper 20's. Knowing it is coming puts a damper on gardening. For one thing time has to be taken in bring plants inside and possibly covering plants in the ground.

I took the houseplants, who had been on or close to the porch, inside. What are garages for? I also brought in the poppy seedlings that have been waiting to go in the ground.

I then mostly did not cover anything. I wish I had. One reason I did not cover more things is where would I start. 

So I now will write down what needs to be covered.

Certain plants were not affected by temperatures that certainly dipped into the 20's. There was some damage.  Most spring bulbs were not bothered. Most perennials were not bothered...except for hosta that was up and unfurled. I knew they could get toasted but I thought it would be at lower temperatures. Other perennials that toasted a little were the Korean Fairy bells and, much to my surprise, the toad lilies.

I will try to write it down somewhere, to bring out next April to remind myself what to cover.

Sunday

So many glorious flowers.

This is a trillum.

I really like this daffodil with its flare. It is probably poeticus var. recurvus. I think the name means it is a species (found in the wild sometime/somewhere).

.

I was playing with the focus with this picture.

The crown imperial fritillaria are good.

They are the closest thing to a Dr. Seuss plant in the garden.

This is a wonderful late double daffodil.

Tuesday

I planted lettuce at the 'farm', as we call our little garden plot. I thought that a good way to celebrate the coming freeze. Now we just need the rain to have the seed germinate. There was some in the forecast for Friday. It would not materialize. We are now 2 weeks since the last rain. The lettuce seed will wait.

We had 2+inches of rain 2 weekends ago. Nothing since. The garden wood chip paths have a disconcerting crunch to them.

Wednesday

We had waited for it with the anticipation of the wait for the first real snowstorm. Well, most gardeners felt that way. I wonder how many of us there are sometimes. 3%?

Frost/Freeze

32 at 5 on our front porch where the thermometer is located

29 at 6  

32 at 7

Officially it was 27, according to the TV weather people.  The extension service measured somewhere in "Iowa City" at 23.

The tulips were not harmed, at all. Some did bend over while it was happening.

They would be upright by the next day.

While others bent down, this double daffodil stood as straight as could be.

A pending freeze/frost does reduce garden enthusiam. 

I did use this time to look up species tulips. We have a few and I wondered if the deer would find them less tasty that their hybrid distant cousins.  The anwer is yes. They just moved closer to the top of my 'get more' list. Here are two that bloomed this spring.

This next one has formed a nice clump over the last 5 years. Notice the shadow of the flower, and a neighbor daffodil that I did not include in the picture.

If you are even thinking about species tulips look up tulipa acuminata. It looks like one I must have.

Thursday

The second night of frost warning only got to 33 according to KCRG.

Friday

The Monsella tulips have been a show stopper. Actually they are walker stoppers. People walking down the sidewalk will stop and stare. There are extra garden points if you can get a teenage to stop on the way to school. This last year that traffic has not been much.

Now for the Monsella tulips. They just keep going.

Saturday

This double red tulip is one of those that do come back every year. These mostly solitary tulips have overcome genetics and somehow just come back. They are appreciated for their splash of color.

The anemone blandas continue. One reason for that has been the cooler weather. We are having a two day warm spell starting early in the week. It is to get into the 80's. Many flowers will be finishing.

This is another one of those solitary tulips. Sometimes their presentation is better when they are closed up for the evening.

What is coming?

Tree Peonies

Camassia

Little bearded iris

Slipper orchids

Julia's recipe

Blueberry sauce

Sometimes toward the end of the winter one surveys what remains in the freezer, other than pork or salmon or other proteins bought in bulk. I find frozen corn and pesto and chicken stock but also frozen fruit. Some of the fruit (like the quarts of chopped up rhubarb or early season apples) was frozen to permit winter pie making, and I still need to make a few pies. I also have frozen berries, some of which we froze and some of which I bought when the Maine folks were in town. Maisie like to suck on bluberries (it's a baby thing) so I got a big bag of wild organic blueberries from Maine. We did not use up 3 lbs. of wild organic blueberries from Maine, and it was the madness of winter with extra people in the house to think that we would. No problem, however. Blueberries are versatile and amenable to a simple and delicious preparation: sauce that can be served with yogurt. Or custard or ice cream or eaten straight from the bowl. 

The ingredients: 

4 cups of frozen bluberries (origin up to you);

1/2 cup of white sugar;

1 heaping tablespoon of corn starch.

I poured the berries into a saucepan (I used a saucier - a saucepan with a rounded bottom to avoid having to stir in corners). I added the sugar and then the cornstarch.

I turned the heat on to low-medium and stirred the mixture. No need to add any liquid, as the berries will provide as they melt. 

I cooked the mixture until the berries were melted and the concoction came up to a simmer. I let it simmer for about 1 minute. That's it. 

Blueberry sauce in a bowl, to be served over a dollop of yogurt. 

You could do this with other berries or peaches or cherries. I think 1/2 cup sugar per quart of fruit is good. Maybe a little less for peaches and a little more for sour cherries. 

Use up the accumulated frozen fruit of winter to make room for the fruit to come. 

Odds and ends

I am out of compost. I used up my supply and with much disappointment discovered the city's so called "endless supply" has been exhausted. The sign at the landfill said "no compost until June 1". I found this out Saturday when I drove out there. I am working on Plan B. The lack of compost is a problem as I am just starting to pot up hosta. They take a lot of dirt.

There are now plenty of dandelions. 

The forecast is now all above 40 (after last night.) It is getting close to time to put out annuals.

How about this wonderful tree, we passed on our way to work.

It is getting to be  time to publish this sequence of random thoughts. It is 5:45 here in Iowa City and it is getting light out. It is 36 degrees out right now. After this morning there are no more 30's in the forcast. 

I wonder how many of you will read to this end of the post.

It is always so good to hear from any of you.

Be safe.

Philip