March 2018 Northern Hemisphere

[ikizzeki]

Hi Robert,
Sorry to say but I dont have any knowledge obout it. Exactly I dont know it..

[Gerdk]

Very nice Gerd, what size does it grow to please?

Thank you, David - the size here is about 2 m (with some pruning). I guess the shrub is able to reach  twice as much.

Gerd

[Robert]

Hi Robert,
Sorry to say but I dont have any knowledge obout it. Exactly I dont know it..

  Thank you for the answer!  For me, no knowledge is better than no answer.    I appreciate your time, and the Aristolochia photographs you shared were very interesting. Thank you again.

[Maggi Young]

If Maggi said that liked it,  means 'This is an order' to me
Here is more pictures..

 

The leaves are as interesting as the flowers - thanks for the extra pictures!   

[Hoy]

How deeply is the ground frozen? In the lower elevations of California, if it freezes deeply there is much plant damage, especially to many container grown plants.

Robert, I don't know! But it is more than 10cm but less than 20cm I guess. March has been very cold, the average is 2.4C below normal. Last night we got 10cm wet snow



Covered by 10 cm of wet snow this morning but a lot of it has melted during the day.

[GordonT]

Now that it is officially "Spring", winter has decided to come back for a visit, the fourth Nor'easter in two weeks, with a possibility of a fifth storm early next week. Thankfully, there is always the sun room to brighten the mood. 'Miranda', our Nepenthes hybrid is doing very well, and it has been fascinating simply watching the traps form! Nepenthes x 'Miranda is a hybrid of x Mixta (northiana x maxima) x maxima, in case anyone is curious.

[Robert]

Robert, I don't know! But it is more than 10cm but less than 20cm I guess. March has been very cold, the average is 2.4C below normal.

Trond,

For many northern regions having the ground freeze to a depth of 10-20 cm or more is nothing unusual. This seems like it might be a bit unusual for your part of Norway? Perhaps I am incorrect in my assessment. 

[Hoy]

Trond,

For many northern regions having the ground freeze to a depth of 10-20 cm or more is nothing unusual. This seems like it might be a bit unusual for your part of Norway? Perhaps I am incorrect in my assessment. 

Robert,

It is normal for most of Norway to have the ground frozen to several feet during winter. But here at the west coast this happens not every year and especially not for a prolonged period. This winter, especially the last month, we have had 4 periods of extreme cold air coming from NE. Once or twice during the winter is not uncommon, but several in row and late in the season, is.The average temperature for the last 30 days is 2.4C lower than normal (normal = average of 1960 to 1990 which was a cold period).

[Robert]

Hi Trond,

Here in our part of California, temperatures are running 2.14 C below average in March. This is very close to the 2.4 C you are experiencing. Right now it is raining with snow just up the mountain. Warm spring weather will be arriving in a few days.

I am not sure how deeply the ground freezes in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. This would be something very interesting to investigate.

[Yann]

The garden wake up slowly, Pulsatilla halleri subsp slavica is slow to expend, this is my favorite one

[Robert]

After some much appreciated stormy weather, the skies have now cleared and temperatures are rising.



A nice mat-forming Potentilla species with attractive gray foliage.



Tulipa clusiana opening with sunny skies.



Tulipa clusiana chrysantha is another easy-to-grow Tulip.



A pot full of Lomatium utriculatum seedlings showing a few flowers. 

[ian mcdonald]

Corydalis Beth Evans? and C. malkensis.

[Maggi Young]

Corydalis Beth Evans  and C. malkensis are two that are worth a place in any garden, I think.  Great early  interest then dying back to leave room for something later!

[Robert]

Spring weather has arrived to the Central Valley of Northern California. Temperatures have climbed to 80 - 83 F (26.7 - 28.3 C).



I did a good seed increase of Eschscholzia caespitosa and scattered the seed in favorable sites about our Sacramento garden.
The first flowers of this California native annual have opened with many more to come. I was even pleased when some sprouted as volunteers in some of our caontainers.



Eschscholzia lobbii 'Sundew'

I have several containers with Eschscholzia lobbii 'Sundew'. I hope to have plenty of seed to scatter around in the garden this autumn. It is a charming little annual that will easily reseed in the garden if given a good location.



Another batch of Triteleia laxa seedlings have grown large enough to bloom. Our local populations have started to bloom too. In the Sierra Nevada Foothills where the farm is located Triteleia laxa and Dichelostemma capitatum bloom more or less at the same time (in a few more weeks), followed by Dichelostemma volubile, then finishing in late May to early June with Brodiaea elegans ssp. elegans.



Tulipa clusiana 'Peppermint Stick' in our front yard.



One more photograph of Siyrinchium bellum. Good forms like this one bloom for many weeks with many flowers. Common but well worth space in our garden. This species is tolerant of summer irrigation or can be 100% xeric.

[Steve Garvie]

Pulsatilla vernalis -first flowers opening.


Townsendia spathulata