March 2023 in the Northern Hemisphere

[MarcR]

Robert,

We will be praying both that there is no flooding, and for protection on you and your property.

[Robert]

We can monitor the height of the flow on both the American and Sacramento Rivers near our home on an hourly basis. Reservoir capacity can be checked on a daily basis.

3 inches of rain on top of 8 inches of liquid equivalents in the snow below 4,000 feet is a lot of water for a 24-hour time period. The snow level is forecasted to be up to 6,000 to 6,500 feet. That is even more runoff! UUUGG! 

Now to see what happens. 

[Mariette]

Robert and Jasmin, I do admire the way You cope with the extremes of weather, a tradition in USA unknown over here, and even more precious regarding the changes of recent years.

Jasmin, the way You treasure plants given by friends or relatives adds a dimension to Your garden unknown by those who reduce their judgement to design. A garden should have a soul, not just a plain surface - I feel, that´s what You both are practising with Your management and projects. Unfortunately, the variety of our regional flora is  very poor and no inspiration for similar projects.

This winter was rather mild, also devoid of snowfall till last night. Fritillaria ´Vivaldi´ never met snow before in my garden.



Muscari and primulas in snow are rather unfamiliar, also.



A nice seedling of Arum maculatum.

[Mariette]

Robert, I marvel at Your beautiful Erythronium multiscapideum! My plant remains for about 10 years the same, just one or two stalks, reliable, but not satisfactory. Also, Your floriferous plants have more substantial flowers - a pity, these selections seem not to be available over here!

Some bulbs withstanding the snow, this is Corydalis caucasica ex Turkey.



´Borodino´with its more substantial flowers maybe ssp caucasica.



Scilla bifolia is a German native.



I´m happy that Scilla mesopotamica seems to be hardy in our area.



Another scilla I received without proper name.

[MarcR]

Mariette,

The Scillas are lovely. I have not had much interest in them till now.
I hadn't realized they started so early. By next fall I will have some planted.
Thank you for bringing them to my attention.

[Leena]

The cold air that has reached Aberdeen and Germany is also here. Nights have been cold, -17C last night and more snow. Right now it is still -16C, with clear blue sky and sun. Plants are safely under snow though the first snowdrops tried to show their noses before the new 20cm of snow.

Cold weather in California was also in the news here, but it is interesting to read Roberts and Jasmins writings about weather and your native plants.

[Robert]

10 March 2023

Sacramento, California

We had some moderate to heavy rainfall last night, however the heavy rain forecasted for today has not materialized. The water level on the Sacramento River barely rose, from 12.08 feet yesterday to 14.92 feet this morning. Monitor stage is 27.5 feet, Flood stage is 33.5 feet and Danger stage is 34.5 feet (Danger = over the top of the levee!!) Much of the low elevation snow in Sierra Nevada Mountains to the east of Sacramento is still intact. It appears that the brunt of the rainfall and flooding might occur in the Southern San Joaquin Valley and Southern California well to the south of our area. Despite the heavy rainfall being forecasted for Monday, the threat of flooding for our Sacramento home is over.

[Jasmin]:  So says my beloved husband.  This weather has been ongoing since the end of December.  Some of the worst flood risks are still to come, from other storms and from the snowmelt if extreme heat comes soon to the area.  I refuse to unpack our emergency evacuation bags.  They still have room for more items, so my packing skills are still intact.
     The winds last night did not promote a good, peaceful sleep.  Most of the outside seemed intact, so it looks better than after the January winds.  The small greenhouse cloche was blown open, and the framing lifted out of the ground.  Robert easily reconfigured it, and the tiny plants seem unfazed.  The Morea flowers look a bit tattered, and have that translucent look that petal acquire when in wet and cold storms such as these.

Mariette,

Thank you for the positive comment regarding my Deer Valley selection of Erythronium multiscapideum. I agree, it is a very good selection. It is satisfying to have a nice plant selection after such a great deal of time and sustained effort went into this simple seedling selection. It is unfortunate this selection propagates asexually very slowly. In addition, I am still evaluating its potential to pass on its better phenotype traits to its offspring. The details of the breeding system and inheritance of phenotype traits for Erythronium multiscapideum is still something I need to work out. It is a very slow process. A great deal of very creative horticultural activity takes place in the northwestern part of North America. Maybe Marc Rosenblum can shed some light on their progress with this species. Frequently I find out that there are already clones that far exceed the quality of anything I have. Development of superior plant selections is a slow and ever ongoing process. One of the Johnny’s Selected Seeds recent catalogs had a graphic of this timeline and process for Winter Squash varieties. The same general process takes place with other plant species.

The photographs of the plants blooming yet surrounded by snow were very beautiful. One of those priceless ephemeral moments!

[Jasmin]:  I think Robert and I are the few who have any awareness of the climate in this area.  If we were transported to your area, we would have to begin all over again, learning what grows and what does not. 
     While your regional flora is a great unknown due to so many centuries of human activities, you can at least cultivate something that calls to your heart and inspires you. 
     Everywhere there is climate change, and the insanities of politics, hateful attitudes and behaviors.  Here Robert and I are astounded by the hate-filled rhetoric coming out of certain politicians, who sound like the fascists and dictators from our parents’ generation.  You have a war to the east, and we all have inflation, and refugees.   
     Perhaps it is these things that further impel us to create something beautiful, and meaningful, a proclamation for peace.  While we cannot control others and their choices, we can control our thoughts, and demonstrate that peace and beauty are choices anyone can make.
     Certainly, from your photographs you create something beautiful, with lovely combinations of colors and textures.  The snow really formed a striking background.

Leena:

[Jasmin]:  Both Robert and I enjoy your weather observations, and garden submissions.  We can follow the weather as it makes its way around the globe:  We do hope that by the time you get “our” weather it is not nearly as dramatic as it has been here.  I will be glad to not be in the news, and just share news of the garden—preferably some Spring!



I was working up at our Placerville property yesterday. Before the rain started falling in earnest I was able to take a few photographs between raindrops.

In our Sacramento garden most of the Erythronium multiscapideum are in full bloom. On our Placerville property they have just recently emerged from the ground.



Micranthes californica will be blooming with the next set of sunny days. It is difficult to get good photographs between raindrops!



On our property, the flowers of Arctostaphylos viscida ssp. viscida are now starting to open. In our area some plants will start blooming as early as late December. A whole succession of flowers will open on different plants from late December to May depending on the location and elevation. This blooming sequence helps provides a steady supply of nectar for our native resident Anna’s Hummingbirds and many native insect species.



The first flowers on Primula (Dodecatheon) hendersonii are starting to open.



Ranunculus occidentalis var. oocidentalis is starting to bloom too. When there are many wet season in a row, without drought, thousands of blooming plants can fill our property. It is an amazing sight.

[MarcR]

10 March 2023

Sacramento, California
..........

Mariette,

Thank you for the positive comment regarding my Deer Valley selection of Erythronium multiscapideum. I agree, it is a very good selection. It is satisfying to have a nice plant selection after such a great deal of time and sustained effort went into this simple seedling selection. It is unfortunate this selection propagates asexually very slowly. In addition, I am still evaluating its potential to pass on its better phenotype traits to its offspring. The details of the breeding system and inheritance of phenotype traits for Erythronium multiscapideum is still something I need to work out. It is a very slow process. A great deal of very creative horticultural activity takes place in the northwestern part of North America. Maybe Marc Rosenblum can shed some light on their progress with this species. Frequently I find out that there are already clones that far exceed the quality of anything I have. Development of superior plant selections is a slow and ever ongoing process.
............

Robert,

I have limited knowledge of the subject. I know that Oregon State University has a program involving native species in which, rather than hybridizing they do selective breeding to strengthen desirable qualities. I don't know which species they are working with or what their specific approach is. If you like I could drive to Corvallis [about 30 miles] and inquire.

[Robert]

Marc

Thank you for offering to drive over; however, please do not go through this effort: It is my experience that there is a great deal of secrecy and competition among plant breeders, and especially at the university level.  While I have read about some of the ornamental breeding work taking place at Oregon State University, and it does sound fascinating, I doubt there would be much willingness to discuss these activities.

I still have a great deal of work to accomplish with Erythronium multiscapideum. Some preliminary results suggest that the phenotypes of compact growth and abundant flowers are polygenetic and recessive. Most of my F2 offspring have the relatively rapid multiplying, few flowers phenotypes. This seems no better than the seed lines that are available to Mariette, and perhaps others in Europe. This is speculation, based on what little information I have.

[Mariette]

Robert, having done a bit of hybridising myself, I really do admire the targets You are aiming at and the knowledge and patience it takes to achieve them!

[Mariette]

[Jasmin]: 
   
Leena:

[Jasmin]:  Both Robert and I enjoy your weather observations, and garden submissions.  We can follow the weather as it makes its way around the globe:  We do hope that by the time you get “our” weather it is not nearly as dramatic as it has been here. 

This reminds me of a neighbouring farmer who said that her mother - she would be about 130 years old nowadays  - said that the weather prevailing in North America would be the same as ours 4 weeks later.

[shelagh]

Just to prove we can get a Hepatica to flower outdoors in Bury. It's not quite up to the standard of our Sewell Medal winning 6 pan. Maybe next year. Sorry to boast Re medal but we've not much to boast about.

[MarcR]

Just to prove we can get a Hepatica to flower outdoors in Bury. It's not quite up to the standard of our Sewell Medal winning 6 pan. Maybe next year. Sorry to boast Re medal but we've not much to boast about.

Shelagh,

It seems worthy of boasting to me.

[Leena]

Shelagh, your potted Hepaticas are amazingly floriferous!!

Here it is still snowy, but temperatures are rising so I hope to see snowdrops in couple of weeks.
In the earliest spot they are peaking through snow.

Last week one night there were northern lights even in the south of Finland.
My husband took these pictures of them.

[shelagh]

Thank you Marc R and Leena. Looking at the snow levels you have had amaze us. I think we've had an inch, just one, all winter.