Rewind: an unusually hard, but short freeze around December 2, 2009, after a long, relatively warm fall. Very little in the way of freezing temperatures for the rest of the month; much of January and February were very warm.
Fast forward: April had several frosty mornings, colder and wetter than average temperatures.
Results: more weeds than I’ve ever had in the yard, including big crops of maple seedlings. Several “hardy” perennials appear to be dead, though they’ve survived harsher winters; I’m still holding out hope for some of the late-to-wakers. Tender perennials, like some of the sages, I’d expect to lose, even with mulching. Alas, my young apricot tree is diseased with bacterial canker (causal organism: Pseudomonas syringae), probably induced by weather-related stresses. Double rats!
It’s always a puzzler when plants survive typical winter periods of cold temperatures just fine, then die after a winter of milder temperatures. But, that one cold snap came so early in December, with little chilling preparation ahead of it, and some plants physiologically weren’t ready to cope. Sigh….
High Vibe Bounty 