I love snow. It is so beautiful and peaceful. But, it definitely stresses my plants and trees out! I’ve picked up and dragged many large doug fir branches off the victims (hoping none of my hellebore flower stems have been smashed) in my garden and driveway. I took a broom yesterday and gently shook off all the snow from small conifers and delicate shrubs, even young rhododendrons needed a sweep. Some of my rose bushes were pushing bud growth, but it looks like the drop in temperature has blasted those cells beyond repair.

There are several tender plants I brought in to my garage in preparation of the snow and cold weather and my efforts paid off. Everything is fairing well in the corner all huddled up. I have more heat mats that I am going to utilize later on in the season when I start seeds. Right now, I have two large lights set up and two heat mats, which fit up to four 10”x20” rectangle flats and I have many cuttings of fuchsias and a few hebes, and tender annuals. I also have an entire dining table full of hand-collected seed, majority from my own yard.

Today, I am finally on the computer again, creating a spreadsheet outlining my seed inventory, when to plant, germination rate, when it will salable/harvest, and at what soil temp for better germination. I know this document will be very valuable now and for the future. Despite the snow, I am super excited for spring! When we get back from Kauai, I will be starting a lot of my spring/summer annuals (I’ve even got some petunias). I will be posting my 2020 unique tomato collection very soon, available only at Maple Tree Corner.

Until next time

Alison

Northwest Botanista