Many of the club’s members had questions about effects of last winter’s
bitter cold. Our most trusted herbaceous perennials are having a slow time
returning… with some not returning at all.

Many perennials seem to have succumbed to record cold temperatures.

Mexican Heather, Lantana, and Pride of Barbados are just a short list

of plants which may not return and will need to be replaced.

Location plays a great part in how plants respond to the cold. Southern
exposures close to the house are often the safest place to plant question-
able perennials.

Extremes of cold will often be the unprotected north side plantings, and
in rural areas away from the city. My flat parcel of land in northern Hays
County got a light frost last Friday morning (April 9)… even when down-
town Austin was in the low forties.

We seem to have been lulled into a false sense of security by the last 10
years of mild winters. Every year we plant more and more plants that are
suitable for zones 8 and 9 – south of San Antonio to Brownsville. This year
we had a zone 6 winter. Oklahoma came to visit!

Oh well.  That’s what makes gardening fun and interesting. Always some-
thing new to try. When native landscaping started to become popular  10
to 15 years ago, we had just 3 colors of Autumn Sage to choose from.
Now there are more than 30.

Don’t dig up your sago palms yet. Our 10 degree weather didn’t last
long enough to kill the trunks. Just cut off the dead foliage and a new flush
of growth should appear sometime in late April or May. Continue to water
them on occasion. Have a good gardening weekend. I hope, for my tomatoes
and peppers sake, that the last frost is behind us. Happy gardening everyone!