Monday, April 1, 2013

:: Frost Bitten ...Now What? ::

So the week before last, I showed you pictures of things blooming in and around my yard. 

Then last week over night on Tuesday; we had a Spring freeze. 
I'm kind of feeling like a Sustainability FAILURE! 

I showed you one of my Wisteria bushes. 
Beautiful! 

This is what it looked like by mid afternoon; after the freeze. 
Brown and yucky. Still pretty fragrant over the next day or so... but definitely frost bitten. 
I don't think Wisteria is something for the diet...but still, I felt sorry to lose those blooms so early. 
This plant  brings the POLLINATORS and LOTS of them. So still... a loss. 

While it is brown and there were still some purple petals on the bush... it was still pretty even in it's frost bitten state. 


The other thing I showed you were my potatoes. 
They weren't huge yet...but the were just getting started good! 


See all the brown spots below? 
Yep. Frost bitten potatoes. 
We were going to EAT THOSE potatoes!!! 

This grape vine also was frost bitten. 


I didn't get a picture of the Corn. However, it did somehow survive. 
I hope to show you a picture of our corn later in the week. 

I still have a lot to learn about sustainability, homesteading...and prioritizing. 
Oh, and weather watching--apparently there is something to be said about the Old men at the Gas Station sitting around the diner, drinking coffee and talking about the weather. 


Other thing I noticed frost bitten were the tender new leaves on the fig tree! That is a hardy and well established tree, the larger leaves that had been there longer are still going strong. I expect the fig crop to do fine. Our new apple trees survived too. I attribute that to the good soaking the roots had previously gotten.

*Update...already! These pictures are a week old, so this morning after posting, working in the yard, I noticed almost every brown spot where there had been a potato plant...there is green! 

So will the potatoes send up more plants? The potatoes are coming back. 
 Do I need to till it under and start over?  Looks like NO. :)
Do you think the grapes will come back? Still not sure about the grapes.

I've got a little bit of research to do on these matters.
Any ideas and suggestions... GREATLY APPRECIATED.



Draw near unto God and He will draw near unto you. ~James 4:8 


 

13 comments:

Diane said...

What a shame! I have covered young flowers with old towels in my life due to frost warnings. Don't know if your things will come back or not. Best of luck with that!

Robyn said...

I wish I could offer you some advice but alas I still have a black thumb.. I am so sorry about your Wisteria tree though :( It was SO darn pretty!!..Hopefully the potatoes will come back and everything will regrow.. I hate to see this happen :(

Echoes From the Hill said...

It's so hard to have a nice crop started and then have a freeze. We lose our apricots nearly every year. My parents had a large peach orchard and the last three years my dad was alive, the peach blossoms froze. Other years they had a bumper crop. Mother Nature is fickle!
Hope your crops come back!
nancyr

The Polka Dot Closet said...

I think if we leave it up to nature everything will come back. I know here in Orlando we had really cold weather last week that was so unseasonable. Crazy weather, I love your wisteria tree even frozen, I would cut off the old blooms and wait for the new to come. I think you are doing a great job, it is so fun to watch

Carol

Liz said...

So sorry to read the dirty trick mother nature pulled on you! That tree was so pretty covered in purple! I hope the new potato shoots don't get zapped again!

Carlene @ Organized Clutter said...

Sorry about your plants. We are having a very long winter here in Minnesota. Still lots of snow on the ground.

Sandy said...

Thank goodness it's all coming back..
I would have expected you, of all people
to be out there blowing heat on all your
plants or covering them? I had a freeze
warning last week also and every towel
and sheet went outside.. looked like
Halloween...haha
Saved by April
love the photos
Sandy

My Repurposed Life said...

what a shame! I hope the taters do okay. Of course I have nothing to offer as far as advice goes. :)
flying over your house soon... watch for me :)

Liz @ Quirky Vistas said...

Wow, that's disappointing, but it's good to see things are looking hopeful. I wish I had suggestions. I am learning from you!
Liz

dl@frugalhacks.com said...

I find gardening in Texas to be quite challenging. I need to plant early enough so things produce before the heavy heat sets in, but if too early, frost and freezing may visit. I lost two tomato plants before I was wise enough to cover the remaining ones with buckets. I removed them in the morning and the plants did fine.

Hoping your potato crops still produces well!

Art and Sand said...

I would be a total failure at growing my own food especially if the weather was iffy. I would also be so sad if I saw all my hard work destroyed. I am glad that you are seeing spots of color. I hope the next time you show the areas above, that they are green and thriving.

Revi said...

Glad to hear about your potatoes!
I hope everything comes back for you...
-Revi

Cindy said...

That is not the kind of surprise that I would want to see in my garden! Hard to believe that you would get a killer frost way down in Texas. I wonder what the "global warming" people are saying now?
I hope it all comes back, if the potatoes are, then perhaps everything else will too. Keep us posted on the wisteria vine.
Love and hugs, Cindy