George - I love Fox news also - it's great sport to watch the
interviewer shout down any guest who doesn't agree with their opinion.
I keep wondering why they even ask guests to come on when they really
only want to listen to their own inflated state of the union.
Back to gardens - it's supposed to snow 7 inches tonight, then go down
to 12F - this could be fun since it was up to 34F today - I don't know
how to protect my apple trees from this confusion in temperatures. They
are only baby trees (4 years old and 6 ft. tall). I wrapped their lower
trunks with burlap wrap right after the first frost, but I'm afraid that
their delicate buds will start forming and then get frosted. Anyone
have advice? Arnhild? I know that you grow apple trees and while your
climate is a lot warmer than my # 3 zone - you might have some ideas for
me -
Sorry George - but I can't agree with you and Fox about their being a
"Fair and Balanced" news channel. - Jenny
Most excellent gardeners,
Forgive me for butting in unasked. I watch Fox news on Sunday morning and
believe that they have a balanced and reasonable presentation. I find is
so refreshing to watch/listen to a program where the guests are assembled
for the light they will shed on the issue and not the vitriol flung toward
one another or the administration.
I hasten to qualify these comments as mine alone and are offered merely as
another point of view.
I do have a gardening question. I have a splendid "dry creek bed" which is
lined with some semitropical plants like elephant ear, candle tree and
bougainvillea (and a fig tree). I realize that there is no sure thing but
let's supposed we have a "normal' central Texas winter with lows in the
lower teens and rapid warmups to the sixties and seventies. Would cutting
these plants to the ground (other than the fig) and covering them
generously with mushroom compose tide them over 'till spring (which arrives
here in mid March)?
I have watched PBS and seen people shouting at each other on the
Mclaughlin(sp) Report.
Respectfully submitted,
Bob
Rblakely@txun.net
> George - I love Fox news also - it's great sport to watch the
> interviewer shout down any guest who doesn't agree with their opinion.
> I keep wondering why they even ask guests to come on when they really
> only want to listen to their own inflated state of the union.
(Snip)>
> Sorry George - but I can't agree with you and Fox about their being a
> "Fair and Balanced" news channel. - Jenny
Bob Blakely
rblakely@txun.com
Glenn,
Thank you for your reply. I'm a bit confused about winterizing the plants.
Is your suggestion to wrap the plants in some sort of material to act as a
shield from the wind? If so, how will that keep them from freezing? I
understand that the screen will have some insulating value but on a 12
degree night the plant will reach outside air temperature by dawn. The
tissue of tropical plants won't tolerate freezing temperatures and will
surely perish. Then nothing will be left alive but the base of the plant
(that part that did not freeze). Why not just cut it back to begin with?
I don't want you to think that I am casting aspersions on your suggestion;
I just don't understand trying to keep the whole plant alive without
building some sort of heater into the enclosure. I would understand the
suggestion if the temperature stayed in the low thirties but we normally
get much colder temperatures here.
I am particularly interested in salvaging the candle tree if that is
possible. But I can buy another next year if I have to.
Again, thank you for your response.
Always looking for answers.
Bob
Cutting these plants to the ground & covering the base of the plant
Bob Blakely
rblakely@txun.com
In a message dated 11/2/01 6:01:32 AM Pacific Standard Time,
rblakely@TXUN.NET writes:
Cutting these plants to the ground & covering the base of the plant
wouldn't necessarily give them added protection. Maybe a windscreen of burlap
or other material would be more helpful & retain some of the plant's beauty
throughout the winter. What is winter damaged could be removed next Spring.
Glenn
Bob: Most folks in intemperate zones keep their fig trees very small and lean them over into a
trench in the winter. Try a web search and you will probably find the info on how they do it. Some
folks in the northern tier of US have kept them going for years this way.
As I understand it they prune them back at this time of year, wrap them in burlap, cut the roots on
3 sides and lay them in a trench. They then cover the tree with hay or straw and put the dirt back
on top of it. Since I live in Zone 9b I've never tried it and the few times our fig has frozen back
it has come back from the heavily mulched roots successfully. HTH
George
Robert Blakely wrote:
