Yards and plants postfreeze (Bulverde, San Augustine: neighborhood, fence, prices)

[Htown2013]

Originally Posted by SunshineCinderella

I think we are not supposed to trim/prune whatever, any of them until we are clear that we aren't getting another winter blast between now and Easter.

Dude on TV news said it wasn't good for the plants if we trim and then winter hits again.

How often does Houston get a hard freeze past mid March?

[gentlearts]

Originally Posted by SunshineCinderella

I think we are not supposed to trim/prune whatever, any of them until we are clear that we aren't getting another winter blast between now and Easter.

Dude on TV news said it wasn't good for the plants if we trim and then winter hits again.

This is because trimming is one of the things that triggers a plant to start growing. You don’t want tender new growth to get zapped with frost.

[WRM20]

Originally Posted by Htown2013

What are the vines? I see common ivy like vines look freeze damaged all over. Do we think they will eventually come back?

I have no idea what the vines are. Some small green leafed thing my wife planted to grow up and cover the fence. I"ll have to ask her and see if she remembers.

[astrohip]

Originally Posted by Htown2013

How often does Houston get a hard freeze past mid March?

Rare. The odds of a frost (not a hard freeze) after March 13 is only 30%, and after March 20 drops to 20%. And that's a frost, not a hard freeze.

There are two ways to look at it: Historically, it's uncommon, rare, but possible. But now, when we are already in mid-March, and the forecasters can see what's happening, the odds are slim to none.

IOW... it's time to get to work . I spent the weekend trimming dead stuff, and watering & fertilizing. They need it after this winter.

[HookTheBrotherUp]

Originally Posted by WRM20

I have no idea what the vines are. Some small green leafed thing my wife planted to grow up and cover the fence. I"ll have to ask her and see if she remembers.

Most likely Fig Ivy, very common, and is what you see on the concrete retaining walls along HWY 59/69 between Kirby and Spur 527. All of those leaves died, but you can see the faint green coming back now.

[TallGreengrass]

I lost my succulents, gardenia, citrus, bottlebrush, plumbago, giant hibiscus. I still have hope for my giant bougainvillea, ginger and plumeria. The roses look great. My stupid peach tree that always blooms in January lost everything in the cold but is already leafing out. My Texas Mountain Laurel stayed green and looks just as good as ever if anyone is interested in a specimen tree for their yard. Plus it does well in shady areas.

[kemahkami]

Originally Posted by TallGreengrass

I lost my succulents, gardenia, citrus, bottlebrush, plumbago, giant hibiscus.

Looking out the window was lovely today. Seeing the new green growth contrasting with the radiant, blue skies really perks up the mood after last months horrid event. Even many of the palms are actually showing signs of recovery, with new green pushing in from the center buds - even with washingtonia robusta, which are more tender than many of the other palm species planted here.

As for your plants, you'll definitely be surprised with some of them. Just wait. Above ground components get hit hard, but underground components tend to be much hardier - in due time, you might see them coming back from the roots once again! The best chances for the gardenia, plumbago, and hibiscus. The status of the succulents will vary depending on species, as will citrus (species, any grafting, etc). The bottlebrush is the least hardy of the plants listed, and is the most likely to be dead.

[houston-nomad]

Yes, my ferns and jasmine suddenly came back!! Still hoping the lantana comes back to life. Really enjoying every sign of life this spring.

[jerbear30]

Our four fig trees are doing great. I did manage to wrap sheets around most of them in the storm—they looked like giant ghosts for most of that week. Pretty much all the other shrubbery in front of our house looks dead as a door nail. We’ll see how it plays out over the next couple of weeks but I’m guessing we’ll have to pull up several plants and replace them.

[Htown2013]

How are things looking these days? Is Houston and Sugar Land starting to finally green up? Official first day of Spring is tomorrow.