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Raleigh is a solid zone 8a. What time period does the usda use for there hardiness zones? Because our minimum temp if we use the whole record is 11, still a solid 8a. I assume soil Temps follow mean temps. So still in the 40s. Ground not frozen.
Quote:
Originally Posted by FirebirdCamaro1220
Interestingly enough, with a couple exceptions, my B/C border lines up with the poleward/altitudinal limit of zone 8 on that map for the US, though in OR&WA, I would say zone 9 is the limit for B/C
soil temp maps are essential
usda I believed used 30 year record which is absurd for their averages, I definitely see alot of that rtp area as 8a. I really like the AHS Plant Heat Zone Map too but I am not sure what its year span is , the rtp area is right on the edge but I would say its 8a for sure at this point , in winter - (very good soil temps , gardening, rain, evergreens and alot of wildlife migration) , not to mention lots of color with camellias ,etc,
all of that is how I define how alive a place is in during winter.
I also look at rainfall averages and tree canopy for a look to a city and place . raleigh has a 55% tree canopy , one of the highest city tree canopy percentages in the country. Flying into rdu seems like flying into a sea of trees. Way too many deciduous trees but alot of evergreens and very good soil and water temps and gardening even in the winter and a definite lack of frozen ground and good soil temps and tons of life even during the winter months.
Very good job firebird,a lot of work, would love to see you concentrate on the US and see a color coded map for your system. your system is tough to read but alot of work. cheers on your hard work!
Last edited by floridanative10; 06-07-2016 at 09:38 PM..
Tom. You feeling alright?. . Most grass is actually fairly green in winter. Especially in suburban neighborhoods. No house is complete without evergreens either. You won't find a single house without some sort of evergreens. I have camellias, hollies, Gardenias which is something you can't grow. Not too mention there are quite a bit of evergreens in the forest. Nothing too little, but certainly noticeable. Not too mention that windmill palms are not a struggle here like in philly. .....oh we also grow sabals, Pindos, and sagos. And some date palms and Washingtonias with some protection. Philly and Raleigh are not the same level. I agree though we have the same climate regime, but not same level.
I notice you didn't acknowledge that the winter you thought was your worst and more similar to ours really wasn't at all your worst and was more like Chicago's lol. Raleigh can get really cold, and will again.
Lol, where did he say he picked Raleigh's coldest months? He said their best months, not coldest.
The person I responded to stated it was the coldest winter could throw at them. I knew instantly it wasn't. The kid has only experienced the recent warm decades we have been having and has no experience whatsoever with the 80's and what it did to the South.
I notice you didn't acknowledge that the winter you thought was your worst and more similar to ours really wasn't at all your worst and was more like Chicago's lol. Raleigh can get really cold, and will again.
He also never mentions when a month is warmer than average. He was quick to point out that March 2015 pic as being after a cold period but kept his mouth shut about the January 2016 pic being after the warmest December on record....
I think it's a difference between warm and cool season grasses. Warm season grasses turn brown in winter, while cool season grasses can turn brown in summer if they aren't watered enough (they can also turn brown in winter, but usually only in colder climates). More detail is described here. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lawn#Grasses
Where I live, some grass stays green all winter and some turns brown.
I don't have many good grass pictures, but here is green grass in January 2016.
And here is brown grass in March 2015.
You do realize that each of these months I mentioned was among the coldest five on record, right? If we had a year where we got to 2 F or colder I doubt many of those plants you mentioned would survive. The fact is we haven't gone below 7 F since 2000, but from 1962-85, 13 out of 24 years had sub-7 F temps, and a repeat of that would probably cause many of those plants to die.
He doesn't realize that cause of his youth. He thinks winters were always like the last 15 or more years. In the 70's and 80's Raleigh got way cold, and none of those plants he mentioned would be around. Heck, many on the garden forums have talked about how even right down on the Gulf Coast there was nothing left after 1989 except sabal palmetto and some butias. Mobile lost quiet a few Butia even, which is more cold hardy than Phoenix palms for sure. There was not a single washingtonia left in Mobile or the Gulf Coast.
This one was taken March 1, 2015, after the coldest second half of February on record. That December was slightly warmer than average, but January and February were both cooler than average.
People want to dispute that it looks different than Philly in winter. That pic could have been taken in any suburb around here lol.
looks great, something about the winters being white w/o blue are lining up with the rest of the color patterns in a narcissistically beautiful way that is pleasing to the senses of my brain in a way that I cannot explain. It looks idyllic and perfect, I want to live there.
Could be a tad colder for me, but I think u did a good job. A-
I notice you didn't acknowledge that the winter you thought was your worst and more similar to ours really wasn't at all your worst and was more like Chicago's lol. Raleigh can get really cold, and will again.
Really? The months that srfoskey posted look like philly. January 77 is colder than normal for Philly too. Even then that was only 1 month. Coldest December and February are not too unlike Philly still. I realized those are not the worst but they are on the top 5. And a lot of the months he did post were our Coldest such as April, may, June, August september, October and november.
He doesn't realize that cause of his youth. He thinks winters were always like the last 15 or more years. In the 70's and 80's Raleigh got way cold, and none of those plants he mentioned would be around. Heck, many on the garden forums have talked about how even right down on the Gulf Coast there was nothing left after 1989 except sabal palmetto and some butias. Mobile lost quiet a few Butia even, which is more cold hardy than Phoenix palms for sure. There was not a single washingtonia left in Mobile or the Gulf Coast.
None of them? That's why there are windmill palms from the 60s still alive right? Only things like sabal palmettos and butias would have been fried. Even then a palm grower in new bern had his sabal palmettos survive sub zero.
He also never mentions when a month is warmer than average. He was quick to point out that March 2015 pic as being after a cold period but kept his mouth shut about the January 2016 pic being after the warmest December on record....
Yes, that is why when you asked me for grass pictures I told you they were from december.right? So they would not be accurate in your eyes. Lol. Your accusations are failing.
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