Plant Talk: First Frost Arrives Right on Schedule

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November 09, 2012

First Frost Arrives Right on Schedule

With the realities of climate change slapping us in the face, from our own extended summer drought, to Hurricane Sandy's rampage, it was comforting to wake up this morning and see that the first hard frost had fallen right on schedule.

The average first frost date in Seattle is November 11. And maybe the frost wasn't so heavy this morning in Seattle, but here in Langley, the rooftops are furred white, and even objects at ground level are gently gilded.

One of the greatest, and as of this morning still lasting joys of gardening, is being tuned in to seasonal rhythms. We have to be. Frost, as beautiful and reassuring as it is, means death to tender plants. If you haven't already, today is the day to dig up tender succulents, geraniums, brugmansia, and any other less-than-hardy plant you want to survive, and bring indoors to a sunny windowsill, or cut back to overwinter in the garage.Then you can enjoy all the frosts to come...

Posted at 08:12 AM in frost | Permalink

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Right on schedule, I put on my Boggs boots and went out for some toasty footed Fall cleanup work in the garden. Thanks, Val!

Posted by: Ruth | November 09, 2012 at 09:41 AM

I'm happy to see frost. A year or two ago, we went straight to single digits without a good frost to induce dormancy. Man, that was hard on things.

I got almost everything into the greenhouse a couple of days ago. Noticed the chocolate cosmos outside in it's pot this morning. I'll get it in this afternoon.

Posted by: Deirdre | November 10, 2012 at 08:57 AM

What exquisite photos. But I hate the melted tender plants part.

Posted by: Sara Chapman in Seattle USA | November 10, 2012 at 09:42 AM

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Bayview Farm and Garden

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New Book: Petal & Twig

Petal & Twig Made The New York Times!
From Anne Raver's review: "Valerie Easton, a Seattle-based garden writer, discusses the art of growing and arranging cut flowers in “Petal and Twig: Seasonal Bouquets With Blossoms, Branches and Grasses From Your Garden” (Sasquatch Books; $16.95). Written as an informal diary, with photographs of arrangements from her own garden, and tips on cutting and keeping flowers fresh, the book inspires ideas not only on what to grow but on how to combine (or not) those beauties inside. See review here: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/29/garden/new-books-on-growing-and-arranging-flowers.html?scp=1&sq=petal%20&%20twig%20anne%20raver&st=cse
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In the News

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I was so pleased to find that "A Pattern Garden" is still being reviewed...check out Allan Becker's generous review on his Garden Guru blog.. I felt like Allan really understood what I was working towards in that book....he writes...."There is a delightful abstract quality to this publication. In it, the author takes good garden design to a higher, more spiritual level. Instead of discussing the aesthetic and scientific elements of design, as so many traditional garden design books do, she focuses on the role played in garden design by archetypal ideas - a.k.a. patterns - that reference the longings of human beings. These pleasure and comfort-rooted ideas are those that inspire designers to create gardens that are satisfying beyond their beauty." see more at http://allanbecker-gardenguru.squarespace.com/journal/valerie-easton
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Check out this interview with Val in the Chicago Tribune on using art in the garden...

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