Coppicing Buddleia. 3.8.17

Buddleia hybrid "Blueberry Cobbler" before coppicing.

Buddleias after coppicing.

In late 2012 / early 2013, I planted a row of hybrid Buddleia. I was diligent and bought the varieties that are approved by the state of Oregon as non-invasive inter-generic sterile hybrids.  These had advertised final heights of around 4 to 6 feet tall.  These were mainly "Blueberry Cobbler", and "Peach Cobbler"  but I also added "Miss Ruby" and "Miss Molly", a different series with a more red coloration.   Later I also planted the "Flutterby Vanilla" hybrid, and "Yellow Honeycomb", although planted in the row with the other established and vigorous shrubs, they didn't have much chance to grow.  I think "Yellow Honeycomb" survived and bloomed this year, but was mostly overshadowed by the very nearby and gigantic "Peach Cobbler."

I know that buddleias are controversial, partly due to invasive potential, and partly because they serve as nectar sources, but not leaf sources, for butterflies.  I planted them because these were approved by the most restrictive state, as sterile / noninvasive.  I had other goals, deer resistance, rapid growth, very dry tolerant, long blooming sources of nectar for beneficial insects and hummingbirds.  Butterflies have many other plants in my yard, to lay eggs on and make cocoons, if they so choose.

As it turned out, the Flutterby Grande (Peach Cobbler, Blueberry Cobbler) were way too vigorous.  Instead of 4 to 6 feet, they grew to around 15 feet tall so far.  There doesn't seem to be an end.  I wonder if they will become shade trees.  The bushes have similar width.  As for the flowers, "Peach Cobbler" was fairly pretty, but "Blueberry Cobbler" was downright ugly.  I have prettier weeds.  The flowers had a faded Kodachrome appearance, not a hint of blueberry blue.  For both, as the individual florets open on the raceme, they looks nice at first, but then the older florets turn brown and dry out, long before the last ones open.  Then the brown dried racemes stay on the bush until the next year, unless cut off.  The look is sad and messy.  The Miss Molly variety is not as large, reaching 5 or 6 feet, and the racemes are shorter, and are at a height that is easier to deadhead.  I mix up the Miss Ruby and Miss Molly varieties, I have both but they are so similar I can't tell the difference.  One might be a little more compact than the other.

I rarely saw a bumblebee on these flowers, never saw a honeybee, and rarely saw a hummingbird.  There were occasional butterflies.   Deer don't touch them.  As far as I could tell, they don't even taste them.  I kept them partly for privacy and as a windbreak, and also because I didn't have the energy to cut them down.

This winter, I decided I would keep them, but coppice them for better control.  Coppicing is a fairly standard way to manage rangy Buddleias.  They bloom on new growth, and theoretically will put on several feet of growth before blooming, but unlikely to grow more than 6 feet, if that.  I'm not certain about that.

So, as of today, all of the hybrid buddleias are oppiced, all trunks cut back to about one foot tall.

I can't say that I recommend the "Cobbler" types at all, although "Peach Cobbler" blossoms can be pretty at first.  Definitely not the "Blueberry Cobbler" unless you want to grow a special "ugly garden" to make people feel depressed.  We will see if the "Vanilla" or the "Honeycomb" varieties do better now that the others are so severely cut back.  "Miss" whoever - "Molly" or "Ruby" - is nice, doesn't grow nearly as big, and the flowers stay in range for dead heading and have less of the dried ugly appearance of the "Cobbler" types.  My neighbors have admired those.  I think they have a place, and I do like them.  Note, I also have the variety "Low and Behold Blue Chip", which does stay very compact, around 3 to 4 feet tall with almost no pruning, and bees do like those flowers.  I do like that one as well.

Now I need to figure out what to do with all of that pruned brush.  Some are nice straight, long sticks, might be good for garden stakes.

Edit 2/4/2020:  Now I'm trying to completely remove this row of buddleias.  They are too rangy, too vigorous, and really just ugly.  The Miss Ruby and is Molly are OK and we'll keep the ones that we have planted in other locations. 

Some flowers. 6.9.16

Buddleia "Miss Ruby"  6.9.16

Buddleia "Miss Ruby".  6.9.16

Daylily, unknown variety.  6.9.16

Potatoes in bloom.  6.9.16

Roses.  6.9.16

Daylily, unknown variety.  6.9.16

Puttering. Leaves, bulbs, moving perennials. 11.1.14

No pics this time.

I raked leaves from big maple.  It's about half done dropping leaves.  I used them for mulch for a dozen trees and shrubs. Good timing.  The grass clipping mulch had many small seedlings sprouted.  Now those are buried under leaves.

I did a 3-way move in front bed.  Buddleia Blue Chip should only be about 3 feet tall, but I did not account for 3 foot spread.  I moved that to a different bed with more room.  Next to it was a small Stella D'Oro daylily.  There are several yellow daylilies in the front bed.  I moved it to the location where I had a brick red Chicago Apache daylily, moved Chicago Apache to the location where the Buddleia was, and planted Spring bulbs in the spot where the Stella D'Oro daylily was.  It's nice to plant things that I was growing elsewhere.  Kind of like a gift from friend or relative, but it was from me.  I like the Chicago Apache, the flowers are big and showy, but it was in a spot where it was difficult to see.  It will show up better in front of the sunroom.  The bright yellow of the Stella D'Oro will show up better there. 

Finally, I planted more bulbs.  Sale at Fred Meyer and Lowes. 

Daffodil / Narcissus King Alfred 8 bulbs planted as one cluster
Daffodil / Narcissus Jetfire 18 bulbs planted as 2 clusters
Daffodil / Narcissus Ice Follies 18 bulbs, planted as 2 clusters
Allium Purple Sensation 6 bulbs, planted as 1 cluster. 

Total = 50 bulbs, so fall 2014 total is 214.  It's not as difficult as it sounds.  Digging with a shovel for planting clusters, instead of individual bulb digger or trowel for each bulb, is much easier.  Plus this was extended over more than a month, and largely as breaks from homework.

In the Spring, if I am able, I want to move a couple dozen clumps of Hyacinthoides and maybe a dozen clumps of Narcissus, from Vancouver house to Battleground.   Both are not liked by deer, rabbits, or voles.   Moving the clumps when they are about 3 to 6 inches tall, digging deep and taking the clumps intact, they move nicely and bloom the same Spring like nothing changed.  Plus they look established like they were there a long time.

Buddleia "Blue Chip" 8.13.14

Buddleia "Blue Chip"  8.13.14

Buddleia "Blue Chip"  8.13.14

Buddleia "Blue Chip" just started blooming.  It's much more compact than the other sterile buddleia.  It's the only one, so  far, that honeybees forage.  Nice shrub.

Buddleia "Blue Chip" 8.13.14

Buddleia, Butterflies, and Bees. 7.27.14

Honeybee on Buddleia "Honeycomb"  7.27.14

Honeybee on Buddleia "Honeycomb".  7.27.14

Butterfly on Buddleia "Blueberry Cobbler".  7.27.14

One of the main reasons I planted buddleias was for bee forage.  It turned out, honeybees don't care for Blueberry Cobbler and Peach Cobbler varieties, and not too crazy about the red "Miss Molly" and "Miss Ruby" varieties. 

This year I added the variety "Honeycomb".  They do like this one.

All of these are responsible, sterile, noninvasive, legal varieties in the Pacific NW.

Butterflies and Bumblebees like all of the varieties.

New flowers in bloom. 7.5.14

Daylily I moved to the Battleground place, 2 months ago.  7.5.14

Crocosmia in bloom.  7.5.14

Four O'clock "Marvel of Peru".  7.5.14

 Some flowers in bloom around the Battleground 2 acres.  These are the first flowers here for the daylilies, Buddliea "Honeycomb", and the Four O'clocks.  The latter have barely begun.  The container plants are ahead of the in-ground plants.

Buddleia X weyeriana  "Honeycomb" 

Hummingbird on crocosmia "Lucifer".  7.5.14.  Photo by Ning Wang.

Buddleia Progress Report. 6.29.14

Buddleia "Blueberry Cobbler".  6.29.14

Buddleia "Miss Molly".  6.29.14

Buddleia "Miss Ruby".  6.29.14

The sterile buddleias are starting to bloom.

As described in earlier posts, sterile buddleias are complex  hybrids between Buddleia davidii and other species.  They have the advantage of being sterle, so do not produce seeds.  For that reason, the sterile hybrids are legal in  this SPring Oregon and Washington.  I did see some Buddleia davidii at Lowes, and walked past it a few times, beautiful dark purple.  But as an environmentally oriented gardener, I couldn't bring myself to buy it.  The B. davidii are highly invasive.  The sterile hybrids do not set seed, so are not invasive.  Despite being sterile, some varieties are highly vigorous, while others are much more restrained.

In their 2nd year, the varieties "Peach Cobbler" and "Blueberry Cobbler" are 7 feet tall, and equally wide.  Also in their 2nd year, "Miss Ruby" is about 4 feet tall, and "Miss Molly" is about 3 feet tall.  The most compact is "Blue Chip", which is about 18 inches tall.

Bloom order:  "Miss Molly" was first, mid June.  "Miss Ruby" was 2nd, late June.  "Blueberry Cobbler" followed close behind, late June.  "Peach Cobbler" is about to bloom, probably 1st week of July.  "Blue Chip" does not have buds yet.  Not a fair comparison, because I let that bed go wild while I was recuperating from surgery, and only this spring pulled out the competing weeds.  It has made a resurgence of growth, but had a late start.

These buddleias are the fastest of all my shrubs to grow and establish.  They are one of the few that deer and rabbits don't touch.  They don't seem to be affected by any insects.  Bumblebees forage the flowers.  I'm not sure about honeybees - so far, there is minimal if any honeybee activity.   The more compact varieties look ideal for smaller gardens, and the more vigorous varieties look ideal for privacy hedge.

First Buddleia to Bloom. Miss Molly. 6.21.14

Buddleia "Miss Molly".  6.21.14

The first of the buddleias to bloom this year.  Miss Molly is much more compact, compared to the "Cobbler" series.  Nice fragrant flower.

Sterile Buddleia. Progress Report. 6.15.14

Sterile buddleia "Peach Cobbler".  6.15.14

Sterile buddleias at 17 months after planting.  They grow rapidly.  Nice fat flower buds forming now.  Probably open in about 2 weeks.  These were about 1 foot tall, if that, when I planted them.  I can see why nonsterile buddleias are considered invasive.

There were some dark blue - nonsterile -  varieties at Lowes.  Unfortunately, I don't think those are legal to plant here.  I want to be a responsible  gardener.  So I will stay with the sterile ones.

This is a bit of a windbreak  The photo faces west.  There is a near-constant wind from the west.  This buddleia hedge should give the little orchard a break from some of the wind.

Edit:  2/4/2020  I am trying to remove these buddleias now.  They are way too vigorous, messy and, frankly, ugly.  The flowers remain on the plant after they dry out and become brown.  It's difficult to catch them at the flower catalog "perfect" stage. At that moment they are nice.  I cut some of these down to about 1 foot tall last year, and they grew at least 12 feet in one year.  That is much more than the nursery claims.



.

Urine Fertilizer. Eco San. Progress Report. 6.7.14

Urine for Fertilizer.  6.7.14

Ginkgo biloba with rapid growth.  6.7.14

 Last winter I ran across several web reports and research studies involving use of urine as fertilizer. I summarized the information here.  I could find, concentrating mainly on research reports and objective information, and background.  This is the report of my experience so far.

First, there is nothing scientific about my observations.  I did not do any comparative experiments.  Therefore, observations are just that - my experiences.

1.  Collection process.  No brainer.  Once you get used to peeing into a bottle, urinating toilet feels abnormal, wasteful, and strange.  It's easy  to pee into the bottles.  I discovered I've been watching my urine, and when it looks darker, I make sure to drink more fluids.  I rinse the bottles with each use, so they are clean.

2.  Storage.  I don't store the urine.  Usually, only 1 or 2 or 3 bottles collect in a couple of days.  As soon as possible, it goes into the garden.  That way, odor doesn't develop and ammonia is not lost to the atmosphere.

3.  Dilution.  These are 2 quart bottles.  There are 4 quarts in a gallon.  Watering can for garden is 2 gallons.  I usually use 1/2 bottle, so 1 quart.  Pour half bottle into watering can.   Fill with water.  So the dilution is roughly  1:8.   Different authors give different dilutions.  This seems good enough and is fairly cautious.

4.  Esthetics.  I don't see any issues.  Maybe it's because I'm male, but I don't smell anything in the garden.  I think it's more, with the dilution and most goes into the garden  immediately, the solution soaks into the soil and doesn't leave anything to evaporate.

5.  Application.  During late winter, I applied around trees and shrubs that I thought could use an early boost.  I did not use winter application around trees I thought were risk for too early growth and risk for frost.  Trees that got urine solution - Ginkgo biloba, lindens, maples, young apples, Laburnum, young cherries, young paw paws, young persimmons, mulberry.  Shrubs that got urine solution - Viburnum, Lilac, hydrangea, buddleia, forsythia, rose of Sharon, weigela.

Plants that did not get urine solution during the winter:  plums, pears, figs.

For annuals and vegetables, in late winter and spring, I used small amounts, dilute, for Four O'clocks, peppers, garlic, onions, tomatoes, potatoes.

4.  Benefits.  The benefit varied by plant.  Again, I can't claim this is a research project.  Comparing this year with last year -

Last year the lindens, both American and European, had pale appearing growth, and not much of it.  The American linden had about 3 inches of growth.  This year, it's not done yet, but so far looks like 18 inches.  The leaves are larger and dark green.  I'm not sure if the European lindens have more stem extension, compared to last year.  I think so.  The European lindens have stopped making new growth.  The American linden continues to make new growth.

Last year, the Gingko biloba, I moved here from Vancouver, grown from seed 1 years ago, didn't make significant growth.  It leafed out, but stem extension was under an inch.  The leaves were yellowish pale green.  I think the soil here is low nitrogen.  This year the growth is vigorous.  The top has grown about 18 inches, and show no sign of stopping.   There is slight distortion of some of the leaves - splits and a little bit of curl.  I may have used too much urine solution.  I will not add more.  I want the growth to mature and harden before fall.

The Laburnum is a mixed bag.  The growth is more vigorous, compared to last year.  Some of the new growth has curly leaves.  I also noted that for a couple of other plants, so i think I used too much.  However, the Laburnum in general has much more vigorous growth, compared to last year.  It is more bushy and stout.

The persimmons and pawpaws grew much faster this year, and bigger leaves.  The bigger more tender leaves may have attracted deer, who liked eating those young leaves.  They decimated the cherries, which they didn't touch last year.  I'm in the process of making more tree cages.

Other plants that appear to have benefited, with very vigorous, strong looking growth - Viburnum, Buddleia, Rugosa rose. 

I used a small amount on bearded irises.  I wonder if that contributed to the epidemic of bacterial rot, by causing soft too-vigorous, too-early growth   I won't do that again.

So far, the tomatoes look amazing.  Last year they were slow growing, and several were pale to yellow.  This year, they are growing fast, with stout stems, dark green leaves.  Some are blooming and others look close.  I think they are earlier and show a lot of promise.

I'm not sure about the peppers.  They don't look vigorous, but are starting to produce.  I don't think they like the cool nights.

I did not use it for root crops like radishes and turnips.  I would expect the extra nitrogen to stimulate leaves but not good root crop.

The 4 O'clocks didn't all get urine solution.  Of those that did, some had curly leaves like the Laburnum.  I stopped, and used water without urine, then very dilute balanced Miracle Grow for tomatoes, and now the leaves are growing out normally.

Gingko biloba top growth.  6.7.14

Redmond Linden.  Second Season.  6.7.14

Redmond Linden Top Growth.  6.7.14

Laburnum with Curly Leaf Growth.  6.7.14

Interim Conclusions.

I don't see much negative from this method.  Almost none.  I need to avoid over doing it.  Some plants may be too sensitive to the high nitrogen, the salts, or some other aspect.  I won't use it again on irises, and will be cautious with Laburnum.

Odor - wise, it does not linger like fish emulsion.

I think it's best to use within a few days of collecting.  During the winter, I may store in a cold shed.

There is the 

Plans.
 Some trees make a burst of growth in Spring, then spend the summer maturing and photosynthesizing to make next Spring's burst of growth.  Giving more nitrogen now seems counter productive, so I won't.  I'm a little concerned that some plants grew too vigorously and have 't stopped, so could be soft going into winter.  But we still have a long season ahead.  So I am hopeful.  The Buddleia grew so fast and vigorous, I wondered if it would bloom.  They are now producing many flower heads, so I think that's not a problem.

I gave the figs a one-time boost, but that's all.  I don't want them going into next Winter too soft and weak to survive.

I don't want to over-do it.  I think the tomatoes got all they are going to get.  The garlic is going into ripening time, so no more nitrogen.  This year the garlic is the biggest they have ever been.  It will be interesting to see if they went all to leave and stem, or have nice big bulbs.  The potatoes got a boost today, but that's all.  Again, too much nitrogen isn't good.  Other big-nitrogen users, from what I read - squash and zucchini.  So they got some today.

Laburnum with Vigorous, Healthy Appearing Growth.  6.7.14

It's interesting how much urine we make in a day.  I probably won't want to use any for trees, shrubs, vegetables in late summer and fall.  That would risk burst of growth that doesn't get to harden off for winter.  Then, rather than wasting it, I might sprinkle the grass.  The grass will take up the nitrogen.  When I cut the grass, the clippings are used for mulch, which benefits the plants many ways and gives a slow release of nutrients.

This is a concept that provokes some negative reactions.  A lot of people are misinformed, or uninformed, regarding almost every aspect.  Health, environment, resource wastage, sanitation, toxins, esthetics.  I hope as more information collects, gardeners can learn how to use this fully renewable, non wasting, beneficial method to benefit their gardens in a safe and effective manner.

Buddleia. Progress Report. Freeze damage. Buddleia. 2.16.14

Buddleia globosa.  Freeze Killed Growth.

Buddleia Blueberry Cobbler.  Winter Appearance.

This is the first winter here for Buddleias.  They are between evergreen and deciduous.  I can't decide if the near-dead appearance is better or worse than bare twigs of deciduous shrubs.

The Buddleia globosa may well be fully dead.  I think it's the only Buddleia that looks truly dead.  I'll leave it in place until there is a chance for some regeneration.  I have a back-up  plant if it is dead.

The leaves of Blueberry Cobbler have a silvery appearance.  Depending on the sun, they look nice.  Other times they look sad.  I think it was like this last year, as were the other Buddleias.  When Spring came, they grew quickly.

Gardening via internet. 1.21.14

Anxiously awaiting the ForestFarms order - 3 new varieties of sterile Buddleia, a Philadelphus lewisii, and 2 varieties of hebes.  All for the pollinating insects.  Some, I hope, for honeybees.

Vancouver, WA, United States	01/21/2014	6:58 A.M.	Out For Delivery
	01/21/2014	6:53 A.M.	Arrival Scan
Portland, OR, United States	01/21/2014	6:32 A.M.	Departure Scan
	01/21/2014	4:54 A.M.	Arrival Scan
Roseburg, OR, United States	01/21/2014	1:27 A.M.	Departure Scan
Roseburg, OR, United States	01/20/2014	10:44 P.M.	Arrival Scan
Grants Pass, OR, United States	01/20/2014	9:28 P.M.	Departure Scan
	01/20/2014	7:20 P.M.	Origin Scan
United States	01/20/2014	7:24 P.M.	Order Processed: Ready for UPS

These days a lot of my garden comes via internet. Probably, most.  That is despite my philosophy that local provenance is so important. And my hope that people can pass good, locally adapted, varieties on to friends and neighbors.

It's frustrating to go to a local nursery, and see that everything appears shipped in, some items inappropriate for the area.  Like tropicals here in the NW, or invasives, and even some illegal invasives.  Or to be given inappropriate or just plain wrong information.  At one local nursery, I was told pawpaws don't need a pollinator - wrong - and there are no paw paw cultivars - wrong, and there are no persimmon cultivars - wrong.

Image source vintageprintable.com

So using the internet, I can research, ponder, explore, sort through reliable info and more just-plain wrong, and obtain what I think will do best.  Ultimately, it will still be up to me to see what does well and what does not grow, or isn't worth the effort.

Some negatives of internet gardening -
You don't get to sort through the plants and pick the best looking one for purchase.
You don't know how big it will be.  I've received some tiny starts at high prices.
Shipping can damage some plants - although I've been lucky, almost everything has arrived in good shape.
Gratification is not instant.  Although, sometimes it's pretty fast.
There is risk it will sit in the sun wilting, or in the cold freezing, if the order comes when I am at work.
Generally, you can't buy it, or see it, in bloom, in person, before buying.
A lot of plant pictures are highly selective, such as just the flower, so you don't know what the plant will look like.
Some bad players on the internet spam mercilessly, once they get your email address

Image source:  vintageprintable.com

Some positives of internet gardening -
It's like christmas coming home to a package of plants or plant starts.
I can mull over a plant or tree or seeds, over and over, for a long time, before actually buying it.
Research likely sorts out some duds that might actually be bought on impulse.
You are not limited to one source.
You can find many varieties that are not available locally, even if they would be well suited.
You can support companies whose philosophy you like, such as seed savers and venders of heritage varieties.
You can really shop around on price.

Image source:  vintageprintable.com

Some learnings about internet gardening.
Go to Daves Garden for info on the vender.  Some are just plain crooked, others have bad products or bad customer service, ship way slowly, send dead, dying, or not thriving material.
Once there is someone I like, and have good experience, I like to use them again.
Once I have a bad experience, think twice, three times, 4 times, before using them again.
Really read to know the size of the plant.  I don't mind it being small, but too small at high price is disappointing.

On that Forest Farms order - last year I liked the Linden I bought from them.  I could not find a similar one locally.  It was nicelyn packaged, and shipped on time.  The tree was in good shape.  This order, the plants will be smaller, but in the case of the Buddleias, are legal, noninvasive, very fast growing, and I couldn't find those varieties locally.

Update.  Here they are.

Forest Farm Shipment

 Very nicely packaged.  No damage at all.  Not a single broken twig.  The shrubs are dormant, but they look healthy and ready to plant.

They are larger than I expected.  This is an A+ shipment.

Opened

Unwrapped

The "tube" plants are interesting.  They are planted in paperboard tubes.  The tubes look like they degrade easily.  Better than plastic - more environmentally friendly.

Shrub Order. Trial for Bee Forage and Deer Resistance. 1.2.14

I placed an order from forestfarms.com.  I want to try some additional shrubs for bee forage and deer resistance.

The sterile Buddleias grew very nicely last year.  By far the fastest growing shrubs in the yard, bloomed later into the summer and fall, and deer didn't touch them.  We want to fill in between them, for a hedge.  I want multicolored flowers.  Currently, the hedge consists of Buddleia X Flutterby Peach Cobbler (3) and Blueberry Cobbler (1); Miss Ruby (1) and a yellow unknown I suspect is Buddleia globosa.

Image Source: wikipedia Buddleia "Honeycomb"

 To fill in the Buddleia hedge, I ordered one sleeve of Flutterby Vanilla (off white), two sleeves of Honeycomb (yellow), and one sleeve of Asian Moon (purple).  Combined with the current varieties, that will make a good color mix.  They grow so fast, the sleeves - small starts - should fill in fine and bloom this year, and next year catch up with the older shrubs.

The down side for the sterile Buddleias, so far, is they can look weedy, and the early flowers on the long flower clusters dry up and turn brown, before the last flowers open.  Which can look shabby, unless they are deadheaded despite the unopened end flowers.

Image source:  Wikipedia Philadelphusn

I also ordered 2 sleeves of Philadelphus lewisii - Mock orange.  Mock oranges are considered excellent bee attractants.  The single-flowered ones are considered more bee friendly than modern double ones.  They are native.  They are reported as variably deer resistant.

And 2 Hebe hybrids.  No photo - not available in public domain.  Hebes are also thought to be good bee forage and deer resistant.  They will go into the bee garden.

Buddleias after the freeze

Buddleia globosa

Buddleia hybrids, Peach Cobbler and Blueberry Cobbler

Buddleias are partially hardy. I've read in cold winter climates, the tops are killed.  They grow back rapidly from the roots, so act as perennials.

Here they are usually a large woody shrub. 

I wondered with the big freeze, whether they would die to the ground.

Most of the large summer leaves were frost damaged.  Many were shed.  The smaller, axillary bud leaves still look OK.

I don't know if the complex hybrids have been tested in such a cold winter.  It will be interesting to see what they do.

Similar for Buddleia globosa.

About to have the coldest day in years.

According to the forecast, today's low will be 15 and tomorrow's low will be 12 

I would be concerned about the fig trees I nurtured through this year, but I'm too tired.  Whatever happens, happens.

I should be more concerned about faucets. 

The only other plants that I'm concerned about are the Buddleias, that I nurtured through their first year.  I read they can freeze down in the midwest, but then grow from the roots. 

Other plants could be affected.  May not know until Spring.

We'll see.

from weather.com http://www.weather.com/weather/monthly/98663

December

Sun   1 OBSERVED Hi  57°F Lo  48°F Precip (in) 1.80in.	Mon   2 OBSERVED Hi  52°F Lo  33°F Precip (in) 0.02in.	Tue   3 OBSERVED Hi  43°F Lo  25°F Precip (in) 0.01in.	Wed   4 OBSERVED Hi  39°F Lo  20°F Precip (in) 0in.	Thu   5 OBSERVED Hi  33°F Lo  16°F Precip (in) 0in.	Fri   Today Hi  31°F Lo  15°F Precip 50 %	Sat   7 Hi  29°F Lo  12°F Precip 0 %
8 Hi  33°F Lo  19°F Precip 0 %	9 Hi  38°F Lo  27°F Precip 10 %	10 Hi  41°F Lo  31°F Precip 20 %	11 Hi  43°F Lo  35°F Precip 100 %	12 Hi  45°F Lo  38°F Precip 50 %	13 Hi  45°F Lo  35°F Precip 60 %	14 Hi  43°F Lo  35°F Precip 60 %
15 Hi  43°F Lo  36°F Precip 60 %	16 AVERAGES Hi  45°F Lo  32°F RECORDS Hi  57°F Lo  10°F	17 AVERAGES Hi  45°F Lo  32°F RECORDS Hi  59°F Lo  6°F	18 AVERAGES Hi  45°F Lo  32°F RECORDS Hi  60°F Lo  0°F	19 AVERAGES Hi  45°F Lo  32°F RECORDS Hi  60°F Lo  3°F	20 AVERAGES Hi  45°F Lo  32°F RECORDS Hi  61°F Lo  11°F	21 AVERAGES Hi  45°F Lo  32°F RECORDS Hi  61°F Lo  3°F