I think I'd take that over -3 one day then 50s a couple days later. It's now back down to who knows what kind of cold and ridiculous winds, but forecasted to be back in the mid-high 30s early next week. Can we just pick a temperature range and stick to it already? At least then I can adjust. UGH!

The high degree of variability is not just this winter here - the extreme and rapid yo-yo between warm and very cold (usually with high windchill too) has been a feature of quite a few of the recent winters here. It’s been a few years since we’ve had a good spring bloom on our wisterias. The vines survive the winter but the flowerbuds get killed. I doubt they’ll bloom this spring either - late fall was warm and then we dropped into extreme cold very abruptly. I doubt the buds had a chance to go properly dormant. *sigh*

I agree - this January & February has been mostly bitter cold with just enough of a warm spell to totally screw up the roses for next year. I was so happy (well relatively speaking) when the first time we got -10 degrees F, we had a good 5 inches of snow. It is always 32 degrees under the snow so I had visions of all this lovely surviving cane. Then of course it warmed up to 50 for a day or two and BAM was back to -5 overnight and it's been bitter ever since. No snow whatsoever and any cane other than Explorers that is exposed is going to be toast. I'm with mxk3 - pick a temperature and stick to it so we can get this blasted winter over with already.

Cynthia

Same yoyo mess here in WV. I have green leaf buds appearing on Bonica and black stems on Winnepeg Park. Way too much rain. I would rather have two months of frozen ground and snow.

In Chicago area, we went from -30F (wind chill of -54F) to 48F within 3 days last week. Snow, wind, rain, ice, snow.....more and more extremes and crazy swings. Last spring I lost a cherry tree, a newly planned dogwood tree, and several roses and perennials. I am waiting to see this year's damage when spring is finally here...

Claire

Yea, they're predicting another round of ice/freezing rain Monday into Tuesday. And I have a long commute -- snow is one thing, freezing rain/ice is an entirely different beast. What is UP with all this freezing rain this year?

with storms.. they talk about 10 year storms ....once every ten year.. all heck breaks lose .. lol ...

and in my 40 years or so of gardening ... seems about right.. that every ten years ... ma nature decides to cull some of the weaklings and borderline plants out of my garden ... go figure ... if anything.. its a reason to buy more plants .. if only i keep in mind to stay away from zone pushers ... lol ... so i dont plant things that die 10 years from now ....

changed from 5a to 5 b ???? ... sounds like a waste of ink to me .... or pixels.. thats some hardcore navel gazing to make that decision ... lol ... never saw a plant tag differentiate between 5a and 5 b ...

i like to say... get it dormant.. keep it dormant.. and most zone appropriate things will survive .... snow cover.. the great insulator ... usually helps us up in the cold ... this year we dont have consistent snow cover.. at least i dont ... and the real risk will be in mid to late march.. if we have an extended warm period.. and things start coming awake.. out of dormancy ... and THEN we are hit hard again .. thats where or when.. real death can happen ...

the real problem with winter death.. is you really cant tell when it happened.. late fall.. winter.. later winter.. early spring.. all you know for sure.. is that when.. for me.. they should start growing around 5/1 ... they just start rotting ... dead roots ..

ken

Same thing here in the Ohio river valley. We've always been this way to some degree, now it just seems longer and more extreme. As a new rose grower, it was so disheartening to lose any, but those I did were in marginal places, so I decided not to torture them and plant other things there. I think in these situations, they need all the help they can get. My first year I stuck with zoning up and that worked well, but last year I decided to try some Z6 climbers. Let's just say Cl. Pinkie didn't appreciate it. I might as well have stuck to the bush form. I miss Penelope and MAC. : (

The zone designation is just based your average minimum temperature. So the way I see it the winter a few years back with a minimum of -13f just got balanced out by -28f. Up here we say the weather is almost never average, though this year seems more extreme in the yo-yoing. Winter didn’t even really get going up here until the second half of January. I’m not all that concerned about the short polar vortex snap especially for perennials. Maybe some damage to marginal woodies.

Last year up here was a good example of widespread damage having nothing to do with the winter minimum temp of -19f. It was the very warm wet fall followed by a rapid plunge in temps. Or spring starting the a blizzard followed by single digit temps. Many plants cosidered hardy to the zone had dieback or dead despite being unscathed after colder winters.

High today was 48, high tommorow is 74. We Just call that Tuesday in Texas lol.

Ken,

How true you are. That killer cold spell in December followed by moderate weather thereafter all the way until a mild spring will make you think all is well. Yet the unexpected blackening, racing daily, down, down the canes in March and April, until the crown is reached, shows that the damage was done way back in December.

The blackened canes, the result of fungi and bacteria feasting on dead tissue, were held at bay by winter's cold, the canes looking so healthy and green when in fact they were already mortally wounded.

Moses

It's same here by the Great Lakes in NY and PA. It's global cooling for real. I am thinking about spraying sulfur as soon as snow melts when the temp is in the high 40's. Will find out how many roses made through this cold winter next month, a truth that I don't want to know too soon......

Sounds like you all are having Texas weather. 60º fluctuations is what happens in Texas almost every winter cold front. This year has actually been gentle for us. A 30º fluctuation tomorrow. Our weather is cooler this year but not cold with freezes only to barely 30 and not the normal 15ºF. No true Blue Northers.

Summers, I'm thinking about oil/sulphur instead of lime/sulphur to get rid of my old leaves, then do another oil when I prune late March. After that I do the Cornell mix or just soap/baking soda. I really helped knock back the BS. I was amazed with all the rain we have.

What is UP with all this freezing rain this year

I am thinking this to be a much more regular occurrence over the past 5 years or so.

Actually, I feel like this is a typical z5 winter, just the problem is: I'm in z7. Yesterday morning it was 5F, today it was 12F. And last week, trees were budding out...it's a vegetative catastrophe.

Feeling for you and your roses, dbarron.

Err, I don't do roses, but there are plenty of other plants (including shade trees) in the city that I feel for...and no fruit harvest this year on any early bloomers.

I see that this was also posted on Annuals and Roses. Very nice sentiment Sheila.

I feel for you too, it happens here sometimes in late spring, read that as May.