This post is “weather free”. I will not mention freezing temperatures in April, rainy days, cloudiness, hail, rain, sleet, snow or weather obsessed gardening geeks.
In fact, here are five weather related thoughts that I will not be including:
1. The apple tree looks to be just a few days away from blooming. Last year it didn’t bloom at all and the year before the blooms were frozen out in one of the worst Aprils, weather-wise, that I can remember. According to weather.com, if we can get through tonight, we might be okay, as far as freezing temperatures go.
2. The species tulips, which were all fully open on Saturday and early Sunday, were all closed up this evening. 
Perhaps this is their reaction to cold weather, to close up, but it was also partly cloudy, so maybe there just wasn’t enough sun for them to bother opening today?
3. I’m still not getting an accurate temperature reading from my weather station ever since I moved the whole thing out to the vegetable garden. I need to work on shading the thermometer better.
4. The Japanese tree lilac, Syringa reticulata, is nearly leafed out and is probably the one tree or shrub that if it gets below freezing for too long tonight, will look punked out for the rest of the year. Every other plant has either tiny leaves and buds, or just buds, and should be okay. The one exception is a white flowering lilac, Syringa vulgaris, which come to think of it, has also leafed out quite a bit. It might suffer a bit if it gets too cold for too long.
5. I’d always heard that Magnolias around here usually give you one good bloom year about every four years. The other years, the blooms get frozen out. Last year the Star Magnolia, Magnolia stellata was spectacular, but didn’t start blooming until early April. This year it bloomed about two weeks earlier and also looked great. Now that all the petals have dropped, I’m not too concerned about it freezing out this spring.
I hope you’ve enjoyed this weather-free post and that your own garden is giving you more joy than worry even as frost and freeze threaten many of us!
Thanks! What a great weather free post! If not for the words “freezing,” “temperatures,” “frozen,” “cold,” “weather station,” and “cloudy,” I never would have thought of weather at all.
Good to know that you’re not obsessed with the weather. It’s very healthy. I salute you!
Love the weather-free post. If the ding-dang weather weren’t so all-over-the-map this year, we wouldn’t a;; be obsessing over it … would we?! Ok, I guess we would, but maybe a little less…maybe?!
I’ve given up being obsessed with the weather — except during the 6 months of hurricane season.
My Star Magnolia was late this year. The flowers are just now starting that telltale aging to brown. Weather is definitely a major factor in how our plants perform. This year has been a good test for the cold tolerance.
Yes, I just love these non weather posts. Especially when I am sitting here wondering if anything will be damaged by the freezing temps. With the moon being full it is easy to see the garden on a cold clear night.
Way to avoid that weather talk! I have recently learned that the tree peony closes its flowers when the weather is cold or cloudy to protect the pollen for when the bees are out and about on warm sunny days. Could the tulips be doing the same? Makes sense, doesn’t it?
Frances
I am so waiting for the sun to come up so I can go outside and uncover plants to assess any damage, hopefully it will be minimal if at all!!
I know I did rather a lot of complaining about our freeze on Monday. I remember in St Louis we would only get red bud blossoms avery few years. The gardener is a patient person. Hope your apples put on a good show.
I’m a little nervous about my star magnolia – even though I situated it in winter shade to slow it down it’s starting to open way ahead of Blithewold’s. I’d hate for the blooms to get touched… I hope it warms up again for you soon!
What EAL said.
I guess I live in a good spot (Michigan). We stay cold so long into spring that I don’t have to worry yet about anything outdoors freezing – except me!
Great post, Carol. I won’t talk about the weather either, except things here were frozen stiff. Ah well, as one of our friends says, “It will separate the true gardeners from others who think they are.” 🙂 ~~Dee
I’m weeping with happiness because I can finally see a patch of my lawn. There’s still another foot of snow to melt but there are patches sticking through the hot spots!
I’m so glad you talked about plants instead of the weather. My Magnolia is poised to start blooming, but the low is forecasted to be below freezing pretty much everyday for the next week. Oh, well.
Great “weather free” post! ha ha.
We have a Japanese tree lilac. It has yet to grace us with blooms but we have high hopes for this year.
OK I won’t mention the weather either. But I am saying indoors today so I don’t have to put on my snowsuit.
SO glad you didn’t write another post about the weather, Carol cause whether the weather be fine, whether the weather be not, whether the weather be cold or, whether the weather be hot, we’ll weather the weather,whatever the weather, whether we like it or not.
Great job on keeping it weather free!LOL
Is this where the “I am so not weather obsessed” meets?
I don’t know weather I believe you!
I must be one of those weather obsessed people. But how to keep from thinking about it when every other day you are threatened with complete desruction of your flowers and loss of the fruit crop?
I’m thinking the plant breeders need to develop plums that are stimulated to bloom by day length rather than temperature. Then maybe they would wait until the last day of frost to bloom and set fruit.