themagnoliatreeblog

It’s too early to try to tackle winter damage yet but in surveying the wet or frozen ground, I did notice signs of the cocktail kiwi tree developing leaf buds.

Last year, plants started springing to life with an early spring, then were cut back with a late frost. The kiwi was one of plants affected and although it came back to life, it didn’t bear any fruit last year. 

I also have a lime caviar tree, perhaps a mistake thinking I could grow a frost-tender tree in such a cold climate but I do like a challenge. It suffered a lot of damage last year being moved from house to greenhouse, outside then back to the greenhouse depending on the forecasted temperature. It’s lethal thorns didn’t do me much good either, just one shift and I was full of puncture holes. I was given grow house frames which would have been ideal to cage and cover it with bubble wrap insulation for winter. I changed my mind about the type of insulation and thought a fleece jacket would be fine. After all they are advertised as frost protectors. I also bought lengths of fleece to cover plants in the greenhouse but even with bubble wrap insulation and fleece, I may have lost plants I thought would have survived with a little help. I now have an aloe vera and two clivia convalescing indoors in the hope that the ice hasn’t reached their little hearts.

Why not visit my other blog Grannysattic