The Cold Weather blues

[PalmGuyWC]

It happens every year about this time.  Around Nov 15th we get our first frost and it was a few days late this year, but now it's quite chilly.  I was just outside for a garden walk and it's so chilley I'm back here at the computer.  Just darn uncomfortable to work outside.  The low last night was 32F and there was a white frost this morning.  Worst, they are forcasting a low of 28 later in the week.  I always panic when I see a forcast near 32 F degrees.

I should get used to it because it happens every year here. I know at 28F the cannas will be burned to the ground, the bannas, etc, but the palms will still stand untouched.  All of my tender palms in pots are under an overhang and they are protected from frost.  It has to get really cold for them to be affected.  I think the radiaton from the house keeps them a little warmer.

By the time late December arrives and January, I have adjusted to the cold, but I still don't like it.  I hate winter and short days, long nights.  All of the palms stop growing when the night temps fall below 50 F.  Winter puts me into a funk.  Conventional wisdom tells me that I only have to worry when the temps fall below 25F. because most of my palms will take it much lower, but I have a caryota and a willicha in the ground that are probably only good down to about 28F.  I hope I don't find out this winter.

The Jet stream has been pumping cold air into N. Calif for the past week, right out of the Gulf of Alaska.  I'm praying for a Hawaii express to bring us some rain and mild weather, much of what we had last year.  My fingers are crossed.

Dick Douglas

[happ]

Dick,

Where are you located in Nor.Cal?

[SunnyFl]

(PalmGuyWC @ Nov. 28 2006,15:50)

QUOTE

By the time late December arrives and January, I have adjusted to the cold, but I still don't like it.  I hate winter and short days, long nights.  All of the palms stop growing when the night temps fall below 50 F.  Winter puts me into a funk.  

I have the same problem with winter.  Those awfully short days.  It makes me feel cruddy - yes I guess a winter "funk."   I'm a sun hog - I love the bright sunshine and huge sky we have here - it was the first thing I loved about FL.

I have no use for the "change of seasons."  Like the deadness I saw last week up north - beige grass and deciduous trees that looked like so many dead sticks.  But here at home, I love seeing my hibs in bloom and palms throwing up new spears all year - everything so bright and vibrant.  Like a reaffirmation of Life - the mandies and bougainvillea are a riot of color, the rivularises and roebs wave their bright green fronds in the wind - and the parrots are shrieking from the trees.

[happ]

Sunny

But here at home, I love seeing my hibs in bloom and palms throwing up new spears all year - everything so bright and vibrant.  Like a reaffirmation of Life - the mandies and bougainvillea are a riot of color, the rivularises and roebs wave their bright green fronds in the wind - and the parrots are shrieking from the trees.

TOUCHE   :cool:

Must admit that I stok'd on deciduous color in Chico on Thanksgiving. But the lure of the dombeya in bloom & climbing bauhinia corymbosa flowers everywhere puts a smile on my mugshot  

[Neofolis]

It's pretty much dark here at the moment and it's 4:24pm, the sun set at 4:07 today.  Even with the relatively mild weather (extremely mild by our standards) it's still crap.  Give me a low altitude, oceaninc, equatorial clmate any day.  I don't understand people who like living in places with seasons, who looks forward to winter?

[MattyB]

I was just thinking about this yesterday.  I got home from work at 4:30 and was rushing around trying to get my back lawn mowed before I got dark.  Plus it was bloody cold!  I found myself worrying about the cold weather and had to stop myself.  I think it' just my default to want to control everything and it's a control issue to not want it to get cold.  I have to realize that I'm not in charge of the weather and I'll probably loose lots of palms/plants over the years so just learn to enjoy it.  We seem to want to look past what we're experiencing if it's unpleasant but I think there's good stuff to be had inside of the crap.  I need to learn to "consider" and "experience" and "contemplate" about those times that seem uncomfortable to me.  

-Just lookin' fer wisdum, Matt

[BobbyinNY]

I was just thinking about this yesterday.  I got home from work at 4:30 and was rushing around trying to get my back lawn mowed before I got dark.  Plus it was bloody cold!  I found myself worrying about the cold weather and had to stop myself.  I think it' just my default to want to control everything and it's a control issue to not want it to get cold.  I have to realize that I'm not in charge of the weather and I'll probably loose lots of palms/plants over the years so just learn to enjoy it.  We seem to want to look past what we're experiencing if it's unpleasant but I think there's good stuff to be had inside of the crap.  I need to learn to "consider" and "experience" and "contemplate" about those times that seem uncomfortable to me.  

-Just lookin' fer wisdum, Matt

Matt, that's what a heated greenhouse is for.... It's always summer in my greenhouse.. uh, except for the light that is.. but, hey... if I want I can install some metal halide & sodium lights and make it bright at 8:00pm too

[happ]

The only thing good about winter is rain.  So I can stop irrigating for a while  

[tropicalb]

amen happ....

i too look forward to the break rain provides from the seemingly endless watering i do over the summer...

I do it all by hand, and it takes forever, but I'd gladly take a couple weeks of nice sunny days and five hours of "having" to water over one night of 32F and below weather....

[amazondk]

I love the winter here.  The temperature stays below 90 F on a lot of days, and it rains.  Things get real green.  Since we are technically in summer, south of the equator the days are a bit longer, but at 3 degrees S. latitude, a bit longer is a matter of minutes not hours.  The night time temperatures get down to 72 F or so, instead of 74 F or so in the summer.  But, since it rains a lot it seems cooler.  It is a good time to start a garden.  So, that is what I have been doing.  I transplanted some Euterpe olearcea trees to my yard and they seem to be doing ok, the cloudy skies and rain has helped with mitigating the shock I think.  I did get a new A/C unit for the bedroom, so we are using a rather heavy blanket to sleep.  It gets almost frosty.

Enjoy the cool weather.

dk

[BS Man about Palms]

(MattyB @ Nov. 29 2006,09:46)

QUOTE

I was just thinking about this yesterday.  I got home from work at 4:30 and was rushing around trying to get my back lawn mowed before I got dark.  Plus it was bloody cold!  I found myself worrying about the cold weather and had to stop myself.  I think it' just my default to want to control everything and it's a control issue to not want it to get cold.  I have to realize that I'm not in charge of the weather and I'll probably loose lots of palms/plants over the years so just learn to enjoy it.  We seem to want to look past what we're experiencing if it's unpleasant but I think there's good stuff to be had inside of the crap.  I need to learn to "consider" and "experience" and "contemplate" about those times that seem uncomfortable to me.  

-Just lookin' fer wisdum, Matt

aaaaauuuuuuuhh, uummmmmmmm,  hogwash.  We hate the cold, it sucks, deal with it the best you can...  

[Kim]

I have a split personality on the winter issue.  I enjoy some aspects of winter -- the leaf color, the change to cold weather comfort food -soups, roasts, stews-, the cozy evenings by the fire, being able to wear a sweater and scarf without getting too hot.

But I don't like to be cold!  (Cold is anything below 68F/20C.)  And I don't like it to be dark!  And I don't like worrying about my garden!  When we hit the shortest day of the year, I count the days, hours, and minutes to spring.

[Scott]

Kim - that day is on it's way!  

[spockvr6]

(Kim @ Nov. 30 2006,11:44)

QUOTE

But I don't like to be cold!  (Cold is anything below 68F/20C.)

Well heck...then Ive been "cold" in San Diego in July!

I am always amazed at the temp gradient as one drives toward the coast from inland.  I recall one time when I went from having the A/C not able to keep the car cool enough with blaring sun to having to turn on the heat and negotiate through serious fog.....and this took place in what seemed like an hour or two's drive!

[Kim]

(spockvr6 @ Nov. 30 2006,12:38)

QUOTE

(Kim @ Nov. 30 2006,11:44)

QUOTE

But I don't like to be cold!  (Cold is anything below 68F/20C.)

Well heck...then Ive been "cold" in San Diego in July!

So have I, Larry, so have I.

I feel sorry for tourists who book vacations here in June expecting perfect beach weather.  They could get lucky, but often it's the June gloom, which can recur sporadically in July.

[BobbyinNY]

I have a split personality on the winter issue.  I enjoy some aspects of winter -- the leaf color, the change to cold weather comfort food -soups, roasts, stews-, the cozy evenings by the fire, being able to wear a sweater and scarf without getting too hot.

But I don't like to be cold!  (Cold is anything below 68F/20C.)  And I don't like it to be dark!  And I don't like worrying about my garden!  When we hit the shortest day of the year, I count the days, hours, and minutes to spring.

I'm with you Kim.... I don't mind when the cold comes along, but after December, I'm done with it... I love the christmas feeling and all the lights and festivities, but I wish after Jan 1st when the new Year is over, someone would turn a swich and spring would be here.. Those 3 months of Jan/Feb/Mar are just god-awful.

[Kathy]

No split personality here.  I just hate the cold!  I'm fine leaving it all the way around.  And if the holidays don't seem right, I'll fly to the cold for 1-2 weeks and be reminded in 24 hours why I hate the cold.  It's just painful!  I can imagine what my poor palms feel when I just feel like my fingers are going to break off.

[spockvr6]

(Kim @ Nov. 30 2006,13:22)

QUOTE

(spockvr6 @ Nov. 30 2006,12:38)

QUOTE

(Kim @ Nov. 30 2006,11:44)

QUOTE

But I don't like to be cold!  (Cold is anything below 68F/20C.)

Well heck...then Ive been "cold" in San Diego in July!

So have I, Larry, so have I.

I feel sorry for tourists who book vacations here in June expecting perfect beach weather.  They could get lucky, but often it's the June gloom, which can recur sporadically in July.

But overall, Id say that San Diego coastal climate aint bad  

One just cant expect what we in FL would call "beach weather" all the time .  But, for general everyday living and comfort (which is really what we are after 90% of the time), the climate there seems hard to beat.

[BS Man about Palms]

Have to agree Larry, thus my "signature"....

[tropical1]

I think the ultimate would be to spend fall, winter and spring in south florida and summer in southern california. I love FLA but escaping our heat in the summer and seeing rhopies and howeas would be nice.

[spockvr6]

(tropical1 @ Nov. 30 2006,22:09)

QUOTE

I think the ultimate would be to spend fall, winter and spring in south florida and summer in southern california. I love FLA but escaping our heat in the summer and seeing rhopies and howeas would be nice.

Sounds good to me tropical1

[BS Man about Palms]

(tropical1 @ Nov. 30 2006,19:09)

QUOTE

I think the ultimate would be to spend fall, winter and spring in south florida and summer in southern california. I love FLA but escaping our heat in the summer and seeing rhopies and howeas would be nice.

I would modify that to "Spring" in So Cal too......need to see it green at SOME point. Everywhere not irrigated is brown the rest of the time....

[SunnyFl]

(Kathy @ Nov. 30 2006,17:58)

QUOTE

No split personality here.  I just hate the cold!  I'm fine leaving it all the way around.  And if the holidays don't seem right, I'll fly to the cold for 1-2 weeks and be reminded in 24 hours why I hate the cold.  It's just painful!  I can imagine what my poor palms feel when I just feel like my fingers are going to break off.

Exactly.

I dislike the north as soon as I get there, and I don't stay more than a couple of days.  That's enough for me.  It seems darker, it's ickily cold, and there are hills.

I must admit, though, as I've gotten older, I really suffer from the heat.  But the cold feels worse.  Makes everything hurt even more than it usually does and the shorter days make me want to hibernate.

As miserable as it gets working in the yard in July & August, I was out there every weekend.  hmmm.

[happ]

Winter & Spring in Florida and Summer & Fall in California is just about perfect  

I must admit getting excited by the sight of a little frost in my Thanksgiving visit w/ kin in Chico/upper Sacramento valley.  An area where I lived as a child.  Huge oaks/sycamores and groves of nut & fruit trees.  The Fall color was outstanding    A nice but brief  repreive from the sameness of evergreen.

[epicure3]

(tropical1 @ Nov. 30 2006,22:09)

QUOTE

I think the ultimate would be to spend fall, winter and spring in south florida and summer in southern california. I love FLA but escaping our heat in the summer and seeing rhopies and howeas would be nice.

The grass is always greener, etc....

I would love seeing all those coconuts and adonidias :cool:

I must say that I do love 75-80 in the summer. As far as winter goes, I'm from Canada, so SD weather in winter is just fine thank you very much.

Gonna be upper 70s for the next while here with warmer nights.

[SunnyFl]

(epicure3 @ Dec. 01 2006,01:57)

QUOTE

The grass is always greener, etc....

I would love seeing all those coconuts and adonidias :cool:

The 75-80 temps in summer sound nice, but frankly, I love where I live and simply want to stay here (looking less likely wahhhh).  I love driving through my 'hood, seeing the foxies and adonidias everywhere, and there's the beautiful lutescens.... ahhhh....

no more coconuts down the street.  new owner moved in and pulled them out.  grrr.

Monday was cloudy n' gloomy - I get the winter-blahhhs when it does that, just couldn't perk up.  Fortunately, we don't get much of it.

[BobbyinNY]

No split personality here.  I just hate the cold!  I'm fine leaving it all the way around.  And if the holidays don't seem right, I'll fly to the cold for 1-2 weeks and be reminded in 24 hours why I hate the cold.  It's just painful!  I can imagine what my poor palms feel when I just feel like my fingers are going to break off.

Kathy those are my thoughts exactly.. Now If I could ONLY get my wife on board with that... She flatly refuses to be in a place where it's warm all the time.. she says it's for Old people.

[NBTX11]

I don't mind South Texas winters.  I can handle 60s and 70s ok.  Just need a light jacket for the mornings.  The cold fronts we do get "usually" don't last too long, although once in a while can get pretty cold.  But the good thing is a warm sunny 70 or even 80 degree winter day is never more than a couple days away no matter how cold it gets.  That's the good thing about living in the south as opposed to the North where I grew up.  Winter blahs lasted so long because it never got warm for several months on end.  At least I see some winter greenery around here because live oaks are native to the area and are commonly planted.

What I really love about Texas is the extremely long, extremely HOT summers. and for that matter warm/hot springs and falls.  With all the hot weather we get a little cool weather is nice to break up the monotony before it starts getting hot again next March or so.

[happ]

(SunnyFl @ Dec. 06 2006,07:11)

QUOTE

(epicure3 @ Dec. 01 2006,01:57)

QUOTE

The grass is always greener, etc....

I would love seeing all those coconuts and adonidias :cool:

The 75-80 temps in summer sound nice, but frankly, I love where I live and simply want to stay here (looking less likely wahhhh).  I love driving through my 'hood, seeing the foxies and adonidias everywhere, and there's the beautiful lutescens.... ahhhh....

no more coconuts down the street.  new owner moved in and pulled them out.  grrr.

Agree with you, Sunny.  I want vigorous growth that warm/hot summers provide.  Once worked in the South Bay & would watch the cool early evening overcast surge in. Inland 20 miles later its too hot to tackle the garden until sunset.  I like some heat but hate having to rely on A/C.

[NBTX11]

(happ @ Dec. 06 2006,21:52)

QUOTE

 I like some heat but hate having to rely on A/C.

Then don't move to TX, because A/C is mandatory 7-8 months a year.  You don't sit in your car for more than 3 seconds literally without max A/C.  With no A/C in the house, you would never get any sleep unless you like sleeping in 100 degree temps.  You know how some places they turn on thier car and turn the heat on to let it warm up/defrost.  Here we turn our cars on and let the a/c run for 5 min before we get in it.  I also get a kick out of for example Chicago when they get their one week heat waves and everyone is almost dying.  Don't they realize that we in the southland live in that condition for months on end.

[happ]

Jim

I know how hot it is in Texas/Gulf states though I found San Antonio less oppressive than Houston.  Even St. Louis can be quite uncomfortable.  Maybe because I was raised in dry heat [Fresno/Chico] I can't handle heat w/ humidity too well.  Family members say LA is too muggy but it is nothing compared to what you folks in the South deal with.  

Last summer was considered one of the worst in California & when we were wigging out you reminded us that LA's hot/humid weather was a typical day in Texas.  :laugh:

By this weekend it will be anything but hot here but still no sign of much-needed rainfall.  

[SunnyFl]

(syersj @ Dec. 06 2006,22:33)

QUOTE

(happ @ Dec. 06 2006,21:52)

QUOTE

 I like some heat but hate having to rely on A/C.

Then don't move to TX, because A/C is mandatory 7-8 months a year.  You don't sit in your car for more than 3 seconds literally without max A/C.  

The same is true of Tampa Bay.  Although I've even had to run my A/C from time to time in the "winter" months.  During Jeanne, when our electric was out for a week in Sept. I thought I was gonna die.  And those farther south fared worse: some lost power for over a month, starting August 13th.

Sitting in your car without the A/C on is terrible.  And it's worse where Jim is, where the temps top the 100F mark.  Louisiana, too.  Even areas like Savannah, GA have it worse in the summer than we do.

And you can forget about sleeping without A/C.  It's just too hot.  Some nights, the temps don't drop below 80.

But what makes up for it are the beautiful days in the "winter" months - and the incredible tropicals that we can grow down here, that like the warmer soil temps and lack of lengthy cool-downs.

[Trópico]

"Christmas is supposed to be cold, and with snow"

-Archie Bunker, while visiting California for the holidays

Why is it some people can't picture a nice warm and green Christmas, why it doesn't seem right? I don't recall the nativity scene with snow over the stable and camels pulling a sledge,...  

[NBTX11]

(happ @ Dec. 07 2006,01:01)

QUOTE

Jim

I know how hot it is in Texas/Gulf states though I found San Antonio less oppressive than Houston.  Even St. Louis can be quite uncomfortable.  Maybe because I was raised in dry heat [Fresno/Chico] I can't handle heat w/ humidity too well.  Family members say LA is too muggy but it is nothing compared to what you folks in the South deal with.  

Last summer was considered one of the worst in California & when we were wigging out you reminded us that LA's hot/humid weather was a typical day in Texas.  :laugh:

By this weekend it will be anything but hot here but still no sign of much-needed rainfall.  

You are correct about Houston.  Being on the Gulf, there really is no difference between Houston and say Tampa FL in ths summer.  Houston is actually a couple degrees hotter than FL and just as humid.  We don't get as humid, but you would be surprised how humid San Antonio does get, especially when the winds are off the gulf.  (We're only 140 miles from the gulf).  It can get nasty humid is S.A., but we alternate between Humid and dry weather, unlike Houston which is humid all the time.  The bad thing about when it is dry around here in summer, usually means the temp is around 100F or higher, so that somewhat cancels out the relief we get from less humidity.  What is bad around here not so much the humidity, but the length of the heat.  It goes on and on for months.  Doesn't bother me personnaly, I love the heat.  You could say I'm a heat freak, the hotter, the better.

[Kathy]

(Trópico @ Dec. 07 2006,09:20)

QUOTE

"Christmas is supposed to be cold, and with snow"

-Archie Bunker, while visiting California for the holidays

Why is it some people can't picture a nice warm and green Christmas, why it doesn't seem right? I don't recall the nativity scene with snow over the stable and camels pulling a sledge,...  

LOL!  So true...the first Christmas was not snowy at all!  It's simple commercialism.....

We need to decorate with palm trees and sand and camels!

[BobbyinNY]

LOL!  So true...the first Christmas was not snowy at all!  It's simple commercialism.....

We need to decorate with palm trees and sand and camels!

Kathy, you couldn't have said it better..... AND it's true...   Every time I see Nativity scenes there is a palm tree in there....

[amazondk]

(BobbyinNY @ Dec. 06 2006,09:09)

QUOTE

No split personality here.  I just hate the cold!  I'm fine leaving it all the way around.  And if the holidays don't seem right, I'll fly to the cold for 1-2 weeks and be reminded in 24 hours why I hate the cold.  It's just painful!  I can imagine what my poor palms feel when I just feel like my fingers are going to break off.

Kathy those are my thoughts exactly.. Now If I could ONLY get my wife on board with that... She flatly refuses to be in a place where it's warm all the time.. she says it's for Old people.

Bobby,

I guess I am just an old person.  But, at least I am warm.

dk

[SunnyFl]

(Trópico @ Dec. 07 2006,09:20)

QUOTE

"Christmas is supposed to be cold, and with snow"

-Archie Bunker, while visiting California for the holidays

Why is it some people can't picture a nice warm and green Christmas, why it doesn't seem right? I don't recall the nativity scene with snow over the stable and camels pulling a sledge,...  

What?!  No sledge??

But seriously......

I've griped about this every year - when I keep hearing all that "can't get the Christmas spirit" in FL....  ummmmm, that white stuff the camels were trudging through was sand.   And btw, poincettia is a tropical flower.  There was probably one growing by the manger - and an hibiscus right next to it.

And as Kathy pointed out - definitely the palms.

[happ]

(amazondk @ Dec. 07 2006,21:13)

QUOTE

I guess I am just an old person.  But, at least I am warm.

dk

:laugh:

I'm with you Don.  

Only problem is that I have to contend with a lot less friendly winter than equatorial South America    

Today will end a warm period as flow turns onshore over the weekend.  

LA : 85/58

[ruskinPalms]

Today will end a warm period as flow turns onshore over the weekend.  

LA : 85/58

Happ, is it warmer in socal in the fall and eraly winter than the summer?

It can get nasty humid is S.A., but we alternate between Humid and dry weather, unlike Houston which is humid all the time.  The bad thing about when it is dry around here in summer, usually means the temp is around 100F or higher, so that somewhat cancels out the relief we get from less humidity.  What is bad around here not so much the humidity, but the length of the heat.  It goes on and on for months.  Doesn't bother me personnaly, I love the heat.  You could say I'm a heat freak, the hotter, the better.

Oh, how I long for those humid, seemingly endless 90 to 92 degree humid days with building cumulonimbus clouds to the east in the face of a stiff seabreeze....