Southern Hemisphere Growing Season 22/23

[greysrigging]

18 hours ago, Tyrone said:

Last night was cloudless and dead still with a chill in the air. I lit the fire because it felt more like winter than summer. Glad I did. It went down to 5.3C last night and then up to 19.7C. Too cold for December here. Luckily the days are really long now because the same temp drop in winter would have led to frost. If I get frost in summer here I'll probably have a breakdown and run for the wet tropics. 

Would you handle this at 11.00am 😁

[Tyrone]

5 hours ago, greysrigging said:

Would you handle this at 11.00am 😁

If i was in the shade with a beer in my hand maybe. 
Just like Saigon in the build up. 

[Phil Petersen]

I'll take 18deg at 630am any day please 🤠. Glad that infernal NE gale has disappeared today.  It was very strong coming down the harbour yesterday and makes me want to plant big trees to block it in the future. 

[Tyrone]

Although it’s been dry lately down here, it hasn’t been clear and sunny. We haven’t seen the sun for ages with just persisting gloom. It doesn’t look like the gloom will end either with a high stuck in the Bight just directing strong cold moist easterlies straight off the ocean. This is not summer. 

[Phil Petersen]

Been around 20deg max and cloudy here, but calm. Was in the botanical gardens yesterday and found a Howea double growing OK under some trees in the Australian flora section. The latest nikaus planted last autumn are going well. Looks like the next week is kinda average to below average temps, cloudy and some rain - but should be OK. Hoping for a warm sunny xmas.

[cbmnz]

Running well below average sun here but above average temperatures  no change to be seen yet in long range forecast. I guess if this type of weather persists all summer the palms will rocket along.

[Tyrone]

6 hours ago, cbmnz said:

Running well below average sun here but above average temperatures  no change to be seen yet in long range forecast. I guess if this type of weather persists all summer the palms will rocket along.

Warmer and wetter than my area. 

[Phil Petersen]

On 12/18/2022 at 8:51 PM, cbmnz said:

Running well below average sun here but above average temperatures  no change to be seen yet in long range forecast. I guess if this type of weather persists all summer the palms will rocket along.

Looks like pretty good growing conditions up your way this week. Certainly much cooler down here as is mostly the norm. Although the lack of sun seems to be everywhere in NZ ATM. 

[Tyrone]

Beautiful day down here today. The easterlies have finally stopped blowing like crazy, which they seem to have done for about a month. Going for a max of 23C with blue skies.

[cbmnz]

The sun finally started putting in a decent appearance from  this past week, and continuing a run in recent years, a fine Christmas day with a high of 25C

[sandgroper]

Merry Christmas to my fellow Southern hemisphere inhabitants.  Looking to a sunny 30c in Perth today, much nicer than last years 43c, I'll take 30c any day. Hope everyone has a fantastic Christmas day. 

[Foxpalms]

On 12/19/2022 at 9:02 AM, Phil Petersen said:

Looks like pretty good growing conditions up your way this week. Certainly much cooler down here as is mostly the norm. Although the lack of sun seems to be everywhere in NZ ATM. 

That looks like the forecast for may here.

[Tyrone]

Well on Saturday afternoon the blue sky disappeared with clouds and drizzle returning. Yesterday was much the same with drizzle on and off all day with 100% clouds but not much wind and a top of 21C officially but I never saw it get above 19C. Much like being in a mountain in the subtropics above 1000m. Bright indirect light and moisture everywhere with cool temps. My cool climate stuff would be loving it. I think we are going for a similarly mild cloudy day today. 

[Tyrone]

Well this is proving to be the coldest summer I’ve ever experienced. Days that don’t even reach 20C, clouds and cold winds. Yesterday evening the clouds cleared up under a high and we actually dropped to 4.3C. I lit the fire when it dropped to 7C. Too cold for this time of year. What we have now is basically October. 

[cbmnz]

4 hours ago, Tyrone said:

Well this is proving to be the coldest summer I’ve ever experienced. Days that don’t even reach 20C, clouds and cold winds. Yesterday evening the clouds cleared up under a high and we actually dropped to 4.3C. I lit the fire when it dropped to 7C. Too cold for this time of year. What we have now is basically October. 

That's rather ridiculous considering you're as close to equator as the very tip of our "sub-tropical Northland".  By contrast having very nice weather for the holiday period here, went for first swim yesterday at the adjacent west coast and it wasn't even uncomfortable getting in, sea was nudging 22C which is 3 above average. As I write this it's 26.4 at 6pm which is just perfect. I do remember as a teenager some awful summers in the early 90's though when needed a jumper to be comfortable in Jan and Feb. That volcano on the Phillipeans contributed to that.

[cbmnz]

Size comparison, Ropalasilais Chatham on left, Bungalow right. Equidistant to the camera. Both planted as 30cm nursery stock. Chatham Sept 2018, Bungalow August 2020.

Bungalow is twice as high despite only having just over half the grow time.

[Phil Petersen]

On 12/28/2022 at 6:22 PM, cbmnz said:

Size comparison, Ropalasilais Chatham on left, Bungalow right. Equidistant to the camera. Both planted as 30cm nursery stock. Chatham Sept 2018, Bungalow August 2020.

Bungalow is twice as high despite only having just over half the grow time.

Great comparison @cbmnz. I've never seen any Bangalow/kings growing down here in Dunedin but got 5 small ones last autumn that im going to give a shot, and a 25l purpurea. The cunninghamiana are growing ok in the shade house so far but I have no idea if they would catch the chathams nikau in my climate, or even survive long term. Only one way to find out.

4.3c low at this time of year is crazy @Tyrone

Its been warm here- but is dropping today to a high of 18deg. We had mid20s and sun the last couple of days, getting to 29 at one point in the back yard. Pity I was breaking up and wheel barrowing concrete to establish a new planting area. Way too hot for heavy labour.

[cbmnz]

5 hours ago, Phil Petersen said:

Great comparison @cbmnz. I've never seen any Bangalow/kings growing down here in Dunedin but got 5 small ones last autumn that im going to give a shot, and a 25l purpurea. The cunninghamiana are growing ok in the shade house so far but I have no idea if they would catch the chathams nikau in my climate, or even survive long term. Only one way to find out.

4.3c low at this time of year is crazy @Tyrone

Its been warm here- but is dropping today to a high of 18deg. We had mid20s and sun the last couple of days, getting to 29 at one point in the back yard. Pity I was breaking up and wheel barrowing concrete to establish a new planting area. Way too hot for heavy labour.

A member called sipalms who was active on here up until a year ago posted plenty of photos of mature in ground Bangalow in very coastal spots around Christchurch, so can't see why they would not grow for you there.

Taking the plunge and planting one of my precious R Baueri, it was a choice of either pot up and move or plant it and start a new small one in that pot/location.

To pot up would need a $300 behemoth of a pot and would be too heavy to move again (without help and equipment anyway).

Half finished the hole then sun came out so erected a quick shadecloth lean to and will finish later. Not rushing the job in index 12 UV.

 

 

[Phil Petersen]

17 hours ago, cbmnz said:

A member called sipalms who was active on here up until a year ago posted plenty of photos of mature in ground Bangalow in very coastal spots around Christchurch, so can't see why they would not grow for you.

Cheers @cbmnz, yes I remember @sipalmspost about the Sumner garden on the hill and it having nice big bangalow. It may even have been what got me thinking I should try them here. Chch has hotter, sunnier summers but has colder winter lows than Dunedin and around 200mm less rain. Sumner would have a very mild microclimate on that seaside hill with its aspect and is totally sheltered from southerlies.  

Great work on getting more palms in the ground.  Looking forward to doing the same👍

[greysrigging]

Darwin, Northern Territory the last 12 months

[cbmnz]

On 12/31/2022 at 7:06 AM, Phil Petersen said:

Cheers @cbmnz, yes I remember @sipalmspost about the Sumner garden on the hill and it having nice big bangalow. It may even have been what got me thinking I should try them here. Chch has hotter, sunnier summers but has colder winter lows than Dunedin and around 200mm less rain. Sumner would have a very mild microclimate on that seaside hill with its aspect and is totally sheltered from southerlies.  

Great work on getting more palms in the ground.  Looking forward to doing the same👍

Job done, wrote about it here. 

There were Bungalow at Gore Bay which while protected from the worst cold by its absolute coastal location must get alot of cooling Easterlies off the sea, can't be too different to your hillside microclimate I would think.

[Tyrone]

Well down here it’s been mild with a bit of cloud and also sun. Easterlies have been nonstop. Going for 26C today and 31C tomorrow with cloud and possible afternoon showers. The mins lately have jumped up to around 17, 18C with high humidity. Decent weather for a change. The westerlies kick in from Friday onwards. The wind speed will probably drop to zero at the wind direction change for probably 3 minutes. It’s always blowing from some direction down here. 

[greysrigging]

The last 10 days have been very kind to my suburb....the Northern Wet in full swing.
28/12 = 68.2mm
29/12 = 42.2mm
30/12 = 45.4mm
31/12 = 77.0mm
01/01 = 70.0mm
02/12 = 25.0mm
03/01 = 52.8mm
04/01 = 25.2mm
05/01 = 27.0mm
06/01 = 19.2mm
Total = 452.0mm ( 17.8")
Cool overcast day under monsoonal skies...

Edited January 6, 2023 by greysrigging
spelling

[PalmCode]

26c here today, hot in the sun. More rain by the looks on Tuesday... chatham nikaus are looking good and putting out new leaves fast and archontophoenix are starting to wake up. 

Edited January 8, 2023 by PalmCode

[Tyrone]

Going for 32C here today. Overnight I woke to the rumbling of thunder all around and lightening. Afterwards it rained lightly for a while. This morning it’s cloudy and humid. The garden will be loving this. 

[Tyrone]

A few dry lightening strikes have kept the fire brigades busy today. There's one burning not far from my place again. 

[greysrigging]

There's been a bit of rain up around the Roebuck Plains ( rear Broome )
Doubt one would see pics like this anywhere else in the world....
( source: Senator Glen Sterle }
"Amazing shots of Broome bound freight crossing the flooded Roebuck Plains under strict main road permits today. Thank you to all of the emergency support workers, transport workers and people on the ground assisting with the recovery effort in the Kimberley!"

[sandgroper]

There are hundreds of square kilometres under water in the Kimberley, over 100 homes gone and several bridges washed away. There are SES volunteers from all over WA on the ground there doing what they can and the RAAF and army are there as well. No deaths reported thus far but there's  lot of work to do and still plenty more wet season to go.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[greysrigging]

1 hour ago, sandgroper said:

There are hundreds of square kilometres under water in the Kimberley, over 100 homes gone and several bridges washed away. There are SES volunteers from all over WA on the ground there doing what they can and the RAAF and army are there as well. No deaths reported thus far but there's  lot of work to do and still plenty more wet season to go.

 

 

 

Its a long way to Perth now for Darwin people if we wanna drive .... bridges washed away here at Fitzroy Crossing.




Or through the desert via the unsealed Central Road

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[sandgroper]

2 hours ago, greysrigging said:

 

It's going to cause a lot of grief mate. 

[cbmnz]

It rained or drizzled for 3 days straight here without even a peek of sun. Some areas got hit hard again which seems to happen monthly these days sadly.  Yesterday was suddenly like being on a new planet when the sun returned. It looked and smelt just like mid spring.  It could not be greener.  Interestingly my queen palm, now over 18 years old, is flowering for the first time. 

[Tyrone]

Well it doesn't feel like January here at the moment. It's barely making 20C. We had a 38C last week but since then the bottom fell out of the bucket. 38C is a bit too hot, but the averages have been low this January. A bit of a fizzer this summer. 

[cbmnz]

3 hours ago, Tyrone said:

Well it doesn't feel like January here at the moment. It's barely making 20C. We had a 38C last week but since then the bottom fell out of the bucket. 38C is a bit too hot, but the averages have been low this January. A bit of a fizzer this summer. 

It's rather the same here, it's strange. Running a bit above average as the overnight lows are up, but today for example it was sunny, the wind direction was not a cold Southerly yet topped out at 24C official, 26 on my sheltered station.  Would expect that more in late March/early April.

Looking at the 850hpa map there just is hardy any warm air South of 30S. Wondering if a delayed effect of the Tonga volcano or some other bigger picture reason.

For now, very pleasant, better that 32C max, 20C min with a 24C dewpoint like were subjected to last summer. Hope however it does not mean an extra cold winter is comming.

 

[Tyrone]

Yesterday we maxed out at 18C. Real cold for January. Cold easterlies too. I blame the Tongan volcano. 

[Tyrone]

It’s 19C at 11.15pm and the sound of rolling thunder and lightening is in the air. I want it to rain as I put out a cubic metre of chicken manure around some of my palms today. I’m hoping for a few mms of rain. The frogs are loud too. They know. 

[Tyrone]

Didn’t get a lot of sleep last night with all the thunderstorms. One loud bang just blasted us awake. It’s raining now which is great. Going for a humid 27C today. 

[Phil Petersen]

Been reasonably good growing temps here and the 75l chathams nikau in particular are powering along into their second spear of the summer. One is opening up looking like it was eaten by something. Doesn't seem to bother it otherwise but this frond will look a funky as a result. 

[Tyrone]

The weather has turned the corner recently and it’s been good weather with some decent growing temps and humidity. Yesterday’s thunderstorms and rain were really good. So far the blowing easterlies have eased off. Yesterday they blew like mad constantly, then just like that, as if someone unplugged the fan, they dropped to zero before sundown creating a balmy pleasant night. Last night was warm for here with 18C and dewpoints around 17.5C. It’s a sunny, humid warm morning here now.

[philinsydney]

It's noticeable that there are more dead grass trees in the bush than normal. Widespread opinion is that they couldn't cope with the record rainfall last year. It's also possible that phytopthora has spread as a result of the rains but more likely it's just that they can't cope with so much water. Even some scribbly gums look a bit sick and some banksias have died.

 

 

 

[Tyrone]

3 hours ago, philinsydney said:

It's noticeable that there are more dead grass trees in the bush than normal. Widespread opinion is that they couldn't cope with the record rainfall last year. It's also possible that phytopthora has spread as a result of the rains but more likely it's just that they can't cope with so much water. Even some scribbly gums look a bit sick and some banksias have died.

 

 

 

The water table has probably risen above normal. Many banksias would certainly hate the extra water, except the swamp loving species.

It's funny, here in the west I use the grass trees to gauge the 600mm annual rainfall line. If you can see them it's basically at least that amount of rain a year, same as Macrozamia reidlii. Any less than about 600mm rain and they are gone. In the east if the grass trees are dying it could be that you've hit the 2500mm annual rainfall line or thereabouts. There's no doubt that Phytophthera would have spread far and wide now too. Stressed out plants and pathogens go hand in hand, but add water and Phytophthera will be off and racing.