How cold has it been for your plants today

[Lyn and Malcolm]

It was down to minus 8.6c last night, not quite a record low for us in the last six years of recording the low temperatures in the back garden.

Now at 4.00pm it is already down to minus 4c

Saw a couple of cars on the road stopped, with water pouring out. (not enough antifreeze) and someone has just rung to ask me to check thir electrics in the house as they had a burst pipe.

I have wrapped some more fleece around the bananas, and we cannot get into the greenhouse now, as it is stuffed full with plants enjoying the balmy plus 7c inside. More plants have been put in the conservatory, where there are Bougainvillea still hanging on to their flowers (Bracts).

Another minus 8c is forecast tonight, hope we don't get too many more like that.

It looks like a sparrowhawk is visiting our garden, something has taken 2 birds in the last couple of days, one a blackbird and tha other a ringed dove we think. The Blackbirds are real edgy at the feeders now.
I have set up a night survellence camera tonight to see if we can see what is taking them early in the morning. It will be recorded on a video recorder.
Usefull things those cameras, we have used it to find what was digging up our front garden last spring (cat), and also recorded a RAT  in the tree that the bird feeders hang in.

Malcolm

[NightHawk]

Well, here in the northeast of England the overnight temperature got down to -9 ºC (and the thermometer is on a house wall so it was probably slightly lower again away from the house), and it didn't rise above -6 ºC throughout the day.  Might need to dig out the thermal underwear if this continues. 

We don't have any plants out that need any special TLC so that's not a big concern.

As you mention birds there Malcolm, we have seen a dramatic reduction of a lot of birds visiting our feeders this winter.  We could count up to 20 House Sparrows at a time on the feeders last year and beyond - Blue Tits, Great Tits, Dunnocks, Blackbirds, Collared Doves, Wood Pigeons and Coal Tits being the most regular visitors.
We haven't had a Sparrowhawk in our garden for about a year now, so don't think that can account for it.  Had 8 Long-tailed Tits on our feeders all at one time last week - figured they were a family unit, but they haven't been seen since then either.

We could do with your night surveillance equipment to catch this darned mole in our garden.  It's returned within the last few days, moving into our main long border, and it's travelling into our neighbours' gardens either side of us now.  Ho hum.

Laurie.

[Lyn and Malcolm]

Very cold up with you then Kathy and Laurie, the coldest in the last six years here was -8.7

There are still lots of birds at our feeders, despite the "Killing". The only ones that have dissapeared in this cold weather is Greater Spotted Woodpecker and Goldfinches, no idea why, but hope they come back.

The Longtailed tits are always in flocks, ten came down at 4.00pm for their last feed of the day.
They do like fat rubbed into a tree trunk, or we have some of those brass curtain rod ends that look like shallow bottomless cups, screwed to a tree trunk, Lyn keeps them filled with fat, the Gs woodpecker and nuthatch like it also.
A coal tit has been taking away pieces of chopped peanut for weeks now, quite a few birds will hoard food in the winter.

The camera I use is this one http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?ModuleNo=99756
The lead from the camera has to be supplied with 12 volts, I use an old car battery. The pictures are sent by radio signal to the receiver which is plugged into a telly or recorder. I doubt you would see much of Mr and Mrs Moly, apart from the dirt heaps rising from the ground   

The infra red light allow you to see at least 8-10 metres in fromt of the camera, you would be suprised to see what goes on in the garden at night.It is waterproof too.

Malcolm

[NightHawk]

We used to get a lot of Goldfinches coming into our garden earlier last year onto our Niger seed feeder, but haven't seen them for a while.  We don't get Woodpeckers or Nuthatches in our area, more's the pity. 

You've definitely got all the right equipment there Malcolm.  I think we'll have to start calling you Inspector Gadget. 

Anyway, over to all our other members now to tell us what all-time low temperatures they have experienced and how it's affecting their gardens, and what visitors they are having.

Laurie. 

[Lyn and Malcolm]

Midnight now and -9.7
I think we may well lose some plants tonight 

Malcolm

[NightHawk]

It actually warmed up here overnight.  Went up to -3 ºC.

I hope your plants don't suffer too badly Malcolm and it soon starts to get warmer for you down there.

Laurie.

[ideasguy]

I hope your plants survive Malcolm. You must be living on the edge during this cold snap.
Here in Ireland we seem to be getting off lightly. Do you see the temperatures in N Ireland in your weather forecasts on TV?

What make of thermometer do you guys use? I'd like to buy one. I had a very nice one at one time which had a low "hand" and a high "hand". The indicating hand pushed the low and high, so you could look at the thermometer next day and see the temperature range. It was cheap but efective. Scary the height it used to reach in summer! Currently I have a not very reliable device in the greenhouse.

[NightHawk]

This is the thermometer we use George.  It has the Minimum and Maximum temperature scale markers you mentioned.  This one is on an outside house wall, and we have the same one in our greenhouse.

The make is Nortene which we got from our local garden centre last year for about £12 ish - (Peter Barratt (Wyevale) and is suitable for indoor and outdoor use.

As you can see in the below photo (taken this morning at 9.30am), the lowest temperature for last night (MIN scale on left, indicated by the bottom of the blue line inside nearest the mercury) is showing -3 ºC and the mercury is now showing the current temperature - another rise to 0 ºC.  The Maximum temperature hasn't moved from 0 ºC.

Laurie.

[Palustris]

Our Min/max therm broke last year (darn CAT!) but since it was still -6.5 at 9.30 am in the car and the sun had been out long enough to remove the frost from it, then it must have been lower in the night. -11 seems to have happened in Shawbury which is on the same isotherm as us. We are used to low temps so most of our plants are frost hardy or they do not survive a normal winter here. Still think we will have lost a lot though.

[Lyn and Malcolm]

Well it went down to -10.3   

This is the same as reported at the airport about 1.5 miles away as the crow flies. No puns please about aircraft flying.

Looking at thr records from the airport, it was the coldest night for 21 years 

Haven't had time to look at the plants yet, just got back from 4 jobs.

Thermometer we use is a digital wireless one, the sensor in the garden at about 4 foot six inches, and the readout indoors on the kitchen window shelf. Max and min available from indoors and reset.

Malcolm / Inspector Gadget

[NightHawk]

Thermometer we use is a digital wireless one, the sensor in the garden at about 4 foot six inches, and the readout indoors on the kitchen window shelf. Max and min available from indoors and reset.
Malcolm / Inspector Gadget

Malcolm - I'm speechless    But at the same time you didn't let me down with this bit of kit.

Us mere mortals have to go out into the cold to read our thermometers, so at least you can do yours from the comfort of the house. 
I reckon that one is going to take some beating. 

Heard on the weather forecast that some parts of the UK are down to -12 ºC.  YIKES!!!!

Laurie.

[Lyn and Malcolm]

It is handy to have more than one sensor, you can have up to 3.  Monitor the outside temp and greenhouse without having to go out. 

Similar to this  http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?ModuleNo=34745

It is not supposed to be so cold tonight, hope not

George

Here in Ireland we seem to be getting off lightly. Do you see the temperatures in N Ireland in your weather forecasts on TV?

Yes we do, and can check on your temperatures like this

http://www.weatheronline.co.uk/weather/maps/city?LANG=en&PLZ=_____&PLZN=_____&WMO=03862&ART=MIN&CONT=ukuk&R=150&LEVEL=150&REGION=0002&LAND=SOU&MM=01&YY=2009&WEEK=2&NOREGION=0&MOD=&TMX=&TMN=&SON=&PRE=&MONAT=&OFFS=&SORT=

Malcolm

[Tom]

Some of you guys are getting it bad. I don't mind the cold but it worries me when it is prolonged. My garden overlooks the Moray firth and normally we don't get too many cold days in a row, but I know that I have lost some nice plants after 8 days of -5, namely, a couple of species rhododendrons, a rather nice Tasmanian Gum and several perennial bizzie lizzies that I forgot to mulch. Oh well, try again.

[NightHawk]

It is indeed worrying Tom.

There are going to be an awful lot of unhappy gardeners out there if this cold spell continues.  It's like arctic conditions at the moment, the likes of which we haven't seen for a long time. 

Let's hope we soon see an improvement.

Laurie.

[Lyn and Malcolm]

That is the worst, consequetive (spelling ?) frosts are what kills a plant. We cant really tell yet if we have lost any, the ground it still rock hard, and sale plants in pots are frozen solid too.
In the herbaceous borders we don't cut down the plants till about late February to early March. The "sticks" give some protection.
Some of the clematis are already shooting, it will be another six weeks before we prune them.

Had a Male Blackcap at the feeders today as well as the usual gang of birds.
Lyn thought she saw the Sparrowhawk fly past the kitchen window at high speed this morning.

Malcolm

[Palustris]

One of the unseen and possibly unforseen problems in freezing conditions like these is that plants still need some water and in frozen soil they cannot get it. They then die, not of cold, but dehydration. When we moved here I brought 3,000 pots of plants with me. It froze in October and stayed frozen into Feb, we lost about 90 percent of the stuff, purely and simply through thirst. What makes it harder is that our water butts are solid and in any case the last thing one should do is to water greenhouse protected plants with water which is only a little above freezing. It is very difficult.

[Lyn and Malcolm]

Laurie wrote

I think we'll have to start calling you Inspector Gadget

Does that mean you read The Telegraph Laurie ?

Happened to see that title on the "Telegraph online"

Malcolm

[NightHawk]

Re: Inspector Gadget
Does that mean you read The Telegraph Laurie ?
Happened to see that title on the "Telegraph online"
Malcolm

Actually Malcolm........ NO.

The Inspector Gadget I'm familiar with is from the cartoon series on TV - many, many, many, years ago. 

Just watched it when I was a little bit bored perhaps - sad really, but hey, who cares. 

It's a character that jumps into my mind now when I come across anyone who is into a lot of hi-tech/low tech gadgets.  A well-natured pet name I attach to those people. 

Laurie.

[Lyn and Malcolm]

The Inspector Gadget I'm familiar with is from the cartoon series on TV - many, many, many, years ago

Mmmm must be my age, don't remember that. Lyn has said I don't have many brain cells.

Malcolm

[NightHawk]

I'm not that old really Malcolm - in fact I think it was a recent re-run of the series, as opposed to the original airing episodes. 

At least that's my story and I'm sticking to it. 

Laurie.