Rosemary tips and germination references.

– Posted in: Garden chores, Seeds and Seed Starting, Weather
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Correction to the rosemary hints. They can freeze–just not way deep like you’d get outside. I think something like 10F is the limit, maybe 15? Does your porch get colder than that? (Prescott AZ where I saw the planters full certainly sees that cold in the winter. They have some snow now.) And keep the plants on the dry side.
As to germination requirements, the wonderful pages from Tom Clothier and Norman Deno’s books are huge, HUGE resources and I wouldn’t be without them. I am always finding some lovely thing I want that won’t germinate easily and they are my two best places to look.
Garden chores for today: snowshoe 1/2 mile to the mailbox to check for seed catalogs and shovel around the greenhouse. Next time it is above freezing I’ll check the pots in there for watering. I keep them on the dry side too as a little water goes a long way when everything is cold. I lose more pots to wet over the winter than I ever do to cold.
Does Talitha ever grow Cardoon? I have read that the shoots taste like artichokes and wonder if that’s true or simply wishful thinking!

About the Author

USDA Hardiness Zone: 4b/5aLocation: rural; just south of British Columbia/Idaho borderGeographic type: foot of Black & Clifty Mountains (foothills of Rockies–the Wet Columbia Mountains in BC climate- speak)Soil type:acid sand (glacial lake bed)/coniferous forestExperience level: intermediate/professionalParticular interests: fragrant & edible plants, hardy bulbs, cottage gardening, alpines, peonies, penstemons & other blue flowers, primulas, antique & species roses & iris; nocturnal flowers Also: owner of Paradise Gardens Rare Plant Nursery

Now, the digging and dividing of perennials, the general autumn cleanup and the planting of spring bulbs are all an act of faith. One carries on before the altar of delayed gratification, until the ground freezes and you can’t do any more other than refill the bird feeder and gaze through the window, waiting for the snow. . . . Meanwhile, it helps to think of yourself as a pear tree or a tulip. You will blossom spectacularly in the spring, but only after the required period of chilling.

~Adrian Higgins in The Washington Post, November 6, 2013

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