Plants are a Midwinter Reprieve

...Gloomy and dark with fog in the valleys.
It's still winter, although a mild-ish one.

A reprieve was in store as we stepped inside the old Vernon Lodge on 32nd Street in Vernon. 


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It's been years since I've had occasion to go there, and I had forgotten how lovely this plant conservatory was.  The aroma of blueberry pancakes and fresh coffee called us from the Lobby.

Even on a foggy day, the clerestory ceilings allowed light to bathe the interior's plants.

Some photos:



















Breakfast (very yummy) finished, it was time to head into the fog and home again.



A plant surprise--an open blossom on the Cymbidium orchid, met me at home, too:



And, soon, this long stalk will be festooned with the orange and blue Bird of Paradise flower.



And winter-protected (with heat/incandescent lights) palms...yes...palms are looking forward to being out of their winter enclosures, but doing well.

From this in summer: 

And during flower: 

To its warm wrap for winter: 

The much sought after Brahea armata: 

Yucca rostrata "Sapphire Skies": 

And, the saying "not pretty, Colonel, but does it work?" could apply to this winter-protected collection of small palms.  Yes it works.



Here's a summer look at two Washingtonia filifera, and the Y.rostratas:



And about 100 more inside the clubhouse, safely stored for winter: 



Winter's end is a ways off.
It'll be good to see the sun again.



Thank God for plants to get us through winter.

So what do you do all winter?

That's the question I'm asked most often when I run into Highlands' members in town throughout the winter, generally followed by: "...must be nice to have six months off."

Yes, it is nice.
No, we don't go away (bin der, dun dat, as the saying goes).
The world's a different place nowadays, so travel has less appeal for us both.

My reply generally begins with "Do you recall how crowded it was on the patio during golf season?"  People nod in agreement, laughing, when I say:  "I'm making more..."

More what?  Palms.  Palms...oh yes...those lovely, swaying-in-the-breeze and whipping-you-in-the-face thingys on three sides of the clubhouse patio all summer long. 

And there's always room for a few more, so here we go:

Cocos nucifera, under lights during winter

Wodyetia bifurcata (Foxtail palm) seedlings are growing nicely

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Nannorhops ritchiana, Pritchardia hillebrandii, Chamaerops humilis

 

 

 

...with more still to germinate. 


















There's also the Trachycarpus fortunei in the heated palm hut to look after.

33+ (yes!) year old Trachycarpus fortunei

"I'm so bored, I'm waiting for this Roomba to move so I have something to play with," moans Kia.

...winter!  (yawn)

...did you see it move?  think I did...

It'll soon be late-March, and the start of the golf season...

Six Months on, Six Months off

I always miss golfers over winter, but it's time for Time Off. The golf course closed for the winter on September 30th. October was a great month to rekindle my plant passion in earnest.

This zone-pushing devotee finally planted the 33+ year old Trachycarpus fortunei in the ground.

And there in the enclosure is the palm, finally planted where adventitious roots can develop in rich soil.

In the Okanagan? Yup, but winter protection was needed, especially if we have another winter like the last, where temperatures plummeted to -24C (-11F).

To meet other zone pushers, visit "http://palmsnorth.com/forum/"

That's Hugh doing a fine job of building the winter protection. One-inch friction-fitted styrofoam lines the prefab panels. Each vertical panel is connected to the adjacent panel with three screws. A clear plastic roof allows light in (but not direct sunshine, which could overheat the enclosure). A 1500 watt utility heater, on a 14 gauge extension cord plugged into a GFI plug, will protect the palm on the coldest nights.

Holy crow, I thought he was building a dog house," admits Kia, relieved.

Sadly, this little palm on Vernon's East Hill--photographed two weeks ago--will succumb before true winter even arrives unless serious effort is made to protect it for winter.


"I'm good at digging," offers Kia, ready for the rescue. I suggest we return next week to see how the palm is faring.