Anything in a pot is more vulnerable to changing conditions - ie very wet then freezing, especially if that's a big swing [like last year] or if it happens regularly. That's what happens here @Ceres, as that's just how our climate is. Last winter [2022/23] was particularly noteable because autumn was very mild, a bit wetter than usual, and then the temps dropped sharply, as you say. It's usually a much more gradual drop in temps over a few months, and a more general mix of all sorts of weather, which is far easier for any plant to cope with. Going from plus 5 to minus 5, over a week or more is nothing, but going from something like plus 9s or 10s [which is very high for late autumn/early winter here] to minus 9 or 10 or more, is quite different. Plants in pots can only take so much of that before it affects them, whereas in a bed, it's easier because water dissipates more readily, and there's more soil, and plants, to spread the load. Bulbs are particularly difficult because of their 'design'. Anything fleshy struggles more than something woody. Length of time any conditions remain are also a factor, at any time of year. I accept I'll lose some bulbs most years, whether potted or not. It's just how it is, but I even lose daffs [and lilies] as some aren't as good at coping than others, even with amended soil in borders. It's just too consistently wet and cold long term for them, even in the two mild winters we've had recently, and last winter was still mild for us, despite the two cold spells.
It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
@Ceres Can I ask where abouts you are? My neck of the woods went down to -6C last winter and I had no problems. Tulips, daffs, crocus, iris retic, snowdrops were all fine.
East Anglia, which should put me in the same weather category as Dove but it is surprsing how local weather can be. I have noticed even within my village that the temperature and amount of wind is entirely dependent on whether or not you live in the older part of the village or the newer outlying roads. It got down to minus 7C here last winter, so similar to your experience.
@Fairygirl The winter temperatures here have been scarily warm with swings to toe curlingly chilly and Christmas seemed very mild. The plants are confused and I'm waiting for the birds and amphibians to be similarly befuddled. Some of the nepetas, which should lose all their leaves over winter, are still liberally covered in greenery and a fennel has new, fluffy growth on the stems. There are buds on one of the roses. Young plants in the greenhouse are led to believe that it is time to put on growth only for the sudden drop in temperature to finish them off. I planted the outdoor pots of daffs last autumn safe in the knowledge that they may not see the light of day though in previous years I have been confident that they would flower in spring. On the plus side, the white dead nettles seem happy with things for the moment.
It certainly makes things challenging @Ceres I suppose it also depends on what you're used to in terms of conditions and temperatures. The winters here are definitely milder than 10 or 20 years ago, and that's also led to less consistent snowfall up north, and more frequent avalanches on hills. Even here - it means more rain rather than the regular snowfalls we'd usually get from late Dec onwards, and they're often just light falls of only a couple of inches, disappearing quite quickly too. Despite that, we still got upwards of 40 frosty days in those mild winters, so it's all relative. Our ground has been frozen since Saturday, and even with it being quite mild today [4 degrees just now] it's not thawed completely, and more frost expected later. Summers have changed considerably here in recent years - more spells of dry weather. We would rarely go more than a few days with no rain, but we're seeing spells of 5 and 6 dry days, and that's becoming more common. It means having to check newly planted shrubs more often - we could normally plant in summer and not even water them in.
Everyone is seeing changes, but they aren't always the same types of change. It just means adapting accordingly, but it can be tricky
It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Forgive me if I said this before, but when some of my wife's family moved to Norfolk her neice was being shown round a school for her son. At the end of the visit, the teacher asked where they were moving from and then said " that winter coat you were going to buy for the new term, buy him a warmer one, he'll need it" !
The easterly winds whistle straight here from the Urals … there is nothing taller than a tree between them and us 💨
My Nan used to say something similar about her house in one of the higher parts of Sheffield. It would be snowing up there but only raining or sleeting at our house further down the hill.
Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
Posts
That's what happens here @Ceres, as that's just how our climate is. Last winter [2022/23] was particularly noteable because autumn was very mild, a bit wetter than usual, and then the temps dropped sharply, as you say. It's usually a much more gradual drop in temps over a few months, and a more general mix of all sorts of weather, which is far easier for any plant to cope with. Going from plus 5 to minus 5, over a week or more is nothing, but going from something like plus 9s or 10s [which is very high for late autumn/early winter here] to minus 9 or 10 or more, is quite different.
Plants in pots can only take so much of that before it affects them, whereas in a bed, it's easier because water dissipates more readily, and there's more soil, and plants, to spread the load. Bulbs are particularly difficult because of their 'design'. Anything fleshy struggles more than something woody. Length of time any conditions remain are also a factor, at any time of year.
I accept I'll lose some bulbs most years, whether potted or not. It's just how it is, but I even lose daffs [and lilies] as some aren't as good at coping than others, even with amended soil in borders. It's just too consistently wet and cold long term for them, even in the two mild winters we've had recently, and last winter was still mild for us, despite the two cold spells.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
East Anglia, which should put me in the same weather category as Dove but it is surprsing how local weather can be. I have noticed even within my village that the temperature and amount of wind is entirely dependent on whether or not you live in the older part of the village or the newer outlying roads. It got down to minus 7C here last winter, so similar to your experience.
I suppose it also depends on what you're used to in terms of conditions and temperatures. The winters here are definitely milder than 10 or 20 years ago, and that's also led to less consistent snowfall up north, and more frequent avalanches on hills. Even here - it means more rain rather than the regular snowfalls we'd usually get from late Dec onwards, and they're often just light falls of only a couple of inches, disappearing quite quickly too. Despite that, we still got upwards of 40 frosty days in those mild winters, so it's all relative. Our ground has been frozen since Saturday, and even with it being quite mild today [4 degrees just now] it's not thawed completely, and more frost expected later.
Summers have changed considerably here in recent years - more spells of dry weather. We would rarely go more than a few days with no rain, but we're seeing spells of 5 and 6 dry days, and that's becoming more common. It means having to check newly planted shrubs more often - we could normally plant in summer and not even water them in.
Everyone is seeing changes, but they aren't always the same types of change. It just means adapting accordingly, but it can be tricky
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.