Hi all, actually, it's not "just" the US, it has hit Europe as well - the highly unstable polar vortex this year sends arctic outbreaks to the south whenever it can. Germany had, depending on the location, 1-2 weeks of unusual cold weather as well, especially when compared to the last few very mild winters. I've been lucky with just one week with -11°C (12F) at night, but the middle and the north went well below -20°C for several nights (even though they got more snow cover than we had). At least I can tell now for sure that -11°C kills off Kniphofia sarmentosa flower stalks which went unharmed at -7°C last year. Lets see how the plant itself recovers. Now, about 1 1/2 weeks of fairly to very warm weather seem to be ahead (~15°C (60F)), with another chance for an arctic outbreak afterwards. It's a common misconception that global warming will ensure mild winters - it could end up right the opposite in case we get more of those vortex instabilities. The nasty thing about winter losses is that you can't tell what has survived until June, when the last Roscoeas should break through the ground. -- Martin (pronoun: he) ---------------------------------------------- Southern Germany Likely zone 7a _______________________________________________ pbs mailing list pbs@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net http://lists.pacificbulbsociety.net/cgi-bin/… Unsubscribe: <mailto:pbs-unsubscribe@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net>