Acer palmatum dissectum 'Inaba Shidare' and an 'Orangeola' show very minor damage. At the same time a 'Beni Hoshi' is dead and a 'Viridis' lost about 2/3.

tj

Metasequoia

Longleaf, loblolly & pond pines, and Himalayan white pine.

Nice to hear about the metasequoia, ginkgo!

Mines a tiny seedling Magnolia tripitala in nw ontario

No picture but an Avocado going into its third summer from a seed which sprouted from compost mulch.

Ginkgonut can you get a pic of that dawnrood and tell me more about the soil type and exposure?

Soil=sand

Exposed to west/northwest (40 acre lake). Wicked winter winds created about a 4' snow drift around the bottom. Some bud damage on the exposed portion (about 6')

Same exposure killed Butterflies Magnolia, Chamaecyparis nooot., Fagus sylvatica, Peach.

Baffled by its survival. The gardens at work (more exurban and exposed than my location) had Stewartia, Liriodendron, Taxodium survive, but the Metasequoia killed outright.

I want to see pics of that Stewartia and Taxodium too!

Metasequoia is probably a more solidly zone 5b/6a plant, whereas Taxodium distichum, if a northern seed source like IL or MO, is probably 5a or maybe even 4b.

Several large specimens of Metasequoia near Canton, Ohio looked fine when I saw them a few weeks ago, good lush foliage, no visible dieback. They're large enough (60'+) to have made it through the late 70s, 1985, 1994, etc...and Canton is zone 5b old map, 6a new map.

My IL seed source (unless they were BS'ing) Taxodium, about a 5' tree, croaked. My Peve Minaret was one of my first decidious trees to die as well.

There is a 9' tree across the way that is well dead, lol. Honestly I think Dawn Redwood might be hardier if it has proper moisture levels.

My old neighbor about 20 miles south, zone 5b, has a pretty big one. I'll have to drive by and see how its doing.

At the end of the day there is no rhyme or reason to some of the casualties. I mean why the hell would JMs and noble firs be alive but not the dawn redwoods and European beech?

Mine is a rather confusing answer. I will try to make it simple. One has come up from the roots {{gwi:354385}} It is only 6 inches approx, instead of the maybe 18 inches, it is a zone 7 Live oak "late drop". It is sort olf a failure because it didn't come right up and resume growth from the top, but after last winter, anything coming back and resuming growth makes me happy personally. My 2nd one died right out, so complete failure. I have a 3rd and last that is at a stand still. I don't regret planting it. It did well after winter 2012-2013 like the 2 others mentioned. I see green under the bark and some pink/red buds on it, so am still hopeful. The green I see is a miracle. If you can't see it by the twig where my thumb is, I'll try to take another pic. {{gwi:354389}} I have hope of leafout however late it will be. The buds look best at the top, here are pics of that from last week {{gwi:354394}} those I took today without the cheesecloth background you can't see the buds. So if this tree leafs out this month sometime and resumes growth enough to be healthy for next year it will be a zone 6 survival miracle, if it leafs out July 20th, makes hardly any growth and never comes back next spring it is not a survival miracle. Maybe having green under the bark now in zone 6 after last winter (at least 8 -10F nights) and buds leafing out in June, let's say June 16 th. Would be a success and a miracle. Will it leaf out by June 16th, I sure as H*ll hope so. I expect big time bud swell by then that can be seen no matter what. Even if not I will not dig it up, I'll just leave it there out of curiousity. That green under the bark would make me leave it there. If you can't see the green, i'll get a flashlight and take a pic, and see if that helps.

I almost dug it up. I sat close to it with a magnifying glass, and scrutinized it. I saw the green under the bark, and my faith was renewed. Yes, I know how stupid and corny it sounds. I looked at the buds again and saw them. After seeing the buds, I wasn't going to cut or dig the tree up, but wasn't convinced it was going to leaf out for sure. I took several twigs and snapped them off. I didn't see green but there was moisture in them. Once I saw the green underbark, I was sure the tree was still alive. Yes, I sound like a dweeb, and I know it, but if this tree makes it to leaf out in June and grow a couple feet this season and awake in spring 2015 I'll be the happiest Dweeb in SW Pa.

Will:

I too lost a Peve Minaret, which had been in the ground 2+ years. Moreover, I lost a Taxodium bonsai which I was overwintering in the garage...I purchased it from a bonsai vendor in Florida, so I would suspect it was grown from Florida seed. Nevertheless, I would have thought the garage would be okay.

On the other hand...my Fireglow Japanese Maple has never looked better.

What a crazy, evil winter!

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canadianplant (My Page) on
Sat, Jun 7, 14 at 18:42

Mines a tiny seedling Magnolia tripitala in nw ontario
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Canadian, don't give up on your umbrella mag. Mine is surprisingly hardy here -- never a cold issue. Fringetrees right beside it repeatedly die to the ground.

If you plant it, try a protected spot shielded from the NW wind and on a south-facing slope. They grow well in shade.

the tripitala was left out winter 2012 in a Dixie cup,forgotten about. I planted it last year. this will be its second season in the ground and third season alive.

its planted in a spot protected from the winds by two walls of my house

Got some photos together.

The taxodium may not be as alive as I had been told it was, but we will see. We had a very late spring and many things have been slow to come.

I am optimistic about the Dawn Redwood. While it did lose about 30% if buds above the snow line, it has started pushing growth hard in the last week.

Strangely, my Tricolor beech has now opened about 20% of the buds and more are trying to open. Not sure if it will be enough to be worth saving. My other European beech is dead.

Here is a link that might be useful: Survivors

Sorry for the losses mentioned that a couple of posters mentioned. Out of those mentioned I have also had bad luck with a Taxodium Distictum (probably misspelled) I have had good luck with a Dawn Redwood as far as no winter problems, even last winter, the worst I can recall in my gardening history.

I guess I should add that my Live oak "late drop" is likely dead. I held out hope for a while. I pruned down to where I saw green on the trunk. Now it is a wait and see. One of my "late drops" is growing from a sprout on the lower trunk of a tree I planted last spring. Well, I should just say that in a harsh or "real" zone 6 winter, the live oak "late drop" are just a bit too tender. They are however the "hardiest" Live oak out there. In zone 6b they would likely do great, or a 6 a winter that isn't like the last one. Yes, the last one was a "real" zone 6 winter. Come on global warming!!!!! Sorry I've had a few beers. I should shut up now.

Didn't have any extreme lows this winter, only -16F, but was frozen tundra for all winter that affected a lot of my young trees. My jujube that is taller than me now didn't have any dieback, haven't had much luck with the many I have bought, all the others have died below the graft in the past. My male melon tree was alive all the way to the top, but my female nearby turned into an osage orange. Have already killed three females, one female left now.

Josh, thanks for sharing the pics. Might have lucked out on a few of those. Do you think the lake helps you out? Whats your elevation?

I have to remind myself that my elevation is 1,100 which is fairly high for the upper midwest. Certainly effects things a bit differently.

According to wikipedia I am at 827ft.

The lake is shallow and freezes over rather quickly. The NW winds of it were wicked this year. I had drifts between the houses almost 6' deep that completely buried a Sciadopitys. That is probably the only reason it survived. The weight of the snow did break off the top.

Lowest temp at my house was -23F. Work (where some of the pics are from) bottomed out at -27F.

My "late drop" live oak, 2 are coming back from the lower trunk. The overall future in zone 6 may be bleak, if we have winters like the last one. But I will enjoy the babies while they are here, and plant hardier (zone 6) trees near them. I know that winters like last one are going to come again. Having them rebound in any way is a miracle. Anyone in zone 6b, I would try a couple "late drop" live oak, they are the hardiest live oak out there, including Q. Fusiformis hybrids with Q. Virginiana.

Since the miracle bar has been lowered (I blame the Catholic church), I declare this Nyssa a miracle. I've tried on two other occasions with no success, but third time's a charm. If you look closely, you can see a faint image of Jesus in the canopy.

Here's another miracle: Metasequoia glyptostroboides 'Ogon'. Two miracles -- what are the odds!?