We had a YUGE lady banks just south of DFW, TX that didn't survive the rare Snovid 2021 freeze we had with a long extended single-digit snap. I was hoping it would fare ok, but only got a few leaves on a couple branches in the spring then... nothing. We are now cutting it back and feeding/mulching it to see if it will return.

I HOPE we have had our last freeze, being 2 hours from Houston! I trimmed one in a pot to see what it looked like - looks way better than the collapsed sodden mess on the rest. I think I would like to find time to trim the rest and watch the new growth come up rather than looking at the sad freeze damaged foliage. If I can make time while we repair plumbing in the horse barn and I totally clean out the fridge/freezers in the house and garage, and pick up the broken limbs........My roses look battered too but will have to wait until new growth shows before pruning them. Hope everyone didnt have too much damage and is enjoying the sunshine! Judith

hi Judith, Seil suggested in the other thread that we should wait for new bud eyes to determine if our cane is still alive, and there's no sure way of knowing until that happens. I've not seen any bud eyes swelling yet here in Dallas. I will go ahead and give my roses their first dose of alfalfa and liquid fertilizer this week, to help them break out of dormancy. (I'm gaming we won't get another polar vortex, and that the temp will not fall under 26 degrees, with is about when I see damage to young growth). I've already done my normal pruning, but once I see the new growth I'll know where I have to further prune. I doubt you'll have to prune down to 3" for most of your roses. We got down to 0F here , and if you look at the hardiness map, that's still Zone 7a (0-5 F minimum temp). Most roses are pretty hardy to 7a. Of course if our roses had broken dormancy prior to the polar vortex, they'd sustain more damage.

Hydrangeas are fine unless you put coverings on them that touch the leaves, then from my experience the leaves are damaged. I run around the yard with large garbage cans and carefully put my hydrangeas under them as best as I can. It doesn't always work since the plants grow larger each year but at least it's worth a try. What I do know is that sheets put directly over the hydrangeas will harm the leaves wherever they touch the leaves if moisture forms and then frost, etc. The Hosta society article confirmed what happened to me. I guess the best thing to do is to put in stakes before it gets cold in the fall and then in the spring suspend the coverings over the stakes which prevents the leaves from touching the covers, but who has time to do this in the fall? If you do, please come to my place and I will gladly pay you well to do so for me, lol.