El Nino, Where Art Thou?

8 years ago

That's really a trick question, because I know where it is, somewhere to the north of us. We've had exactly one good rain this winter season and that's it. It's wonderful that the Sierras are building up a good snow pack and reservoirs and lakes are filling up in the north, but here it's as much of a drought situation as ever.

I haven't even looked at this forum for some weeks because I'm so sad about my garden and the lack of rain. I would say that almost three quarter of the roses are diseased with some kind of blackspot malady which is an all-time first for me. In spite of no rain the humidity was very high for some weeks and on some roses I can't see a single healthy leaf. Other than watering I've been ignoring the garden and concentrating on indoor things like new carpeting and a new couch, and general rearranging and freshening which was sorely needed after 9 years here.

There is no prediction of any rain in the near future and January is usually one of the wettest months, or at least it used to be. After being hyped up about El Nino for the better part of last year this has been a huge disappointment.

How's the rain situation been for all you other dry weather gardeners?

Featured Answer

jerijen

8 years ago

I will always grow roses.

I might well not grow so many of them -- indeed, the days when we had 400 roses is gone, never to return. But that's OK.

I choose my roses more carefully now. And if worse comes to worse, I will grow roses with graywater, even if I have to carry it by hand. My Step-Great-Grandmother did that in 1901, in Texas (see below) ... and if she could do it, I can do it too.

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (37)

roseseek
8 years ago
Periods of light drizzle today north of Point Conception with a quarter to half an inch predicted for tomorrow (Sunday). Per the historic normal, the rains seldom drop south of Point Conception. I hope that pattern breaks this season so the southern end of the state can enjoy some of the rains, too. It's been wet enough that we were actually able to cut the water consumption 40% from the previous months. The only real difference was I didn't water the canned roses. Tier 1 water useage is 5 units, which is what we've used most months since moving in March. Twice, we've used only four. December, we used only 3. I don't use the lawn sprinklers and I only water the roses, potted herbs and tomatoes, and I do save the three to four gallons of water required for hot water to arrive at the kitchen faucet and the bath shower heads. The cans have remained sufficiently wet, I haven't even used that stored water. Just in those three gallon bucket amounts, there is almost 25 gallons stored in new, clean plastic trash cans with tight fitting lids. Enough to water all the cans almost twice. It really adds up pretty quickly, even when you don't use that much to begin with. Imagine if it was a house full of people!
ingrid_vc so. CA zone 9 thanked roseseek
nikthegreek
8 years ago
Canned roses somehow sounded a bit weird to me, Kim...
Related Discussions
First Forum Post
Q
Comments (17)
Welcome, ChicagoRob and Gesila. (Don_r, I think Gesila is in zone 5b in Michigan.) Rob, in the middle of Winter I too, have graph paper on hand to plan new gardens or expansion of existing gardens. I draw circles where Hostas and companion plants will go, taking care to give them all space for their mature sizes. I try to mix them in such a way that they will all contrast each other, and add enough plain green Hostas to help show off the variegated ones. Bejoy's advise about planting taller plants in the background and shorter ones in the front is the rule I generally follow most of the time. However, if you have an area where you will be able to view a garden from all angles, you might want to mix tall with short, or add talls in the middle with short varieties surrounding. I see you have Empress Wu on you list. I just ordered that one and have saved a large circle, as it will mature to 5-6'wide...not right away, but in a few years. (Might have to add some potted Impatiens around the plant while waiting for it to grow to maturity.) I would add Paradigm (2007 Hosta of the Year) to your list. Have fun planting! Julie
...See More
Would Like to Have Your Thoughts About My Home
Q
Comments (45)
sable, as you'll see I followed your suggestion about adding some books to the mantel. I also hung up the picture instead of just putting it on the mantel and now I'm not sure which version I like best. My husband, who has a good eye, has been hounded so much about the decor in the last few days that he told me he was no longer able to care. He's a man, a little of this stuff goes a long way, and he's been tested beyond his limits. The roses in the garden are from at least two years ago and are from early June, after we had some rain, I think. We did have 3 inches in the last storm but nothing since, although they promised us one storm after another. I think most of El Nino is going to happen in the more northern parts and up into south Oregon. I still hope for more; the rainy season isn't over yet. You might get more than I will here. That's a really nice area where you live. patty, I'm glad you like the flower picture back on the mantel, and I hope you'll also volunteer whether you like the picture better propped up or hung on the wall, and the area with or without books. These are important decisions! I'm with you about agonizing more about the little stuff, maybe because there are so many more ways to move small pieces around than large ones. I like your idea of a blue/cream theme, which would look very fresh and charming. Putting it all together, of course, would take some thought and work, but if it's something you're enthusiastic about it could also be a very creative, enjoyable process. If you collect blue and white porcelain that is European it is much cheaper than the Chinese stuff, which has gotten very pricey and you have to really know what's genuinely antique, because there are tons of fakes around nowadays. Mt. Helix is in west San Diego county whereas we're in northeast San Diego county, in a rather rural area, which we love. Mt. Helix is a very beautiful area to live in but I work nearby so this was the logical spot for us.
...See More
October 2018, Week 3, From Summer to Autumn to Winter
Q
Comments (38)
Jennifer, I'm hoping you were able to finally make it home, enjoy Wine Wednesday, and get some rest. You cannot go into this weekend too tired! Some other weekend, yes, but not this one because you are going to stay so busy. Rebecca, Hmmm, pepper bitterness generally only is a problem is you are harvesting them and using them green. They only truly shed the bitterness when allowed to ripen to their full mature color, but there are different degrees of bitterness along the time scale so that the further peppers progress away from being younger and smaller to being older and larger, though still green, the more the bitterness usually fades. I don't know of any weather or nutrient condition that makes them more bitter, but if I run across any description of something that does, I'll try to remember to come back here and tell you. When our mom told us to go out and play, it was pretty easy for me to go out, play a very short while, and then quietly slip back into the house and go into my bedroom and read. With 4 kids coming and going, if you were quiet once you were indoors, you could get away with that. With the seeds that you're sowing that won't sprout, are you surface sowing? That is what works best with me with green seeds---I broadcast sow on the surface of the growing medium and don't cover them up. I do lightly pat them down so they have good soil contact. I don't know if the seeds of greens necessarily need light to sprout, but I know they sprout better (and at a higher germination rate) for me if I don't cover them with soil. I got lower germination rates and slower germination when I covered them, even lightly, with anything---even compost or the lightest amount of peat moss. You are NOT a garden failure. It is either the seeds or the growing conditions that are failing you, so be kind to yourself and please stop feeling like a failure. If I were to allow myself to feel like a failure every time something in the garden doesn't go my way, I'd be so depressed and disheartened that I'd give up gardening. Instead, I push on relentlessly, overplanting everything, figuring if one thing doesn't work, another one will. And, on a lighter side, this is Oklahoma where the weather is cray-cray, so just blame the weather when something fails! Jennifer, You're welcome, and I agree that gardening is grounding. I feel like it surely is as good for our bodies as it is for our souls. I understand how you feel about meat, and I think you are not imagining it---you just have a soul that likely communicates with the souls of the animals. I feel that same way about people, especially native people here in the USA. When we visit a state park, for example, which is the scene of large battles between the native Americans and the European invaders who called themselves Americans, I swear I can feel the souls of the native Americans talking to me....like, I am walking in their shoes on their land, though not in a literal sense as I am not at war with anyone. I feel their pain and suffering when I walk an area like that--not in an intellectual way, but in a true emotional/intuitive way. The first few times it happened to me, I felt quite unsettled by it and then I decided to just accept it and to not try to overanalyze it or to fight it. I hope y'all enjoyed sleeping in today. Nancy, I really used to live in pepper hell because I'd grow 15 or 20 kinds of peppers and wear myself out trying to preserve them all. Now I grow only a few kinds, and only the ones we adore most, and it has made the pepper section of the garden easier to control, and has made the inevitable kitchen mess/workload more manageable too. When we first moved here and I finally had a sunny space to grow stuff (in the city, we had far too much shade so my garden was tiny), I grew far too much of everything. It was fun, but the garden and my life both are more manageable now that I have cut back and am trying to grow only enough excess beyond what we eat fresh to give us some food to preserve instead of trying to grow as much as possible and then ending up worn out from dealing with all the excess. It did take me about 15 years of growing far too much of everything before I started cutting back, and I still am trying to get the balance right so we have enough of each thing, but not too much of anything. Well, with tomatoes, I'll likely always grow too many just because I like to have a wide variety of shapes, sizes, colors and flavors. If growing too many tomatoes is my worst garden vice, then I think I'll be okay. Tiny will learn. Even Yellow Cat, who roamed our neighborhood for a good 10-12 years as a semi-feral cat before deciding to move in with us for his retirement years, still had to learn. After a lifetime of dodging wild things, he still liked to come inside and sleep all day and roam all night, which made me nervous. After a bobcat chased him up onto the roof of our house during the middle of the night, and I awakened to horrible screaming and had to quickly open a second story window to bring him in off the porch roof, he quite abruptly became an indoor cat at night, and outdoor by the day. By then he must have been 14 or 15 years old at least. He might have learned the lesson of nighttime safety a bit later than I would have liked, but he learned it, and then he lived for several more years to enjoy his retirement before he died of old age. My dad was naturally quiet by nature, and I took after him, so I never really was a chatterbox. Our oldest granddaughter? She'll talk 24/7 if you'll let her, and I never knew constant chatter could wear me out until now. We are trying to teach her that it is okay to ride in the car, for example, in companionable silence if you don't really have anything to say that isn't just mindless chatter. It is getting better, bit by bit, but we have a ways to go yet. We got drizzly, drippy, mostly misty rain most of the day yesterday, so no sunshine yet again and today is expected to be pretty much the same. The heavier rain is expected tomorrow. I miss the sunshine. The amount of mud we have is unreal. In the back where I feed the deer, the mud is just a churned up mess, so I keep moving the feeding area to grassier spots without as much bare ground showing, though the deer don't like change. The dogs and cats both are going stir-crazy from being indoors so much, and I am right there with them. Whenever I let them go out, or when I go out myself, because we are in between bands of rain/drizzle/mist and it seems wise to run outdoors while we can, it almost immediately starts to rain again. Just let me walk down to the mailbox without a raincoat or umbrella, and it will start to rain as soon as I am down there, 300' from the house. It happens every time. I'm so bored with being stuck indoors I have cleaned out the spice drawer and thrown away out-of-date spices, which meant (of course) making a list of the few that I threw out so I'd be sure to replace them this weekend. My constant cleaning out of drawers and things might be making Tim nervous. He survived the closet cleanout, but I haven't really touched his dresser drawers, nightstand drawers or anything in his office (where all the desk and printer table drawers are crammed full of stuff) and I think he might be worrying that someday when he is at work and I am bored, I might clean out the desk drawers and throw away some of his precious junk. Of course, I will not but the thought of it probably has him antsy. I am dying to get my hands on the garage/shop which is 1200 s.f. of 'stuff', some of which he actually needs and uses but much of which seems to be 'just in case we ever need it again' type clutter. I might make the garage/shop my 2019 project and work at it month by month. He'll have to be home when I do it though, so he won't worry I am throwing away too many of the things that he deems important. On the other hand, we'll never move to another place again because just the thought of packing up that garage/shop building would make him decide that moving is not going to be worth it. (grin) Seriously, when we moved here, we knew this was our forever home. However, I didn't know that "forever" applied to every piece of anything ever put in the garage. I'm really starting to get worried about the prospect of an El Nino winter. If the rain continues on through February the way it has been now, planting is going to be delayed for weeks if not months. I cannot decide whether to order my Dixondale onions for the usual early arrival date in February or to strategically order them to arrive 2 or 3 or maybe even 4 weeks later than usual in case the garden still is a mucky mud hole like it is right now. They've raised our chances of El Nino developing for winter here in the USA from 65-70% to 70-75%, so it is seeming more likely, even if it is going to be a Modiki El Nino instead of a regular one. Dawn
...See More
December 2018, Week 4, Happy Holidays
Q
Comments (30)
Megan, I don't really know of any bird feeders that can prevent the issue of dropped seed---it isn't a problem here because our free-ranging chickens scour the ground beneath the feeders searching for dropped seed. I don't suppose you can have free-range chickens there? Actually, there are some seed trays that you can attach beneath feeders that supposedly will catch dropped seed, but I've always wondered what stops birds from kicking seeds out of the dropped seed trays? One year, I put a piece of plywood on the ground all winter beneath the feeders so I could sweep up seed that fell to the ground and landed on the plywood. That works, but it gets tedious.....although I noticed the chickens policed the plywood for me most days. When you live in an area as rural as ours, for the most part, the existing wildlife takes care of the other wildlife. I'm mostly referring to rodents....everything eats them....snakes, owls, coyotes, bobcats, ring-tailed cats, etc., so they are not as big of a problem here as one might imagine. During the day, our own cats will hunt them, especially Pumpkin who is the youngest and considers himself to be the Great Hunter, but our pet cats are locked up indoors at night, because pet cats that stay outdoors at night usually don't last long around here. Jen, I'm laughing about the Indian princess comment. It is so true. dbarron, Your connection to John Ross is fascinating. I've read quite a bit about him. He lived a very interesting life to say the least. Jennifer, You can get bogged down in that genealogy stuff, and I just do not even want to go there and get started on that so I stay away from it. I know if I ever started it, I would be obsessed with it and would drive myself crazy. It is exciting to think about plans for the 2019 garden. Rebecca, I do have some Burpee exclusives that I like to grow , like Brandy Boy tomatoes and Biker Billy peppers, so I have to order from them occasionally, but I try to only order once every 3-5 years and to just be sure I order enough seeds to last a few years. Their seed prices have gotten so ridiculous and before I order anything from them, I make sure they are the sole source for it. (I have found that sometimes a seed company will claim to be the exclusive source for a specific variety and they are not, so I always search for another source to see if they really are the sole source.) I think Jambalaya could be a good one for you, but I haven't grown it myself. It is supposed to bear early and often, so at least on paper it sounds good. Cajun Jewel is fairly dwarf as well but bigger than Baby Bubba, and Jade and Lee are two other varieties suitable for containers. Shumway's has Pink French Quarter and Red French Quarter this year and they both are dwarf, and look good in the photos online, but I haven't grown either of them yet since they are new. Last year my Stewart's Zeebest plants produced so much okra I couldn't keep up with the harvesting, so I want to grow smaller, less productive plants this year. I know that sounds crazy, but not being able to stay caught up on harvesting and using all the okra drove me nuts. Jennifer, It was cold. It felt worse, I think, because it mostly stayed cloudy. We got a little sunshine late in the day. This coming week's weather doesn't look too great. Oh well, it is winter time and I guess we just have to deal with it. To clean chicken (or any sort of bird) poop off anything, you need Poop-Off. You generally can find it in farm supply stores, feed stores, and in most pet stores in the bird section. Or, you can order it online. I'm sure Amazon.com has it. Here is what it looks like: Poop-Off It really does work, but if the poop has been there a while and has dried out long-term, you may have to go through several rounds of spraying and scrubbing to get all of it removed. Wear gloves and a respirator type mask---not because of the Poop Off spray but because of the possible pathogens that can be found in bird poop. I hate buying veggies too. That's why I try to fill up 2 or 3 deep freezes every summer, but still, they are things we don't grow or that cannot be preserved long-term (like lettuce, for example), so I just try to buy organic and still must remind myself that purchased produce never will have the freshness or quality of home-grown. Going to Central Market for produce helps---their produce is superb in quality and quantity and going through the produce section for me is like a trip to Disney. I have a good time. However, being a gardener, I'm always tell Tim when we are there that it still kills me to buy produce, even when it is theirs. We still have fresh onions from the 2018 harvest, but some of them are starting to sprout now so I don't know how much longer they'll last. I do have a ton of them already chopped and frozen. It isn't the same, I agree, but I'd rather take my own frozen produce out of the freezer and cook it in winter than buy it at a store. I have enough frozen tomatoes to last us another year, and they smell garden fresh when I thaw them out and have them cooking away in a pot on the stove so I can make soup or chili or whatever. It is about to be chili type weather again, I believe, based on our forecast. It is time to go start next week's thread for all of us to post on. I cannot decide whether to make it December week 5, or January week 1. lol lol lol. Decisions, decisions, decisions! Dawn
...See More
jerijen
8 years ago
Ingrid -- Did you see the article this morning in the L.A. Times, on this very topic?

Like you, we have been watching the storms move across Northern CA, while the same high pressure ridge that's kept us dry for four years has sat stubbornly in place. The systems march down the state to about Pt. Conception and "fall apart."

Maybe -- MAYBE that high pressure will finally break down, and El Nino rains will make it here -- but I don't find it comforting when authorities try to tell me that it's all OK as long as NoCal gets rain. It's NOT OK. And it's the end of January now, with no substantive sign of change, and I'm pretty depressed myself.
ingrid_vc so. CA zone 9 thanked jerijen
jerijen
8 years ago
And yes. We save shower warm up water, and dish water, and it's all hand-carried to the plants. But that doesn't help the bottom of the hill one little bit.
My garden really doesn't exist anymore, in reality. And it makes me sad.
ingrid_vc so. CA zone 9 thanked jerijen
nikthegreek
8 years ago
last modified: 8 years ago
I have an 'on-demand' (i.e. electric switch controlled) hot water re-circulation system installed. This was not installed with water saving in mind but as a solution balancing convenience with energy bills. It works although energy consumption is dependent on ambient temps and pipe insulation. Not good if you forget to turn the switch off though, I need to implement some kind of auto switch-off. I believe it should be considered by anyone who's contemplating carrying buckets of water out of the shower on a permanent basis.
ingrid_vc so. CA zone 9 thanked nikthegreek
ingrid_vc so. CA zone 9
Original Author
8 years ago
Jeri, we're supposed to have rain tomorrow, and that's it, after that 0% chance for a long time. It truly is depressing because it's not just the garden I worry about, but the whole environment. There seems to be a glimpse of hope in that one article I read on-line said the high pressure was "supposed to" break up some time in February and we could very well have rain in February and March. I'll believe it when I see it, and it would be a welcome sight. I'm so sorry that your garden is in great distress. It's just not something we expected, and it's a whole different feeling going outside now. All we can do is hope.....
Sheila z8a Rogue Valley OR
8 years ago
Ingrid and Jeri, so sorry that El Nino hasn't materialized yet for you. I am still hoping for your gardens as February and March and April could really kick in. This has been a very long stretch for the poor plants and trees to suffer through. Apparently, after 2-3 years of drought and record high temps Southern Oregon is getting the Northern California rain too, which is a blessed relief.
0
ingrid_vc so. CA zone 9 thanked Sheila z8a Rogue Valley OR
roseseek
8 years ago
We had on-demand hot water in Encino, but no recirculation system. Here, it's slab flooring and plumbed for the central hot water heater. Not as easily altered as raised foundation where you can get under the plumbing and make changes. Fortunately, the design of the house provides sliding glass doors in the master bed/bath; an exterior door in the guest bath and the den slider from the kitchen to permit taking buckets out when desired. Not as convenient, but at least conveniently possible. Plus, there are things which can be watered with the buckets or they can be emptied in the storage containers. The recirculation system would be quite nice though.
0
ingrid_vc so. CA zone 9 thanked roseseek
Anne Zone 7a Northern CA
8 years ago
last modified: 8 years ago
The creek is running high and I have lakes where I have only had them once before, during extremely heavy rains. Northern California near the Oregon border is getting lots of rain. We had over 13 inches of rain in January, according to the charts on accuweather. All the water that rains here makes it way down our creek to the McCloud River and into Lake Shasta and the Sacramento River. Winter rain here means summer water for the valleys. We have gotten a lot of precipitation as snow also, though that has been melting with the rains, but there is still some on the ground here at elevation 3500.
ingrid_vc so. CA zone 9 thanked Anne Zone 7a Northern CA
ingrid_vc so. CA zone 9
Original Author
8 years ago
I remember reading many months ago that northern California and southern Oregon would get the heaviest rains, but I didn't take that to mean that we would get almost nothing, at least so far. Rats!
0
jacqueline9CA
8 years ago
Very sorry to hear this, Ingrid and Jeri. I had hoped that SOME of the rain would fall on So Cal. Here, We started getting about one moderate rain storm a week on Nov 1, and then since Jan 1 we have gotten 2-3 per week. Weather is dark, cold, and the garden is muddy and wet even when it is not raining. We are still a bit below "normal" YTD, but of course that is so much better than the previous 4 years, no one minds.

Jeri, I also saw that LA TImes article, and it really surprised me. In it, they quoted a Fed Govt weather agency rep as saying that all of the storms No Cal has gotten so far (which come in from the North and are cold) are just our "normal" historic weather pattern, and have nothing to do with El Nino! He said that he thought that the El Nino storms, which are supposed to be warmer and more from the South, and hit mainly So Cal, will start in Feb! I am so confused - our local weather folks are still insisting that every time it rains here it is because of El Nino. I have come to the conclusion that most of them have no idea what they are talking about. Here's hoping the guy from WDC was right about you guys getting some rain in the next few months -

Jackie
ingrid_vc so. CA zone 9 thanked jacqueline9CA
roseseek
8 years ago
It's been steady for several hours. Half an inch is forecasted with almost a quarter of an inch received so far. It's a cold rain. Fortunately the callused cuttings were potted yesterday in preparation!
ingrid_vc so. CA zone 9 thanked roseseek
roseseek
8 years ago
It's bitter cold with stong wind. The rain was steady and fairly strong, but has stopped for a while. We seem to be stalled at 1.3". There are strong thunder showers, strong winds and potential flash floods possible for Goleta north.
0
haku84_zone9
8 years ago
last modified: 8 years ago
Its pouring rain here in SoCal (inland) with strong winds and flash flood warnings every 10 mins. Woohoo... about time!!
jerijen
8 years ago
We got .60-inch of rain. And a lot of wind.
This rain was very helpful . . . but a drought-buster, it was NOT. Please God the Transverse Ranges get some snow to help replenish our aquifer, at least a little.
User
8 years ago
Here in Oakland, I'm seeing a lot of plants reappear that I thought were long dead, now that we've gotten some regular rain. I planted a rugosa (Scabrosa) right on top of some lachenalias that I had forgotten about after they disappeared several years ago. Suddenly they are popping up right next to the rose. Scabrosa is still tiny, and if gets as much rust as it did last year, the lachenalias will probably win in the end:
jacqueline9CA
8 years ago
Ha! I found a rational article which says that our storms HAVE been from El Nino, and explains why So Cal hasn't gotten much rain lately, and predicts that will change. Here is the link:

https://baynature.org/articles/it-hasnt-been-a-textbook-el-nino-winter-so-far-but-that-could-change/
0
ingrid_vc so. CA zone 9 thanked jacqueline9CA
ingrid_vc so. CA zone 9
Original Author
8 years ago
Thank you, Jackie, for that very illuminating article. I hope the experts are correct and that some largesse will come out way next month. Yesterday's storm was very fierce and windy, and we did receive more than 1 inch of blessed rain. The strength of the wind was probably the most fierce I've ever experienced here, and it was a cold storm. Today it's sunny, and it will become warm up to the mid 70's this week. I'd rather it stayed cool so all the moisture doesn't get sucked out of the ground, but at least we had rain at a time we needed it badly.
Rosefolly
8 years ago
last modified: 8 years ago
I have to tell you that every time we get a run of dry days I worry that the rain is over for the year. In San Jose we are currently running at 110% of average. Now that is good but it is not fabulous. I wanted fabulous for whole western region.

Unlike the rest of the state, in the 2014-2015 season San Jose actually got nearly 90% of average (~13 inches instead of the average 14.9 inches). Not sure why nearby reservoirs were still empty. Perhaps that rainfall was limited to the immediate SJ airport region.

Rosefolly the Weather Obsessed
Anne Zone 7a Northern CA
8 years ago
Today, a day of travel for me back to the Bay Area I woke up to 6 inches of snow and cursed. I quickly took it back and apologized to Mother Nature for my outburst. Perhaps we should all do our own rain dances, never hurts to try!
jerijen
8 years ago
We are into February, now. And not only is no rain in the picture for SoCal for at least 10 days . . . We are looking at temperatures in the low 80's, by next weekend.
Time is beginning to run short, now, for an El Nino to do anything significant for those of us in Coastal Southern California.
I really had high hopes for at least one-year's-worth of higher rain totals . . . but it looks less and less probable as the year moves ahead.
:-(
0
roseseek
8 years ago
That's sounding very much like last "winter" in Encino, Jeri. Santa Maria is forecasted to be 77 Sunday though Monday...
0
Rosefolly
8 years ago
We are entering into a dry period in the Bay Area as well. Fingers crossed that this will not hold for long.

On the other hand, it does mean that I can finish pruning the roses and weeding the garden.
0
jacqueline9CA
8 years ago
Yesterday morning we had a small amount of rain from a storm, and they are predicting another one is coming in today, and it will be raining by tonight. It is cloudy and dark, so I believe them. Here in the Northern part of SF Bay we seem to get rain from any storm which is around. Our local reservoirs are full.

Jackie
0
jerijen
8 years ago
Yeah, Kim -- much like last February, when we had temps in the 80's, and like the February before that, when we had temps up to 95.

It's that old High Pressure Ridge, and our "good buddy" East Wind. Not JUST unseasonably hot ... but bone dry.

I wasn't asking for a lot ... maybe at least enough rain to wash accumulated mineral salts out of the beds of roses, and give a good deep watering to plants and trees. Apparently, that was an unreasonable hope.
0
Sheila z8a Rogue Valley OR
8 years ago
I hope not, Jeri and Ingrid et al. This is too early to lose hope.
0
jerijen
8 years ago
Well, actually, it IS about time to lose hope of any substantive help with SoCal drought conditions.

Because this is the third of February, and we have a prediction for minimum 10 days ahead of dry, warm, weather. Some of it downright hot. That takes us halfway through February, and doesn't really leave a lot of potential rainy days.

If we're REEEELY lucky, we could get some rain into the first week or so of April, but probably not. So there you are.

I'm glad that NoCal has had more rain this year than last, and I am glad that the Sierra Snowpack is better than last. But since neither of those factors helps ME much, (neither improves our overstressed aquifer) I'm finding it difficult to cheer.
Sheila z8a Rogue Valley OR
8 years ago
I would feel the same way no doubt, I am so sorry.
Rosefolly
8 years ago
We have a week of dry weather ahead of us as well. Fingers crossed for a rainy March.

Actually at this point, San Jose is running a little behind last year in rainfall. You can see the data on the NOAA website.

http://w2.weather.gov/climate/index.php?wfo=mtr

Select "Regional Summary", then scroll down to "Precipitation Climatology" to see a year to date summary of our rainfall, last year's rainfall, and a comparison to the average.
0
ingrid_vc so. CA zone 9
Original Author
8 years ago
My mouth literally dropped open when I saw the predictions of temperatures in the eighties. Okay, another weird, frustrating introduction to the spring flush that probably, again, will not happen in what, the fourth year in a row ? I'm truly happy for you rain-soaked northerners, but am totally BUMMED by what's going on here. One thing I know, I will never buy another rose and wouldn't take one if you gave it to me. Even if more rain does come, it will never be enough and I shudder to think what it will be like with more dry winters in the coming years.
0
Kippy
8 years ago
It is depressing

we we were off to play in a snow storm next week but the weather changed and i will be bringing my mud boots instead
0
ashrosetx
8 years ago
No promised El Nino in central Texas either. We were bracing for a cold and wet winter. It has turned out to be mild and dry. Hit a few high temp records in Feb. I am hand watering the new roses because of city water conservation rules and waste water calculations Nov-Mar. The temperature pattern seems very similar to 2009 when the last big drought we had started, something to worry about.
0
jerijen
8 years ago
Can't "like" it ashrosetx -- but it does sound like your experience is very like ours here in SoCal -- and I'm sorry to hear it.
0
ingrid_vc so. CA zone 9
Original Author
8 years ago
To top it all off, there's been lots of drying wind for the past week. Nevertheless, I'm not planning on living without roses, but am just not buying any more. The diseased foliage on most of them is not great, and even the big ficus benjamina in the back, where you could never see any branches, is now more than half denuded and the leaves that are left also have what looks like blackspot. I now just have the attitude of what will be will be, and I'll be happy with whatever survives and thrives in whatever circumstances we're faced with. Souvenir de St. Anne's and SdlM have buds and even a few blooms so all is not lost.
Rosefolly
8 years ago
last modified: 8 years ago
I grow fewer roses than I once did, and I could grow fewer still if I had too. I think going below about 50 would be painful. But really, roses are my favorite plant, not the only one I like. (Actually I like lilacs just as much, but only grow three.)

I have native plants one area that used to be roses, and succulents in another. Both are really good-looking garden beds, and the natives attract birds. I was just out fine-tuning the succulent bed this afternoon. I'm learning as I go along, and it is getting better as I make adjustments.

Like Jeri, I intend to always grow roses. I'd want fewer to care for anyway as I grow older. So far I am healthy and strong, and right now I can still do pretty much what ever I like (so long as I rest afterwards). When I get to my 80's and 90's I might want to be doing a lot less. And yes, I do hope to reach those ages, with garden work as my plan to make that happen!
boncrow66
8 years ago
I am sorry to hear that you all haven't received the much needed rain you were hoping for this winter. I understand your disappointment but admire your determination. Jeri I love that picture of your great grandmother. It is good to have her to draw strength from during this awful drought. Praying for rain for you and everyone else on the forum that needs it.

El Nino, Where Art Thou?

Comments (37)

Related Discussions

ingrid_vc so. CA zone 9Original Author

ingrid_vc so. CA zone 9Original Author

ingrid_vc so. CA zone 9Original Author

ingrid_vc so. CA zone 9Original Author

ingrid_vc so. CA zone 9Original Author

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

ingrid_vc so. CA zone 9
Original Author

ingrid_vc so. CA zone 9
Original Author

ingrid_vc so. CA zone 9
Original Author

ingrid_vc so. CA zone 9
Original Author

ingrid_vc so. CA zone 9
Original Author