The Big Freeze - Frost Plant Advice

Calluna

Hi all,
I just thought I'd post here to try to get a list of what not to plant in my new garden, as you might have had experience after the big freeze of the last two winters. I live in the midlands, so we got to minus fifteen at times last winter. This is our second summer in the house. To date we have sown our lawns, some fruit trees (apple, pear, plum...which all seem to have survived) and planted a hawthorn hedge along the boundaries (seems fine too). We have a few mature ash and sycamore around the site and have planted a couple of oak in back corners.

So, now I'm getting to the decorative stuff, I just wondered what you wouldn't advise. We don't need any more hedging (which seems to have had the biggest hit around here). My mother's (who lives a few miles away) escallonia and half her berberis hedges have been wiped out (they survived one winter only). She thinks skimmia (sp?) and maybe hebes gone too, which were ones in her garden I particularly liked.

Honestly, I don't see myself being a 'protector' (i.e. going out with straw/bubblewrap/etc) when there's bad weather promised, so i just want to avoid planting things that are high risk. Am hoping to go with some old fashioned garden shrubs like hydrangea, fuschia, red currant, magnolia and will add a few more natives like birch and hazel into my hedges. Also would like to include e.g. lavender, box, yew and herb garden this year.

So really any other advice on things that died on you that you hadn't expected, or that weren't particularly noted as being susceptible to frost but still didn't make it.

Thanks

lucylu

We were hit with -18c
all our Pittisporums 7 different varities
Hebes
Bay
Olive
Fig
Rosemary
New Zealand Flax all were killed

Our Irises (bearded,siberian) seem to trive after the harsh weather.

redser7

It's too late know of course, but you can get horticultural fleece dead cheap to protect plants.

planetX

we had -15 and lost pittosporum, hebes, ceanothus, rosemaries (lovely creeping ones:(), pheasant berry, bay, agapanthus, fuchsia.
Worst of all I had a lovely Lemon Verbena which I had protected through every winter before this last one, of course it's gone and I can't find another - I'm going to miss it this summer:mad::mad::mad:

foxinsox

2009 big freeze -15ish

hebes and cordylines seemed to be the only thing killed..


2010 bigger longer freeze -17ish I think was highest/coldest..

escallonia, griselinia and a few random unamed things died a fast death..
bay laurel is still a bit sick but will survive..
fatsia japonica is still sick now, going all brown, this is ten years old and I hope it survives..

I did notice though that some spring flowering stuff is flowering better than it ever did before..

Irises, tulips, muscari hyacinths etc.. bursting with blooms!

Calluna

Thanks so much. That's exactly what I wanted. Was thinking about pittosporum this morning, so might give that a miss for this year and see what happens weather wise. I suppose I just wanted to know what was really 'frost resistant' or maybe 'freeze resistant' from real gardens around the country. Thanks again.