Greetings and salutations, everyone; yes, once again it is I, Mani the purebred border collie, filling in for the guy I live with, and here to bring you up to date on the latest freezing cold news from our garden. You may remember me from such other interlude-type posts as “The Couch–An Interlude”, among at least a few others.
Here I am in a characteristic pose. A sensible pose.
This is what it’s like here, today.
It’s five degrees out there. Minus fifteen Celsius. Supposed to get colder tonight, and so we’re staying in, mostly.
The irises, just to mention plants for a second, are doing very well in their moderately toasty home. (A propagator.) There aren’t a lot of them this year.
The guy I live with wanted to do a long post about how much he dislikes snow, but I overruled him. I like snow. So I’ll just say it’s super-cold out there, and go back to what I was doing.
Until next time, then.
the miserable gardener 
Dear Mani, I believe that the guy you live with mentioned that he once lived on the Oregon coast. I live here now and would like to know if he could suggest some tough, but pretty to look at, shrubs that do not require a lot of care, preferably native. The previous occupant rocked in the whole yard and while that may have some advantages for upkeep, I am in the process of removing and re landscaping for the sake of wildlife and because I just like to look at pretty flowers and shrubs not just rocks. It has been quite cold here and we have gotten some snow, but normally it just, well you know rains quite a bit and can be windy. The soil seems to be sandy where I am but I am willing to add compost or whatever I need to do. Thank you and best regards to both of you.
Oh, no, the guy I live with grew up in Southern California. Maybe a very different place. You should visit Cistus Nursery on Sauvie Island, and also Joy Creek, and all the other nurseries around Portland.
Wow, snow. We got the most snow here since 1919. The girls are half Alaskan Malamute but they don’t like it. The other half is warm Australian Heeler. They like sunbaths. Well with the 9 inches of icy frozen snow I have a question for TGYLW. I covered my Cyclamen purpurascens with buckets because I heard they didn’t like snow but the other Cyclamens are fine, right? Yours get snowed on all the time don’t they? Our big magnolia lost several large limbs and some of the conifers got crushed to the ground. Will they stand up again do you think? But most important, is your toe all healed? You kind of need it for hopping in the snow. Ours is all supposed to melt and flood us in a couple days. But not yours, I’ll bet. I see why The Guy doesn’t like it.
The guy I live with says that the cyclamen here will be perfectly fine even though it’s supposed to get pretty cold tonight, when the clouds roll away. Cyclamen purpurascens is native to Europe so it does see snow in its native habitat. But wet snow in winter; we don’t know about that. The snow here is so dry that the patio was cleared of snow with the leaf-blower.
It’s supposed to be almost sixty by Sunday.
My toe is fine, now, thanks.
Wet winter snow never fazed Cyclamen purpurascens in our CT garden. In NC, just one nasty, hot, and humid July did it in.
Yes, native as far north as Austria and Hungary, so is probably used to wet snow.
You are a super-cute snoozeler, Mani. You exhibit exactly how snoozelating should be done: snow building outside, clean sheets to accommodate a snuggle, books surrounded the recumbent form. Our dogs just came in from the rain – rain! – and their environment is not so optimum as yours, but they do all right. They will go crazy running around when the sun shines again, and I hope you do too.
Beautiful nascent iris, photos, that green so heartbreakingly bright with snow outside. Maybe not many, but choice, I’m sure.
Thanks; I am very good at napping. You can probably see Boot & Shoe in the picture there; all the rest of the books belonged to the lady of the house, who built the bookshelves and decorated the room. The camel saddle bells on the nightstand came from the guy I live with’s grandparents.
The irises, if you bought rhizomes from nurseries overseas, would not be cheap. But seeds aren’t very expensive, if you know where to find them. (These came from the Pacific Bulbs Society seed exchange.)
Hi Mani,
The lady I live with (Dana) asked me to tell you to tell the guy you live with that she really enjoys your posts and she appreciates that he types them out for you. She always makes her husband look at the pictures of you. Especially the recumbant pictures. She has lots of recumbent pictures of me. She says I am better than the cats she used to live with, because, while they woke up at dawn making lots of noise, I really enjoy a lie-in kind of morning.
I am a doberman, just so you know. I don’t generally care much for other dogs, since they aren’t all that good at petting me in the right places, but the lady I live with assures me that there are other dogs that are worth the trouble and that I should make an effort.
I am off to take a nap, now. The lady I live with is looking forward to your next entry. Oh, and she reminded me to mention that she has a flower garden in Seattle.
Warm regards,
Sampson (because I’m handsome)
Thanks. I know what dobermans are, because there’s a stuffed doberman toy in the house here. The lady who lived here before I showed up had a doberman when she was little, and so there’s the toy. I don’t get to play with it, though.
It warmed up a whole lot in the last few days, which makes someone I know fairly happy.
Mani I like how you roll.
Thanks; the weather has already warmed up again. It’s supposed to be about sixty (fifteen C or so) by tomorrow. But that’s no reason not to nap.