October Garden Pictures

Aster novae-angliae 'Hella Lacy' October 2012

 

Crocus kotschyanus October 2012

Quercus gambelii October 2012

Rosa 'Queen Elizabeth' October 2012

Zauschneria latifolia October 2012

October 2012 in Seattle was warmer & much wetter than normal.  The mean temperature was 53.8F/12.1C.  The normal mean temperature is 52.8F/11.6C.  Total precipitation was 6.71 inches.  Normal precipitation is 3.48 inches.  The highest temperature was 75F/23.9C, the lowest 38F/3.3C.  There were 3 days with heavy rain, 14 days with rain, 16 days with light rain, 18 days with fog, 19 cloudy days, 5 partly cloudy days & 7 fair days.  The weather changed abruptly with 0.19 inches of rain on October 13 & more than 1 inch of rain over a 3 day period.  There had been no significant rainfall since July 20, a freakish period of 84 dry & mostly sunny days.  Suddenly, very wet fall weather began & continued throughout the month.

This will be the last regular posting of pictures from the Cascadia Garden.  In November, I will start posting urban landscape photos from various places in Seattle.  After 4 years, photos from my garden have become repetitive. Also, I plan to leave this property within the next 6 months.

September Garden Pictures

Echinops ritro September 2012

Hydrangea arborescens September 2012

Paeonia suffruticosa September 2012

Sorbus forrestii September 2012

Pieris japonica 'Variegata' September 2012

September 2012 in Seattle was warmer & much drier than normal.  The mean temperature was 62.7F/17.1C.  The normal mean temperature is 61.3F/16.3C.  Total precipitation was 0.03 inches.  Normal precipitation is 1.5 inches.  The highest temperature was 90F/32.2C, the lowest 46F/7.8C.  There were 5 days with light rain, 9 days with fog, 4 days with haze, 4 cloudy days, 11 partly cloudy days & 15 fair days.  This followed an August that was also warmer than normal & with no measurable precipitation.  The last significant rain fell on July 20.  The landscape became very dry & dusty.  Air quality was poor.  Numerous wildfires were reported in the the State of Washington, east of the Cascade Mountains.

The Wildlife News reported on September 23, 'The immediate cause of the fires is ignition and plenty of dry fuel, but the dryness itself after June is explained by a persistent and huge ridge in the polar jet stream over the Western United States.  This has kept all but thunderstorms at bay in the West, but pushed storm after storm over SE and Central Alaska, causing record summer flooding up there. Changes in the jet stream are one of the things that you would predict with the Arctic Ocean melting as it has. There is no longer the temperature differences between the polar side and southern side of the jet to keep it relatively tight and symmetrical.  The result is the development of huge and persistent troughs in the jet stream carrying strong rainstorms coupled with equally large and scantly moving ridges of dry, dry weather. With the Arctic melt, the current situation of extremes might be irreversible.'

August Garden Pictures

Anemone x hybrida August 2012

Asclepias speciosa August 2012

 
Calluna vulgaris 'Wickwar Flame', Hebe x pimeleoides 'Quicksilver' & Pratia pedunculata August 2012

Eryngium planum & Sedum selskianum August 2012

Eucomis comosa 'Can Can' & Lilium 'Black Beauty' August 2012

August 2012 in Seattle was warmer than normal & very dry. The mean temperature was 67.9F/19.9C.  The normal mean temperature is 66.1F/18.9C.  There was only a trace of rain on 2 days, no measurable amount.  Normal precipitation is 0.88 inches.  The highest temperature was 94F/34.4C, the lowest 50F/10C.  There were 11 days over 80F/26.7C, 4 of them over 90F/32.2C.  The record high temperature for Seattle in August is 99F/37.2C.   There were 3 days with fog, 3 days with haze, 5 cloudy days, 14 partly cloudy days & 12 fair days.  It was dry & increasingly dusty.  A few very hot days alternated with a few cooler days with highs of 70F/21.1C on 3 days.  Irrigation was essential.  Watering the potted plants was a major chore.  I did very little work in the garden because it was mostly too sunny & warm.

July Garden Pictures

Hebe recurva July 2012

Hydrangea paniculata July 2012

Ligularia stenocephala 'The Rocket' July 2012

Nigella damascena 'Alba' July 2012

Rubus idaeus July 2012

July 2012 was cooler & wetter than normal.  This followed a June that was very cool & wet.  In fact, the year to date has been quite wet.  As of July 31, total precipitation was 26.4 inches.  Normal precipitation to this date is 19.8 inches.  Plants continued to grow larger than normal.  It was not necessary to irrigate until the end of the month.  The mean temperature was 64.3F/17.9C.  The normal mean temperature is 65.7F/18.7C.  Total precipitation was 1.04 inches.  Normal precipitation is 0.7 inches.  The highest temperature was 83F/28.3C, the lowest 49F/9.4C.  There were 2 days with heavy rain, 2 days with rain, 12 days with light rain, 11 days with fog, 6 days with haze, 10 partly cloudy days, 13 cloudy days & 8 fair days.  There was heavy rain accompanied by an electrical storm on 1 day.  This was a rare & exciting experience in Seattle.

June Garden Pictures

Erigeron glaucus 'Albus' June 2012

Erigeron glaucus June 2012  

Gaura lindheimeri June 2012

Penstemon x mexicali June 2012

Rosa glauca June 2012

June 2012 in Seattle was cooler, with much more rain than normal.  The mean temperature was 58.3F/14.6C.  The normal mean temperature is 60.9F/16C.  Total precipitation was 2.96 inches.  Normal precipitation is 1.57 inches.  Many people complained about the weather.  The Seattle Times called it June-uary.  However, January 2012 saw 6.83 inches of rain.  Even normal January rainfall is 5.57 inches, nearly twice the amount we received in June 2012.  The normal mean temperature for January is 42F/5.5C.  My sympathy was limited.  June 2012 was more like May, which had 2.68 inches of rain.  Perennials grew larger than than ever.  Many shrubs & trees added an amazing amount of growth.  June 2012 was a month of abundance.  There was 1 day with heavy rain, 6 days with rain, 18 days with light rain, 12 days with fog, 1 day with haze, 21 cloudy days, 9 partly cloudy days & no fair days.  The highest temperature was 76F/24.4C, the lowest 43F/6.1C.  Consistently warm, dry & sunny weather does not usually arrive in Seattle until after the 4th of July.

May Garden Pictures

Acanthus syriacus May 2012

 Antirrhinum 'Dulcinea's Heart' May 2012

 Digitalis purpurea May 2012

 Geum 'Lady Stratheden' May 2012

Paeonia veitchii May 2012

May 2012 was slightly cooler & wetter than normal.   The mean temperature was 55.3F/13.1C.  The average mean temperature is 56F/13.3C.  The highest temperature was 80F/26.6C.  The lowest was 39F/3.8C.  Total precipitation was 2.05 inches.  Average total precipitation is 1.94 inches.  There were 15 days with light rain, 3 days with rain, 7 days with fog, 15 cloudy days, 10 partly cloudy days & 6 fair days.

April Garden Pictures

Bellis perennis & Lamium maculatum 'Beacon Silver' April 2012

Narcissus jonquilla April 2012

Paeonia mascula April 2012

Rhododendron campylogynum 'Celsum' April 2012

Tulipa 'Little Princess' April 2012

April 2012 was a normal month.  The mean temperature was 50.8F/10.4C.  The normal mean temperature is 50.3F/10.2C.  The highest temperature was 74F/23.3C, the lowest was 35F/1.7C.  Total precipitation was 2.68 inches.  Normal precipitation is 2.71 inches.   There was 1 day with heavy rain, 7 days with rain, 21 days with light rain, 1 day with hail, 15 days with fog, 2 days with haze, 21 cloudy days, 8 partly cloudy days & 1 fair day.

March in Seattle

Ribes sanguineum March 2012

Hepatica americana March 2012

Pulmonaria longifolia 'Bertram Anderson' March 2012

Hacquettia epipactis  March 2012

Helleborus lividus March 2012

March 2012 was colder & much wetter than normal.  The mean temperature was 43.1F/6.2C.  The normal mean temperature is 46.5F/8.1C.  The highest temperature was 60F/15.6C, the lowest 29F/-1.7C.  Total precipitation was 7.2 inches.  Normal precipitation is 3.72 inches.  There was 0.9 inch of snow.  There was 1 day with heavy rain, 9 days with rain, 24 days with light rain, 1 day with heavy snow, 2 days with snow, 4 days with light snow, 1 day with sleet, 19 days with fog, 23 cloudy days, 7 partly cloudy days & 1 fair day.

February Garden Pictures

Cyclamen coum February 2012

Euphorbia rigida February 2012

Helleburus x hybridus February 2012

Mahonia mairei February 2010

Stony slope February 2012

February 2012 was slightly colder & wetter than normal.  The mean temperature was 43.2/F/6.2C.  The normal mean temperature is 43.4F/6.3C.  The highest temperature was 61F/16.1C.  The lowest was 28F/-2.2C. Precipitation was 3.63 inches.  Normal precipitation is 3.5 inches. There was only a trace of snow.  There were 19 days with rain, 18 days with fog, 1 day with hail, 17 cloudy days, 9 partly cloudy days & 3 fair days.

January Garden Pictures

Sunrise from the Cascadia Garden January 2012

Berberis thunbergii 'Crimson Pygmy' January 2012

Agave toumeyana January 2012

Helleborus x hybridus January 2012

 Paeonia suffruticosa January 2012

January 2012 was colder & wetter, with much more snow than normal.  The mean temperature was 39.7F/4.3C, 2.3 degrees lower than normal.  The highest temperature was 55F/12.7C on January 1, the lowest 26F/-3.3C on January 15.  Total precipitation was 6.83 inches, 1.26 more than normal.  Total snowfall was 9.6 inches, 8.2 inches more than normal.  There were 2 fair days, 6 partly cloudy days & 23 cloudy days, with light rain on 21 days, rain on 9 days, light snow on 7 days, snow on 3 days, sleet on 1 day & fog on 22 days.  2.4 inches of snow fell on January 15, then 0.1 on January 16.  That melted on January 17.  6.8 inches fell on January 18, then 0.3 on January 19.  Seattle was pretty much at a standstill on those 4 snow-covered days.  The 2nd snowfall lingered as slush for 3 additional days, making driving & walking difficult.  I didn't leave the house for 5 days, except to shake snow from the branches of evergreen shrubs.  There was 1 large broken limb on Chamaecyparis obtusa 'Tempelhof' & several broken branches on Senecio munroi in the sidewalk garden.  Someone had dumped a heap of frozen snow on it from the roof of their car.  I cursed them for that.  Erica arborea 'Estrella Gold' leaned at an alarming angle under the weight of snow, but returned to an upright position once it had melted.  The last big snowfall, in December of 2008, caused much more damage to the garden.