What died on you this winter?

Surprisingly, very few casualties. My osteospurmums didn't survive this time around, nor a couple of fuchsias.Cytisus battendieri just coming back after total defoliation. Ptisana and lophosoria pushing out fronds but cyathea cooperi is brown bread. Dicksonias antarctica and squarrosa and woodwardia radicans minimal frond browning. All zantedeschia seem fine. My canna musifolia is solid so very hopeful for it to burst into life with a bit of sunshine. Opuntia is fine, echinopsis some wet damage. All in all it's a thumbs up

 

Isn't that always the case, lol. They're indestructible lol. I'm surprised that the rover they sent to Mars years ago didn't send back a load of pictures of dandelions growing in the barren martian landscape, lol.

 

I have a few virtually indestructibles, so no surprises that they've sailed through the winter. Aucuba, monkey puzzle, pieris, climbing hydrangea, Virginia creeper, spiracea to name but a few. All fine.

My goal for this year is to start looking beyond the soft "will they or won't they" type plants, and in future just stick with the truly rugged varieties to give me the best possible chance moving forward.

 

I've been looking at my Iochroma australis plants and there seems to be a lot of dead stems, but I think the plants are alive lower down.
Fuchsia excortica has been killed back to the main trunk which is now shooting.
The Feijoas are untouched, unyet they were defoliated during the 2018 beast from the east.
Yet to see any signs of life on the Albizias, but they are often very late in cold springs.
Almost lost some large Aloe stiatulas, actually dug the roots of one out this afternoon, it was just reshooting.

 

I can confirm that it's hardier than supposed. I was given one (not something I particularly wanted ) so put it in the pond and just left it. This was 5 winters ago and the dratted thing comes back every year from the roots

 

Although I still haven't got a great deal of plants in my garden, what I do have - have survived the winter and last summer's drought, although we didn't have the extremely high temperatures as those of you further down the country. Living here, because the winters are often colder than further south, I've automatically planted hardier shrubs and herbaceous perennials. The only plants that have suffered a little are Buddleja 'Sugar Plum' and a young Choisya Ternata 'Sundance'. Leaves on both were frosted.

I moved the Choisya early last year to a more sheltered spot but it hasn't helped. Guessing it might struggle through the winters, a decision now has to be made whether to let it struggle on or dig it out.

 

All clapping and stamping our feet in unison chanting...

"Dig it out, dig it out, dig it out". Lol.

 

You are probably right.

 

Potato vine would be the one killed by the frost that I liked the most but still hoping to see it sprout up from under the honeysuckle. There also were a number of hebes that have been killed including some that I had in the ground for about eight years without any issues. A couple of established broom shrubs and a newly planted pittosporum also look dead and and a small feijoa that I planted a couple of years back to grow near a more established one looks dead but I'm hoping will recover.

Some of the Myrtle shrubs and Euonymus have been severely damaged but might recover. Also no sign of life in a young Vitex and globe artichoke but hoping they will recover like a newly planted olive that still has some leaves attached so hoping is not dead after its first winter in the garden. A number of rosemary of different ages, and a New Zealand tea tree that was just planted last year also completely dead.

Chard and beetroot that I usually can harvest a bit over winter were also very badly damaged by the cold in December. Did not get as much drought as others report last year but the cold in December seemed to have a bigger impact than in other years and I think there was a week or so where the garden did not get above freezing. A few spaces for new planting available now but already had some propagating going on so some gaps already filled.
Happy gardening!

 

I've lost my two pot grown Agapanthus and the ones outside of that variety ( navy blue fine outside its growing ) looks like all my salvias are dead amistad - amante - phylis fancy and some other variety's - eucomis - scillia peru - some dahlias - caladinium not surprised all these were in the Greenhouse . Outside Hebe - Crinium - nerines - Penstemon garnet - pennisetum fairy tails possibly - phormium - lupin . Choyisa in pot looks dead and Rhodi varigated ponitum not far behind I bought these two for a client so have to replace out of my own pocket

Its a bit odd some gardens have lost Euphorbias - pittosporum but mine look fine, nearly every phormium has been took out to at least the ground even bob standard Tenax / purple one . I dug up a cordyline yesterday for someone very surprised how deep the roots went down .

 

Appear to have lost Ceratostigma willmottianum.

 

Mine always looks horribly dead for quite a long time in spring, but recovers eventually. Have you given it a good tug?

 

One of my know "dead" cordylines is pushing out a flower spike.
The stem is dead but the head is still alive.