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An observation after the first frost (warning, long post)

We had a high of 79F on Sun, then a low of 32F on Mon night. It was the first real frost of the year and I thought I would share what I noticed in regards to the protected areas around my house. I never paid much attention to this sort of thing until I became intrested in trying plants that are marginal here in zone 9.
The front of the house faces southwest and is shaded by 2 nice size live oaks in the front yard. One side of the house faces southeast and recieves full sun. I had figured the southeast side would provide the best protection given that it recieves full sun first thing in the morning. However it turns out that although the live oaks in the front yard do not give direct overhead protection in front of the house, they still protect the area from frost. The canopy of the trees comes within between 10 and 15 feet of the beds in front of the house and this was enough that there was no frost at all in the front yard between the live oaks and the house
Here is the southeast facing side of the house.

Everything pictured above was hit with frost. Here is the front of the house.
You can see some branches from the live oak in the upper left corner.

There was no frost at all across the front of the house. And in this picture below you will see another area that is not fully protected from the North, but recieved no frost at all. It is surrounded on 3 sides by a roof line, but no direct overhead protection.

So, it seems to me that a shady spot with overhead protection even if only nearby, is better than none at all in full sun. I almost bought some tropical bamboo and heliconia this summer, but decided to wait until spring when I had a better idea of what the frost did around the house. Boy am I glad I waited.

Re: An observation after the first frost (warning, long post)

nice pictures. I like that mondo grass around the edge, think i have a spot that where it will look good.

Re: An observation after the first frost (warning, long post)

as long as the frost cant settle on your plants they are better protected next to something that is very tall,,,its kinda like shade cloth does not allow the frost to settle on the plants their for they are protected. Even if you take an old sheet to cover the tops of your plants when their is a risk of frost that will be enough to protect them...

Re: An observation after the first frost (warning, long post)

nice pics,! but no of your banana's has frost damage:)

Re: An observation after the first frost (warning, long post)

Quote:

Originally Posted by magicgreen (Post 23636)

nice pictures. I like that mondo grass around the edge, think i have a spot that where it will look good.

The previous owners of the house planted mondo and monkey grass around every shrub they planted. As I removed the shrubs I dug up the grass to make a border. It involved lots of digging.

Quote:

Originally Posted by dablo93 (Post 23658)

nice pics,! but no of your banana's has frost damage:)

These pictures are from Oct. All the bananas pictured there were hit with frost. I don't mind the bananas taking frost, but some of the tropical bamboo and of course the heliconia and BOP will be better off with the effects of frost minimized. I also may try a cat palm in front of the house next year. They sell cheap at wal mart and do well in shade.