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firefightergardener

As wet as they can tolerate?

Next Spring and into Summer, our incredibly wet Pacific Northwest Autumn/Winter will show how well, or not, conifers can deal with very very wet conditions. My rain gauge for the last three months recorded what we saw as constant rains, often heavy, not quite to flooding levels but just constant rains.

October: 8.24 inches
November: 17.55 inches
December: 10.67 inches

for a total of 46 and a half inches in 3 months. What's amazing is that this followed a stretch in late Summer/early Autumn in which I recorded 0.01 inches over a 93 day period.

I have sandy soil for the most part but even that has to be well saturated. I have no doubt that some plants will benefit from it, and it certain helps our water tables, but I can't imagine the varieties of pines I am growing will be too happy with this deluge.

Waiting for the sun, here in the PNW,

-Will

Comments (17)

  • dcsteg
    11 years ago

    We had a total of 20.00 inches for all of 2012. Most of it in April & May. -16.36 below normal.

    We have had two small snows the last month with virtually no moisture content.

    Nothing on the horizon to indicate a change.

    Will... we both to some extent are on the opposite side of two extremes. Both of which cause some concern. Hopefully things will come around and balance out.

    For me I am fearful another round of the same here in my area this year will be a deal breaker. The only subsurface moisture that remains is what I put there with a regimented watering schedule last year. It wasn't enough. I notice this deficiency in transplanting 5-6 conifers last November. 2 ft. down and things were dry. Because this caused some concern I took my Ross root feeder, less food, and proceeded to root water all my conifers insuring they go into the winter with enough moisture to carry them into Spring. No small feat. I have found out that Pinus strobus and Thuja occidentalis are weak links to the abnormal heat and drought and will perish like overnight if not watched closely.

    If this wasn't enough all Zoyisa grass died in the front yard. A fungus took it out. I removed all and replace with 155 rolls of Blue Grass sod. 40 lbs. of Blue grass seed replenished the back yard backed up with a hefty dose of winter fert to encourage root growth.

    I have done all I can do. The rest is up to Mother Nature.

    Hopefully she will be cooperative.

    Dave

  • gardener365
    11 years ago

    A couple weeks ago where I live we broke the standing record of 285 days w/o snow since the beginning of when record keeping began. We broke it by one day: 286.

    Dax

  • scotjute Z8
    11 years ago

    firefightergardener:
    Your November rainfall was higher than our total annual rainfall in 2011, with the hottest summer and most 100 F days on record.
    Will admit though that you've had a pile of rain. Good luck slogging thru it!

  • severnside
    11 years ago

    From The UK Met Office News Blog

    We announced last week that 2012 is already the wettest year for England in our records dating back to 1910, but we're still waiting to hear whether it's the wettest on record for the UK.

    The latest figures we have for 2012 go from 1 January to 26 December, and show that during that time we've had 1291.2 mm of rain for the UK, meaning it is currently the 4th wettest year on record.

    It's 46.1 mm short of the record of 1337.3 mm (54 inches), set in 2000, so if 46.2 mm of rain falls between 27-31 December we will have a new record.

    It's likely to be fairly close-run, but it's impossible to say whether 2012 is a UK record for rainfall until all the data come in from our weather observation sites around the country.

    This information should come in on the 1st and 2nd of January, then all the data will need to be processed and we expect to have a provisional answer on Thursday, 3rd January.

    We'll post the news here on our blog as soon as all the provisional statistics for 2012 come in.

    This post was edited by severnside on Wed, Jan 2, 13 at 12:47

  • severnside
    11 years ago

    No great signs of distress among my plants considering the drenching this year. But I certainly won't be counting my chickens this side of a better spring/summer. I have learned where the garden drainage is poor and how invaluable both free drainage in containers and high planting are. Water has simply gone around the planting mounds on it's way down the garden. I'll probably leave permanent channels as they form.

  • bengz6westmd
    11 years ago

    Not quite at flooding level? How many meters do you need? :)

    That kind of rain would have long ago turned my lot into a lake....

    In the very wet yr of 2003, I noticed some trees in mid summer looking "pale" -- guessing from too little oxygen in the soil.

  • cryptomeria
    11 years ago

    The same like in England here in the North of Germany. We had 86% more rain as the years before.The next 2 weeks they say it will be a dry period.I hope so.

    Wolfgang

  • ishcountrygal
    11 years ago

    Will - I admire those like you who manage to keep weather records, garden journals and photographic records.

    But how did you get a total of 46 1/2 in. when you added the Oct, Nov and Dec rainfall?

    -m

  • firefightergardener
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    Because it sounded more impressive I guess! Thanks for the correction, that is rather ignorant of me! :)

    36 and a half it is!

    -Will

  • monkeytreeboy15
    11 years ago

    Will, either way, it has been a lot of rain around here this past fall.
    Many conifers have their soil requirement as: moist, well-drained soil. I imagine if you do have a sandy soil, the water keeps it moist, but its composition allows the water to readily drain away. Hopefully this is the case!

    -Sam

  • severnside
    11 years ago

    They're saying this year was the second highest UK rainfall on record. This means that four of the top five UK wettest years occurred since 2000, showing a developing trend.

    1. 2000 - 1,337.3mm (52.64 inches)

    2. 2012 - 1,330.7mm (52.38 inches)

    3. 1954 - 1,309.1mm (51.53 inches)

    4. 2008 - 1,295.0mm (50.98 inches)

    5. 2002 - 1,283.7mm (50.53 inches)

    (Source: Met Office)

  • severnside
    11 years ago

    The UK rainfall total above for this year was after a spring that was the driest for a century.

    Go figure.

  • texjagman
    11 years ago

    Water levels are so low in Oklahoma they are considering winter water rationing.

    So what do you do in the winter to ration......only shower every other day :-)

    mark

  • whaas_5a
    11 years ago

    Likely have to hook up your dishwasher discharge to your toilet!

    The PNW and UK needs to give the central US back its rainfall!

    Its either too little or too much isn't it. I wish we could teach mother nature in moderation.

    Will, hopefully your plants do well. If its draining like you say with the sandy soil texture, you are likely in the clear. Wet soils can be a real problem for Abies and Pinus during late winter.

  • jimbobfeeny
    11 years ago

    Not bad around here - We got 13 inches of snow 2 weeks ago, and there's still 2 or 3 inches left. It's been slowly melting into the ground over the last 2 weeks - the ground was completely thawed when the snow fell. That's just what we need to replenish the subsoil moisture!

    Unfortunately, I lost an Abies fraseri (it was only 3 years planted, though) due to wet, heavy soil. Canaan firs are doing great! Hopefully this moisture continues into next year - I could use a year where I don't have to water every @!!# plant I've planted in the last 3 years every week!

  • in ny zone5
    11 years ago

    Wolfgang,
    In parts of northern Germany I know, Braunschweig and north of Berlin, there was a lot of sand leftover from the ice ages. There should be enough drainage for 86% more rain.
    Bernd

  • cryptomeria
    11 years ago

    You are right Bernd for Braunschweig and Berlin. I live 400 km north near the border to Denmark.
    In earlier times there were marshlands ,swamps here and today from the agrar activities much clay from deeper parts mixed in the
    higher parts. So, there stands much water on the fields and in deeper areas( when much rain has fallen like the last months ) and it needs sometimes months, before the " lakes" are away.

    It is very different to the sandy areas of the North Sea or in the neighborhood of Berlin,Braunschweig ..

    Wolfgang

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