Frozen shrubs and small trees in serious trouble in Central Ohio gardner's (me) yard

[mtnester]

OK - here in Ohio we had STUPID weather the last 7 days - hard freezes, 2.5 inches of snow that was long term ,etc. Although I had some success saving some of the tender perennials (peonies, hostas that were up) I have some problems with some bushes that were in full leaf that I could not help. Weeping japanese maple, which does not produce a lot of leaves anyway,. second year in ground, now has either wilty leaves that are done for, or cold burnt leaves that are now powder when you touch them. This is not a tree you can really prune is it? The weeping form does not really allow for much. I desperately need some help on ow to help this tree redevelop leaf for the summer so that it can survive the winter to come.

Additionally, sand cherries and small leafed yellow twig dogwood shrubs got the same treatment...they were totally leafed out and now either wilty on the way to dropping off, or cold burnt and turning to powder. Of course, the upper growth got pruned last fall to keep their shape, so not a alot of new growth. What I do have is old growth quarter size round growth that will basically be naked this summer unless I can get re-leafing. I wonder if hard pruning will get enough new growth to make it through the winter to come. They will also look like shit.

Any help anyone can provide would be greatly appreciated. In my life (47 years) I have never seen an April like this, and would like to save my established plants that think are very seriously hurt. I am a pretty experienced gardner, but this goes beyond my expertise. I also have an inquiry out to my local extension, but I fear they may be swamped with similar questions, and I would like to start trying to save my shrubs and maple as soon as possible.

Thanks so much in advance for any suggestions or help you can provide!

[appal_jack]

1. wait and see

For trees and shrubs, you will want to examine tissue over time to make sure it is dead before pruning away branches on something like a Japanese Maple.

Cut open a bud or two. If they are green (or red if it's a red-leafed variety, etc.) you are OK. If they are black and slimy, your tree may be in trouble. But even then, the Maple may develop secondary/adventitious buds. I don't know enough of the details of Maple physiology to say for sure, but remember that it's always easier to prune more later than it is to glue branches back on...

See more at:
http://www.ppdl.purdue.edu/ppdl/hot07/4-5.html

-app

[mtnester]

6. I will go out and take a look to see if there are any tight buds left

the tree had mostly put its entire leaf out...granted they were not at full small maple shape or size, but the buds had opened and stuck out the leaves.

I am going to read the article at the link you provided when I get home today...I AM hoping the rain today helps in any way it can.

Thank you so much!

[cmd]

2. I have no advice other than wait and see

Ohio weather is always unpredictable; but, like you, I've never seen anything like last week. Maybe the rain will help perk things up. It should move before noon tomorrow.
If I'm lucky I'll get some more onion sets in the ground tomorrow morning. Good luck, cmd

[mtnester]

7. CMD, neither have I...last week was nearly as unbelievable

as last year's Memorial Day frost. The last 5 springs/ summers have been as freakish as hell, but this one is bad. And doing the bee colony reading I did last night made it feel SO much worse.

Hell, before we all cook from radiation we will starve to death...no bees to pollinate, apple/peach/pear crop in Ohio seriously damaged...no spring blooms for whatever bees are left (no way is my lilac blooming...those blooms were destroyed last week).

Sigh....I am reading Gringos in Paradise....makes this particularly disheartening.

[roguevalley]

3. I live in Alaska and we have such cold winters that its hard on stuff

too. Too cold and the stuff dies. You should wait. When it thaws out and gets warm again, water them. Cut back all the dead stuff. (Check to see if your stuff can bear it) and cross your fingers. Next time, Put them in plastic sheets and wrap them several layers. Tape or tie. I suppose when the bad stuff heads your way, you can run out and do it. Put lots of mulch around their bases in the fall. I hope the best for you.

[mtnester]

5. We had sheets with foam paper layered up underneath

they were so leafed out, temps at night20 degrees with 30 mph winds, and day temps NOT above 30 degrees with no sun...they were damaged anyway. I tried DESPERATELY to save that which I knew would be in trouble....not daffodils and not the normal things that sometimes bloom out too early like forsythias (3 snows after the forsythia bloom).

The tree will really hurt my feelings, as it was a tad pricey and we shopped for two years until we found just the right one...sigh

Thanks for all your help!

[roguevalley]

10. join the National Arbor thing and they will give you ten trees for

nothing. They are a great organization and you can replace your damaged babies for nothing.

http://www.arborday.org/shopping/memberships/memberships.cfm?trackingid=528

[mtnester]

11. Great idea - thank you!

Off I go!

[susanna]

4. I'm terrified for my hostas, truth be told.

Michigan here, that weird pocket of Zone 6 near Detroit. We were sooooooo cold so long I worry, especially since my hostas handled a weird cutworm incident (early) and tornado-style hailstorm last year (we had what many weather folks called a microburst 'round about late June. It decimated my vegetable garden and tender ornamentals). :-(

I really don't have anything to offer you, and I'm sorry. That said, I commiserate with you a great deal. If you find anything out, especially about the Japanese maples, I would be interested. I love this forum because I learn so much.

Sorry I can't be more help.

[mtnester]

8. As soon as I find anything out about the maples, I will pass it along

as soon as I hear from OSU extension I should know more.

Thanks!

[cmd]

9. From the Canton Repository

http://www.cantonrep.com/index.php?ID=347617&r=0&Category=9&subCategoryID=0

Area growers and crop specialists say Ohio's recent cold spell means the peaches, and maybe even the cherry crops, are in the pits.

"We're not in a good situation at all," said Diane Miller of Carrollton, state extension specialist for tree fruits for Ohio State University's Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center in Wooster. "This was not a spring frost. It was truly a spring freeze. We still have three more weeks to go of potentially frosty weather. So we're not necessarily through it yet."


(snip)
Miller said the plants in southern Ohio may fare worse than those in the north because the southern plants were "further along in their development and then they're more tender."

"We're hoping for the best. I think it's going to take a couple of warm days to see what's frozen." She said the frozen plants will "collapse and the ones that were not will perk up and look better."

[bleedingheart]

12. I am over here in Western PA...I am in wait and see mode...

I am not going to worry about anything until mid May....if stuff dies...it dies...and yes this is the freakyest weather in a long long time...

[mtnester]

13. To add insult to injury, we got a ton of pea size hail last night

enough to cover hard surfaces with about 1/2 inch...my poor sad plants

[susanna]

14. Where are you?

Not being nosy, really! The reason I ask is that my part of the world gets hail once in a blue moon. That said - last summer, we got hit hard at least three times (pea-sized). Most folks think pea-sized hail is nothing, but how it comes down is the kicker. Last year mine SHREDDED my plants - ornamental and vegetable alike. Some survived, some didn't.

Anyway, I'm sorry for you and your plants. I know how it feels. :-(

[mtnester]

15. Central Ohio - last year was also hail city

but in MAY of all damn times - I got photos

Hail has been WAY to frequent here in the last 3 years...a couple of subdivisions just NE of us by about 12 miles had such severe hail damage that the streets were lined for two weeks with mobile insurance trailers - it was like a war zone or post-catastrophic nightmare - and the CONTRACTORS who descended upon the streets as well. It was a circus.

[mtnester]

16. Update - we are taking a wait and see attitude until about mid May

then we will fertilize and pray. We are hoping these things will recover if simply left alone for awhile...at least enough to survive this coming winter. Mid July will tell the tale on whether we have to replace or not.

Now, if it could get warm, and the sun could shine for more than 2 hours a week...but of course that is wishful thinking here.

Damn our springs and summers have been getting colder here each year, with the winter time in Dec-Jan when it is supposed to be blasting cold getting warmer.

Everything has been bassakwards for the past 4-5 years...we have not had what I would call a good pooltime summer since the summer of 2000.