Just read an article in Colorado Gardener Newspaper which had a couple of good iideas

In answering a question about damaged Agaves and succulents this winter (past we hope) Kelly Grummonds of Timberline Gardens said:

"Deep Freezing temperatures and wind chill will cause these symptoms [bleached leaves and other winter damage] In my garden even my 20-year old Agaves are showing some type of damage. Every few years we see this so I have gone to covering my prize plants with Styrofoam boxes from November until April. Another technique is to cover them with garden frost cloth supported by wire nursery baskets or home built frames. It saves us from this kind of disappointment and heartache. Fortunately, most will recover"

Thought the idea of the boxes or cloth was a good one. We are still getting very cold winds and some freezing temps here and we know it can take a while to get past the danger time.

Think I will go out and put a few styrofoam boxes in place.

Good luck on your preservation practices for your precious plants (how's that for alliteration?)...

Thanks for the tips, Marilyn. Here's hoping no one needed them, but I'm betting some did.

Strangely enough, we had the warmest winter I've ever experienced in Arizona ( and no, I'm not bragging! I'll get mine this summer, I'm sure.) Many of my plants never went dormant (adeniums, plumeria). I have a new-to-me mammilaria that has been blooming since October. Watering never actually stopped and I'm pretty confused about what I should be doing... Just playing it all by ear,

Okay, go ahead and throw your snowballs at me now!

No snowballs, getting to 60s today, however come Sunday more rain/snow mix predicted. Hope you don't have to get out the shade cloth to protect your babies for those hot intense sun this summer.

Tarev can probably help you with advice on growing some of your Cactus type plants.

Tarev is incredibly knowledgeable, I agree. Unfortunately, my climate is *much* harsher than hers, so it would be hard to advise me. The good news is that I volunteer at the local botanical gardens, in the cactus section, so whenever I can tap my boss's brain, I do.

Instead of shade cloth, though, I've been planting trees/ shrubs like crazy, mostly for the sun protection... and, of course, 'cause they're trees!