Specialty Gardening: By special request (part 2), 1 by wallaby1

wallaby1 wrote:
The zone only gives the maximum low you can expect, we freeze for 11 months and 2 weeks of the year! A slight exaggeration, but we can have very cold weather in the middle of summer, the maximum average for July and August is only 21C, 70F. The only 2 weeks you can usually rely on to be warm are the first 2 weeks in August! I went to an airshow at the end of June a few years ago, all winter clothes were needed!

Tulips here are sold planted from September to early November as a rule. The 6 year ones did flower one year before they had a long rest! It was a bonus to have them return.

Here's one of the ever living ones, 3rd May last year.