#freeze damage

My gf and I went on a roadtrip around the midwest and parts of the mid-Atlantic.

I have LOTS of pix from the Missouri Botanical Gardens, which I will share soon, but I mainly want to talk about…

… My experiment leaving some succulents outside when the temperatures drop near freezing. I knew I was going to be gone for a while, so I brought all of my cacti and my most favorite and rare succulents inside.

I left some echeveria, bryophyllum/kalanchoe, and all graptopetalum outside in a nook next to the house, which was partially covered.

WELL.

All of the graptopetalum (which are alpine succs) were good, minus a leaf or two. The one graptoveria lost two rosettes, but the ones facing the house were fine. Topsy turvy echeveria was perfectly fine, the Blue Frills doesn’t look happy but might escape with only some damage. I also had a small pot of mixed sedeveria / graptoveria / pachyveria – the sedeveria melted, but the others seem fine.

The kalanchoe did NOT like the cold. I had to cut back the k. millotii like 80%. Same with the k. tomentosa. K. luciae looks like a total goner. :(

Bryophyllum was also a mixed bag. B. daigremontianum turned to mush, b. delagoensis was completely fine, and b. fedtschenkoi had to be cut back about 50%.

I also left a pot of aloiampelos cilaris and crassula perforata outside by mistake. I had to cut back the c. perforata about 60%, and the a. cilaris about 30%. Pleasantly surprised as both of those are South Africa natives and I would never expect them to survive repeated frost/freezing.

All in all, not too bad. Only lost two beyond repair. If I’d actually been home the damage would’ve been less BUT since I’m running out of room it’s probably for the best! ¯\_(ツ)_/¯