Views of the Neighborhood – Frost Warnings

~ John W. Howell

Prior to New Year’s Eve we had a two day freeze here in the neighborhood. I went out and captured some of the sights. Our tour today is to see how some of the residents tried to protect their plants. We are being catered by Koriente of Austin. Our entertainment is Little Big Town.

Menu

Koriente Curry (A): $9.5
Gourmet vegetarian curry. Lighter and milder than the version you may know, with carrots, onions, potatoes, and button mushrooms on a bed of steamed rice.
Koriente Curry (B):
Our vegetarian curry with rice medallions on a bed or organic baby greens. Pictured with the chicken addition.
Garden Handroll:
Avocado, cucumber, Korean radish, red cabbage, red bell pepper, and carrots. Wrap in dried seaweed paper and dip in soy wasabi sauce or balsamico. Add toppings like smoked salmon or Oyster/Shiitake mushrooms.
Japchei:
A warm bowl of clear sweet potato noodles and an assortment of veggies: carrots, green cabbage, red bell peppers, and organic spring greens. Choose protein options from above and enjoy.
Obake Bowl (A): 
Your choice of pork, chicken, pan-seared tofu, or shrimp sauteed with button mushrooms, broccoli, and carrots. Served with steamed rice.
Obake Bowl (B):
The Obake Bowl with rice medallions in place of rice and garnished with a handful of fresh baby greens.
Mixmix Bibimbap:
Steamed rice in a ring of fresh julienned veggies: carrots, cucumbers, cabbage, red cabbage, red bell peppers, and organic baby greens. Served with your choice of red pepper paste or mild wasabi soy sauce. Choose protein options from above and enjoy.
Rice Medallion Saute:
Sauteed green cabbage, mushrooms, and rice cakes served on a bed of fresh spring greens and julienned green cabbage and topped off with a pile of sweet potato noodles.
Shiitake Tofu: 
a comforting vegan dish that’s a savory blend of tofu, shiitake & button mushrooms in a miso-soy sauce served over a bed of spring greens, green cabbage, and a side of rice.
Spicy Chicken: 
bite-sized cuts of tender chicken in a delicious spicy marinade served with rice and steamed broccoli, and carrots.
Teriyaki Chicken:
Tender boneless chicken marinated in homemade teriyaki sauce served with rice and your choice of steamed broccoli & carrots.
Pan-Seared Ahi Tuna:
pan-seared ahi tuna dusted with sea salt, black pepper, and sesame seeds. served on a bed of spring greens and red bell peppers with a side of steamed rice and soy-wasabi dipping sauce. order rare/medium/well done. great with a side of avocado!
Miso Honey Glazed Mahi Mahi:
thick cuts of Mahi Mahi, perfectly sautéed in a miso-honey glaze, dusted with black pepper and ginger and served with spring greens, broccoli and a side of rice, and red onion relish.
Lemon Pepper Papaya Salad:
a Thai-inspired green papaya salad on a bed of spring greens and carrots, with red onion relish and crushed serrano chili paste, topped with toasted garlic. Served with a side of rice. Squeeze a lemon on top and enjoy!

Picture of an old time school bus

Jump on and let’s go.

At our first stop it looks like all the beach towels have been pressed into  service.

Then there are clear plastic bags and black tarp.

All the king sized linen will need a wash.

Shades of co-ordinated green and blue.

Looks like tent city.

Home Depot moving boxes put to good use.

The pirate crew loves the green plastic.

Monster mash anyone?

Maybe a different plant selection would be in order.

Solid green.

Buckets weighed down with rocks and sheets.

The old stand by. 1000 thread count Egyption cotton

Well that’s the tour. I hope you enjoyed it. Sit back and relax with the food and music.

81 thoughts on “Views of the Neighborhood – Frost Warnings”

  3. That is my kind of menu, so much for me to choose from, I’d be there all day deciding. In Alberta, we would cover our plants like that too when an early frost was forecasted. Mom always had extra sheets just for that purpose.

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  5. I think Imma pick a little of each one of those dishes. And kudos to these peeps for finding ingenious ways to keep their plant life from going to the other side.

    Love Little Big Town and THAT is a great cover on a classic.

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  9. I’m a big fan of the beach towels, John! They’re big enough to protect the delicate vegetation, yet small enough to toss into the washer when the weather clears. I never thought of moving boxes or trash bags, though!

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  10. For us, it was mainly some of the cacti that needed protection. So far, it looks as if the protection worked. But some pieces of some cacti broke off. I’ve tried to re-plant them and now ill have to see how/if that works.

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  13. I didn’t know a bedsheet would work on a frost, John. I use a plastic sheet on one plant in the spring. If I don’t, the frost kills the flowers. The plywood tents during that Liz shared sounds like a good idea. 🙂

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  14. Thankfully, we don’t get those kinds of freezing temperatures often down here. These homeowners were wise to protect their plants. It’s easier than trying to replace them. Thanks for sharing!

    Liked by 1 person

  18. Most of my plants are in pots now so I just brought them inside. The buckets and boxes sounds like a good idea. Nice tour with plenty of sunshine – food was good too! I hope we are done with hard freezes.

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  20. Oh my goodness… those plates. How to choose?
    One must do what one must to protect the plants! Pretty smart ideas, I say.
    What a fabulous cover of this classic tune!

    Liked by 1 person

  23. Great tour, John and feast. I have used bedding to cover plants too if it freezes before snow. Buckets do come in handy though.

    Liked by 1 person

  25. Crazy weather everywhere it seems John. Those wrapped plants may seem odd looking in Texas, but they are a common thing in my cold neck of the woods, lol. And the menu looks delish! 🙂

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  26. Delicious food to enjoy on the tour John. I cannot remember once having frost in Houston in the two years we were there, but our friends in Dallas a couple of years ago and feet of snow and it took everyone by surprise. Your neighbourhood looked like it had been mothballed but glad it only lasted a short time… thanks for the tour and the music..hugsx

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  28. I hope you came through the frost without too much damage. If we put sheets and boxes out like that, we’d find them in the Pacific the next morning, lol. The wind is crazy here during the winter.

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  29. Love the creative protections, John! We had 2 nights in a row of 28 degrees here in central Florida (first time time in more than ten years, and a 30-year record low). But other than bringing some potted plants onto the screen porch, which helped them survive, we let nature run its course this time. Our garden is still pretty bare after Irma crushed it, but our plan is to replant with only freeze-hardy replacements. Low maintenance from here on out, though another hurricane hit will flatten even those, of course.

    Hope most of the gardens in your area came through it all okay! 😀

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  30. Yep, at my age, gardening isn’t quite as easy as it once was, so freeze-hardy and drought tolerant are the way we plan to go from here on out. (More time sitting on the patio enjoying the view than digging and planting!) 😀

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  34. Difficult to choose from those wonderful dishes. And your neighbours are very wise. Thanks for sharing those, John, and I hope all the trees and plants survive the winter.

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