Category Archives: groundcovers

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Autumnal Equinox in the Garden

The autumnal equinox happens on Saturday, September 22nd this year. It’s the official start of fall when the sun crosses the celestial equator and moves southward. The earth’s axis of rotation is perpendicular to the line connecting the centers of the earth and the sun on this day. Many people believe that the earth experiences 12 hours each of day and night on the equinox. However, this is not exactly the case.

During the equinox, the length is nearly equal but not entirely because the day is slightly longer in places that are further away from the equator ( like where we live ). Also the sun takes longer to rise and set in these locations as it does not set straight down but in a horizontal direction.

ceanothus ‘Heart’s Desire’

With the changing of the season, take advantage of fall planting weather by looking at what’s covering your ground. Be it the small lawn for the kids to play on, ground cover to keep the weeds at bay or erosion control to keep the hillside intact, this is an excellent time to plan for winter.

Let’s start with the lawn. If you still need a space for recreation, this is a good time to reseed those bare spots. Also to keep the lawn healthy by removing underlying thatch with a thatching rake. Then aerate the lawn by poking holes in the sod and fertilize with a complete lawn fertilizer like an organic all-purpose. Your lawn needs the phosphorus in the fall to encourage deep, strong roots for the winter.

If the kids are grown and no one is using that lawn, why not rip out the water guzzling grass and replace it with a walk-on groundcover? There are many to choose from like dymondia, lippia, potentilla, duchesnea strawberry or any of the kinds of thyme.

Living ground covers add beauty to the garden while holding the soil in place and preventing erosion. They contribute to soil health by encouraging microorganisms. A garden wouldn?t thrive as well without groundcovers.

One of my favorites is Elfin thyme. It doesn’t need mowing, edging or fertilizing or much irrigation. You can walk on it and it stays green all winter, shading into bronze tones when the weather cools. It even blooms in midsummer for several weeks. Note that bees are attracted to it as with all of the ground covers in the thyme family at this time.

kurapia

Another favorite that I have in my own garden is kurapia. It?s deep rooted, doesn?t require much water, is compact and low maintenance. It?s been bred to have sterile seeds. This is a good groundcover if pollination of nearby fruit trees is needed or you want to encourage bees to your garden for pollination. If bees are an issue kurapia can be mowed to cut off the blooms.

There are also Ca. native and prairie meadow grasses that you can walk on. They need little irrigation and even less mowing. Some can be planted from seed, others from plugs or sod. Good choices include Idaho, California and red fescue, carex pansa, June grass and Hall’s bentgrass.

grevillea lanigera ‘Mt Tamboritha’

If you don’t need to walk on your groundcover, low-growing native shrubs that are good groundcovers are baccharis, ceanothus maritimus, ?Anchor Bay or ?Heart?s Desire?, manzanita, creeping snowberry, creeping mahonia, salvia ?Bee?s Bliss? and ribes viburnifolium. Mediterranean ground covers like cistus salviifolius, grevillea lanigera, rosemany prostratus, rubus pentalabous are also good low-water choices.

It’s time to enjoy fall weather and cover that ground before winter.

April gardening tips, gardening tips, groundcovers, water saving techniques

April in the Garden in the Santa Cruz Mountains

Spring might have officially started mid-March but judging from the wonky weather it’s hard to tell. We did experience a ?Miracle March?? with a pretty good dose of needed rainfall along with some very cold weather. You never know what to expect in March around here.

Sherman, my Welsh springer spanial, enjoying a spring day in Scotts Valley

But now we?ve turned the corner on spring with flowers bursting open within hours on these nice days. The Black-headed grosbeaks have returned to my yard for the breeding season. Like clockwork they show up on almost the exact day each year. It?s my version of the swallows returning to San Juan Capistrano.

Looking forward to the rest of spring, here?s what I?ll be doing around here in April.

Hopefully we?ll have plenty of April showers. This latest rainfall is surely? welcomed. One of the perks of a cool, rainy spring is that shrubs and perennials have longer to establish a good root system before hot weather arrives, ground covers have time to spread and shade the soil, conserving moisture come summer. What strategies can you follow that will make your garden low maintenance this summer and give you extra time to enjoy it?

Plant in masses. When designing or reworking your garden, make it

ajuga reptans, a groundcover for shady spots

easy on yourself by planting fewer varieties but in greater numbers. Planting this way will reduce the number of different maintenance tasks for that area. For example, if you have a large hillside that you want to cover, plant it with a groundcover like ceanothus gloriosus which fans out 6-15 feet. Some manzanitas like arctotaphylos uva-ursi eventually spread to15 feet each. Sage leaf rockrose and germander are also good for sunny areas. A shady spot could be planted with ajuga, creeping mahonia or Walkabout Sunset lysimachia.

Another time saving strategy is to group plants with similar moisture needs. This may sound like a no brainer but if you have just one prima donna in a bed of more drought tolerant plants, you’ll be dragging the hose over to that bed for just one plant or having to run your irrigation system more for it. If you find that some of your plants are not quite as low water as you’d like, move those to their own spot. In general, plants with large leaves usually require more water and transpire faster while drought tolerant plants typically have one of more of the following characteristics: deep taproots and leaves that are smaller, silver, fuzzy or succulent.

ceanothus ‘Carmel Creeper’ – A low maintenance, low water groundcover for sunny spots

Avoid putting thirsty plants in hard-to-reach places. If the irrigation system doesn’t reach that far, keep it simple by planting drought tolerant woody shrubs or perennials there.

Pluck weeds when the soil is moist and before they have gone to seed. Even if you don’t get the entire root of more persistent weeds, just keep pulling at the new growth. Eventually, the plant will give up having used up all of the food stored in its roots. I?m still battling hedge parsley with it?s sticky seed balls that will cling to my shoelaces and the dog?s fur if I don?t get it before it sets seed.

Plant edibles among your other plants near the kitchen. Tricolor sage looks great alongside other plants with pink and violet leaves. Purple basil planted below the silver foliage of an artichoke is another great combination. Lemon thyme growing next to a burgundy colored dwarf New Zealand flax would look spectacular, too. And don’t forget to plant decorative and delicious Bright Lights swiss chard with its stalks of yellow, orange, pink, purple, red, green and white throughout your beds. It?s one of the easiest vegetables to grow.

So get the lemonade ready to enjoy all your free time later this season.

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Kurapia – The Perfect Groundcover

A groundcover is defined as any plant that grows over an area of ground. They are usually low-growing, spreading plants that help stop weeds from growing and prevent moisture loss. We gardener know that they do so much more in the landscape. Living ground covers add beauty to the garden filling in between plants while holding the soil in place and preventing erosion. They contribute to soil health by encouraging microorganisms. A garden wouldn?t thrive as well without ground covers.

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Kurapia groundcover growing in part shade

With this in mind I encourage many kinds of ground covers in my landscape. It?s a difficult place to find the best ones because of the lack of winter sun and only 5 hours of good summer sun. Still I?ve found a choice one that I?d like to share. It?s tough and reliable in many situations including hot summer gardens. If it will grow in my yard it will surely grow in yours.

Kurapia is ta deep rooted, low water use, low maintenance ground cover. It?s parent is in the Lippia genus and has naturalized worldwide. However, Kurapia has been bred to have sterile seeds and its growth habit is much more compact and tamed. Though it is sterile with respect to seed production, it does flower and is bee and butterfly friendly, blooming from May to October. This is a good groundcover if pollination of nearby fruit trees is needed or your want to encourage bees in your garden for general pollination. If bees are an issue for someone in your family Kurapia can be mowed once or twice a month to cut the blooms off. Mowing benefits this groundcover making it grow denser which naturally surpasses weeds once it fills in.

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Closeup of Kurapia flowers

Kurapia has been extensively studied at UC Davis and UC Riverside comparing it with No Mow as well as other drought tolerant cool and warm season grasses. Kurapia exceeded them all going 52 days without water and still maintained its green color. An extensive root system that goes as deep as four feet and a dense 2? to 3? tall mat-like top is the secret. The California sod grower recommends more frequent irrigation but it still requires just 60% of the water of a traditional lawn.

Kurapia does not require much fertilization either. One time in the spring for growth and flowering and once in the fall to keep the green color through the winter is sufficient. Mine looks great year round and I have to confess I?ve never fertilized it. Kurapia is evergreen and does not have a dormant period though growth stops or slows does in the winter. It spreads and self repairs by stolons. This groundcover grows in sun to partial shade requiring only three hours of sunlight. However it tends to stay more compact in full sun.

Kurapia will handle light to moderate foot traffic. It cannot take consistent high traffic though it is very walkable. My dog Sherman finds it great for his morning constitutional and I?ve never seen yellow spots as a traditional lawn will get.

Kurapia is hardy to 20 degrees though in tests it has survived temperatures as low as 12 degrees. It?s deep root system is unparalleled for erosion on slopes. Did I mention it takes 60% less water and how much you mow is up to you? Like I said, if it will grow in my garden under less than ideal conditions it will grow in yours.

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Tips for New Landscaping after Replacing a Lawn

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA
santonlina, euphorbia, phormiun – low water use plant grouping

Tired of looking at that brown patch of lawn and trying to convince yourself it?s a badge of honor in these times of drought? You tell yourself ?It greens up in the winter so I?ll water just enough to keep it from totally dying now?. But wouldn?t a beautiful, sustainable, low water use garden be a more inviting place to spend your free time?

Replacing a lawn that is not used anymore can be the first step in a whole new kind of landscaping-a landscape that looks like it belongs where you live. Here are some very good reasons to lose the lawn and benefit the planet at the same time.

Even in years where we have normal winter rainfall we always have a seasonal drought. It?s called summer. Without our usual winter and spring rains, though, even native trees and shrubs are struggling. All the more reason that plant selection now is even more critical than before.

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libertia peregrinans

You?ve see pictures of some not-so-great looking lawn replacement projects. A drought tolerant plant here, another there, add an accent rock and that?s supposed to thrill you when you come home for the day? What?s missing is a garden designed to enhance our natural environment. When you remove your lawn, it?s a wonderful opportunity to not only create a garden than conserves water but also provides habitat for wildlife including birds and butterflies and improves the soil.

A living landscape does as much for our own pleasure as it does for the environment. It increases biodiversity of plant, animal and insect populations. It fosters healthy soil which can hold more moisture by supporting microbes and insects. Healthy soil can filter pollutants and improve water quality.

Think of using native and well-adapted, non-natives that connect with the natural landscape. Use tough plants on the edges and group greener, low water use plants closer to the house. Here are some good plants to use in a lawn-less landscape that won?t break your water budget.

When planting time rolls around this fall consider a green carpet of blue grama grass. This native sedge can provide a green carpet on much less water and can be mowed or not. It?s on the list of approved water-wise grasses eligible for rebates from our local water districts.

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dymondia groundcover between flagstones

Another ground cover eligible for lawn replacement rebate is dymondia. I love the grey foliage of this low ground cover. It fills in nicely between stepping stones or can take light foot traffic in larger areas.

For a taller look that you don?t need to be able to walk on, the ground cover forms of ceanothus, manzanita or creeping rosemary are good very low water alternatives to a lawn. I have a very low Hearts Desire ceanothus that hasn?t been watered yet this year and it still looks green and lush.

Native yarrow, penstemon and salvia are the work horses of the garden needing little water once established and attracting all sorts of insects and birds. Other natives on the 800+ Approved Low Water Use Plant list include Pacific Coast iris, helianthemum, libertia, santolina, California fuchsia, rockrose, lavender, myoporum, coffeeberry, teucrium, verbena and kangaroo paw to name just a few. You can download the list from www.sv.org or www.slvwd.com.

I am not a big fan of artificial lawns. They do not provide habitat for wildlife, beautify our environment or improve the soil. They get significantly hotter than the surrounding air temperature contributing to the heat island effect by increasing air temperatures. Also artificial turf is a synthetic material with a relatively short lifespan ranging from 10-20 years and will eventually end up in a landfill. They can not be recycled. There are many other beautiful, low water use options that result in more sustainable and beneficial landscapes.

Water and soil management as well as plant selection are key to water conservation in the landscape.

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Planning for the Dry Season – Step One: Lose the Lawn

low water use plantings2Front and center in the news and in your garden is the drought and what you can do about it in your own landscape. If you?ve dabbled before with replacing thirsty plants with climate-appropriate low water use California native plants or those from areas similar to ours this is the year to step up your efforts.

Gov. Brown?s mandate for water conservation state wide is a call to action to transform our landscapes into resilient gardens that not only save water but act to build the earth into a living sponge that harnesses rainwater and replenishes the aquifer.

Replacing that water guzzling lawn now that the kids have grown or dramatically reducing it?s size is a good place to start and is easier than you think. If you?ve been paralyzed with the thought of digging out and hauling away hundreds of square feet of heavy sod or using dangerous grass-killing chemicals, sheet mulching is the method for you.

This simple technique eliminates the lawn by smothering it with layers of recycled, compost and renewable materials. Here?s how to do it:

1. Mow the lawn down to 1-2?, leave the clippings in place and soak with a hose. Don?t worry. This soaking is nothing compared to what you?ll soon be saving by removing your lawn.
2. Flag the locations of sprinkler heads you will be keeping for your new plantings and cap off the ones you won?t need.
3. Add an inch of compost to speed up the decay of the grass. If your lawn borders a driveway, path or sidewalk you?ll have to remove about 3? inches deep of soil along these edges and back 8-12? so that the new mulch doesn?t slide off into the sidewalk.
4. Put down 2-3 layers of newspaper or one layer of cardboard overlapping the edges by 6-8? to prevent regrowth at the edges. You can buy recycled cardboard in rolls for larger projects or find your own at appliance or bicycle stores. Wet the cardboard or newspapers to keep them in place as you go along. It?s best to use cardboard or newspaper that will break down quicker. Weed fabric is not recommended as it takes much longer to break down. Don?t use plastic sheeting because water and air cannot penetrate it.
5. Add a 3? layer of mulch such as bark chips from a tree trimming company. You can use compost, straw or shredded plant matelow water use plantingsrial. If you have Bermuda grass or other weeds like oxalis you will need to layer about 8?of mulch to smother them.
6. Water thoroughly.

If you can wait a month or more to let the decomposition process get going so much the better. If you just can?t wait you can begin planting now by scraping away the mulch and poking a hole in the cardboard or newspaper where the plant is to go. Then add some compost to help the new plant become established. Be sure to plant high enough to prevent crown rot and keep the mulch a couple inches away from the stem. The top of the root ball should be 1-2? above the soil and just below the mulch.

Modify the sprinkler to drip and remember to adjust your irrigation system run times to accommodate your new plantings.

This is a basic ?lasagna? method for lawn removal. If you are planning to replant with water smart grasses you would choose finer composted mulch instead of bark chips. Either way the process works on the same concept as a compost pile. As the lawn dies from lack of light, it decomposes with the activity of beneficial worms, insects and microorganisms coming up from the soil and doing their job to break down the nitrogen and carbon in the sheet-mulch layers. It?s a win-win situation for the environment and your water bill.

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What Landscape Designers Grow in their own Gardens

alstroemeria_Inca-Ice.1600It probably won?t come as a big surprise to you that I have a lot of friends that are also landscape designers. We get together to talk plants, garden design challenges and plant problems while enjoying good food along with a little wine thrown in for good measure. Recently I had the opportunity to visit one of these friends and although I was only there briefly to pick up something I couldn?t help but ask about several of the beautiful plantain her own garden. Some of her favorites include those with interesting foliage and texture and that flower over a long season. Maybe some of these plant ideas will work in your own garden.

Being winter and all I was immediately drawn to the hundreds of soft apricot and creamy yellow flowers covering a 3 foot wide Peruvian Lily. This selection of alstroemeria, called Inca Ice, is much shorter and compact that the taller ones that can be somewhat floppy in the garden. Alstroemeria were named by Carl Linnaeus, often called the Father of Taxonomy, for his friend and student Klaus von Alstroemer. Native to South America, the summer growing types come from eastern Brazil while the winter growing plants are from central Chile.

Peruvian Lily spread slowly outward from rhizomes and grow in full to part sun. They are hardy to 15-20 degrees and can tolerate dry conditions although they look best with irrigation. The Inca series grows 2-3 ft tall and can be covered with flowers from spring to late fall or winter if the weather is mild. The flower stems are long enough for cutting. This variety also comes in light orchid, pale yellow and white with red and green markings. What?s not to love about this plant?

Tucked next to the blooming Inca Ice Peruvian Lily, a clump of bright, Festival_grass-leucodendron.1600burgundy red Festival grass complemented the soft yellow of a Leucodendron discolor and a variegated Flamingo Glow Beschorneria. I was not familiar with this variegated agave relative with its soft-tipped chartreuse striped leaves. I found out this beautiful plant is drought tolerant, hardy to 15 degrees and will bloom with 5 foot pink stalks with reddish pink bracts.

Other plants that boast more foliage color than flowers brought this winter garden to life. Several varieties of helleborus just starting to show pink, white and rose color were surrounded by the brilliant chartreuse-yellow foliage of sedum Angelina ground cover. A variegated Japanese Lily-of-the-Valley shrub grew nearby getting ready to bloom soon.

Beautiful bright pink, cream and green variegated Jester Leucodendron bordered the driveway. I?ve seen this plant also called Safari Sunshine in nurseries. With its smaller size of 4-5 feet this evergreen shrub has showy, rich red bracts that sit atop the branches now in late winter and lasting into spring. Drought tolerant like Safari Sunset and deer resistant, too, leaucodendron are hardier than other protea.

Every interesting garden has good bones. It has focal points, texture, repetition and unity among other elements. My friends garden is no exception. A lovely caramel colored New Zealand Wind Grass dominated another area allowing my eye to rest for a while. I wish they would quit renaming this plant that used to be stipa arundinacea but is now anemanthele lessoniana. The name doesn?t exactly roll off the tongue but the effect is beautiful in the garden. I?ve always called it Pheasant Tail grass but I could find no reference as to why this common name is used. Life used to be simple before DNA sequencing!

So if you?re in the mood to add a couple of interesting plants to your garden, take a tip from what a landscape designer grows in her own garden.