weather

La Nina 2010 in the Santa Cruz Mountains

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Mother Nature sure knows how to throw a curve ball. She can dish out balmy 75 degree weather one day, then switch it up to 107 in a heart beat.  Cold and windy comes to the mound next followed by "what’s next?"  from the pinch hitter.  I hear rumblings about a strong La Nina coming to town this winter.  What will this mean to us here in the Santa Cruz mountains? Will it be a dry winter?

To understand major climate trends, scientists collect temperature readings every week from dozens of buoys in the Pacific Ocean. They combine them with satellite images and temperature readings from ships, then plug the data into computer models from scientific agencies around the world.

According to Klaus Wolter of NOAA’s Earth System’s Research Laboratory, water along the equator in the Pacific is currently between  2 – 3.8 degrees Fahrenheit cooler than normal. In extreme La Nina events, it can get up to 7 degrees F cooler.

While a La Nina often allows the Pacific jet stream to trend further northward, bringing increases precipitation to the Pacific Northwest and below normal for So California, across the northern 2/3 of California, there really isn’t a strong precipitation signal in either direction for this event.  Northern California is the dividing line between the two extremes and it’s hard to say where exactly that line will fall in any given year. Klaus Wolter contends that we may be subject to notably strong and cold storm systems later this fall but La Nina’s effect on our rainfall is not clear enough for him to draw any definite conclusions.

Jan Null, a former lead forecaster with the National Weather Service who now runs Golden Gate Weather Services in Saratoga, thinks . That’s because in some La Nina years, rainfall has been more plentiful than normal. In one such year, 1999, San Francisco rainfall hit 115 percent of normal.

How’s that for hedging your bets? Just thought you’d want to know the latest predictions for this winter so you can so a little planning!

 

bulbs, color in the garden, paths

Autumn crocus for Fall Flowers

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There’s nothing like a couple of to remind you that all things are possible with a bit of imagination. Recently I visited several inspiring gardens on the tour hosted by the Monterey Bay Master Gardeners here in our area and also saw some spectacular landscapes on the peninsula with APLD ( Association of Professional Landscape Designers ).  So many ideas-so little time. Here is just a sampling to get you started.

At one of the awesome gardens I visited, I was tickled to see a clump of autumn crocus blooming beneath some trees. This look alike of the true crocus provides a burst of brilliance in the fall just when you need it. Spring crocus are actually members of the iris family while autumn crocus or colchicum autumnale are members of the lily family. Native to the Mediterranean area and parts of Asia, they make dazzling patches of amethyst, mauve or white flowers in partial shade or full sun. The blooms last for a couple of weeks in late summer and early fall and the bulbs naturalize easily. These bulbs are also called meadow saffron but it is from one of their close relatives that expensive saffron spice is harvested.

Several months from now strap-like leaves will appear, growing to about a foot high, then die back- similar to naked lady bulbs.

Autumn crocus can be enjoyed outdoors or brought inside to grow in pots while they are flowering. You can even set bare corms in a saucer of pebbles like narcissus bulbs to enjoy the splendid flowers that quickly emerge.
Corms of these beauties are only available now during their brief dormant period. They make a fine addition to any garden.

At another garden, I saw a design trick that turned a mulched hillside into a path with just a couple of steps added. Paths not only get you from point A to point B, they can be part of the journey itself. In the upper part of this particular garden, the soil was mulched around the raised veggie boxes and the hillside below. A formal path with edging wasn’t needed here so a few flat stones installed as steps in just a couple of places directed you to a lower patio. The stone steps weren’t really needed but they gave the illusion of a path. Cost: maybe nothing if you can find some flat stones around the yard.

Everybody’s growing vegetables and herbs these days but not everyone wants to water and take care of a large vegetable garden. Enter the container gardening solution. In most of the gardens I visited, there were either raised beds or containers happily growing every herb and vegetable imaginable. Even the McMansion had a raised bed for growing edibles and flowers to attract bees, butterflies and hummingbirds, Think small, pick only your favorites to grow and enjoy the fruits of your labor with out all that much work.

There were so many wonderful ideas that I got from each of the gardens.  Where I met the owners, they were happy to share their ideas, techniques and even some cuttings.
 

composting, perennials, plant care, sustainable gardening

Snails, Perennials,Compost & Caterpillars- Oh my!

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It’s no secret we live in paradise. No hurricanes or tornadoes wreak havoc in this beautiful place we call home. We’re spoiled and we know it. Enjoy every minute when you go into the garden. This month there are a few garden tasks you might consider doing while you’re out  "smelling the roses".

#1 Slug & snail fall population control drive
Slugs and snails turn into egg-laying machines in fall. That’s because they know they may not survive the long, cold winter and therefore, need to lay lots of eggs now that will hatch in spring. They want to ensure that there will be plenty of offspring to carry on the important work of devouring our plants. Snails build up populations faster than slugs because they reproduce more often but both are good at adding to the population.

In fall, the average snail can lay up to 85 eggs and each slug can lay up to 100 at a shot. Apply one of the safer
slug and snail baits containing iron sulfate. You’ll never get them all, but applying bait now should help reduce the number of slugs and snails that will hatch and make your life miserable next spring.

#2 Economic stimulus package for perennials
If flowers on perennial plants such as aster, campanula, calla lily, daisies, daylily, rudbeckia (black-eyed Susan) and yarrow were smaller than normal this year or your plants are just too big and crowded, it’s time to divide them. Dig out each clump so the rootball come up intact. This will take a little muscle but think of all those calories you’re burning in the process.. Gently shake off or wash off excess soil and divide with a sharp knife, pruning shears or a shovel I like to use an old serrated bread knife for this. Each division should have leaves and plenty of roots Replant each immediately. You’ll increase the number of your plants and save a lot of money, too.

#3 Plant debris makes good…
As summer flowers and vegetables give way to new plantings, add old, disease-free plants and debris to a compost pile or bin. Compost only pest-free weeds, fallen leaves and fruit. Also mix in kitchen vegetable and fruit scraps, coffee grounds and grass clipping. Chop up large pieces so they break down faster. Keep the pile moist like a wrung-out sponge. Depending on temperature , the size of the material in the pile and whether you use a barrel composter or an open pile, compost can take anywhere from 6 weeks to 6 months to mature.

Diseased plant debris should be put in your compost can where the hight heat of a commercial compost operation will break it down. Cleaning up fallen, leaves, fruit and other debris will reduce the number of sites that harbor insects and diseases over the winter, too.

#4 Caterpillar wars
Don’t let the caterpillars get to your cabbage first. If you see small holes in the leaves or if the new growth is chewed on your cabbage, cauliflower or broccoli plants, they are probably being attacked by caterpillars. Search leaves and pick off and destroy or spray with organic BT ( bacillius thuringiensis) or spinosad  ( Capt. Jack’s Deadbug Brew )

#5 Enjoy Indian Summer. Winter will be here all too soon !
 

California Native Plants, drought tolerant plants, erosion control, groundcovers

Groundcover Tips for Fall

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The autumnal equinox happened this week. 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.

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, remove 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 and several kinds of thyme.

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. Bees will be attracted to it at this time. Thyme prefers sun and poor, sandy soil. Autumn is the best time to install from flats cut into 4" plugs planted about a foot apart. It will fill in within 3 years. Plant them closer together if you’re impatient. You’ll love your new lavender-blooming "lawn".

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, Calif. and red fescue, carex pansa, June grass and Hall’s bentgrass.

If you don’t need to walk on your groundcover, low-growing shrubs that are good groundcovers are baccharis, ceanothus maritimus, cistus salviifolius, grevillea lanigera, creeping mahonia, rosemany prostratus, rubus, manzanita, creeping snowberry and ribes viburnifolium to name just a few.

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

houseplants

Houseplants that are Good for You

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As summer comes to a close, students are back in school and all of us are spending more time indoors. Time to spruce up our homes with houseplants. Whether you have a home office, small desk for studying or just a chair where you like to read, adding a few houseplants to clean the air and bring a touch of nature inside is a great idea. There are plants that thrive with little care and are   I know, my house is quite dark and my plants are happy and healthy.

Plain green leafy types do best where the light is low.   My favorite upright plants include schefflera, Hawaiian arboricola,  philodendrons like selloum and split-leafed, Chinese evergreen, spathiphyllum (peace lily),cast iron plant (aspidistra), parlor palm, snake plant and ferns .  They are native to the jungle understory, under the canopy,  and grow naturally in low-light areas.   Hanging plants that I grow in these same conditions are heart-shaped philodrendron, pathos, and grape ivy. 

Many common houseplants  help fight pollution indoors.  They’re reportedly able to scrub significant amounts of harmful gases out of the air, through the everyday processes of photosynthesis. Some pollutants are also absorbed and rendered harmless in the soil.  Plant physiologists already knew that plants absorb carbon dioxide and release oxygen as part of the photosynthetic process. Researchers have found many common houseplants absorb benzene, formaldehyde and trichloroethylene, as well.

Most of the plants  evolved in tropical or sub-tropical forests, where they received light filtered through the branches of taller trees. Because of this, their leaf composition allows them to photosynthesize efficiently under relatively low light conditions, which in turn allows them to process gasses in the air efficiently.

Some houseplants are better at removing formaldehyde from the air, while others do a better job on benzene; none is much help when it comes to tobacco smoke. But there are enough known plants that do a good job of removing pollutants from the air we breathe to cause us to view houseplants as more than just an attractive feature to decorate our homes.

One is the common succulent, Aloe vera (now renamed Aloe barbadensis), also known as "medicine plant." Many people already have one in a bright kitchen window because of the soothing, healing properties its viscous inner tissue has on burns, bites and skin irritations.

Soil and roots were also found to play an important role in removing air-borne pollutants. Micro-organisms in the soil become more adept at using trace amounts of these materials as a food source, as they were exposed to them for longer periods of time. Their effectiveness is increased if lower leaves that cover the soil surface are removed, so there is as much soil contact with the air as possible.

NASA studies generated the recommendation that you use 15 to 18 good-sized houseplants in 6 to 8-inch diameter containers to improve air quality in an average 1,800 square foot house. The more vigorously they grow, the better job they’ll do for you.

The best indoor pollution fighters are:

    * Hedera helix  – English ivy
    * Chlorophytum comosum  – spider plant
    * Epipiremnum aureum  – golden pothos
    * Spathiphyllum `Mauna Loa’  –  peace lily
    * Aglaonema modestum  – Chinese evergreen
    * Chamaedorea sefritzii  – bamboo or reed palm
    * Sansevieria trifasciata   – snake plant
    * Philodendron scandens `oxycardium’ –  heartleaf philodendron
    * Philodendron selloum  – selloum philodendron
    * Philodendron domesticum  –  elephant ear philodendron
    * Dracaena marginata –  red-edged dracaena
    * Dracaena fragrans `Massangeana’  – cornstalk dracaena
    * Dracaena deremensis `Janet Craig’   -Janet Craig dracaena
    * Dracaena deremensis `Warneckii’ –  Warneck dracaena
    * Ficus benjamina – weeping fig    

 

California Native Plants, drought tolerant plants

Why Plant in the Fall?

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Those lazy, crazy, foggy days of summer are behind us now. What a strange summer it was. Checking my un-scientific weather records I’ve kept since 1999, I find no other summer that was as cool at this one. This comes as no surprise to you tomato growers out there, I know.   At the other end of the spectrum, a few years, like the summer of 2006 and 2008 were real scorchers. We’re all looking forward to Indian summer which is the best planting season of the year.

There is plenty of time to plant California natives, Mediterranean plants or any other perennial, shrub, grass or tree.  By r, roots have a chance to grow all autumn and most of the winter as well without having to supply nourishment to the leafy portion of the plant. Roots of deciduous plants still grow even after plants drop their foliage as long as the ground temperature is above 50 degrees.  Cooler day and night temperatures slowly harden off the top of the plant to prepare for the cold days of winter.

Another reason that fall is the no-fail planting season is because plants put in the ground in fall need less water to establish. Plants themselves use less water since photosynthesis is slowed by shorter days even if it’s occasionally hot. Evaporation rates slow down also during fall so water in the soil lasts longer as well. Sometimes we get lucky with fall and winter rains perfectly spaced so the ground never completely dries out.

Even cool season annuals such as snapdragons, pansies and violas, Iceland poppies and primrose planted in early fall have time to develop better roots before flowering and because they start blooming earlier they bloom over a longer time.

So get out the shovel, prepare you soil and make a shopping list.

Plants that thrive in dry, shady spots benefit especially from fall planting as they need established root systems before next years dry season. Dry shade sometimes occurs in places beyond the reach of the hose but also under native oaks. To protect their health, it’s a requirement that plants underneath thrive with little or no summer irrigation.

Plants of proven success under these conditions include native currants and gooseberry. Claremont pink flowering currant ( Ribes sanguineum var. glutinosum) are beautiful in spring with pale pink flower clusters that darken as they age. The powdered, blue-black berries are edible although the seeds are bitter. To get a taste of the fruit, though, you’ll have to compete with the birds. Chapparal currant is another tough reliable shrub that blooms early and often, flowering from December through March. The pendulous flower clusters are 2-6 inches long and range in color from dusty pink to rose red.

Other winning shrubs for dry shade include mahonia, nandina, osmanthus, snowberry, coffeeberry, aucuba, barberry and upright manzanita.

Groundcovers that thrive under oaks or other dry shady spots include hellebore, evergreen currant, correa, manzanita and sarcoccoca.

Whatever conditions you have in your garden, don’t miss out adding some great plants during the fabulous fall planting season.

 

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