Kids & Gardening

Flame_Skimmer_dragonflyIn the summertime, kids have lots of time to enjoy the great outdoors. What better way to teach them how our planet works than to let them grow something in their own garden. Share your enthusiasm for gardening by getting your kids or the neighbor kids interested, too. You'll find sharing your knowledge with a child particularly rewarding and you will have helped create a fellow gardener for the rest of their life.

It may be July but it's not too late to start. Make it enjoyable for everyone by giving kids their own section of the garden or yard to do as they please. I planted pansies as a child in my special area. I also had a couple of big pots filled with potting soil to start my own seeds. Size doesn't matter as long as you let the child choose what they'd like to grow.

Teach children about beneficial insects like butterflies and lady bugs. Good bugs help plants by pollinating flowers or preying on insect pests. Make your garden a more inviting place for these helpful insects by planting lots of flowers and herbs to attract them. Flowers with umbrella shaped clusters of small flowers such as cosmos, zinnia, black-eyed susan and yarrow are favorites of butterflies.  Lady bugs like a pest free garden and will patrol your plants looking for any tiny insects and their eggs.

I remember when I was little and had my own garden patch how excited I was to see a dragonfly. My father was happy, too, as they are a great way to control mosquitoes and other pests. They're the top predators of the insect world. I was fascinated by their bright colors- some reddish orange, some blue, some purple. By  planting a variety of plants and flowers to attract them they would visit my little garden often. They seemed to find a water source to lay their eggs on their own.  I was amazed at how fast they could fly. I've read they can reach speeds of 30 mph.  They are an important part of my early gardening experience.

Edible flowers are also fun for kids to grow. Some common ones to try are tuberous begonia petals that taste like lemon.  Calendulas are spicy as are carnations and marigolds.  Dianthus are clove-flavored, nasturtiums give a hint of horseradish and violas, pansies, hollyhock, squash blossoms and johnny-jump-ups taste like mild lettuce.   You can also freeze flowers in ice cubes like violas, fuchsias, geranium, stock and thyme. The blossoms of beans and peas can be added to a salad or sandwich or use them to decorate the tops of cupcakes and cookies.

Plant a pizza garden.  Use a hose to form a round garden shape and border it with stones or another type of edging of your choice.  Divide the "pizza" into slices using stakes or one of your plant varieties such as basil.  Add stepping stones for the pepperoni slices and plant each section with one tomato plant and one green bell pepper and fill in with garlic, oregano, chives and basil.  By summers end you'll be harvesting the makings for a delicious home made pizza.
 
Kids, even older ones, like hiding places, so grow one in the garden.  You can plant tall growing sunflowers in a circle, leaving a space for a "door" that kids can crawl through once the flowers have grown.  Or build a simple teepee out of fallen branches or long gardening stakes and plant bean seeds around the outside.  Scarlet runner beans are also good and have tender, young pods like green beans in addition to bright red flowers that attract hummingbirds.  Beans grow fast and soon make a great secret hiding place.
 
Another fun project is growing birdhouse gourds.  This fast growing vine can beautify fences and trellises during the growing season.  In the fall, dry and hollow them out to make birdhouses or gorgeous crafts.  You can burn patterns into the surface and stain the gourds with shoe polish making beautiful objects of art that make great gifts.  
    
Flowers that kids can cut
will be interesting for them, too, especially when planted in their own garden.  Cosmos, planted from six packs, provide instant color as well as attracting butterflies.  Zinnias come in a rainbow of colors and are a favorite of swallow-tail butterflies.  Other easy to grow flowers for cutting are snapdragons and who hasn't pinched these to make faces ?

Besides flowers, fragrant plants like lemon basil, lime thyme, orange mint, chives, sage and other herbs engage the senses and can be included in a kid's garden. Lamb's ears are soft and furry.  Get a kid interested in gardening and they'll be happy for a lifetime.
 

Early Summer Tips

hydrangeas2 3Some things in the garden need to be planned out in advance while others happen by chance. For instance, this year when our spring rains stopped dead in their tracks I gave up adding any more acidifier to my hydrangeas. You need to change the pH of the soil around hydrangeas well before they set buds. I like mother nature to water for me early in the season and she didn't cooperate.  As luck would have it, the flowers this year are majestic purple, mauve and magenta where before they were sky blue. Frankly, I'm thrilled with this years color palette. Hooray for serendipity.

Early summer is the right time, however, for many other garden activities that you don't want to leave to chance.

Many plants, both vegetable and ornamental, are bothered by aphids and other sucking insects as well as foliage and flower eating bugs
.   From cucumber beetles, flea beetles, stink bugs, weevils, curculios to borers , the list of trouble makers is endless. .  To help deter them mix up some pepper spray in your kitchen.  
    1 tablespoon hot pepper sauce or 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
    6 cloves garlic, crushed
    1 quart warm tap water
Let stand I hour, strain and spray plants either in the morning or evening.

Apply the second fertilizer application for the year to your citrus and fruit trees. The last one should be immediately after harvest.  Apply the fertilizer to the soil around the drip line of the tree where feeder roots are located and scratch into the surface. Water in well. As with all fertilizers, make sure the trees are moist before you fertilize. Young trees in their first, second or third growing season should receive half the rate of established trees.

If your fruit trees are starting to produce too heavily, remove excess immature fruits.  Doing so allows remaining fruit more room to grow and prevents branches from breaking under the weight.  When apples, pears and stone fruits such as apricots, nectarines, peaches and plums reach 1/2' in diameter, pick some off, leaving the remaining fruits spaces 6-10" apart along the branch.  Later, to protect your ripening fruit, enclose the tree with bird netting,  hang strips of mylar flash tape near brach tips or substitute old CD's.

If you battle dandelions and don't want to use chemical weed killers around pets and children, get out the white vinegar from the cupboard. On a hot sunny day spray straight white vinegar directly on the weed. This method will kill whatever it touches so direct the spray carefully. If the dandelion is in the lawn, wait a week, pour some water on the dead spot to dilute any lasting effects of the vinegar. Then poke a bunch a holes and drop in some grass seed. Sprinkle a bit of fertilizer where the seed is planted and keep the area moist. In three weeks you won't remember where the dead spot was and the dandelion will be long gone.

Another garden to-do this month includes summer pruning of wisteria. To increase flowering next spring and keep these vines under control cut new growth back to within 6" of the main branch. If you want to extend the height or length of the vine, select some of the new streamer-like stems and tie them to a support in the direction you wish to train the plant.

To encourage continued bloom on annuals, perennials and shrubs, remove faded flowers before they start to form seeds.  Make sure you remove the entire flower head and the base where seeds form ( such as the bulbous part of dahlia, petunia or fuchsia flowers) and not just the petals.  Cut the stem down to where leaves start.  The season has just started and you'll be enjoying lots more flowers in the months to come if you deadhead regularly.  
    
Another maintenance tip is to shear spring blooming perennials to keep them full and compact.  Candytuft, phlox subulata, aubrieta and other low growing perennials benefit if you cut off spent bloom and an inch or two of growth.  Other perennials and shrubs that benefit from the same treatment to keep them compact are erysimum, lavender and Pink breath of heaven.

Also re-apply mulch if it's getting thin in spots. Check ties on trees to make sure they aren't cutting into the bark. Cultivate lightly around trees to discourage weeds and allow water to penetrate.

Don't be afraid to move a plant that is not working where its growing now. Make a note in your journal reminding yourself to transplant it sometime in the fall. Gardening is a dynamic and fluid process. Enjoy piecing  together pieces of the puzzle.
 

Sustainable Tips for the Landscape

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAWithout a doubt the most requested item I'm asked in the design process is to include low water use plants and solutions that are low maintenance. We live in the west where rainfall occurs predominantly from late fall through late spring in a good year and the amount and duration varies tremendously. Whether you live in the shade or the sun it's a smart idea to keep water costs down in the summer and preserve this natural resource.

We all want to do the right thing for the environment by reducing our carbon footprint and becoming good stewards of the land. We want to build our landscapes with green products and incorporate sustainable practices in the garden. A good way to do this is to create gardens that offer food and beauty for people and conserve water  while providing habitat and food for the rest of nature. A great place to learn more about the benefits of organic gardening, water conservation and sustainable healthy living is The Garden Faire this Saturday, June 22nd at Scotts Valley's Sky Park from 9am to 5pm.

In it's 8th year, The Garden Faire is a free-admission, educational event for the whole family with OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAknowledgable speakers, interactive demonstrations, food and beverage, live music, garden goods and plants for sale. This year The Faire will focus on the whole person offering a healthy rest stop with chair massage, reiki and a tea house.
This event is sponsored in part by both SLV and Scotts Valley Water Districts because they know the importance of sharing information about ways to conserve water.

What can you do right now to save water in your landscape? First choose wisely what you plant in the garden and how you water. Start with a smart design by evaluating how the space will be used and what plants will thrive with a minimum of care and pruning.  Select the best trees and place them to shade the south side of the house to reduce cooling costs. Supplement the soil by making soil health a priority. Examine your irrigation system and watering plan for efficiency and minimal waste.
    
helleborus_argutifolius2A 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 there for just one plan or running the irrigation system longer to keep it happy.  If you find that some of your plants are not quite as low water as you'd like, move those to their own spot. Grow thirsty plants in the lowest areas of your garden where more water collects. In general, plants with large leaves usually require more water and transpire faster while drought tolerant plants typically have deep taproots and leaves that are smaller, silver, fuzzy or succulent.

Your method of irrigation helps conserve water. Hand watering where possible, especially new plantings, directs the water exactly where its needed and you can shut off the hose as soon as the plants receive enough water. A soaker hose is another efficient option that reduces evaporation during the watering process. An automatic irrigation system with a rain sensor, weather based controller or soil moisture sensors is the newest way to save water.

Plant  dry climate plants like tea tree ( leptospermum), lavender, rosemary and sage in open, sunny areas and shade the soil with drought tolerant ground covers like ceanothus, manzanita, oregano and thyme to conserve moisture. Try Corsican hellebore (helleborus argutifolius)for a tough, low water use plant in a shady area. Use less turf grass and more walkable ground covers where possible to keep the landscape looking green and fire safe.

To improve soil structure, plant deep rooted plants to break up heavy soils and add organic matter.  Using wood based mulch on garden beds helps contain moisture in the soil, too.  To provide soil with nitrogen, plant ceanothus, clover, legumes like beans, and peas and lupine. To supply minerals as compost or mulch plant chives, comfrey, garlic and white yarrow.

California natives or plants from similar climates in the world are low maintenance, low irrigation plants and usually need less tending, fertilizer and pruning. Like all plants they require a period of irrigation in order to become established. Even plants that require no irrigation after becoming established like Flannel Bush (Fremontodendron) will need some water for the first 2 summers, at least, and maybe even during the first winter if there is a long dry spell.  The rule of thumb to determine if a plant is established and self sufficient and therefore not requiring any more irrigation is when it has grown 2-3 times the size it was when planted or after is has been growing for 2 summers.
 

Why We Love Trees

When you look out your windows into your landscaping what catches your eye first? Maybe the hydrangeas are looking beautiful about now covered with giant flowers in sky blue, dark pink or white. Maybe it's the purple and red spikes of your salvias that both you and the hummingbirds enjoy. But I'll bet the most majestic and inspiring sight in your garden are the trees that frame your house giving it a sense of permanence, welcoming you home and providing a haven for songbirds that serenade you on a spring day.

cornus_capitata_closeupLarge or small trees make the world go round. They produce oxygen and act as a giant filter that cleans the air we breathe. A mature leafy tree produces as much oxygen in a season as 10 people inhale in a year.

Trees clean the soil by absorbing dangerous chemicals and other pollutants that have entered the soil. They can either store harmful pollutants or actually change the pollutant into a less harmful form. Trees can filter sewage and clean water that runs off into our streams. They can absorb and lock away carbon dioxide as wood so it is not available as greenhouse gasses.

If you live near a busy street trees can muffle the noise almost as effectively as a stone wall. They also act as a windbreak during windy and cold seasons reducing the drying effect of the wind and keeping it from blowing  precious topsoil away.

Trees slow storm water runoff helping to recharge our Santa Margarita and Lompico aquifers. On top of all the cool things trees do for us they provide shade and cool us in the summer. In the winter they break up the wind reducing heating costs. Trees increase property values.

If you've been thinking about adding a few trees to your own property here are some of my favorites. Some don't get enough recognition and some are classics. All make great additions to the garden.

Early in spring the flowering plums and cherries let us know that winter is over and a new season has begun. Then the dogwoods start to bloom and we're awestruck. Maybe you know of an especially beautiful specimen that gets your attention each year when it blooms. There are a couple varieties that I like to include in designs that are easy to grow and live for many decades.

Introduced to me by Barrie Coate, the renowned arborist and horticultural consultant, the Evergreen cornus_capitataDogwood, Cornus capitata, is also known as Himalayan flowering dogwood and lives up to its name in every respect. This under used tree is breathtaking in late spring and early summer with large flower bracts over 3" across.  A friend has one in her garden and it is the showiest tree on her property for several months. This variety is slow growing reaching 20 ft tall in sun or partial shade after about 25 years. After flowering, red fruit provides a treat for the birds.

Another dogwood variety that makes a wonderful addition to the garden is the Venus dogwood. I've heard it said that some consider it even showier than the Evergreen dogwood but I like them all. It's a fast growing deciduous hybrid with white flowers as large as your hand. Summer flowers give way to strawberry-like fall fruit as the leaves turn color. It's highly resistant to disease and drought conditions.  What's not to love? I also recommend Cornus Eddie's White Wonder for it's beauty and disease resistance.
Cercis_Forest_Pansy
If you would like a tree in a certain spot but don't have lots of room, consider  a Drimys winteri, commonly known as Winter's Bark. This evergreen, slender tree from Chile has aromatic mahogany-red bark which cured sailors in past centuries from scurvy and leathery fragrant leaves. Small clusters of jasmine-scented, creamy white flower appear in winter and spring. It grows to only 20 feet tall.

Other trees that are favorites of mine include Forest Pansy redbud for its stunning red foliage and Sango Kaku Japanese maple for its year round interest. Arbutus Marina, Oklahoma Texas redbud and Tristania laurina Elegant are also wonderful trees for the landscape.

Plant a tree for yourself and future generations.
 

What to Do about Invasive Plants

bull_thistleWe can't control those pesky weed seeds that blow into our gardens and take hold. There are ways to keep them from taking over, however. But what about those invasive plants that are already in our gardens like ivy and vinca major? What's the best way to deal with them? Then there are plants we buy ourselves that can invade natural areas. Are there better plants to use that are just as attractive and useful? Here are some solutions to make your garden happy.

One invasive thug that can take over is bull thistle, a relative of the edible artichoke. The seeds of this vigorous exotic take hold in disturbed areas including your beautiful garden soil and if not controlled can become a solid mass of impenetrable thistles in just a few seasons. Bull thistle only reproduces by seed so removal of the flowering stalks at this time of year will prevent them from spreading. The flowering heads must be discarded in a plastic bag and destroyed to keep them from forming viable seed. Because this weed is biennial you also need to dig out the first year plants that have not formed stalks. You can also mow thistles close to the ground a couple of times before they form stalks to reduce the population over time.

As a landscape designer and consultant I'm often called upon for advice for an area covered with vinca major or ivy. Both of these invasive species are too successful for their own good, smothering native plants and harboring pests such as rats and snails. Vinca major also serves as a host to the bacteria that causes Pierce's disease in grapevines. For your information, vinca minor has not been found to be invasive in California so far

You can choose organic methods to control vinca and ivy rather than chemical herbicides. Hand vinca_majorremoval is labor intensive but the results are good if all the root nodes and stolons are removed. Work inward from the perimeter of the patch and pull the plants back. You will need to do this every 3 months during the first year to remove resprouts but native plants may recolonize the area and reduce the chance that other weeds will move into the area following the disturbance caused by the removal activities.

Replanting with another more desirable groundcover is another solution. For shady areas, try planting wild ginger  (Asarum caudatum), Catalina perfume ( Ribes viburnifolium), creeping snowberry ( Symphoricarpos mollis), yerba buena ( Satureja douglasii ), bear's foot hellebore (Helleborus foetidus), winter saxifrage (Bergenia cordifolia), pachysandra, Serbian bellflower (Campanula poscharskyana) or Asian jasmine.

Good substitutes for vinca or ivy in sunnier spots include groundcover types of manzanita and ceanothus. Also attractive are Taiwan raspberry (Rubus pentalobus), California fuchsia (Zauschneria), or beach strawberry (Fragraria chiloensis ).

Some plants even though purchased from a nursery can cause problems. You wouldn't buy a Scotch or French broom knowing how invasive they can be. Forsythia, Japanese kerria, golden currant and Jerusalem sage all provide that beautiful spring butter yellow color in the garden.

The licorice plant (Helichrysum petiolare) gained popularity for its deer resistance and foliage color many years ago. Unfortunately, it self sows wildly and the spreading branches will root at any point of contact with the ground. Try instead better behaved plants like California natives salvia leucophylla or eriogonum giganteum. Teucrium germander or Powis Castle artemisia also work well in the same area.

Another good plant gone wrong is cotonester  lacteus (parneyi).  The red fall berries are spread by cotoneaster_lacteus_Parneyibirds and with their rapid growth and competitive roots they can overtake the garden and wild areas. Fortunately there are many other plants to use instead that provide food for birds and are beautiful, too. Try planting toyon (Heteromeles arbutifolia) a California native with delicate white flowers and large clusters of brilliant red berries. Pineapple guava is another good substitute as is strawberry tree (Arbutus unedo).

These are just some of the suggested alternatives for invasive garden plants for this area. Don't give an invasive an inch, it can take over your garden, the neighbors and our wildlands.
 

Roses of Yesterday

rose_Kathleen_closeup 3Under blue skies on a perfect spring day I sat recently with Colly, my friend, fellow columnist and gardening enthusiast, surrounded by roses, roses and more roses. Next to an old apple tree and a gnarled cherimoya we enjoyed a delicious picnic lunch Colly brought while she shared stories about this rose nursery called Roses of Yesterday.

Back in the 1960's one of Colly's many jobs was to proof read the catalog for Roses of Yesterday and Today as it was then called so she is quite familiar with the history of this rose business located on Brown's Valley Rd. in Corralitos. It's not quite a grand as it was in the old days but the massive old roses growing in the ground were magnificent in size and we admired and rated each one on the fragrance scale.

Roses of Yesterday, one of the oldest antique rose nurseries in the U.S., was established in the 1930's. It has passed through several generations and owners since then. They still use the honor system to sell their old, selected modern, unusual and rare rose varieties. A young father, kids playing in the car, loaded up a collection of potted roses and deposited a check in the cash box before leaving.

Another sign advised that the nursery doesn't spray their roses with fungicides, insecticides, rose_Kathleen_bench 3herbicides or other chemicals and the rose petals can be used for salad, jams, spritzers and teas. I did notice some rose slug damage on some of the roses but it was minimal. We noted the Sally Holmes roses and the rugosa roses had the least pest problems.

The garden contains many huge old roses. The first mammoth plant we encountered, Newport Fairy, was over 15 feet tall and nearly as wide. Covered with hundreds of small pink flowers it provided cover for many small songbirds who hopped inside searching for insects. This hybrid multiflora rose was first bred in1908. Lots of Red Admiral butterflies and Swallowtails found the surroundings to their liking, too.

We walked under a Cecile Brunner– engulfed pergola and then we saw it. Against a fence in filtered light, a spectacular single white rose with stiff, butter yellow stamens shaded an old wooden bench. We searched for the name tag and found, buried among a groundcover of sweet violets, the name Kathleen. This unusual and unforgettable hybrid musk rose from 1922 blooms repeatedly with blossoms richly perfumed. The catalog states the flowers drop cleanly and orange rose hips form along with the new blooms.

Several English lavender plants grew between the rugosa roses. We especially liked a small double magenta one called Rugosa Magnifica as well as a lovely white variety named Rugosa Blanca. Rugosa roses are very old dating back to before 1799 and bloom repeatedly with a marvelous fragrance. Large orange rose hips will form when the disease and pest resistant foliage drops. These edible hips are very high in vitamin C and are also relished by wildlife.  I've been told the crinkly foliage of rugosa roses is deer resistant.
rose_Stretch_Johnson 3
Growing nearby, a burnt orange rose got our attention. This amazing rose with two tone reddish orange petals and a lighter orange to yellow reverse is similar to Hot Coca. Called Stretch Johnson the flowers have the classic fragrance of rose petals and the disease resistant dark green glossy foliage of this floribunda was lovely.

The garden contains roses of all types especially old fashioned single roses as well as ruffly cabbage varieties. One bright pink single rose was especially beautiful. We thought the name tag read Rosa Wichuraiana but it must have been referring to the white groundcover rose nearby. We also loved a bright pink rose called Marguerite Hillig with its sweet fragrance and graceful arching canes.

The 4 inch dusky pink blossoms of Dainty Bess, a hybrid tea climbing rose, decorated one of the fences. rose_Sally_Homes2 3I learned this is a classic variety among hybrid teas since 1925 from the online catalog. The non-stop blooms are exceptionally long lasting on the plant and in bouquets.

From Ballerina to Climbing New Dawn to a huge Heinrich Munch with double pink blossoms covering a rose bush 20 feet across with a foot wide trunk, I enjoyed every inch of this old rose garden and nursery and it was fun to hear personal anecdotes from Colly about Dorothy Stemler,  the rose aficionado who's touch can be still be seen in the gardens of Yesterday and Today.
 

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