- Author: Betty Victor
I have been to Cornerstone in Sonoma not to long after Sunset moved their test gardens there. At that time not all the gardens were set up. So I decided it was time to revisit and see what gardens had been added and ones of Cornerstone I might have missed.
These are just 3 of the many I saw that day which are considered Cornerstone Gardens. In the Sunset Test Gardens, there were workers so I didn't get a chance to see if any new gardens that had been added.
The Eucalyptus Soliloquy Garden, this garden has large panels with the Eucalyptus leaves placed inside of them. One of the many uses of the Eucalyptus was as wind break (unfortunately these trees have a disease and a lot of them have been cut down). At the entrance to this garden the sign says “Immigrant Tree, the tree is a native of Australia I guess the sign was posted to make people aware of its native country.
The next interesting garden was a field of plastic pinwheels. These pinwheels are group in colors of red, green, yellow, blue and purple. The pinwheels register sunshine, rain, wind. A microclimate area. Also they are very colorful, especially when the wind blows them. They all do not move at the same time, depending on the movement and place of the wind.
Rise is the name of a garden that has a huge walk-thru culvert. Through this culvert you see a vineyard and the hills in the background, you can hear your voice echo as you are walking inside the culvert. “Rise” is surrounds by a variety of shrubs in a shades of green.
If you have not been to Cornerstone and visited their gardens and the Sunset Test gardens, take the short drive to see and enjoy what the gardens represent.
- Author: Brenda Altman
Recently I posted a blog on mulch. The mulch man cometh again. It looks like it might be a little less than 25 the first cubic yards. Generate an Internet search on “Free Mulch” and you'll find sites in your area.
It's a good thing I got more mulch, (oh did I mention it's free?). After I spread out the first 25 cubic yards on my yard there were noticeable areas that were not covered. I needed more!
Why mulch in the first place?
One of my biggest concerns after my concrete was removed (all 4,000 sq. ft.) was that the clay soil became a muddy sticky gooey nightmare after any kind of rain. The mulch over the newly exposed soil gave me something to walk on other than mud. It was instant gratification!
Other benefits from mulch include weed suppression. Pull up your weeds as best you can including the roots and seeds. Pile on a good 2” of mulch over your soil. Add more mulch if you see more weed activity. The idea is you want the weed to be 'where the sun don't shine'. To further suppress the weeds first cover the ground with cardboard or newspaper (not the shiny fliers) then apply the mulch-this is called sheet mulching.
Another big benefit of mulching is water savings. I seem to recall a drought. And scientists predict severe type weather swings will be more common. Drought, heavy rains, and more drought, a meteorologist smorgasbord of weather. Save water by mulching your garden and trees.
Soil temperature reduction is another benefit of mulching. The healthy microbial critters in your soil will enjoy a stable temperature and stay around doing what they do best: decomposing plant material, aerating and moving the soil, and enabling nitrogen take up in plant roots.
Mulch also acts a natural fertilizer. The organic material contains nitrogen and other minerals for your trees and garden plants. Plus it decomposes at a slow steady rate, so no fertilizer salt burns on the roots.
Mulch also provides attractive ground cover. Some people prefer the wood chip paths around their garden. No need to make walkways of cement.
Mulch can be used for erosion control and preventing water from running off of sloped lawns or gardens. Those areas could be planted with plants needing more water.
Fresh mulch smells good, and oh did I mention it's free?
- Author: Martha White
As we flip the calendar to March, you may begin to hear Master Gardeners talk about filling worm poop bags. “What?'' you ask. “Why?”
We have over 3,000 excellent reasons: the third graders in Solano County who visit the free, high-energy field trip called Ag Day. This event is held in mid-March at the Solano County Fairgrounds in Vallejo. It is open to all county third graders, their teachers, parents, and chaperones. Hundreds of volunteers prepare interactive agricultural activities for the visitors, introducing them to sheep dog herding, making homemade butter (and eating it), burning a brand, patting baby farm animals, planting seeds, and learning about composting, to name just a few.
Learning about composting is where the conversations about worm poop bags come in. UCCE Master Gardeners of Solano County sponsor and staff the booth that demonstrates worm bins, vermiculture, worm castings, and worm tea. Students can hold red wigglers, or just observe them. MG's answer questions about what worms eat, why they are important, and how to start a worm composting farm. As students move on to the next activity, they are each given a souvenir bag of worm poop (amidst much giggling) which includes a website for gaining more information on Master Gardeners.
As a Master Gardener, I enjoy searching out good resources to increase my background knowledge, especially in terms of helping kids. I found several beginning books about worms on Amazon. My favorite is “Wiggling Worms At Work”, by Wendy Pfeffen. This book gives answers basic to kid-type questions about worm body parts, their babies, life span, eating habits, as well as explaining how earthworms contribute to soil health.
“Worm Poop?” Absolutely! A nutritious gift for your garden, provided by Mother Nature.
- Author: Kathy Low
Do you know
- the many advantages of weeds?
- how to identify the type of turf you have?
- what Sunset zone you live in and what that means for gardening?
- safe alternatives to pesticides?
- how to prune an overgrown fruit tree?
If you answered no to any of these questions, you may want to visit (or revisit) the UCCE Master Gardeners of Solano County website at http://solanomg.ucanr.edu/. Solano gardeners can find a wealth of gardening advice and solutions to garden problems on the website.
If you are new to the county, or a long time resident who decided to take up gardening, there's a link to Gardening in Solano County where you'll find the growing season and Sunset zone for the city in which you reside. From there, you'll want to proceed to the section on Home Vegetable Gardening. There you'll find not only information on growing vegetables, but you can also find the ever useful Vegetable Planting Guide. Prepared by Dr. Robert Norris, UC Davis Department of Plant Sciences, for the 29 vegetables included the guide provides information on the preferred time to seed in a protected environment, the preferred time to direct seed, and the preferred time to transplant.
If you have a fruit or nut tree, or berry growing in your yard, be sure to check out the Your Backyard Orchard section of the website. Fact sheets provide useful data on specific types of nut and fruit trees. You can find instructions on what needs to be done in your home orchard by season. Plus there's information on how to train, prune and thin the trees, and even how to prune overgrown fruit trees.
Be sure to check out the Landscape Trees section for tips on managing your trees, from pruning them to selecting a tree care professional. And if you decide to add a tree to your landscape, there's a range of information from selecting and planting a tree, to staking and training the tree.
If you have a lawn, find useful lawn watering guidelines in the Lawn Care section. Don't know what type of turf you have? No problem. There's a key to help you identify your turf in this section. You'll also find additional information ranging from managing lawns in the shade, to issues involving dogs and lawns.
Unfortunately with every yard involving greenery, there are bound to be problems from time to time. These problems usually involve weeds, pests, or plant diseases. To manage weeds, you first need to know the type of weed plaguing your yard, and their life cycle. The Weed Management section of the website will provide you with the information you need. You'll also discover the advantages of weeds in this section,
If pests are giving you a headache, check out the Pests of the Home and Garden section. From identifying to controlling specific pests, to hiring a pest control company, you'll find the answers to your pest control questions in this section. You'll also find information on beneficial insects.
For information on tree, flower, lawn or other plant diseases, don't forget to check out the Plant Disease section. If you grow vegetables, you can find plant diseases by specific vegetable.
Much more information can be found on the website, including how to care for your yard and garden in a drought, to how to effectively compost. And if you still have a gardening question, you can contact the Master Gardener Hotline for an answer. You can find out how to contact the hotline on the website.
- Author: Elvira DeLeon
Gardening passion
It's not for the faint-hearted
Love it or hate it!
Rare flowers at Annie's
Are a bit pricey for the drive
But oh, what a surprise!
Pots come with volunteer veggies on the side!
Inconspicuous at first glance,
A tiny leaf appears then three
With water, sunshine and care
A zucchini or a cucumber, soon I'll see!
Truly blessed to see my garden grow this time around
Tending closely plants of which I'm proud
Inspecting under the leaves for signs of trouble
Like a good doctor checking patients for free.
Plant volunteers are my besties
Sprouting all over now that summer's here.
Tomatoes, strawberry runners, Swiss chard and garlic chives;
Celery, parsley, oregano and thyme
In cement cracks everywhere
While Egyptian jumping onions
Merrily leap place to place.
