1) rototill what's left of the current lawn and remove as many grass clods and rhizomes as I can gather up in this process
3) cover with newspaper
4) cover that with more soil (excavated from a large bed elsewhere in the yard; clean and much better structure) and compost
5) poke holes into the paper to plant some F. rubra plugs I bought (prematurely) and overseed with F. rubra seed.
6) cover with mulch.
Client's Reasoning
- the soil is so compacted that it NEEDS some cultivation, despite the risk of chopping up rhizomes (besides existing grass is not very healthy); I'm loathe to put off cultivation till spring because if we get El Nino type rain that could just exacerbate the clay soil structure (ie, further compaction)
- I can plant the grass plugs now through the newspaper
- F. rubra seed can take advantage of early rains now and newspaper will hopefully rot by spring so new grass seedlings can tap the underlying soil then when days lengthen, temps rise and growth rate increases
- If El Niño rains come, this approach will prevent excessive pooling and muddy bog conditions.
The other option is rototilling and sheet mulching now and composting and seeding in March or so.
I'd appreciate your thoughts and comments. Thanks very much for your time.
Help Desk Response: Thank you for contacting the Master Gardener Help Desk concerning your lawn conversion from Bermudagrass to red fescue.
Bermudagrass can be pretty tough to eliminate. The best methods include the following (summarized from very detailed University of California information located at http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/PESTNOTES/pn7453.html):
1. Herbicide such as Roundup™, during spring and summer. Herbicide will only be effective if applied when the Bermudagrass is growing vigorously, meaning it should be applied during spring and summer. Stolons may not be completely killed by herbicide, so cultivation may also be required, as further described below.
2. Withholding water during summer. This tactic is usually combined with cultivation, also further described below.
3. Shading. Sheet mulch with overlapping cardboard sheets, covering the cardboard with at least 3 inches of mulch. Mulch alone will not be effective. More information on sheet mulching, including a "how to" slide show, can be found here http://www.bayfriendlycoalition.org/LYL.shtml
Based on the above, you can see that summer is the best time to effectively eradicate Bermudagrass by using a combination of methods. Herbicides will not be effective during late fall and winter because the Bermudagrass will not be growing vigorously. If you decide to cultivate and hand remove rhizomes and stolons, followed by sheet mulching, that is probably your best bet this time of year. However, we would recommend that you wait to plant the fescue plugs until you are confident the bermudagrass has been killed. If you do not, there is the potential that the bermudagrass will grow through the planting holes.
It is true that fall is the best time to seed Festuca rubra to take advantage of the rains. Festuca rubra is a low water use plant according to WUCOLS http://ucanr.edu/sites/WUCOLS/Plant_Search/. However, even plants that are classified as "low water use" require supplemental water for the first year or two to get their root systems established and are drought tolerant only thereafter. You may want to keep this in mind when deciding when, and how much, to plant, in case landscape watering restrictions continue next year.
General advice from the University of California about establishing and maintaining lawns can be found here, including information on pre-plant fertilizer http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/TOOLS/TURF/ We do also recommend that you have your soil tested to determine if certain nutrients are lacking so that you can fertilize and amend appropriately. A list of soil testing laboratories can be found at http://ccmg.ucanr.edu/files/51308.pdf. The soil testing labs' websites have instructions on how to collect samples and submit them for analysis, but you should contact the lab first to get their specific requirements for you situation. A basic soil test should include the major nutrients of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium (N, P, K) as well as pH and organic matter. pH will tell you whether your soil is neutral, acidic or alkaline - this is important because pH can impact nutrient availability. Ideally you will want the soil pH to be between 5.5 to 7.5. 5% organic matter is considered ideal; our clay soils usually have much lower than ideal levels, but can usually be improved with the addition of compost.
Good luck with your ambitious project. I hope that this information is helpful. Please do not hesitate to contact us again if you have any further questions.
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Editor's Addendum: A relatively new development on the California turf scene is that at least one sod grower, and probably others as well, are now providing ready-to-install sod that consists primarily of native grasses and also touting significant reduction in water use. Your circumstances might warrant consideration of such sod. Details on feasibility and costs should be available at most retail nurseries or online.
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Help Desk of the UC Master Gardeners of Contra Costa County (JL)
Note: The UC Master Gardeners of Contra Costa's Help Desk is available year-round to answer your gardening questions. Except for a few holidays, we're open every week, Monday through Thursday for walk-ins from 9:00 am to Noon at 75 Santa Barbara Road, 2d Floor, Pleasant Hill, CA 94523. We can also be reached via telephone: (925) 646-6586, email: ccmg@ucanr.edu, or on the web at http://ccmg.ucanr.edu/Ask_Us/ MGCC Blogs can be found at http://ccmg.ucanr.edu/HortCoCo/ You can also subscribe to the Blog (http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/blogroll.cfm).
/span>/span>/div>/span>Advice for the Home Gardener from the Help Desk of the Master Gardeners of Contra Costa County
Client;s Request: Hi! Do you know of any small citrus trees that would do well living inside? Thanks!
MGCC's Help Desk Response: Thank you for your inquiry to the Contra Costa Master Gardeners regarding citrus suitable to be grown indoors.
Root stock will determine the overall size of the tree. Because you may need to move the potted plant, select a dwarf citrus, which is often grown on Flying Dragon Trifoliate Orange root stock – a natural dwarf that grows to about 10'-12'. It has a limited root system and must be watered carefully (will not withstand missed waterings or drought). If needed, you can prune the tree to a manageable height and width. Plant in a well-drained potting soil mix in a pot that is at least twice the size of the root ball. You will probably need to re-pot the citrus again later as the tree matures.
The MGCC publication, Citrus for the Home Garden may also be useful to you http://ucanr.edu/blogs/slomggarden/blogfiles/4260.pdf
Citrus varieties commonly available as dwarfs are lemons, limes, kumquats and clementines. The UC ANR publication Tried and True or Something New has a list of common and new citrus varieties for you to consider -http://anrcatalog.ucanr.edu/pdf/8472.pdf
California does have some large citrus specialty nurseries, several of which are located in Northern California. They do offer citrus that can be grown indoors (“house plants”). While some do supply mail-order access, it has been my experience that many of the citruses you might be interested in from these nurseries are also available in retail nurseries and even in some of the big box stores at times. One of the larger wholesale/retail growers also has several pages on the web on growing citrus as “houseplants” that should be of interest to you (e.g., https://www.fourwindsgrowers.com/tips-and-advice/growing-dwarf-citrus/as-houseplants.html). I'm sure other citrus specialty nurseries can supply similar information on their trees, especially dwarf trees.
Good luck with your indoor citrus selection! Please do no hesitate to contact us again if you have more questions.
Help Desk of the Master Gardeners of Contra Costa County (VLT)
Note: The UC Master Gardeners of Contra Costa's Help Desk is available year-round to answer your gardening questions. Except for a few holidays, we're open every week, Monday through Thursday for walk-ins from 9:00 am to Noon at 75 Santa Barbara Road, 2d Floor, Pleasant Hill, CA 94523. We can also be reached via telephone: (925) 646-6586, email: ccmg@ucanr.edu, or on the web at http://ccmg.ucanr.edu/Ask_Us/ MGCC Blogs can be found at http://ccmg.ucanr.edu/HortCoCo/ You can also subscribe to the Blog.
Advice from the Help Desk of the UC Master Gardeners of Contra Costa County
Client's Request: I have a grass/thistle covered steep hillside I need to get planted with erosion control shrubs/trees and want some advice on plant choice. The hill overlooks Highway 24 on the north side of the highway and faces west. It gets full sun most of the day and lots of wind. I will be able to get drip or overhead water to the plants. The main purpose is erosion control. The dirt seems sandy - it gives when you walk up the steep hill. This is a large area, maybe 150 feet x 70 feet for now and then another 100 x 70 feet south facing portion of the hill later. I added a metal stake deer fence, but I'm wanting plants that can someday be deer resistant without the fence.
My thoughts are Coast Live Oak, Valley Oak, Toyon, Salvia and Sage, and maybe Ceanothus Blue Jeans or Bearberry. Olive and fig or other fruit bearing trees would be interesting. I'm looking for hardy, low or no water trees/shrubs/plants, ideally fast growing, and little maintenance. Thoughts? Also, do you suggest one gallon or larger planting size containers?
And finally, if you have a suggestion for someone that has access to wholesale plants like at Devil Mountain and can plant or help me plant for a reasonable charge, please let me know.
Any assistance would be appreciated.
Response from the MGCC Help Desk: Selecting, planting, and establishing plants on steep west and south facing hillsides for erosion control is both a great idea and, as you have discovered, a challenge. You mentioned that you are looking for plants which thrive under the following conditions: full sun, wind tolerant, deer resistant, low to no supplemental water, and little to no maintenance. In addition, you mentioned that your dirt “seems sandy” on top.
Plant Selection – As you suggested, it is a good idea to plant a variety of plants to stabilize the soil. I have done some research on plants which might be successful on your slope with particular concern for very low water use requirements once established, plants which may be less attractive to deer, and plants which are moderate or fast growing. You mentioned Coast Live Oak, Valley, and Toyon which all seem like good choices. You also mentioned Sage (Salvia) and while many sages are classified as low water use and deer resistant, others are moderate water use, and they tend to be shorter lived, so Sage wouldn't be my first choice for a long term “no maintenance” slope. You also mentioned fruit bearing trees such as olives and figs. While you certainly could plant these, they do require both water and maintenance to thrive. Following are a few suggestions (all of the shrubs require some supplemental water to thrive, especially during the several years to establish and/or during extended droughts):
Trees
Valley Oak (Quercus lobata) – low water
Tall Shrubs
Toyon (Heteromeles arbutifolia) – low water
Coffeeberry (Frangula californica) – low water
Hopseed Bush (Dodonea viscosa) – low water
Sumac (Rhus ovata) – low water
Manzanita (Arctostaphylos densiflora ‘Sentinel') – a little slower growing,
Ceanothus ‘Blue Jeans' – not sure of deer resistance, low water
Ceanothus ‘Dark Star' or other small and thorny leafed types – low water
Low Shrubs and Ground Cover
Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis) – low water
Dwarf Coyote Bush (Baccharis pilularis ‘Pigeon Point') – low water
Manzanita (Arctostaphylos uva-ursi and others) – slow to establish, low water
Additional Resources - You mentioned that you have read the Las Pilitas website which has a good article with videos on how to evaluate and stabilize a slope at http://www.laspilitas.com/garden/howto/slope.html.
Following are a few additional useful websites to help with plant selection, deer resistance, water use requirements, and erosion control:
Deer Resistance - Orchard Nursery in Lafayette has a “deer resistant plant guide” based on observations in the Lamorinda area http://www.orchardnursery.com/pdfs/nurserycare/10-deerlist.pdf . However, in times of drought when sources of food are low, almost all plants are susceptible to deer browse. In areas with lots of deer, such as along the Hwy 24 corridor, fencing or caging may be the only way to get plants large enough to withstand deer browse.
Water Use Requirements – The following website identifies plants by water use category http://www.waterwonk.us/ . Those classified as “low” should require a relatively small amount of water once established. Those classified as “very low” may be able to get by without any supplemental water once established, except during drought years.
Hillside Erosion Control - This Sonoma County Master Gardener article provides a general overview of erosion control methods, including guidance to mulch best suited for steep slopes
http://ucanr.edu/sites/scmg/Sonoma_Gardener_Articles/Gardening_on_a_Hillside/ .
Landscape Professionals – We cannot recommend any particular landscape design, construction or maintenance company. However, a list of organizations which provide references to these professionals can be found at this link http://www.phgsc.com/mgcc/FAQ_Landscape_Designers_Oct15.pdf. This list is neither comprehensive nor all-inclusive, and no endorsement of any business or professional is intended.
I hope you find this helpful to the completion of your project. Feel free to contact us if you have any additional questions.
Help Desk of the UC Master Gardeners of Contra Costa County (MPL)
Editor's addendum: While this response uses Lafayette as the example hillside garden, the procedure and references given could apply to almost any hillside property in Contra Costa County. If you need more guidance and/or assistance for your particular location and circumstances, please contact the Help Desk.
Note: The UC Master Gardeners of Contra Costa's Help Desk is available year-round to answer your gardening questions. Except for a few holidays, we're open every week, Monday through Thursday for walk-ins from 9:00 am to Noon at 75 Santa Barbara Road, 2d Floor, Pleasant Hill, CA 94523. We can also be reached via telephone: (925) 646-6586, email: ccmg@ucanr.edu, or on the web at http://ccmg.ucanr.edu/Ask_Us/ MGCC Blogs can be found at http://ccmg.ucanr.edu/HortCoCo/ You can also subscribe to the Blog.
From the Help Desk of the Master Gardeners of Contra Costa County
Client– Thank you for stopping by the Master Gardeners table at the recent Lafayette Harvest Festival with your request for information on increasing your eggplant yield.
To avoid the cold, make sure that you hold off setting out plants for at least a month after the last frost date. For Lafayette, the recommendation would be to wait until after April 15th to plant; just after May 1st is even better. If possible, select a warm, sheltered spot in your yard. However, this can be somewhat complicated by the guidance that you should not plant eggplants (or members of the Solanaceae family… tomatoes, potatoes, etc.) in the same place but once every three years to prevent the buildup of soil pests. A warm spot is particularly important in Lafayette since it typically has cool nights. Early in the season, you may want to use hot caps or row covers to increase the temperature. Note that any protection that covers the plants must be removed when the plants begin to flower.
Make sure that you keep the bed weed free. Mulching will help cut down on the weeds and preserve moisture, although you may not want to mulch too deeply since mulch can keep the soil cool.
Eggplants are moderate users of nitrogen and phosphorus. Fertilizer or manure should be thoroughly mixed into the top six inches of soil before you plant. Recommended fertilizer levels are 10 pounds of dry manure (make sure it is well composted) or 1/3 pound of commercial 12-12-12 fertilizer per 10 square feet of garden. After flowering begins, make additional light nitrogen applications as fruit grows. Maintain moderate nitrogen levels until harvest. Too much nitrogen will lead to excessive vegetative growth at the expense of eggplant production.
Plants will need warm nights and long hot days to ripen the slowly developing fruit. For the standard varieties that yield large, plump fruits, thin the fruits so that there is only one per the main branch, or three to six per plant. It is not necessary to thin the smaller varieties or the Oriental types.
Plants will stop fruiting as fall cool temperatures take effect.
For overviews on growing eggplants, please see:
http://ucanr.edu/sites/ucmgnapa/files/153890.pdf
http://vric.ucdavis.edu/pdf/eggplant.pdf
For more detailed information on eggplants, see http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/GARDEN/VEGES/eggplant.html.
Good luck with your garden. Please let us know if you have further questions.
Master Gardeners of Contra Costa County (ECS)
Note: The UC Master Gardeners of Contra Costa's Help Desk is available year-round to answer your gardening questions. Except for a few holidays, we're open every week, Monday through Thursday for walk-ins from 9:00 am to Noon at 75 Santa Barbara Road, 2d Floor, Pleasant Hill, CA 94523. We can also be reached via telephone: (925) 646-6586, email: ccmg@ucanr.edu, or on the web at http://ccmg.ucanr.edu/Ask_Us/ MGCC Blogs can be found at http://ccmg.ucanr.edu/HortCoCo/ You can also subscribe to the Blog.
Help and Advice from the Master Gardeners of Contra Costa's Help Desk
Client's Request: I am considering ordering on-line or buying locally some bare root fruit trees to plant this winter. In determining the appropriate variety, I'm reading that the number of “chill hours” is an important criteria in the selection. What are chill hours and where can I find the chill hours for my garden?
MGCC's Help Desk Advice: Chill hours are the cumulative number of hours of temperatures lower than 45OF that are required by deciduous fruit and nut trees for fruit production. The hours are tracked during the traditional dormant season, measured from November 1 to February 28/29.
Average and the range of chill hours for the last 14 years from the CIMIS active sites in Contra Costa County are below. You can obtain the original data yourself at the UC website: http://fruitsandnuts.ucdavis.edu/Weather_Services/chilling_accumulation_models/Chill_Calculators/?type=research.
Contra Costa County |
Average of and |
Brentwood (#47) |
818 (234 to 1066) |
Concord (#170) |
930 (679 to 1152 |
El Cerrito (#213) |
191 (132 to 250 |
Moraga (#178) |
1030 (891 to 1226) |
Oakland Foothills |
560 (560) |
Pleasanton (#191) |
881 (656 to 1217) |
Notes:
Brentwood: only 12 of 14 years reporting;
Concord: 14 of 14 years reporting
El Cerrito: only 2 of 14 years available (only several years in operation)
Moraga: 13 of 14 years reporting
…Alameda County CIMIS for use as possible interpolation…
Oakland Hills: ~10 years data from previous report; data now not readily available
Pleasanton: 11 of 14 years reporting;
Note: if you are really interested in the weather and climate data closer to you than the current 4 Contra Costa CIMIS stations, there are many other sources of data available on the web (http://bit.ly/1PyM1N3). However, much of the data aren't of the length of time of CIMIS and CIMIS has already done the tedious hour-by-hour calculations, but I'm sure there is/are somebody out there with enough computer skills to do it… and maybe they could share their expertise.
Why Are Chill Hours Important? During the fall season, shortening day length and cooler temperatures stimulate a tree to produce growth inhibitor hormones that stop it from growing. It is these hormones that keep a tree in dormancy during the winter months. Dormancy is broken when sufficient cold temperatures break down the growth inhibitors within the tree. The simplest model uses a specific number of cumulative hours of chill (temperatures lower than 45oF) required to break dormancy. Once the appropriate number of chill hours has been achieved, and only after trees are exposed to longer daylight hours and warm enough temperatures for natural growth processes to begin, will active growth resume in the spring. There are also more sophisticated chill hour models that attempt to take into account warm spells during the winter, but for purposes of home garden fruit trees the model described should be adequate.
Effects of Insufficient Chill: With insufficient chill, trees will leaf out late in the season, blossoming can be prolonged, buds may deteriorate and/or drop, and few if any flowers are produced. Without flowers, there is no fruit. Both the absolute number and the distribution of chill hours have an impact. Periods of a few days to a week or more of mild weather may offset or reduce the effectiveness of accompanying periods of good chilling weather. Greater seasonal totals are usually necessary when there is prolonged interruption of cool weather.
Chill Hour Requirements: The number of chill hours required varies by the type and variety of fruit or nut. In order to assure the tree you plant is appropriate for your area's environmental conditions, you should know at least the average chill hours in your area as well as the chill hours required for the specific fruit or nut tree you wish to plant. For general information on the chilling requirement for various fruit and nut trees you can go to the UC website: http://homeorchard.ucdavis.edu/The_Big_Picture/Tree_Selection/#chill.
Fruit Tree Selection: For information on fruit tree varieties for the home garden, including low chill varieties (varieties requiring less than 300 hours of temperatures lower than 45OF to break dormancy), go to the University of California free publication “Growing Temperate Tree Fruit and Nut Crops in the Home Garden” at http://homeorchard.ucdavis.edu/varieties.pdf. You may also find more information on fruit tree varieties and required chill hours of interest on the web sites of commercial wholesale and mail-order web nurseries.
Editor's Note: This response is an updated and edited version of a MGCC article by Emma Connery that was originally published in the January 11, 2015, Contra Costa Times. Any errors are the responsibility of the HOrT COCO editor.
Help Desk of the UC Master Gardeners of Contra Costa County
Note: The UC Master Gardeners of Contra Costa's Help Desk is available year-round to answer your gardening questions. Except for a few holidays, we're open every week, Monday through Thursday for walk-ins from 9:00 am to Noon at 75 Santa Barbara Road, 2d Floor, Pleasant Hill, CA 94523. We can also be reached via telephone: (925) 646-6586, email: ccmg@ucanr.edu, or on the web at http://ccmg.ucanr.edu/Ask_Us/ MGCC Blogs can be found at http://ccmg.ucanr.edu/HortCoCo/ You can also subscribe to the Blog.