- Author: Jeannette Warnert
“Fragrant plants give me happiness,” she said. “Even when plants are dormant, rain and dew make them smell nice.”
A wine business professional, Valentin transferred to Fresno 11 years ago. She is a supertaster, born with the ability to taste certain foods and flavors more strongly than most, a skill that she used to discern the hundreds of distinct flavors and aromas in fine wines. Now retired, the skill allows her to guide others in the enjoyment of aromatic gardening.
Plants produce fragrant flowers and foliage not just to perfume the garden for us to enjoy, they reap the benefits, she said.
“Volatile oils and chemical compounds produced in leaves of some plants can be toxic to insects,” Valentin said. “The smell alerts pests – including insects and small animals – to avoid the plant.”
“Cut back to a node, dip in rooting compound and place in well-watered, rich soil in a nice sunny spot,” she advised.
One sample was Cleveland sage, an evergreen shrub in the mint family with small, very fragrant leaves. “It's so strong and astringent, it reminds me of Ben Gay and Tiger Balm,” she said.
Valentin suggests clipping stems and bringing them into the shower, where heat and steam release the perfume.
Another sample was citronella, which is marketed as a mosquito repellent, a claim Valentin said is untrue. Regardless, the plant, part of the geranium (pelargonium) family, releases a grassy, floral, lemony scent when cut or crushed. Related plants have been bred in dozens of scents, including chocolate mint, cinnamon, eucalyptus, peppermint, orange, balsam and apple.
Herbs are another important part of an aromatic garden, including rosemary, lavender and thyme.
“Thyme is a must in your fragrant garden,” Valentin said. “Creeping thyme or woolly thyme can be planted in rock crevices or between paving stones. They will tolerate light foot traffic and release their pungent smell as you walk on them.”
She shared a recipe for freshening the home that doesn't involve artificially scented candles or commercial “air fresheners.”
Place in a pot:
- 8 cups water
- 3 sprigs rosemary
- 1 lemon, sliced thin
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon peppercorns
Heat on the stove to fill the house with a lemony, slightly astringent, wintery aroma.
The list of fragrant plants is enormous. Here are a few to start with that do well in our climate, and require minimal water and maintenance:
- Bee balm
- Butterfly bush
- Cleveland sage (and all sages)
- Honeysuckle
- Lantana
- Lavender
- Manderilla
- Pelargoniums
- Rosemary
- Star jasmine
- Thyme
- Prepared by: Terry Lewis
Tasks
- Peruse seed catalogs looking for disease resistant strains.
- Shop now for bare root grape and berry vines.
- Deeply water trees and native plants if rainfall has been light.
- Peach leaf curl is best controlled by fixed copper spray at bud swell before bud break.
Pruning
- Crepe myrtles and redbuds may be pruned now.
- Do not apply any treatment to pruning cuts or other wounds because these materials are ineffective and often are detrimental.
- Wait to prune spring-flowering shrubs until after they bloom.
Planting
- Planting annuals and perennials for spring bloom starts next month. Look now for new varieties of spring vegetables and summer blooming bulbs.
- Sow seeds of summer annuals and vegetables in flats in a protected location or indoors.
Enjoy now
- Annuals and perennials: Iceland poppy (Papaver nudicaule), camellias, Callistemon ‘Little John'.
- Bulbs, corms, tubers: freesia, daffodil, crocus.
- Fruits and vegetables: lemon, navel orange, and spinach.
Things to ponder
- Sharp tools make cleaner cuts. Clean and maintain pruning equipment.
- This is a good time to divide African violets for early spring bloom.
- When the soil is cold and wet, citrus trees and other plants may not be able to make efficient use of iron, nitrogen and other nutrients even though there is an adequate supply available in the root zone. This problem usually disappears when soil conditions improve, and no further action is required.
- Automatic sprinklers should be turned completely off during periods of rainfall.
- Author: Jeannette Warnert
Now that the holidays are behind us, many gardeners are turning their attention to the New Year and their high hopes for a bountiful backyard harvest. Fresno's short winters mean now is the last chance for stone fruit-growing gardeners to prevent peach leaf curl disease, which causes leaves to drop and fruit production to wane.
Once new buds begin to open and tiny deformed leaves unfurl in the spring, it's too late to manage the disease. Fortunately, peach leaf curl can be easily treated with a fungicide during the dormant season and, in any event, rarely kills trees.
The disease impacts peach and nectarine trees. A severe outbreak of peach leaf curl won't happen every year. But it's not uncommon to have wet weather when buds and leaves begin to grow, providing the best environment for the fungus to germinate and spread.
The fungus that causes peach leaf curl, Taphrina deformans, is widespread in the valley. The fungus survives the summer as spores on twig and branch surfaces. During cool, wet winter weather the spores increase in number and form a film on the tree surface. Rains carry some spores into unopened buds where they infect the tiny leaves. Leaf and fruit removal do not contribute to peach leaf curl control.
The UC Integrated Pest Management Program recommends gardeners spray trees with a fungicide containing copper or chlorothalonil, which are readily available in many nurseries and home improvement stores. One annual application in late winter before budbreak will control the disease in most cases. Alternating the two fungicides each year can help to limit copper buildup in the soil. Horticultural oils and other fungicides are not effective against peach leaf curl. Copper, but not chlorothalonil, is approved for organic gardening.
Carefully read the label on the product you purchase and follow instructions for mixing and using the product. A hand-held pump sprayer will work fine for smaller trees. For larger trees, consider a hose-end sprayer. Dress in protective clothing, including long pants, a long-sleeved shirt, gloves and safety goggles. Spray the trees when the weather is dry and mostly windless, making sure to wet the branches and the trunk thoroughly.
For more information about growing fruit trees at home visit the UC Backyard Orchard website at https://homeorchard.ucanr.edu/
- Prepared by: Terry Lewis
Tasks
- Rainfall may not reach areas under eaves and overhangs. Check soil moisture and apply supplemental water if needed.
- Apply preemergent herbicide to lawns and beds in the latter part of the month to control crabgrass and other early germinating weeds.
Pruning
- Finish pruning roses and deciduous fruit trees by the end of the month.
- At bud swell spray deciduous fruit, almond trees and roses with dormant oil to prevent and control over-wintering insects.
- Prune out fire blight infections. Remove the infected shoot or branch at its point of origin.
Fertilizing
- Fertilize spring-flowering perennials, annuals, bulbs and shrubs.
- Yellow foliage, particularly the youngest leaves, may be attributed to iron deficiency. Yellowing in older leaves may be attributed to nitrogen deficiency.
Planting
- Group plants with similar water needs together.
- This is a good time to move perennials, shrubs or small trees.
- Spring planting season begins next month. Work on your garden plans and be ready to start next month.
Enjoy now
- Annuals and perennials: feverfew (Chrysanthemum parthenium), toadflax (Linaria maroccana), cyclamen.
- Citrus fruits are abundant now - use them to brighten up the winter menu.
Things to ponder
- Leave frost-damaged growth on tender plants as protection until the danger of frost is past. Begin pruning as new growth emerges.
- Prepared by: Terry Lewis
Just roses
Roses are planted bare root in January or February, and other rose tasks may be done this month.
Tasks
- New roses of many varieties are featured in magazines and articles - or view them online. Look for those you like, select ones that are suitable for your area, and buy them bare root. Consider the aesthetic qualities of roses as well as size when placing them in the landscape.
- Soak bare root plants for 2 to 4 hours in a bucket of water to rehydrate roots before planting.
Pruning
- Prune existing roses to remove diseased and damaged wood, regulate size and shape and improve bloom quality.
- Use clean, sharp tools to avoid splitting or crushing canes and branches. Cut ¼ inch above a bud or leaf joint and make cuts at a 45° angle to the branch.
- Leave three to five canes in a vase-shaped configuration when pruning hybrid teas, grandifloras or floribundas.
- Remove leaves from roses to force dormancy, if this task has not already been done.
Fertilizing
- Roses have a long growing and blooming season here, so a regular feeding schedule is important. Usual fertilizing months for established plants are February and September.
- At planting time, apply a rose fertilizer to new plants.
Planting
- This is the time to move and transplant roses. Prepare a hole 2 feet wide and deep enough to keep the graft above ground level.
- Make a mound of soil in the middle of the hole. Spread the roots as much as possible and place the rose on the mound. Add soil until the hole is about two thirds full then fill it with water and let it soak in. Finish filling the hole and water again. Use the regular soil and tamp down to remove any air pockets.
- Fertilize with a rose planting product and follow label instructions. Remember to water regularly if there has not been any rain.
- Dress beds with organic material and mulch to control weeds.
- Keep mulch back from the base of the rose plant.
Enjoy now
- Survey the completion of the first task of the new year (pruning roses) and look forward to the first spring rose in April.
Things to ponder
- Roses grow to different heights depending on the variety - from the lower landscape/shrub roses and floribundas to the taller hybrid tea and grandifloras. Keep this in mind when placing roses in your garden.
