- Author: Amy Fritz, Master Gardener
One of the most popular kinds of plants that can be purchased from big box stores, local nurseries and specialty websites is lavender. Lavender (Lavandula) is a member of the mint family and a genus that includes 47 species with over 400 named varieties which can be used for the landscape, essential oils, or a myriad of other ways! Lavender loves the sun and does best in well-drained, unamended soil, doesn't require much water once established and is pest and disease resistant. The most popular varieties are English Lavender (Lavandula angustifolia), French Lavender (Lavandula dentata), Lavandin Hybrids which are English Lavender Hybrids (Lavandula x intermedia), Portuguese Lavender (Lavandula latifolia) and Spanish Lavender (Lavandula stoechas). Each is unique in its own way, but always stunning in the landscape. What is so wonderful about lavender, way beyond enjoying it aesthetically in our garden, is the ease at which you can make lavender essential oil which can be used to enhance your life in so many ways.
But first the basics. When should you harvest your lavender? The definite time to harvest depends on the variety but most start blooming in the early summer and continue blooming all the way to fall. Harvest the flowers in late morning ensuring that all the dew has had a chance to dissipate from the buds and you notice that the first few buds have blossomed into flowers. This is the time that the oils will to be at their peak. Since you will see your lavender bush blooming often throughout the season you can watch the stems for the first few buds to flower and you will know then is the time to cut the stems just above the leaves which also encourages even more buds to form! Try not to harvest all the flowers from your plant though because it is a wonderful source of food for our pollinators who appreciate our help!
In order to make the essential oil, the lavender should be dried. The easiest way to dry lavender is to hang a bundle of stems (maybe 10-15) into a loose bouquet to ensure the lavender doesn't get moldy. Tie the base of the stems with twine, leaving one end longer for hanging. Hang it somewhere warm and airy to dry, out of the sunlight for a week or so. Check it for mold every few days.
Probably one of the most versatile things to do with dried lavender is to make essential oil. There are many ways to make it, but one easy way is to completely cover slightly crushed lavender flowers and buds with vodka in a glass jar with a tight-fitting lid. Store the jar in the sunlight for at least two weeks. Give the mixture a good shake every so often. You can then strain the oils from the lavender through a coffee filter and into another jar. When the oil has been strained out of the lavender, use another coffee filter to cover the jar and strain it again for a few days to get every bit of that precious oil from the lavender before transferring your oil into a spray or storage jar.Voila!
There is a lot of research that shows that lavender essential oil can relax the nervous system, calm stress, support sleep and help repair damaged skin. Rub 2 or 3 drops of lavender oil on your palms and breathe the scent deep into your amygdala gland where your emotions lie in your brain. This will help calm your mind. You can then rub it into your feet, temples, and wrists for a quick calming effect on your whole body.
Some other ways to make your life a little sweeter with lavender essential oil is to spray it on your pillowcase to enhance your sleep or fill the air in your home with the scent of lavender by putting a few drops in a diffuser and feel your body begin to relax. Lavender oil has also been used for a long time for cleansing and soothing the skin. Enhance your daily skin care routine by adding a few drops of lavender oil to your body lotions, face creams and hair products to support healthy-looking skin and scalp. It also has anti-inflammatory properties which will soothe insect bites, sunburn and reduce redness and acne scarring while always adding that sweet aroma.
So, as you can see, lavender is one of the most versatile herbs around not to mention its heavenly scent!
- Author: Sara Milnes, Master Gardener
I recently had the pleasure of enjoying gorgeous perennial borders in Paris and was inspired! I had visions of taking out some lawn and going all in. But it is always best to study and learn first, and in this case, share with others.
We often think of flower borders as a row or two of flowers in front of some shrubs but borders in France and England tend to be 6-8' wide, filled with flowers, and accessible from both sides. This allows a range of plants to provide varying heights and continuous blooms. In smaller yards with limited space, a lot can be done with a 2-3' wide perennial bed, a corner bed, or an island bed.
As with any garden area, there are basics to consider: site and sun, soil requirements, plants and plant requirements, and care and maintenance. With perennial flower borders, there's also the fun of designing for a progression of blooms and textures.
Sun, Site, and Soil
Especially with wider borders, select a place that will be accessible from at least two sides. If that can't be arranged, leave room for stepping stones to reach all areas without compacting the soil. Although tempting, avoid planting under the base of a mature tree, due to the competition with roots and the deep shade.
Most garden plants need well-drained soil, and perennial flowers are no exception. Soil that is less than ideal can be amended with compost to improve its drainage capacity.
Plants and Plant Requirements
The plants chosen should all have about the same requirements for sun, water, and soil type. In the often drought-stricken Central Valley, it is best to choose plants that have low to moderate water needs once established. Fortunately, many perennials meet these qualifications. Most perennials will last many years and establish themselves fairly quickly.
To get an idea of some of the many perennials, a good resource is the table of Herbaceous Perennials by the Colorado State University Extension. It includes color, bloom period, height, names/cultivars, and comments on a wide variety of perennial flowers for both sun and sun to part shade. While not all may be suitable to the Central Valley climate, many on the list are familiar to valley gardeners.
Designing the Garden
Once you have a site, it's time to design. Straight lines are more formal, while a curved site could be more informal and add interest. One way to map out a curved site is by placing a garden hose on the proposed edges to see if the shape is pleasing. Measure the proposed site and sketch it to scale on graph paper.
Choose a color scheme you like, and combine plants with different forms, textures, colors, and bloom times. Place plants of the same variety in odd-numbered groups of at least three, and repeat the grouping elsewhere to create continuity, using diagonal or triangular spacing. Add in some bulbs for early interest and consider leaving some spaces for seasonal annuals. Since many perennials die back in winter, some seasonal annuals perk up the winter garden. The gardens in Paris had both pansies and primroses for added color.
Leave sufficient room for the mature size of the plants. One thing I noticed in the 8' wide borders in Paris is that they were packed, with peonies pushing up through spent early bulbs and plants close together. However, agricultural extension research discourages planting too close, as the plants need good air circulation to avoid diseases such as powdery mildew.
Once you have a list of possibilities, check a good nursery to see what's available. Patience may be required—not all the plants you want will be available when you want them. For example, Gaillardia (Blanket Flower) is available late spring to summer, but bulbs are most plentiful in the fall. Be flexible and willing to plant in waves or substitute different plants. With a to-scale site on graph paper, the proposed plants can be moved around (at their mature size) to see how it works.
Most of all, enjoy. A perennial garden is a thing of beauty, giving constantly changing views. Most likely, not everything will turn out exactly as planned. A plant may die, or not work as expected. Flexibility and the willingness to experiment will keep the garden vibrant and alluring.
For Further Reading:
Flower Garden Design Basics
Herbaceous Perennials, Fact Sheet 7.405
Perennial Gardening, Fact Sheet 7.402
Using Texture in Flower Gardens
- Author: Julie Hyske, Master Gardener
It was such a long winter and spring was just a glance. Let's spend summer making our fresh favorite recipes. Each of these recipes will transform your menu selections while getting you in and out of the kitchen. The summer Italian spaghetti recipe is the perfect potluck or summer party cold dish. It is light and fresh showcasing some of summer's finest veggies and, if pressed for time, a good bottled Italian dressing will do just fine. The classic shrimp salad is deliciously creamy and so easy to make, in its simplicity is a perfect balance of flavors. Adding butter leaves make it a perfect meal for a summer lunch or dinner. Squash fritters are an excellent way to utilize fresh summer squash. Pan-fry the lightly seasoned patties until the outside is golden brown and crispy. The inside will still be tender and juicy letting the flavor of the squash shine through. The strawberry trifle is a make-ahead dessert that's always a crowd pleaser. It's filled with sweet strawberries, angel food cake and a homemade vanilla cheesecake mousse. This is a show-stopper dessert; serve it to your favorite people anytime. Last, but certainly not least, the no-bake key lime cream pie beauty is cool and refreshing. Talk about a mile-high pie, this is the one. Enjoy these recipes on repeat and make your summer shine!
Summer Italian Spaghetti Salad
1 16 oz pkg thin spaghetti, broken in half.
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1 cup cucumber, diced
1 cup salami slices (or pepperoni, or both), cut into small pieces
1 medium green pepper, diced
1 medium orange pepper diced
½ small red onion, diced
¾ cup black olives, drained, thinly sliced
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 tsp paprika
Salt and pepper to taste
Homemade Italian Dressing
1½ cups extra virgin olive oil
4 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tbsp dried oregano
1½ tsp dried basil
1 tbsp fresh squeezed lemon, plus more to taste
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 tbsp Parmesan cheese
Salt and pepper to taste
Cook spaghetti according to package directions, usually 1 minute less in time (al dente); drain and rinse. Add a drizzle of olive oil so pasta does not stick together. Refrigerate until cool. Place in a large bowl; add tomatoes, cucumber, salami, peppers, red onion, and olives. Combine remaining ingredients; pour over salad and toss to coat. Add the Parmesan cheese; gently stir together. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours; serve.
Serves 10
Classic Shrimp Salad
2 lbs shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 tbsp finely chopped red onion
1 large rib celery, finely chopped
Shrimp salad dressing:
1 cup mayonnaise
1 lemon zested and juiced (1 tbsp zest, 3 tbsp juice)
2 tbsp chopped fresh dill
1tbsp Dijon mustard
1 garlic clove minced
¼ tsp salt
Pinch freshly ground pepper
Butter lettuce leaves for serving
Make the dressing. To make the dressing, stir together the mayonnaise, lemon juice and zest, dill, mustard, garlic, salt, and pepper. Set aside. Boil the shrimp. Bring a pot of water to a boil. Add the shrimp and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, until cooked through and pink. While the shrimp are cooking, prepare an ice water bath. Use a skimmer to remove the shrimp to the ice water bath. Let them cool for 3 minutes, drain them in a colander. Stir it all together. In a mixing bowl, stir together the cooled shrimp, red onion, celery, and dressing, until creamy. Serve plain or with butter lettuce leaves.
Serves 10
Summer Squash Patties
8 medium yellow squash, shredded
1 onion, shredded
1 ½ tbsp salt
1 cup all-purpose flour
½ cup cornmeal
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
Fresh ground black pepper to taste
2 tbsp olive oil
Optional sour cream and chopped chives
Place the squash and onion in a colander, sprinkle with salt, and drain for about 30 minutes, until no longer moist. In a bowl, mix the squash and onion, flour, cornmeal, egg, and cheese. Season with pepper. Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Drop squash mixture by heaping tablespoonfuls into the skillet and cook 3 minutes on each side, or until golden brown.
Serves 6
Strawberry Cheesecake Trifle
Ingredients
2 pints fresh strawberries washed, hulled and sliced
? cup granulated sugar
1 medium lemon juiced
1 21 oz can strawberry pie filling
Vanilla cheesecake mousse:
2 8oz plain cream cheese blocks softened
1 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 ½ heavy cream
Whipped cream layer
2 ½ cups heavy cream
½ cup powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 angel food cake cubed
1 pint fresh strawberries sliced for garnish
To make the strawberry layer: Mix together the sliced strawberries with ? cup granulated sugar and 1 juiced lemon. Stir well then set aside to macerate for 10 minutes. Add the strawberry pie filling to the macerated strawberries, mix well. Set aside.
To make the cheesecake mousse: Using an electric mixer, whip together cream cheese with 1cup powdered sugar and 1 ½ cups heavy cream whipped. Add 1 teaspoon vanilla. Mix for 2 minutes on medium-high speed until creamy, fluffy, and combined.
In a separate bowl, use the mixer to whip the remaining 2 ½ cups heavy cream with half a cup of powdered sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Whip until stiff peaks form, don't overbeat.
To assemble: Alternate layers of cubed cake, strawberry layer, vanilla cheesecake mousse and whipped cream in that order. Repeat until all ingredients have been used. Frost the top with the remaining whipped cream and garnish with sliced strawberries. Chill for at least 4 hours or overnight, prior to serving.
Serves 16
Key Lime Cream Pie
Ingredients
? cup butter, melted
4 cups heavy whipping cream
¼ cup confectioners' sugar
1 tsp coconut extract
1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk
½ cup key lime juice
¼ cup sweetened shredded coconut, toasted
Optional topping: key lime slices and maraschino cherries with stems
In a small bowl, mix crushed cookies and butter. Press onto bottom and up the side of a greased 9-in. deep-dish pie plate. In a large bowl, beat cream until it begins to thicken. Add confectioners' sugar and extract; beat until stiff peaks form. In another large bowl, beat cream cheese, condensed milk, and lime juice until blended. Fold in 2 cups whipped cream. Spoon into prepared crust. Top with remaining whipped cream; sprinkle with toasted coconut. Refrigerate until serving, at least 4 hours. If desired, garnish with cherries and limes.
- Author: Robin Fuller, Master Gardener
Tucked into a landlocked area is a one-acre teaching community garden that just a few short years ago was an empty field. Under the stewardship of a few immensely talented visionaries and many volunteers, that field of weeds and dreams is now a model garden that serves multiple purposes. It functions as a community center, an outdoor laboratory for teaching fundamentals of organic gardening to students, it provides food and recipe kits to Title 1 students and their families, and it is a field trip destination for students.
Garden Joy is the representation of the determination of several people. Fortunately, two founding Board Members brought unique contributions to the program. Retired State of California UCCE Stanislaus County Farm Advisor Kathy Anderson, also a Master Gardener, has volunteered countless hours of expertise and labor in developing and building the garden and program. Anderson also was instrumental in recruiting fellow Master Gardeners to volunteer for the teaching program. Any conversation about the founding and mission of Garden Joy includes mention of Co-Founder Sarah Darpinian, who according to those involved in the garden, was focused in her drive to bring Garden Joy into existence. Evidently, Darpinian is skilled at marketing, soliciting sponsors, and grant writing, as well as being hands on in the garden.
To create the delightful area, the land was plowed, irrigation was installed, and greenhouses, storage sheds, eating and teaching areas, paths, trellises, and garden beds were planned and built out. These areas surround a multipurpose central lawn which is used as an overflow teaching area and a picnic and play area used by families who visit the Thursday evening Farmer's Market held in the adjacent parking lot.
The pristine organic garden now features a large pollinator bed, two Milkweed beds, a large tunnel for growing vegetables vertically, a long row of lavender, multiple vegetable beds, several picnic and learning areas, a newly-installed vermicomposting area, several greenhouses, a composting area, an outdoor movie area—all which flank a large central lawn. Best organic gardening practices utilized include drip irrigation, crop rotation, attracting pollinators, regularly amending planting beds with compost, on-site composting, and covering all non-planted areas with cardboard, weed cloth, and bark. It has been a multi-year effort and constant tinkering to improve the site.
Teaching children is a priority at Garden Joy and Master Gardeners have made it happen. Late in the summer of 2022, a group of San Joaquin Master Gardeners met to develop a gardening curriculum framework suitable for second graders. Seven Master Gardeners then committed to teach once a month for the entire school year for two second grade classes at nearby Ripon Elementary School. Each class section is about 11 minutes and there are 5 stations. Small groups of students rotate through the stations for each class. Each section is taught ten times each morning.
The curriculum is serious business. During the planning session, one Master Gardener introduced the group to “Teaching Organic Farming & Gardening: Resources for Instructors” a training manual from the Center for Agroecology at the University of California Santa Cruz, and it became a resource and guide for the volunteer instructors.
Master Gardener Martha Hawkins, who has been involved in the garden from the beginning, shared her curriculum from this past year. She taught once a month. The varying subject matter, much of which she had to relearn before teaching is below.
- Lifecycle and Migration of Monarch
- Photosynthesis
- Lifecycle of Insects and complete and incomplete metamorphosis
- Lifecycle of a worm
- Why have a home garden?
How long from garden to table
Nutrition loss during commercial agriculture field to table - Anatomy and Dissection of a Pumpkin
- Water Cycle
The summer camps and field trip programs are part of the education priority. In July 2022, Val Ishmael was brought on board to steward both programs in addition to working with the second-grade program. Ishmael has recruited instructors for this year's summer camp and created lesson guidance and structure for the program. The pilot field trip program just ended and was a huge success. Between April 18 and May 24, more than 600 students visited the garden. Depending upon how far the students traveled, they are in the garden for 90 minutes to two hours of touring and instruction. Students are primarily from San Joaquin and Stanislaus counties, but the field trip program is open to any school who can travel to the garden. They also teach the teachers and give tours and presentations for other groups. On June 21, the garden is providing a tour for the San Joaquin Master Gardeners.
“Recipe Kits” are another important Garden Joy goal. Recipes and produce from the garden and other sources are provided once a month to students at a local Title 1 school, where half the students quality for free lunch. 600 meals were provided in Recipe Kits, each designed to feed four people, last year.
Garden Joy, 929 W Main Street, Ripon, CA, is open to the public to visit Monday-Saturday, 8 am to 7 pm. Access is through the gate behind the parking lot of Studio Joy. It is worth a visit as Garden Joy lives up to its name and is a garden delight!
Reminder, there is more to gardening that just landscape, gardens. Gardening and its natural resources help purify our air to provide sustainable oxygen. Gardens need not be labor intensive. With the right plant in the right place, small gardens can be low maintenance and thrive despite our gardening skills or lack thereof.
DIY ideas and projects are everywhere and gardening is no exception. Container gardening can include terracotta pots, flower beds and baskets. It is now chic (and cost effective) to build containers from discarded wood pallets, or use re-purposed items to enhance our gardens.
Gardens can be big or small with cozy benches, outdoor rocking chairs or small tables for intimate dinners or large farm tables to seat mom and dad, grandparents, cousins, aunts, uncles, friends and lots of cousins, young and old. Hang outdoor string lights above outdoor dining tables to create mood lighting for a few or large parties.
If your gardening area has limited space, trellis and wooden decks and lighted windows can provide places to grow creeper plants, berries, and veggies, as well as add color and vigor to your yard. Wherever you plant your garden, remember most veggie plants and flower beds need a constant supply of sun and irrigation. Container gardening can provide growing area in small spaces.
Today's gardening has gone beyond your grandmother's traditional backyard garden. Use a little imagination and creativity to not only grow fresh and healthy fruits, veggies, herbs, and flowers but get creative, add color and whimsy to your garden to bring enjoyment beyond to your landscape.