July and August are traditionally the hottest months of the year, and this year is breaking heat records everywhere. Many plants do not do well in the heat, but plants native to the Central Valley have evolved over time and are adapted to our hot summer weather. However, fewer plants bloom in the summer than during the cooler, wetter spring months. Pollinators such as bees, butterflies, moths and some birds feed on the nectar flowers almost year-round. A gardener who wants to help pollinators should consider having diverse plants in their landscape for every season to ensure something is blooming much of the year.

What's blooming now?

Here are a few of my favorite California native plants that bloom during the months of July and August when little else is flowering:

California Buckwheat (Eriogonum fasciculatum var. fasciculatum) – With their leathery leaves, buckwheat shrubs are tough sun-lovers, and easy to grow. Once established it needs little to no water during the summer months. Abundant clusters of white, cream, yellow, and pink flowers appear as early as March and bloom all summer, drying to a red color. A good source of nectar and pollen during the drier months, it is a favored plant of a variety of pollinators including bees, butterflies and birds. Other good native buckwheat choices are St. Catherine's Lace (Eriogonium giganteum) and Santa Cruz Island buckwheat (Eriogonum arborescens).

St. Catherine's Lace (Eriogonum giganteum) – Another buckwheat, this showy evergreen plant has wooly, whitish-grayfoliage, usually growing to 2-4 feet tall x 4-5 feet wide. Large, dense clusters of tiny, lacy pinkish-white flowers gradually turn reddish-brown over the summer. Once established it requires little water. The UC Davis Arboretum named this easy-to-care for plant one of its “All-Stars” for growing in California gardens. An important butterfly plant, it also supports honeybees, native bees, moths and attracts birds.

California Fuchsia (Epilobium canum) – With its profusion of bright scarlet, tubular shaped flowers, this fuchsia is a magnet for hummingbirds and provides a splash of color to a summer garden. A perennial plant that is easy to grow, it tolerates almost any soil, and does well in the sun or partial shade. Like buckwheats, once established it generally needs no water during the summer. It will continue to bloom into autumn, dying back and going dormant in the winter. There are a number of varieties, including some white and pink ones: the Brilliant Smith California fuchsia ((Epilobium ‘Brilliant Smith'), Solidarity Pink California Fuchsia (Epilobium ‘Solidarity Pink'), and the white Summer Snow California Fuchsia (Epilobium ‘Summer Snow').

California Sunflower (Helianthus californicus) – This wild sunflower is an erect perennial that is a somewhatsprawling,lanky plant up to 3 meters or more, with a network of tough, woody roots and small rhizomes. The classic sunflowers are bright yellow, blooming during the summer and fall, which attract a variety of bees and other pollinators. Birds love the seeds they produce.

Narrowleaf Milkweed (Asclepias fascicularis) – This 3 foot tall milkweed plant blooms in summer and fall with clusters of light lavender or pink-white flowers. Its long pointed leaves gives it a delicate appearance. This species is probably the single most important milkweed species for the endangered Monarch butterflies since it is a major host plant for their caterpillars. Do not spray pesticides near them since that could be fatal to the Monarch caterpillars. The plant also provides resources for other beneficial creatures including native bees. The fruit are small pods that split open, spilling their seeds in silky hairs that are carried through the air. Dormant in the winter, it grows well in the summer with no water.

Desert Willow Tree – (Chilopsis linearis) – This small deciduous tree (12 – 18 ft. tall) blooms much of the summer. It gets its name because of its willow-like leaves and is drought-tolerant. A fast growing, low-maintenance tree once established, its lovely trumpet-shaped flowers in a variety of pink, lavender, and white colors attract butterflies, bees and birds.

When to Plant

While these plants all thrive in the summer heat with little water, this is not a good time to plant them! The cooler months of fall or early spring is always the best time to plant new plants in your garden. They will need moderate watering until they are established, which usually takes a year or two.

You cannot go wrong with planting any of these native plants in your garden for colorful summer flowers that are water-wise, easy to care for, adapted to our summer heat, and will attract pollinators!

Some publications with information about California native plants:

Created by California Native Plant Society, it is an excellent source of information on native plants: https://www.calscape.org/

8 Summer-blooming Plants: https://publicgarden.ucdavis.edu/blog/8-summer-blooming-plants

WUCOLS: Water Use Classification of Landscape Species is landscape-based search website that is based by region: https://wucols-frontend.ucdavis.edu/#/search

UC Davis Arboretum All-Stars: https://arboretum.ucdavis.edu/arboretum-all-stars

People sometimes think that native plants are boring, colorless and require a lot of maintenance. Nothing could be further from the truth! My garden is filled with many native plants which once established seldom need watering during the hot summer days. They need little care beyond occasional pruning and deadheading of flowers. I never need to fertilize (I leave the leaves) and seldom have pests, so I do not need to use pesticides (spraying water to dislocate the pests manages them). In the spring, my garden is a riot of color, attracting bees, birds and butterflies which provide unending entertainment. There are fewer flowers during the summer and fall months, but there is always something blooming well into November, along with visiting pollinators. Some of my plants are “early birds” and start blooming in late January.

Native plants have developed over thousands of years to our soil and climate, developing mutually beneficial relationships with the local wildlife. They have adapted to our Mediterranean climate with its wet winters and hot, dry summers. Many native plants are keystone species which means they play a vital role in the ecosystem by providing crucial food, shelter and reproductive sites for other species. The decline or absence of a keystone species can cause other species to be unable to survive and go extinct, causing the ecosystem to change drastically. An example of a keystone species is the Valley oak (Quercus lobata). One Valley oak tree can support around 300 animals (including mammals, birds, amphibians and reptiles), 1,100 plants, 370 fungi, 5,000 insects and invertebrates, plus an unknown number of microorganisms!

Due to climate change, California's Central Valley weather is getting hotter and drier with longer periods of drought likely, interspersed with occasional wet years. Growing native plants in our gardens is one of the ways we can have water-wise, environmentally friendly, colorful plants that support local wildlife.

If you are interested in learning about native plant gardening, how to start planting and caring for native plants, what plants are California natives, come to one of the Stanislaus County UC Master Gardeners' library talks during September. Like many of my fellow Master Gardeners, I love to share my love and knowledge of native plants!

 Denise Godbout-Avant has been a UC Master Gardener in Stanislaus County since 2020

Why is my squash plant covered in webbing? My grape vine has lots of webbing and yellowing leaves, but I do not see any spiders. The leaves on my tomato plants are covered with light stippling, are turning yellow and falling off, and have tiny, moving dots on them – what are they? Based on calls like this to the Stanislaus County UCCE Master Gardeners' Help Line, many gardeners are currently dealing with an explosion of spider mites, a common pest of vegetables, fruit trees, berries, vines, ornamental plants and houseplants who can thrive in the hot, dry, dusty summers of California's Central Valley. 

What are Spider Mites?

With eight legs and a segmented body divided into two regions, spider mites are arachnids like spiders and ticks.  They are mites, members of the Tetranychus genus, which has more than 1,600 mite species worldwide. Tiny and difficult to see, spider mites generally live in colonies on the undersides of leaves of plants, where they may spin protective silk webs, giving them the “spider” portion of their common name. If the colonies are large, their dense webbing can cover the plant's leaves, stems and fruit. They cause damage to the plant by puncturing the leaves and sucking the plant cell contents. A small number of mites is generally not a problem on healthy plants, but very high populations can be damaging.

The initial damage generally appears as a stippling of light dots on the leaves. Heavily infected leaves turn yellow or bronze and fall off. To spread to new locations, these mites make use of “ballooning” by becoming airborne on a strand of webbing in the wind. If conditions are favorable, some spider mite varieties can hatch in 3 days and become sexually mature in as little as 5 days. A female can lay up to 20 eggs per day, live to 2-4 weeks, laying hundreds of eggs. This accelerated reproductive rate allows their numbers to grow rapidly, and to adapt quickly, becoming resistant to pesticides.

How To Control Spider Mites

Fortunately, spider mites have many predators, including lacewings, predatory thrips, minute pirate bugs, and even predatory mites. If infestations are not severe, these beneficial natural enemies can help keep spider mite populations low.

Keeping the dust down by planting ground covers, using mulches, and irrigating regularly also reduces the chances of getting spider mite infestations. Ensure your plants are getting enough water to reduce drought stress – stressed plants are more susceptible to harmful insects and diseases. If you do have a large spider mite population, apply water spray or mist to the undersides of the leaves at least twice a day to help decrease their numbers since they prefer dry conditions.

If mites have been determined to be the cause of the infestation and a pesticide is needed, use a less toxic insecticide such as those listed in the UC IPM Pest Notes: Spider Mites listed below.

For More Information

UC Integrated Pest Management (IPM) has additional information on how to identify spider mites, their life cycle, plant damage, and how to control: 

UC QUICK TIPS: https://ipm.ucanr.edu/QT/spidermitescard.html

UC PEST NOTES: https://ipm.ucanr.edu/legacy_assets/PDF/PESTNOTES/pnspidermites.pdf

Denise Godbout-Avant has been an UC Cooperative Extension Master Gardener in Stanislaus County since 2020

 

In case you missed it, we are holding a seed saving workshop.

Did you know? Not all saved tomato seeds will produce the same tomato you ate! Find out why and learn the method of how to save them in this informative and hands-on workshop. You'll take home seeds to save and a copy of the presentation.

When: Saturday, August 24, 2024 9:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Cost: $10
Location: Stanislaus County Ag Center, Modesto
Sign Up Link: https://ucanr.edu/totally/tomatoes/2024  
Questions? (209) 525-6862
UC Cooperative Extension Master Gardener Instructor: Heidi Aufdermaur

If you'd prefer to pay by cash or check, you can send or drop payment by the office. Please sign up and pay by August 15 to reserve your space!