It's holiday time and the Master Gardeners have been hard at work preparing for our annual wreath workshop.  December 3 is the day that the Buck Mansion Carriage House in Vacaville will be all a buzz with the people making their own holiday wreath.

Prior to the actual day, a lot of work goes into preparing for this workshop by the Master Gardeners.  In late October and early November a message was sent to all the Master Gardeners, telling them when it’s time to prune any plants in their yards to remember the wreath workshop and to collect any that can be dried to use to decorate the wreaths.  Twice in November, some Master Gardeners met and spray  painted almost  every color on some of the plants that had been collected and dried.  Some of the hydrangeas that looked good were left in their natural state. Other hydrangeas, agapanthus, lavender, agastache, lions tail, sedum, and so much more were sprayed for the participants to add to their wreaths.  There will bows of different colors that can also be added.

Late November it was time to cut the greens. We met at a local spot and with permission from the owner we filled a truck and trailer with redwood boughs, we were very careful and only took what was needed and did the look of the spot.  We did such a good job; you could not tell we had been there.  This trailer of redwood was then taken to a spot in Vacaville, to be soaked overnight and cut the next day to be cut into manageable pieces for the wreath makers to use.  After being cut the pieces were boxed in banana size boxes along with other green that had been gathered and transported to the Buck Mansion.

So December 3rd we were ready for a fun start to the holidays, wreath making with all the bows and decorations you might want.  Oh and of course food as well.

With the annual Master Gardener Wreath Workshop only about a week away, I start to think about plants in the landscape that can be used in wreaths.  Every year the MGs and I test new plants to see if they will hold up in a wreath.  Sometimes the plants are sturdy and retain their color and don’t fall apart-while others shatter and make a mess.

Just last year, we discovered from our MGs Mike and Kathy, that Sedum ‘Autumn Joy’ was a winner. This plant is considered a succulent, and who would have thought of trying it, but they did!  After the flowers have bloomed and you’ve had time to enjoy them, you simply cut a good length of stem and hang the stems upside-down to dry.  Once dried, we spray painted them various colors: purple, silver or gold.  They can then be added to a wreath for a touch of color or sparkle.

Other plants that are proven winners for a wreath have been:

• Pineapple guava (Feijoa sellowiana): Pineapple guava has wonderful oval-shaped leaves that are green on one side and felty, silver-grey on the other.  When arranged in a wreath with the silvery side up, it the leaves become the focus of the wreath.
• Dwarf Plumbago (Ceratostigma plumbaginoides): Dwarf plumbago has a distinct shape to it’s stem.  The stem is zig-zaggy and wiry in character.  It also has round, pokey seed heads.  In the cooler weather, the leaves turn a bronzy to reddish color, again, adding depth to the boring green wreaths.  I used dwarf plumbago with pacific wax myrtle and rose hips in a wreath I made for my aunt one year and it came out spectacularly!
• Heavenly bamboo (Nandina domestica): A tried-and-true plant for our wreath workshop.  The heavenly bamboo has fabulous fall colors of red, gold and green.  It’s delicate, feathery structure is a knock-out against the verdant background material used for the wreaths.
  

  Lacey foliage of Nandina domestica. (photos by Jennifer Baumbach)

There are so many other great plants out there that I could list, but I just don’t have the time to list them all.  We even use plants or plant parts or other materials.  We dry fruit, flowers (such as hydrangeas), use interesting twigs (crab apple or curly willow), and rose hips.  Of course pine cones, seed pods, feathers, and sea shells can always be hot glued or wired into a wreath.

I will be looking forward to seeing what unique wreaths will be made at our wreath workshop on December 3.  This year we are booked up, but mark your calendars for next year.  We hold the workshop the first Saturday of every December.  I will make sure to post for you pictures of the wreaths that were made from this workshop.

Happy Thanksgiving to you all!

Red tint on Nandina.

By 2009 the one remaining lawn is the main lawn with the traditional "need to mow and water" grass from the front door to the sidewalk.  We begin planting a little garden next to the house with a row of Erysimum below our living room window.  They look very tidy.  We add some Euphorbia characias and I find the beautiful yellow blooms against the grey-blue foliage enticing.

The lawn is gone. (photos by Trisha Rose)

During the spring of 2009 I attended a workshop at Solano College given by the Solano County Master Gardeners on the subject of "Propagation".  The MG's are friendly and very helpful as they explain some basic how-to's of plant propagation, I'm hooked and submit my application for the Solano Master Gardener's Program 2010 term.  As I sit through the series of lectures, I realize there are many options for gardening and soon begin to think seriously about removing the main front lawn and putting in a garden that is more interesting to use, uses much less water and give us a chance to experiment with different plant materials.  So it is now 2011 and the rains seem to continue on and on.  Finally it is May and our son has relocated nearby.  He agrees to remove the sod and we are on our way.

View toward water from our 'new' yard.

How much of an image does this phrase conjure up in our mind? Linus sitting in the dark field waiting for the “Great Pumpkin” to show up?  The pumpkin (Curcurbita pepo) at this time of year comes into the spotlight as  Halloween pumpkin carving and growing contests abound. It’s fun to see what our imagination can come up with from the traditional triangle eyes and  jagged toothed mouth, to complete works of art and vignettes of these  and other popular squashes.  Just do a quick search on carved pumpkins and you’ll find more than your fill.

A great pumpkin. (photo by Jennifer Baumbach)

Alas, pumpkin at and after Halloween can become a bit like turkey leftovers at Thanksgiving though. What do you do with that decomposing candle charred heap on your doorstep?

Well, composting is a good idea if you have such a pile. At the very least get it to the green bin before the bugs attack or the bottom rots out leaving you with that wet, orange stain on your front walk until Christmas.

If you haven’t carved  it, painted it, or otherwise decimated it in someway, I encourage you to give something new a try. Full of Vitamin A, there is a plethora of  goodies to make, and you thought Master Gardener’s were just about growing stuff. Here you can surely find something to suit your taste buds from the savory to the sweet.  http://ucanr.org/sites/CE_San_Joaquin/files/35479.pdf

Finally, don’t forget to save a seed or two for next year (before baking!) so you can have another try at growing your own great pumpkin!