- Author: Denise Godbout-Avant
The month of May is Garden for Wildlife month. Due to factors such as loss of habitat, pesticides exposure, and climate change, much of wildlife is being challenged today. There are many ways home gardeners can directly help birds, bees, butterflies, and other local wildlife. The saying “If you build it, they will come” applies not only to the classic baseball movie “Field of Dreams,” but also to attracting wildlife to your garden.
Plants
If you have the space, plant an oak tree! While it will take several years for the tree to mature, few plants provide more benefits to nature than an oak tree. One Valley oak tree can provide food, water, and shelter to approximately 350 vertebrate species and...
/h3>Spring and Summer Vegetables From Your Very Own Garden
By Pat Hitchcock, U.C. Master Gardener of Napa County
When should home gardeners start planting their spring or summer vegetable patches? A recent warm spell with near record-breaking daytime temperatures might have inspired you to consider getting some seeds and plants into the ground.
Your dreams of fresh produce might have been encouraged if you saw all the vegetable seedlings at local nurseries. However, nature is probably not finished with winter yet. Many of those nursery seedlings will not thrive if we have chilly days and nights ahead.
A look at the data can be enlightening. Here are the average monthly high and low temperatures for Napa:...