- Author: Help Desk Team
The Mediterranean climate of Contra Costa County has us spoiled for choices in growing handsome perennials and shrubs, including many native plants that attract local beneficial insects and nourish our ecosystems. Whether you are planning a new garden or adding to an existing one, references abound to help you select and plant perennials successfully.
September through Thanksgiving is the best time to plant most perennials and shrubs, especially California natives. The soil is still warm enough to encourage good root development and most importantly, cool weather and winter rains get plants off to a good start. Make sure you water them well when first planted, then continue watering until winter rains start.
Plants adapted to a Mediterranean climate need moisture until their root systems mature (with some succulents being exceptions). These plants may still need water during the summer to look their best but will tolerate a long dry summer much better with well-developed roots.
“Drought-tolerant” is a somewhat misleading term. Several dry months during our typical Mediterranean summers do not result in a drought. “Climate-adapted” or “water-smart” are more helpful terms to describe plants. These are adapted to the normally dry summers and wet winters common in many Mediterranean areas. Water conservation during any California summer makes economic and ecological sense.
Some reliable favorites include Toyon (Heteromeles arbutifolia), Sunset Manzanita (neat and tidy), De la Mina Verbena (Verbena lilacina 'De La Mina'), Salvia ‘Bee's Bliss' (needs room), Flowering Currant (Ribes sanguineum), Epilobium, Yarrow, and California Buckwheat. Check the Native Plant database listed below to see which plants will do well in your zip code or in a particular spot in your garden.
The first four references below are robust websites to help you select perennials that will work in Contra Costa County. We are biased toward water-wise California natives, although perennials from other Mediterranean climates can do well here. If you have a lot of garden space, you may want the help of a professional landscaper (see last reference).
• East Bay MUD water-smart plants (natives and non-natives): https://www.ebmud.com/water/conservation-and-rebates/watersmart-gardener/watersmart-plants
• UC Davis “All Star” Plant Database (natives and non-natives): https://arboretum.ucdavis.edu/plant-database
• Contra Costa County water-saving plant database (natives and non-natives): https://www.contracosta.watersavingplants.com/search.php
• Native plant database from California Native Plant Society: https://www.calscape.org/
• How to find a landscape professional https://rescape.memberclicks.net/directory
Help Desk of the UC Master Gardeners of Contra Costa County (EAS)
By Susanne von Rosenberg, UC Master Gardener of Napa County
Many of us set goals at the start of a new year, and most of us give up on them fairly quickly. How about focusing on your garden this year instead? That will probably be a lot more fun than any resolution you were going to make.
Your garden intention can be an enjoyable way to improve your health and well-being and help the planet, too. Win-win-win! Set an intention rather than a goal. An intention creates a path you follow and avoids the stress of having to meet a specific expectation. After all, gardening should be enjoyable.
So what will your win-win-win garden intention be this year? Here are some ideas:
Consider making your garden more environmentally friendly:
Reduce your water use. Install drip irrigation (it's really not that hard) or focus on rainwater harvesting. Alternatively, replace some particular thirsty plants with drought-tolerant choices.
Improve your soil. Keep mulching and use organic fertilizers. Your plants and the planet will thank you.
Plant more native plants. They're beautiful and,once established, need little care.
Choose plants that support native pollinators. We need to support diversity in the pollinator population.
How about planting some plants that will help reduce your energy consumption by shading your home or its south- and west-facing windows?
Learn more about climate-friendly gardening. For example, did you know that you can help trap carbon in the soil through the right kinds of gardening practices? And these practices improve your soil, too.
Create habitat for wildlife. In addition to planting native plants and other plants to provide food for wildlife, provide water and shelter. Leave your garden a little messy; it's better for wildlife.
Replace your lawn with drought-tolerant plantings. All of the cities in Napa County have cash-for-grass programs that pay you to remove your lawn and replace it with a drought-tolerant garden.
Learn to make compost. It's the best way to recycle your yard waste and some food scraps. And if you can't make enough compos to mulch your garden, buy it from the municipal waste company.It's inexpensive and certified as a soil amendment for organic agriculture.
Learn more about your garden:
Spend more time observing it. How does the light and shade change throughout the year? Where does the rainwater flow? How does the wind affect your garden? Which critters call it home?
Track the daily high and low temperature and the rainfall in your location. You can find inexpensive gauges in most garden centers and nurseries and online. Keep a notebook or other journal to record what you observe.
Experiment with something new: new plants, new tools or new ways of taking care of your garden. Did you know that no-till gardens are the wave of the future?
Make your garden work better for you:
What are the big challenges in your garden, and what one action could you take to make the biggest dent in dealing with that challenge?
What can you do to make your garden more enjoyable? Do you need more seating? Or perhaps more shade or sun? Do you want to create a peaceful nook for meditation?
Simply spend a bit more time gardening. Fifteen minutes a day can have a big effect and will make for a relaxing break, no matter what time of day you go out.
Consider contributing fresh produce to the local Food Bank (check first to find out what is needed). This is a wonderful activity to share with kids.
Do you have grandkids or nieces and nephews? How about introducing them to the joys of gardening?
Knowledge makes you a better and more confident gardener. Check out the Master Gardener website (http://napamg.ucanr.edu/) for useful information as well as upcoming workshops and events.
Or you could simply decide to spend more time in the garden. Fresh air and being in nature are wonderful for your heart and soul. Being more at peace is a wonderful intention for the new year.
Workshop: The U. C. Master Gardeners of Napa County will present a workshop on “Growing Spring and Summer Vegetables” on Saturday, March 9, from 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m., at the University of California Cooperative Extension, 1710 Soscol Avenue, Napa. Do you want nutritious, easy-to grow and utterly fresh food from your garden this spring and summer? Learn what the garden needs to successfully produce spring and summer vegetables from seeds and plant starts. In addition to growing basics and hands-on activities, this program includes watering, fertilizing and harvesting tips, with a dash of Integrated Pest Management for pest and disease control. The delight of growing your own groceries is matched only by savoring them at harvest. Online registration (credit card only); Mail-in/Walk-in registration (check only or drop off cash payment).
Workshop: The U. C. Master Gardeners of Napa County will present a workshop on “Summer Vegetables” on Sunday, March 10, from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., at Yountville Community Center, 6516 Washington Street, Yountville. Get tips for growing your own summer vegetables. Learn some basics, get keys to success, and do hands-on activities to learn about new varieties and review old favorites. Enjoy healthy vegetables taken straight from your garden to your table. The delight of growing your own vegetables is matched by savoring them at harvest. Online registration or telephone the Parks & Recreation Department at 707-944-8712.
Master Gardeners are volunteers who help the University of California reach the gardening public with home gardening information. U. C. Master Gardeners of Napa County (http:/napamg.ucanr.edu) are available to answer gardening questions in person or by phone, Monday, Wednesday and Friday, 9 a.m. to Noon, at the U. C. Cooperative Extension office, 1710 Soscol Avenue, Suite 4, Napa, 707-253-4143, or from outside City of Napa toll-free at 877-279-3065. Or e-mail your garden questions by following the guidelines on our web site. Click on Napa, then on Have Garden Questions? Find us on Facebook under UC Master Gardeners of Napa County.
By Alicia Springer, UC Butte County Master Gardeners, August 11, 2017.
We Californians understand the concept of summer dormancy: “Those hills aren't brown, they're beautifully golden!” We know that the cycle of seasons plays out a bit more dramatically across our hot, dry countryside than in locales where the landscape stays predictably green throughout the summer.
The dog days of summer are a muted, in-between time in the native garden. Dry-climate plants have developed strategies for coping with high summer, whether on a rocky ledge in the foothills or in your back yard. Spring-blooming species stop producing new flowers and greenery and put all their energy into seed production. Late bloomers haven't yet hit their stride. Once-vibrant foliage looks faded and the vivid flowers of spring are a memory. Even long-blooming garden favorites such as sages, buckwheats, and sunflowers might take a breather from profuse flowering, and resume blooming when temperatures are a bit milder.
This doesn't mean that the late summer native garden lacks beauty or interest. To a native plant lover, the architectural punch of a milkweed pod bursting with silky seed is more than a match for the pink and orange zing of a zinnia. The deep red of a manzanita branch, revealed as the dry outer bark peels away, is as rich as any rose. Our native garden selections show off their wild origins with a more natural effect than conventional garden hybrids bred for tidy flower production, but native plant enthusiasts embrace and accept a wilder aesthetic.
A visit to the Butte County Master Gardeners Demonstration Garden at the Patrick Ranch shows how various species hold up through a valley heat wave. Both the California Native garden and the Native Habitat garden are zones planted solely with natives, and natives are incorporated into several of the other garden zones, including the Mediterranean garden and the Butte All-Stars. How do they look now at the height of summer? The California Native garden's collage of green, silver, and tawny shades; the varying heights and textures; and the abundant sprawl of stems, branches, and seedheads make a pleasing whole. Some specimens in the two native gardens look positively snappy—the manzanita ‘Louis Edmunds' (Arctostaphylos bakeri ‘Louis Edmunds'), the redbud (Cercis occidentalis), the ceanothus ‘Blue Jeans' (C. maritimus ‘Blue Jeans'), the canyon sagebrush (Artemisia californica ‘Canyon Gray'), and the coffeeberry ‘Eve Case' (Frangula californica ‘Eve Case') all look like their answer to heat is “no sweat.” The deer grass (Muhlenbergia rigens) and California fescue (Festuca californica) still look pretty lively and illustrate why grasses are indispensable garden features. Bees are feeding on the fragrant pitcher sage (Lepechinia fragrans ‘el tigre'), the snowberry (Symphoricarpos albus), and the goldenrod (Solidago velutina ssp. californica), which are still blooming a bit; soon the California fuchsia (Epilobium canum) will begin to bloom, pleasing the hummingbirds.
Most other species in the two native gardens look exactly as they should right now, exhibiting varying degrees of browning leaf edges, a mix of fresh and dried blooms, seedheads (some left unclipped for the birds), and fresh-to-fading greenery. The showy milkweed (Asclepias speciosa) and narrow-leafed milkweed (Asclepias fascicularis) display fat and burst pods, respectively. The wilting California rose (Rosa californica) is left un-deadheaded so it can develop its tiny hips. There are several different species of penstemon in the two gardens, with bloom times ranging from early spring to midsummer; they have finished flowering for the season, but are holding on valiantly to await another summer. The snapdragon bush (Keckiella antirrhinoides), coyote mint (Monardella villosa) and gum plant (Grindelia camporum) are well on their way to complete dormancy, right on schedule.
The watering regimen applied at these zones of native plants in the Demonstration Garden is a useful general guideline for drought-tolerant native species. We use a drip system with one two-gallon emitter on each specimen. We turn on irrigation in mid- to late June as the summer heats up, and water once every two weeks for 30 minutes, delivering around a gallon to each plant. Plants are watered throughout their first two summer seasons; for their first summer, newcomers planted in the fall or spring get additional hand-watering so they are watered weekly, and for the second summer, they receive the twice-monthly automated drip. After two summer cycles, emitters are removed from the most xeric specimens and they get no further scheduled irrigation. With this regular but spare watering, plants retain garden-worthy flowers and foliage longer than they would in the harsh outback.
- Don't overwater. No amount of irrigation can coax a summer-dormant plant into bursting forth anew with fresh blooms and foliage. In fact, the best way to kill a heat-struck plant is to withhold water for weeks and then suddenly shock it with a midsummer flood. Take care to research the specific water needs for the particular plants in your own garden; not all natives are drought-tolerant.
- No stress, please. Peak summer is not the time for overzealous pruning or fertilizing, both of which can force the plant to put out new growth when it's least likely to survive. Deadhead spent blooms (or let seed heads develop for birds), but resist the urge to completely whack back leggy growth and browning foliage. You can tidy up in the fall.
- Mix it up. Many non-native garden favorites from compatible dry-summer climates have been cultivated over time to bear up under heat stress. By all means, mix natives with non-natives, perennials with annuals—just be sure to group plants with similar water needs together.
- Plan for succession. Early-season perennial bloomers, such as redbud, ceanothus, and bush lupines, give way to summer penstemons, salvias, yarrows, buckwheats, and a host of other beauties which provide color and interest well into late fall. Good places to start your research include the California Native Plant Society gardening website http://www.cnps.org/cnps/grownative, and our Butte County Master Gardeners website http://ucanr.edu/sites/bcmg/resources/drought.