I have to tell you, I literally hit pay dirt. I planted one Echium fastuosum, “Star of Madeira”, and it is not only a major bee-magnet, it is absolutely stunning! With hundreds of profuse bluish-purple flowers atop tall spikes that tower above the attractive, variegated foliage, it has become the focal plant in my garden. It is also a favorite for my hummingbirds and butterflies.
When I planted it about three years ago from a 2-gallon pot, it was about a foot tall. Now It is now nearly 7 feet tall and about 5 feet across. It would actually be bigger but I continue to prune it so that I have room for the apples and avocados that are planted nearby.
There are more than 60 species of Echium, some are native to North America, others are from Europe and the Macaroneisa. Although some are grown as food for humans, butterflies, or moths, most Echium are grown as ornamental plants.
Probably the most common varietal you will find in the Bay Area is Echium candicans, “Pride of Madeira”. Its silvery-green foliage sports masses of very blue/purple blooms from early spring to mid-summer. It can easily grow 8 feet tall by 6 feet wide and is a heavy self-seeder, so you may want to dig up and gift most of those starts.
Echium amoenum, “Red Feathers”, is for those of you who want something a little more on the compact side. They grow only about a foot and half tall by about 6-to-8 inches wide. This plant is known to thrive on neglect, is suitable for clay soil and can handle cooler climates. The red feathery blooms attract an array of bees and butterflies. Although it is known to be short-lived, it will reseed itself if you resist deadheading all of the dried blooms.
Echium vucanorum, is a truly beautiful, and quite rare, white blooming varietal. It is native to a tiny West African island named Fogo. It will quickly grow to 6 feet high and wide and may do best with some afternoon shade in hotter areas.
And for maybe one of the coolest plants you can grow, try Echium wildpretii. It is a biennial from the Canary Islands. In its second year, it will send up tall spikes (up to 7 feet) of gorgeous dark pink/reddish flowers. Let it fully mature so that it can reseed and keep on going … the bees and birds love this one!
I believe every garden and every landscape should have at least one bee-friendly Echium. Most need a good bit of room to thrive and grow and at least six hours of sunlight per day. They are very drought-tolerant but do need regular watering for the first couple of years in order to get established. They prefer well-draining soil, but some can tolerate relatively poor conditions.
Many Bay Area nurseries carry several options. You can also do a Google-search of Echium to find unique and rare varieties. This may become your new favorite plant.
by UC Master Gardener Rebecca Jepsen
Photo courtesy of Rebecca Epsen
This article first appeared in the April 22, 2018 print issue of the San Jose Mercury News.
By planting several varieties of “attractor plants” you can invite the good guys in to fend off the bad ones without using harmful, toxic chemicals; certainly not something you want near the food you and your family are going to eat.
Lady Bird Beetles (ladybugs) are good friends to have around if aphids are a problem in your garden. They can eat about 50 aphids per day. They are very attracted to alyssum “Goldkugel” and “White Night”, yarrow, ajuga, marigold “Lemon Gem”, fennel, and sunflowers.
But your new best friend might be the lesser-known lacewing (the aphid lion). It may be so small you don't even see it, but it eats 20 times more aphids each day than a ladybug. You are almost certain to attract them by planting yarrow, dill, cosmos, coriander, Queen Anne's lace, and flowering mustard.
Bees are essential when growing edibles. More than 30 percent of all the food we eat is pollinated by bees. I am happy to report that I have the beautiful buzz of bees in my backyard year-round. To keep them happy I have planted a dozen varieties of salvia. Not only are they beautiful, they are easy to grow, come in all sizes and colors and take very little water once established. What's not to love? And, although most prefer full sun, there are many options that thrive in part sun to fairly deep shade.
Another favorite that both my bees and I love is lavender. It comes in all shades of purple (from very dark to pale purplish-pink) and even white. So why settle for just one? Don't have a lot of space? Choose one of the several dwarf options.
Rosemary is not only hardy, drought-tolerant, fragrant, and great for cooking, it attracts bees even in our wet winter months. For other flowering plants that are attractive as well as attracting try black-eyed Susan, calendula, purple coneflower, butterfly bush, bee balm, and sedums.
Hoverflies, also known as syrphid flies, look like small bees but literally hover over a plant or flower and then quickly dart away. By watching their movement you can easily distinguish them from bees. They do not sting, and they eat aphids, mealybugs, and thrips. They also like yarrow, alyssum, dill, garlic chives, and fennel. But try adding dwarf alpine aster, feverfew, statice, lemon balm and parsley to keep them healthy and happy.
There are many varieties of parasitic wasps. Again, at first glance they may look like a bee, but, if you look closer you will see that they have few if any, hairs. Bees are pollen collectors so are generally quite hairy. Wasps feed on tomato hornworms, cabbage worms, beetles, stink bugs, squash bugs, fly larvae and more. These little guys are great in the garden, and again they do not sting. Plant buckwheat, lemon balm, creeping thyme, cosmos “White Sensation”, lobelia, zinnia “Liliput”, parsley and Linaria.
Your garden is its own ecosystem. It takes time to build a healthy, thriving, environment that can mostly take care of itself. So, be patient, strive for diversity and trust me, if you plant it … they will come.
by UC Master Gardener Rebecca Jepsen
This article first appeared in the May 27, 2018 print issue of the San Jose Mercury News.
Timing is everything
As much as warm winter days (and glossy seed catalogs) may tempt us, Morgan Hill gardeners are wise to wait. According to the almanac of farming fame, Morgan Hill's last frost date is Feb. 15, while the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) warns that gardeners have a 10 percent chance of freezing temperatures as late as March 20! Starting too soon is simply a waste of time and seed.
Seed selection
Before planting, decide what you want to grow. Browsing seed catalogs can be intoxicating. Rather than ordering everything that looks good, find plants that are suitable to your microclimate, won't need a lot of water, and are non-invasive.
Read the label
Most seed packets are a wealth of valuable information that includes an image of the plant, description, and any special needs. Labels also list the year, timing, planting depth and spacing, thinning, sunlight, and watering needs of each plant. Use this information and save it for future reference.
Soil selection
Some seeds can be planted directly into the ground. This is called direct sowing. While all growing areas will serve your plants better if they are regularly fed with aged manure and compost, this is especially true for seeds and seedlings. They have a lot of work ahead of them and need all the nutrients they can get their little root hairs into. Most seeds are better off started in small pots filled with high-quality potting soil or starter mix.
Select containers
Starting seeds in small containers is the easiest way to begin. Placing one seed into each small container allows tiny roots to develop unchallenged. It also makes transplanting less stressful. You can reuse plastic seed starting pots, called "cell flats" from when you buy seedlings. Remember to clean and disinfect flats to avoid spreading pests or diseases. You can make biodegradable planting containers from paperboard egg cartons, newspaper, or toilet paper tubes, or you can buy seed starter pots. Take-out food containers, with clear plastic lids, can also be used for seed starting. The plastic covers keep warmth and moisture in.
Start planting
Once you have collected your seeds, containers, and potting soil, you are ready to plant. Labels made from Popsicle sticks are very handy, too. Labeling is important because many young plants are difficult to tell apart until they are long past the transplanting stage. Follow these steps for successful seed starting:
- Fill all containers loosely with potting soil, tamping it down gently.
- Place one seed in the soil to the depth specified on the packet.
- Add a dated plant label to each pot.
- Place flats on a water-resistant surface that will receive six to eight hours of sunlight each day, where they will be safe from slugs and snails.
- Gently and thoroughly water the flats. For seeds left on the soil surface, use a mister to water, to avoid washing them away, or pushing them too deeply into the soil. Soil should be kept moist, but not soggy, until the first true leaves are seen.
- Some plants, such as peppers, may need extra heat from a heating mat.
Now the seeds are started and waiting begins. Use this time to prepare your garden beds, raised beds, containers, towers, and other planting areas so they will be ready when it is time for transplanting,
Stop by the Spring Garden Market from 9 a.m.–2 p.m., April 14 at Martial Cottle Park for spring planting needs.
by UC Master Gardener Kate Russell
This article first appeared in the March 14 – 27, 2018 issue of Morgan Hill Life.
The Going Native Garden Tour, now in its 16th year, features more than 50 gardens from Morgan Hill to San Mateo. These gardens will delight and inspire you to replace that thirsty lawn with gorgeous, low-water, low-maintenance native and Mediterranean options. Not only are they beautiful, they support our local birds, bees, bugs, and wildlife.The North Bay tour is on April 7 and the South Bay tour is on April 8. Both run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Bringing Back the Natives Garden Tour: To view gardens throughout Alameda and Contra Costa counties, don't miss the 14th annual Bringing Back the Natives Garden Tour on May 6 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Various gardens will feature live music, artwork, and native plants for sale and plenty of activities for the kids.
Spring Garden Market: The oldest and largest edible gardening event of the year, you won't want to miss the 24th annual Spring Garden Market, brought to you by the Santa Clara Master Gardeners. Over the last several months they have seeded, up-potted, watered, trailed and tested nearly 20,000 plants just for you.
With more than 70 varieties of tomatoes, it is almost impossible to pick just a few. There will be all sizes, colors and taste selections to choose from. If standard red is your tomato-du-jour, there will be dozens of options ranging from beefsteak to cherry. If you make your own sauce, don't miss out on the paste tomatoes that range in size from 1-5 inches long. But, if like me, you like to color outside the lines, try growing a few black, green, orange, yellow or even bi-colored varieties. Some tomatoes are extremely sweet, some have very low acid, and some have very few seeds. Just ask one of the experts that will be on hand to help you find what exactly what you are looking for.
With tomatoes, size really does matter. If you are gardening in containers or a small space, opt for determinate varieties that only grow 2-4 feet high. Indeterminates usually grow from about 5-8 feet tall, and semi-indeterminates fall somewhere in between. Some fruit in as little as 50 days and others will take well over 100, so you can definitely extend your harvest by choosing wisely.
Like tomatoes, peppers come in all colors, sizes, and tastes and there will be plenty to chose from. Some are so sweet you can eat them right off the vine, others will make you feel like a fire-breathing dragon! There are lots of reds, but try a few orange, yellow, green, purple and blacks as well. Most peppers will do fine in a pot, and some are very ornamental, so would be a great addition to your sunny deck or patio. Others can get several feet tall and need staking or a trellis for support.
For all of you chefs out there, don't miss the fabulous herbs that will be offered. There will be many varieties of basil, chives, dill, fennel, lemongrass, oregano, parley, tarragon, and thyme.
Here are more fantastic Master Gardener events happening soon throughout the Bay Area:
South Bay
- Martial Cottle Park, April 14, 9 a.m. – 2 p.m., 5283 Snell Ave., San Jose
- Guglielmo Winery, April 21, 10 a.m. – 1:30 p.m., 1480 East Main Ave., Morgan Hill
Peninsula
- San Mateo Event Center, April 21, 9 a.m. – 1 p.m., 1346 Saratoga Dr., San Mateo
East Bay
- Our Garden, April 7, 10 a.m. – 3 p.m., 2405 Shadelands Dr., Walnut Creek
- Contra Costa County Fairgrounds, April 14, 10 a.m. – 3 p.m., 1201 W. 10th St., Antioch
- Richmond Public Library, April 28, 10 a.m. – 3 p.m., 325 Civic Center Plaza, Richmond
Happy gardening and see you at the market.
by UC Master Gardener Rebecca Jepsen
Photos by Pam Roper
This article first appeared in the March 25 print issue of the San Jose Mercury News.
Top five methods to preserve your harvest
You can make the most of your garden harvest by keeping everything fresh and harvesting fruits and vegetables as soon as they are ready. Leaving them on the vine or stem for too long and they can attract pests and diseases. Flavor and texture also tend to deteriorate over time.
Cooking
Fruits can be simmered and pureed and then either canned or frozen. It can also be dried into fruit leather. Vegetables can be cooked, pureed, and then frozen for later use in soups, casseroles, and other recipes. All those zucchini can be cooked into Chocolate Zucchini Cake for a popular dessert that always disappears quickly. They can also be stuffed and frozen for a simple pop-in-the-oven dinner.
Freezing
Freshly picked and washed produce can be placed in a resealable plastic bag or container and stored in the freezer. If you have an abundance of tomatoes that you will be canning, this is an excellent way to retain that fresh flavor while waiting for enough ripe fruit to warrant firing up the stove. Peas and beans should be hulled before freezing, but those pods can be tossed into a separate freezer bag to be used to make soup stock come winter.
Canning
Canning tomatoes is an easy way to store food from your garden. The acidity in tomatoes makes them far less likely to develop mold. That being said, enlist the help of an experienced canner and be sure to follow food safety guidelines whenever canning.
Drying
Many fruits and vegetables from your garden can be dried for future use and easy storage. Grapes, peas, and beans can be dried at room temperature. For other foods, you can use a commercial dehydrator or your oven. Times and temperatures vary, depending on the type of food and its thickness. You can look online or go to your local library for specific instructions.
Gifting
Sometimes, your garden will simply produce more food than you can use. Family, friends, and neighbors should always top the list when your garden produces abundance. Local food banks and other charities are nearly always happy to accept donations of fresh fruits and vegetables.
Rather than tossing out the fruits of your labor, make the most of your harvest with these simple methods for prolonging your garden's shelf life.
by UC Master Gardener Kate Russell
Photo: UC, Melissa Womack
This article first appeared in the August 17, 2017 issue of South Valley Magazine.
