We are heading into high summer with a couple of scorchers for the weekend. I always dread the first 100-degree days because it really puts a damper on people’s enthusiasm for gardening. It is also tough on those of us who work outside. Thank god we have some shade here. Many of you report that we are notably cooler here than downtown.
We have such a variety of microclimates in this county. A lot of folks who live on Cobb have waited til lately to buy their vegetables. Then we have people who live in the ‘banana belts’ who barely frost and are asking for tomatoes in February. Deer, gophers, and birds can cause destruction and necessitate a replant. We try to accommodate this wide variety of zones and disasters. We still have lots of vegetable starts available, although we are definitely cutting back.
Our soil special is coming to an end in May, but we will run it through Sunday, June 1st. Now is the time to start mulching for water retention and to keep the soil cooler if you haven’t already. The cheapest mulch for your vegetable gardens is straw. You can get that at Rainbow Ag south of town. For the rest, we have bark, shredded cedar, and Firmulch. Firmulch has the added benefit of adding nutrition to the soil and is a great top dressing for everything. Add to that, it is not as potentially flammable as bark. When using bark, please keep it 5 feet away from any buildings.
Our roses have gone through their first flush of bloom, and it is time to feed them. We feed after every round of bloom, which is every 4-6 weeks. Spring blooming Camellias, Azaleas, and Rhodies should be shaped and fed. Hungry Citrus gets fed once a month here. We are still waiting on FST. This is the iron/sulphur additive we use on our conifers, maples, blueberries, citrus, and other acid soil lovers. They had to change the percentages on the bag, and the new bags are taking months. Last word was June, so hopefully soon.
Speaking of delays, some of you are waiting for this year’s offering of upright cold-hardy Fuchsias. Usually, we have them by now, and I was told they would be ready to order in June. They are now saying July. Perfect Fuchsia planting weather…NOT. We still plan on getting them as they are one of the better shade bloomers through summer. Abutilons, also known as Flowering Maples, are another good choice. We should be getting a selection of them in soon. Hostas and late blooming Liriope and Japanese Anemones are also great shade choices. Coleus is another great choice, but it is not a perennial.
Now for the alarming news. Some research has shown, besides saying we are consuming a credit card’s worth of micro-plastics a week, that these pollutants are causing a substantial reduction in photosynthetic efficiency in our ecosystems. In the plant world, they are claiming 7-12% reduction in efficiency. If this is true, it can definitely hurt the world’s food supply sometime in the future. All the more reason to grow your own, although I am afraid they are in our waterways and especially our oceans. At least here at the nursery, we are fairly close to the source and are crossing our fingers that our water is good. The bad news is how much plastic is used in our industry, and here. Too much. More companies are starting to make pots from recycled plastics or biodegradable pots. Then there are the plastic plant tags. And the soil bags we are no longer able to recycle. The plastic plant tie. The list goes on. I can say we reuse our pots here, write with grease pen on the pots as opposed to plant tags, and I prefer to use twine as opposed to the plastic tie tape. We do our bareroot fruit trees in fiber pots. We also take your pots to reuse, but the truth is I can not reuse branded pots or the odd pots you buy elsewhere. Please remove all tags, trash, and soil from pots you return to us.
Salvias are a popular item, and we restocked our ‘sage’ table with lots of great choices. Some of the other newer arrivals are Agastache (Hummingbird Mint), Angelonia (Summer Snapdragons), some very cool non-cold hardy succulents (you have been warned), Hollyhocks, and the annual heat-tolerant Scaevolas. We have a dwarf Sea Holly, the yellow Geum like in our pot, a new Penstemon, the coral Bee Balm, along with the red, and so much more. Some newer arrivals in the native section include a sage, late blooming CA Fuchsias (another hummer magnet), Monkey Flower, and the native Narrow Leaf Milkweed.
We just received a fresh shipment of ladybugs, and we have had some of our Mantids hatch. Those yellow-green ladybug-looking things we call cucumber beetles are out, and I noticed nymphs of the bordered plant beetle. The bordered plant beetle was everywhere here last year, but the numbers are way down this year. I am going to figure that passing on planting ‘squash mountain’ with pumpkins last year has helped. Beneficials insects are the best solutions overall, but you need large numbers. We like the yellow sticky traps and are still on the hunt for more of the ones that have both blue and yellow on the same trap to attract a larger number of bad bugs. As the weather gets hot, be careful with oils and, for that matter, any sprays. If your plants are shredded, then get the Sluggo Plus bait. Earwigs are your problem, and they cause the damage at night.
As the busiest time in the nursery business is winding down, I want to give a big thank-you to all our customers who came out to support us despite the tumultuous and uncertain financial times we are experiencing. I was not sure how spring was going to go this year. I think it is a sign that we crave the beauty and peace we find in our own backyards more than ever.
June Specials
4 inch Specialty Petunias-1.00 Off
20% Off
- Veggie Starts (herbs not included)
- EBS Rose and Flower Fertilizer
- Ca Natives
- Barks
