‘Tis the Season – Garden Lovers Gift Ideas!

• Jane Scurich

• Shopping for my gardening friends is always so much fun! While we each have our own unique garden personalities, we do share in our joy of nature, and the amazing beauty and variety of plant materials available to enhance our landscape. And often, we enjoy an opportunity to remove our well-worn garden gloves and visit spectacular botanical collections. The holiday season offers so many options to honor and gift our gardening buddies.

  While our local garden centers are well stocked with gloves, tools, seeds, baskets, bowls, blooming holiday plants and soon to arrive, bare root roses, I have some additional suggestions to fill your lucky gardener’s stocking with neat treats.

   

  The Marin Rose Society is offering its first "Pruning Roses in Your Garden" fundraiser. Rose society experts will come to your home and prune your roses in January. I had the pleasure of spending a day in the garden with a local rosarian a couple of Januarys ago and I am so impressed by the breadth of their knowledge. Please call Florence Taylor at 415 454-3870 or email nonitaylor@aol.com to purchase a gift certificate for your favorite rose lover to enjoy having a professional prune the rose garden and offer valuable growing advice. Prices start at $4 a bush with a minimum charge of $40 per garden. (Personally, I’m not waiting for Santa to deliver this treat—I’m booking my pruning now).

   

  Marin Master Gardeners have penned a collective anthology to aid and inspire the local gardener. "Bay area gardens require a special green thumb to cope with the variety of climates, soils and diversity of plants. These Bay area gardeners have the savvy to guide you to a successful garden experience" —comments by Helen Heitkamp, Regional Editor, Better Homes and Gardens Magazine. Bay Area Gardening, Practical Essays by Master Gardeners, can be ordered at http://cemarin.ucdavis.edu/Master_Gardener/Bay_Area_Gardening_-_The_Book.htm or by calling the Master Gardener desk, 415 499-4204. Pick up the book at the Master Gardener office, 1682 Novato Boulevard, Suite 150-B, Novato for $10 or order online for $15.

   

  Gardening Among Friends: 65 Practical Essays by Master Gardeners is locally written and offers advice on gardening in our unique Mediterranean inspired micro climates.

   

  I absolutely love the very attractive bypass pruner and other garden tools manufactured in collaboration with the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. These tools are well-priced and elegantly packaged gifts. The home and garden tools come in a variety of William Morris prints. The Victoria and Albert Museum receives royalties from the sale of these items, which helps to underwrite its free admission policy.I found the pruners available locally at Fancy That, 47 Tamalpais Boulevard, Corte Madera, 92 for $26. For those of you who prefer to shop from home, visit Berkeley’s Bay Flora at www.bayflora.com. When you shop at Bay Flora, they will make a gift of up to 15% of your purchase price to the nonprofit organization of your choice and include a beautiful letterpress gift card including your personal message.

   

  Have you checked out the new Golden Gate Express Garden Railway exhibit at the Conservatory of Flowers? The historic Victorian conservatory has four galleries filled with tropical plants and a fifth gallery now exhibiting a lush miniature garden surrounding some of San Francisco’s most cherished landmarks, all connected by model trains. A gift of a “Jungle Pass” will admit two adults and two children unlimited times for one full year. Order online at www.conservatoryofflowers.org or purchase at the Guest Services kiosk. The gift shop is filled with thoughtful gifts for the plant lover including Gorgeous Garden Railways by Marc Horovitz and Pat Hayward, a book that will inspire your gardening buddy to incorporate a railway in the landscape.

   

  While you’re in the park, stop by the San Francisco Botanical Garden bookstore for a staggering variety of floral calendars, posters and books on a myriad of botanical topics. "Just inside the botanical garden in Golden Gate Park sits this tiny trove of inspiration for lovers of the natural world," says Mary McDonnell of San Francisco. "There are references for botanists and gardeners, field guides, and children’s books tucked in a corner. If you’re a lover of books and plants, it’s a candy store." The bookstore is open daily from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

   

  The magnificent 654 acre Filoli estate offers gift memberships that begin at only $50 per year and offer an enticing range of benefits including unlimited free visits to the House, garden and nature hikes. To purchase a gift membership contact the Filoli Membership Office at 650 364-8300, extension 508. Gift memberships are not currently available for purchase online.

   

  Many of our plant loving friends have no room for even one more tiny book, bulb, or floral calendar. Please consider a gift “in honor” of your garden loving friend. Our local plant societies, botanical gardens and living museums rely on donations to keep them vibrant and engaging. A gift in honor of a lover of plants and flowers will provide much needed resources for our local botanical nonprofits.

   

  A number of us will need to reassess our financial giving situation this year—what a wonderful time to consider a gift from the heart—and my heart abides in the garden. Do you have a coveted geranium? Perhaps you can root a cutting for a favorite friend. But think beyond a plant—consider offering your services to repot a houseplant, create an entryway container or cut back perennials. This is a wonderful time to think of innovative ways to give of yourself, your time and your expertise to enhance an indoor or outdoor garden for a friend or loved one.

   

  Best wishes for a joyous holiday filled with garden treats!

A bee or not a bee, that is the question

• Nanette Londeree

• THERE'S A WHOLE LOT of buzzing going on — bees are busy doing their thing, zipping from flower to flower, moving pollen from one to the other, bringing the promise of plump peaches, tasty tomatoes and humdinger zucchini. There are also ones that might be drilling little holes in the eaves of your roof or fabricating what looks like upside-down mud pies, others stealthily cutting perfect circles in your rose leaves, and those laggards hitching a ride on your arm while you have a sweaty jog with your dog.

  Are these all bees? Not exactly.

  Bees, ants and a large number of other insects collectively called wasps are members of the order Hymenoptera, or membrane-winged insects. Many are social insects, like true ants, but the majority are solitary. Honeybees, likely the most well-known member of the family, do their good deeds of pollinating plants and making honey, while their more nefarious relatives, the yellowjackets and hornets, are the dreaded, uninvited guests at summer picnics. Then there are mud daubers, carpenter, mining and leafcutter bees, paper wasps and cicada killers.

  What's the difference among these critters, and should you be concerned about them?

  A few general features help distinguish bees and wasps — bees usually have hairy bodies for pollen collecting, wasps tend to have few hairs to none at all. Wasps have more elongated bodies, longer legs and often a pinched-looking waist, whereas bees appear more compact.

  Most bees purposefully collect pollen; wasps are predominantly carnivores and may be incidental pollinators as they seek their prey. Social bees make nests of wax; most social wasps make nests of paper. Only the honeybee, Apis mellifera, produces a perennial hive. Other bees and wasps may be social (yellowjackets) or solitary (mining bees), but their hives die out at the end of the season, and only the queen survives, seeking a place to produce a new hive in the coming season.

  Bumble bees (Bombus spp.), those roly-poly, furry looking, orange or yellow and black striped bees that seem to lumber between flowers, are social bees that build nests in existing cavities, usually on or in the ground — abandoned mouse or bird nests, dry leaves, outdoor furniture cushions or other loose "fluffy" material. Not generally aggressive, they don't hesitate to sting if their nest is threatened.

  The majority of bee species don't produce a colony. Solitary bees, a large group of plant pollinating small-bodied bees, are not aggressive and stings are quite mild. The inch-long industrious carpenter bee (Anthophoridae family) drills perfectly round holes in the wooden eaves of buildings, creating tunnels in which to lay eggs. Although they are considered wood-destroying insects, the damage they do is typically limited to surface wood, not structural or weight bearing wood. Though solitary, these bees often build nests close to others, and their numbers can grow.

  Ever notice a bee hovering around the ground? Mining or digger bees (Andrenidae and Anthophoridae families) are about the size of honeybees or smaller; some are brightly striped, others are a shiny metallic green. They nest in the ground and large numbers of these bees may nest near one another if soil conditions are right. Though they may be considered a nuisance, mining bees are not aggressive and seldom, if ever, sting.

  Leafcutter bees (Megachilidae family) are stout-bodied, black bees about the size of a honey bee, and are important pollinators of wildflowers, fruits, vegetables and other crops. They cut the leaves of almost any broadleaf deciduous plant to construct nests in soil cavities or holes (usually made by other insects), in wood and in plant stems.

  Sweat bees (Halictidae family) rarely sting except when pinned against the skin. These plant pollinators get their name for their habit of landing on people and licking the perspiration from the skin for the salt. Most are generally are black or brown, though some species are bright metallic green or brassy yellow.

  Social wasps are notorious for creating unsightly nests around the house and garden, and spoiling summer barbecues with their scavenging habits. Most rear their young on a diet of live insects, except for the western yellowjacket (Vespula pensylvanica) that scavenges dead insects, earthworms and garbage. Social wasps construct nests of paper, produced by chewing on wood, scraps of paper and cardboard, and sting for defensive purposes only. If they feel threatened, they are capable of repeatedly stinging without dying. About 90 percent of all stings are likely caused by yellowjackets.

  Hornets and paper wasps are common social wasps. The baldfaced hornet (Dolichovespula maculate), an atypically large, black and white yellowjacket, builds distinctive pear-shaped, basketball-sized nests covered with grayish paperlike material in trees, shrubs or under building eaves. They rarely sting unless the colony is seriously disturbed. The western paper wasp, Mischocyttarus flavitarsus, makes open-cell paper nests under building overhangs. More slender-bodied than other social wasps, they are predators of caterpillars and other insects.

  The solitary mud dauber (Sphecidae family) constructs nests of mud on porches, decks and under roof overhangs around homes; they are potentially a nuisance but generally are not aggressive and don't defend their nests. Ranging in size from extremely small forms to the large, fearsome looking cicada killers, a number of solitary wasps nest in the ground with life cycles similar to mining bees. The cicada killer (Sphecius speciosus) resembles a jumbo yellowjacket that captures and paralyzes cicadas. Despite their intimidating appearance, these insects are inoffensive and usually will not bother people even when provoked.

  There are a number of bees and wasp imposters — insects that look like honeybees but aren't. The clear-winged moth, Sesia apiformis, is as large as a hornet but has more yellow and lacks the tiny waist. Both syrphid flies (Syrphidae family) and robber flies (Asilidae family) also look like bees, but have only one pair of wings.

  Knowing what's buzzing around your garden can help you make choices about what, if any, control measures you want to take. Keep in mind that, in spite of their nasty reputations, hornets and yellowjackets can be beneficial, preying on many insects we consider pests. Also, as their colonies are not perennial, you may choose to simply wait until the colony dies out in late fall or early winter. The nest will slowly deteriorate from weather or from attack by hungry birds.

  The University of California Marin Master Gardeners are sponsored by UC Cooperative Extension. For questions about gardening, plant pests or diseases, call 499-4204 from 9 a.m. to noon, and 1 to 4 p.m. weekdays, or bring in samples or pictures to 1682 Novato Blvd., Suite 150B, Novato.

  LEARN MORE

  • UC IPM website, www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/menu.homegarden.htm• Colorado State University Extension website, "Nuisance Wasps and Bees," by W.S. Cranshaw, www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/insect/05525.html 
  • The Marin/Sonoma Mosquito & Vector Control District will control active in-ground yellowjacket nests for free if residents know the location of the nest and have it clearly marked. Call 800-231-3236.

A citrus tree for me, In Marin?

• Karen Hamblett

• My joy with citrus has so far been short but passionate.

  When I lived in an area where my first-ever Meyer lemon tree thrived, I thought I was the luckiest person. I smelled the blossoms as I sat reading on my deck and harvested those luscious sweet lemons to make the most delicious pound cakes, lemonade and sauces you could imagine.

  When we moved to a climate less amenable to my beloved Meyer lemon tree, I was determined to make it thrive by placing it in the warmest, sunniest place on our lot. When it still didn't seem to be happy despite proper fertilization, water and love I moved it to our community garden plot which is far sunnier, but alas also more prone to frost.

  Have you had a similar experience? Don't despair. Keep trying with other selections of citrus trees and take comfort in the knowledge that for many in Marin, the right kind of citrus trees will thrive with a minimum amount of effort.

  There are a few factors to consider when deciding to plant citrus trees. Site and citrus tree variety selection are important first steps. Citrus trees don't have a chill requirement like most other fruit trees, but they do require summer heat and don't like frost.

  As a general rule, the larger and sweeter the fruit the hotter it needs to be. For example, grapefruits and oranges aren't likely to be as successful here as compared to Southern California. Limes and some lemons fare far better here.

  Microclimates are a big factor for the success of your citrus. You've heard the phrase "if you don't like the weather here, walk a few blocks"? Unfortunately, our plants cannot follow this advice.

  Trees that do well in your neighbor's yard down the street may not do well for you. Do a bit of research and consider what is right for where you are and not just what is on a label or in a general garden book. A good source of information is the book "Golden Gate Gardening" ($29.95, Sasquatch Books, 448 pages) and the Home Orchard section of the UC Davis website at http://bit.ly/127gvy9.

  Choose a site for the plant that is sunny for most of the day, with soil that drains well. Remember as part of your site selection, you can plant dwarf citrus in large pots that could be moved inside during the coldest times of the year.

  Soil should be on the acidic side, pH of 5.5 to 8. You can add acidifying fertilizers and amendments to reduce the soil pH if needed. Once the tree is in place it will need regular but infrequent irrigation and a good mulching of organic compost a couple times a year.

  Once you've determined your site, next decide what you want to and

  can grow. If you have a small space or plan to plant in a pot, dwarf varieties are available. For larger trees you can prune the tops to keep the fruit a more reachable height for harvesting. For those of you who live in sunnier and warmer Marin locations you have more choices than those who live nearer the coast or in foggier locals.

  If you're looking for a lemon tree, there is Eureka, the common grocery store lemon; Lisbon, which is a bit more frost hardy than Eureka; or Improved Meyer, which is both larger, frost hardier and sweeter than Eureka or Lisbon. Bearss is the most popular lime for this region. Meiwa is a good choice for kumquat. Kumquats are cold hardy to 18 degrees, but they do require hot summers for the best fruit. Owari Satsuma is the most successful variety of tangerine in foggy areas.

  Once you make these decisions and have your tree, it's a matter of proper planting and minimal maintenance so you can enjoy the fragrance and bounty of your citrus tree. As a bonus, the bees in your area will thank you for providing such choice nectar for them to feast upon.

  I think this year I'm going to try a dwarf kumquat in my community garden plot and see if I can rekindle my passion for citrus. What citrus tree are you going to plant?

A first-aid kit for gardeners is thoughtful and helps keep them safe

• Dot Zanotti Ingels

• I am an avid gardener, but for all my adult life, I have also been a practicing registered nurse. No matter what I do, the principles of safety and health are always at the top of my priority list. Gardeners are quick to head outdoors to do what they love but they do not always think ahead to what happens when mindfulness gets lost in the bliss of being in their gardens.

  Since this is the season for gifting, I wanted to suggest a great idea for a gift you can easily put together for the gardener in your life. It will be an additional garden tool kit with things he or she may need but probably never thought to put together. In my professional life I have found that people are often not prepared for basic first aid when they need it. In my gardener’s first-aid kit your gardener will find what he or she needs when “oops” happens (and it does to everyone eventually).

  Find a tote that holds all the essentials together for ease of storage and quick access. Choose something sturdy. Gardeners are not known for their delicacy.

  Let’s start with what your gardener needs just as he or she is heading out the door. Include a wide-brimmed hat, sunscreen and a lip balm with SPF to keep burns away when he or she loses track of time. If your gardener’s prone to insect bites, some version of repellent may be in order and an after-bite relief product. A nice large thermal water bottle will help ensure that he or she stays hydrated. A couple of pairs of gloves are essential. One pair is for general work and the second is a heavy-duty, high-cuff pair for working around thorns.

  It is super easy to buy a simple first aid kit at a pharmacy. The brand is not significant, but you want to read the label to make sure the essentials are included and then you can simply supplement with the extras. If there is something in the kit that may cause a known allergic reaction to your gardener, simply remove it and replace it with a safe alternative.

  What are the essentials? Minor cuts and scrapes are common for gardeners. After washing hands with soap and water, to thoroughly clean a wound, he or she will need cleansing wipes. Alcohol wipes come in individual use packs. They can be used to clean a wound and to sterilize the tweezers you will need to include for splinter and thorn removal. You may want to include a mini magnifier for the gardener who has trouble seeing a small splinter.

  Once the wound is cleaned, it is a good suggestion to apply a general antibiotic ointment and cover it with a gauze pad or band aid. The kits usually come with a selection of sizes of these products. The gauze pads will need a paper tape (no scissors required for cutting and generally hypoallergenic). Non-stick pads in a variety of sizes are always a good idea. The gauze pads are also good for the cleaning process and to put pressure on a lightly bleeding wound. Some of these products are also useful to cushion the friction that can cause blisters or carefully protect a healing small blister.

  Aches and pains seem to follow a long day in the garden. A cold pack is always a good idea. You may want to include a mild analgesic. A muscle ache rub is often a relief. An Epsom salt soak is an amazing relief. A rich emollient skin cream like bag balm will soothe weary hands.

  As always, this is first aid for minor issues. For more serious or actively bleeding wounds that cannot be easily stopped, a call to the doctor or ER is essential. It is also a good idea to remind your favorite gardener to keep up with his or her tetanus shots.

A garden for tough times

• Jeanne Price
• Fresh water may become very expensive. Rationing is waiting in the wings. Water rates are rising. Just because it rained in February doesn't lessen the need to conserve for the dry months ahead.

  I recently learned that approximately 97 percent of earth's water is saltwater; another 2 percent is held in glaciers and ice caps. That leaves one percent freshwater to be used by 6 billion people, and half of that has been polluted. A United Nations report, "Coping with Water Scarcity," projects two-thirds of the world's population will be facing a water scarcity by 2025.

  At least a third of the average Marin Municipal Water District customer's bill is for the garden. If mandatory rationing demands we reduce our water consumption by 30 percent or more, would you give up watering your lawn, your thirsty rhododendrons, azaleas, camellias and hydrangeas? You might think, "There goes the garden!"

  The good news is you can still have a garden, a garden of water-wise plants, using California and Mediterranean natives that tolerate months without rain. All plants need some water, but the thirsty ones can really run your water bill up.

  Think of Mediterranean plants, succulents and California natives. How do you find them? They will be at your local nursery. How do you know what to ask for?

  The Marin Master Gardeners have just created a "fast easy way to view photographs of these plants and get quick information," according to Master Gardener Jeanne Ballestero, co-creator of a new Web site, Water Wise Plant Selector, designed specifically for Marin gardens. She and Linda Thompson envisioned the site to be user-friendly and have chosen plants they know from experience will grow well in the county. Ballestero admits to choosing some of her favorites, but the plants were selected after canvassing a number of Marin Master Gardeners for their recommendations. The site is atwww.marinmg.org and will continue to have additional information.

  The site now includes how to determine your micro-climate in Marin - from the cool fogs of Sausalito to the warm brown hills of Novato. This is an important first step in choosing plant material and it's where you start when you log on. Each plant is sorted by type - ferns, shrubs, trees, vines and others - and whether or not it is a California native. It also identifies each plant for deer resistance, its wildlife value, water usage and drainage requirements.

  There are planting and irrigation tips, advice on mulching and soil health. There are even links to fire-resistant and invasive plants. The photographs not only include a close up of each plant, but also a longer view of how it might look with other plants in a garden.

  The site will eventually include articles on good and bad bugs and how to deal with each, and photographs of local public gardens designed and maintained by Master Gardeners with links to the particular plants in them.

  I made a couple of suggestions that didn't make it onto the Web site. One is Agapanthus orientalis, or Lily of the Nile, from South Africa. In Greek its name means "flower of love." It is probably not included because the buds are deer candy, but if you can get around that problem its water use is low. In shades of blue or white, the blooms are showy and make good cut flowers. The long shiny leaves are green year round.

  Another undemanding plant is centranthus ruber or Jupiter's Beard, again a Mediterranean native whose water use is low. It tolerates poor soil and gives flowers most of the year from pink to deep red. Deer don't like it, but it naturalizes and can become invasive. Some consider it a weed for that reason. Its gray-green leaves grow along the stems in well-separated clusters.

  If you want someone to get you started on saving water in your garden, sign up for the Bay Friendly Water Walk program co-sponsored by Marin Municipal Water District and the UC Marin Master Gardeners. Call the UCCE office at 507-2645 to schedule a water walk and a couple of Master Gardeners will come to your garden, evaluate your water use and share helpful information.

  This service (available only to MMWD customers) is free, takes about an hour and can get you thinking about conserving that most valuable natural resource - water.

  The University of California Marin Master Gardeners are sponsored by UC Cooperative Extension. For questions about gardening, plant pests or diseases, call 499-4204 from 9 a.m. to noon, and 1 to 4 p.m. weekdays, or bring in samples or pictures to 1682 Novato Blvd., Suite 150B, Novato.

A Green Autumn

• Jennifer Kinion

• Here’s some good news for you gardeners lamenting the end of the summer growing season: there’s no need to put your vegetable garden to bed for the winter. After you pull up the last tomato cage and harvest the last jalapeno pepper, grab a shovel or trowel and prepare the bed for a productive autumn. You can start a variety of fabulous greens from seed during the warm days remaining in early October, then reap home-grown crops all through the fall.

  Direct seeding is a great boon for busy people who don’t have the time, inclination, or space to coddle trays of germinating seeds. And you can skip what can be a time-consuming step; transplanting young plants from seeding trays to the spot where they will grow and mature. If you start your greens now, you can enjoy their jewel-like beauty in your garden throughout fall and even into the holiday season.

  Pick the sunniest spot you have, and make sure to amend your soil with compost or aged manure first. After amending, rake the soil smooth and water it thoroughly. Then leave it undisturbed for a day or two to allow the amended soil to settle. The goal is to start your seeds in soil that is uniform in texture and slightly moist, but not soggy. Pay close attention to the seed spacing, depth, and thinning instructions on each seed packet. If you aren’t a good judge of depth, use a waterproof ruler or a bulb trowel with depth markings on the blade to measure the depth you are planting your seeds, as this factor can make all the difference between successful germination and failure.

  To speed germination and protect seedbeds from drying out, consider using floating row cover, a woven fabric available in most garden centers. This fabric is used to cover and protect plants while allowing air, light, and water to permeate. You plant the seeds, and then place lengths of the row cover directly on the soil surface in the seeded areas. Secure the cover with landscape staples, bricks or rocks. While you watch and wait for germination to happen, water the seedbed right through the fabric.

  When the seedlings emerge, you can leave the row cover in place or remove it. If you leave the row cover on, check regularly to make sure the emerging plant stems aren’t struggling to lengthen beneath the fabric. If you find this happening, you can adjust your anchors to allow more space between the soil and the fabric for your seedlings to occupy. Leaving the cover in place can improve yields, because it protects the new green growth from birds and some insects.

  After seedlings emerge, mulch with chipped bark, straw, or compost to conserve moisture, inhibit weeds, and protect roots. Also take the time to fertilize two or three times during the season with diluted fish emulsion or vermicompost tea from your worm bin. Thin plants to the spacing recommended to ensure that plants aren’t competing for nutrition, water, and space.

  The following vegetables are good choices for direct seeding. With most of the plants on this list, you can enjoy greens well into the late fall if you resist the urge to harvest whole plants. Each time you harvest, clip the outermost leaves, leaving most of the plant intact. The plant will continue to grow and develop more leaves as the season progresses. You’ll know the show is over when your crops begin to flower. This is when the leaves tend to get tough and can develop a bitter flavor.

  Chard

  We can grow chard all year here in the Bay Area, and it is available in a kaleidoscope of colors, making it a great ornamental as well as edible plant. Trimmed chard leaves can substitute for head cabbage leaves in cabbage roll recipes. Try ‘Bright Lights’ for the beauty of its red, yellow, and orange veined leaves, or ‘Charlotte’ for its mild, mellow flavor.

  Broccoli Rabe

  Broccoli Rabe (also called Rapini or Broccoli di Rapa) is a bit less challenging to grow than heads of broccoli. It has a loose growing habit and multiple stems, like a kale with little florets. Broccoli Rabe is a tasty side dish for Italian menus. Varieties to try include ‘Super Rapini’ and ‘Novatina.’

  Kale

  Kale is available in a wide variety of colors ranging from red, to blue-green, to purple. The rippled leaves of ‘Lacinato’ kale are especially sturdy and cold tolerant. This is a good crop to carry you through fall into winter, as colder weather tends to sweeten the flavor of kale. Kale leaves are especially good in bean stew or minestrone. Slugs, snails, and cabbageworms like kale, so keep and eye out and hand pick them off plants if you see them.

  Pak Choi

  The mild, succulent stems and leaves of pak choi can be eaten raw or cooked. If you pay careful attention to seed spacing and plant pak choi in quantity, you’ll pull enough tiny plants at thinning time to make a stir fry, leaving adequate spacing for the remainder to mature to full size before harvesting. This green is a good choice for those who like fast returns on their efforts, as pak choi can be ready for harvest in about 45 days.

  Spinach

  Cooked or raw, spinach is as versatile as it is lovely. The sturdier, larger-leaved varieties, such as ‘Oriental Giant’ and ‘Giant Winter’ fare well in cold winter.

  All of these greens are great freshly picked, thoroughly washed and dried, and then quickly sautéed in a skillet with olive oil, thinly sliced garlic, and a pinch of red pepper flakes.

A little bug, but a big problem

• Karen Gideon

• 

  The female lays her eggs in the newly emerging leaves. Inspect your citrus plants by looking for developing nymphs in young leaves. Photo: UC Regents

  Marin gardeners should be on the alert for a dangerous pest. The Asian citrus psyllid is a tiny insect and disease vector that eats citrus leaves and stems.  The females lay their eggs in the new leaf growth called “flush.” As the insect munches, it injects a salivary toxin into the plant that causes the leaf tips to twist or curl and infects the tree with a killer bacterium. One Asian citrus psyllid was located in Marin County in 2018, extensive trapping was initiated and no more pests were found. But gardeners must stay vigilant. 

  The bacteria, Huanglongbing or HLB, was discovered in Asia and moved to the Americas as citrus plants were bought and sold. In Florida, the psyllid and HLB is spreading rapidly from backyards and commercial orchards with drastic impact on the citrus market there. HLB is not harmful to humans. But thousands of jobs have been lost and it has cost growers billions of dollars. HBL migrated from Mexico to Southern California in 2008 and is well established there.  

  

  The adult Asian citrus psyllid is only 4 mm or 1/16 " long. Bring a magnifying glass or loupe with you as you inspect your plants. Photo: UC Regents

  
  Fortunately, a new treatment has been developed that kills the HLB with a naturally occurring molecule found in wild citrus relatives. This molecule offers advantages over the antibiotics currently used to treat the disease in orchards. But gardener awareness and early identification of the pest is critical.

  This is where YOU, the Marin County gardener, comes in. By keeping a close watch on your citrus trees like lemons, limes, oranges, grapefruit and related plants in the Rutaceae family, such as mock orange and orange jasmine plants, you can serve as first responders.  

  
  

  

  Asian citrus psyllids feed on stems and leaves with their body at a 45 degree angle. Note the mottled coloration of the psyllid. Photo: UC Regents

  
  Observation and detection are the top priorities. The psyllid is mottled brown and about the size of an aphid. In a unique pose, the psyllid eats head down, its body tilted at a forty-five degree angle, lifting its tail high in the air. Check out the new leaf growth or new flush, because the psyllid lays its eggs there. The eggs are tiny yellow-orange and almond shaped. One female can lay several hundred eggs. The psyllids also produce a white, curlicue waxy substance that can be found on the leaves of the citrus plant.

  If you find an adult or an insect in an immature stage, contact the California Department of Agriculture Exotic Pest Line at 1-800-491-1899. 

  
  

  

  These are Asian citrus psyllids on the leaves and stems of citrus plants. Note the size and positioning of the psyllids. Photo: UC Regents

  In terms of integrated pest management, there is some biological control of the psyllid with the use of a parasitoid wasp, Tamarixia radiata. The tiny wasp lays eggs in the psyllid’s abdomen and as the eggs develop they kill and eat the psyllid.  However, the wasp needs time to become established and the effectiveness is not sufficient to prevent the spread of the insect.  

  In commercial orchards, in addition to the new molecular treatment, farmers are using many different types of insecticides and antibiotics after finding that a single insecticide isn’t effective for all stages of the psyllid lifecycle. Diseased trees must be removed in order to stop the spread to other trees on the property, the neighbor’s trees and the community. For the residential citrus-grower, a trusted arborist can guide you on what might be an effective resolution or safe tree removal.

  

  Watch for the white, waxy, curlicue substance found on the stems & leaves of citrus plants, exuded by Asian citrus psyllid nymphs. Photo: UC Regents

  Another way to protect the community and your garden from the Asian citrus psyllid and Huanglongbing disease is to purchase your citrus plants locally, being careful not to bring citrus agricultural products in from other states or countries. Not only is this practice illegal, it can create a pest problem for producers and home gardeners.

  If you find evidence of the Asian citrus psyllid in your garden, the agricultural authorities will want to inspect your citrus plants, take samples for laboratory, and possibly do some trapping or quarantining. Your cooperation is needed to determine the extent of the infestation. If you want more information on this pest, visit the UC IPM website at http://ipm.ucanr.edu/PMG/PESTNOTES/pn74155.html. For further assistance, email UCCE Master Gardeners at our Help Desk in Novato.

A New Year, A New Compost Pile

• Annie Spiegelman

• Last spring my compost pile was a total bust. The decaying vegetable and plant matter was either too dry and clumpy or too damp and lumpy. The residing worms, fungi and other microbial tenants collectively and bitterly revolted, calling their agents and complaining about the atrocious working conditions. They wanted out and they snitched on me.

  Being a diva and an experienced Master Gardener, I knew this "situation" was unacceptable. I was paranoid that the president of our local Master Gardener chapter, if she found out, would rip my MG trowel-shaped name tag from my organic cotton T-shirt and accuse me of impersonating a real gardener.

   

  To preserve my dignity while advancing my own legacy, I signed up for the San Francisco Botanical Garden's dirt class, taught by Zen gardening master and author Wendy Johnson. I was determined, and convinced Johnson's scientific and sage advice would assure me the perfect, mother-of-all compost piles by the end of 2008.

   

  The soil class was taught at Green Gulch Farm and Buddhist Zen Center in Mill Valley. "At Green Gulch, we don't proselytize about Zen, but we certainly do preach the gospel of hot compost," Johnson says.

  At the farm, there are a number of large, steamy compost piles spread around the property. The compost mantra is simple yet precise: "Farm girls must sing: F is for food, G is for greens, M is for manure and S is for straw." Remember that and you've taken your first steps toward garden nirvana.

   

  Mix and match,

  turn and moisten, and you shall succeed, our teacher promised. Aim for layers of equal parts green and brown material.

  After three hours of working in the garden and taking notes on bat turds, worm poop, horse manure and friendly fungi and bacteria, Johnson reminded us of the importance of taking time to sit quietly in our gardens and do absolutely nothing. Nada. She was staring right at me when she said this. She must have sensed I'm from New York City.

  I'll show her, I thought. I know how to relax. So, on my way out of the class, I sat on a garden bench and soaked in the sun while meditating on the gratitude and connection I felt for compost queens the world over. My heart goes out to you if your inner dialogue sounds anything like mine:

  "This place is weird. Oh, look, crabapple trees. How fancy! Wait, I'm supposed to be observing my breath. And just why is it my best friends sometimes get on my nerves? Is it them or me? Them. Yikes, here comes a real, live monk right towards me. Are these voices in my head bothering him? OK, breathe and stop thinking. Focus, focus. Why do they shave their head, anyway? Non-judgment, compassion - I beckon you, now! Hurry up! Wouldn't it be hilarious to have a Starbucks here? There's definitely a conspiracy of silence spying on me right this minute. When does Oprah sleep?"

   

  And with that, I picked up my belongings and hit the road running.

  I went home and immediately started two new compost piles, one in a Smith & Hawken plastic bin and one in the open air. I went to the neighbor down the road, the one with the horses. She hugged me enthusiastically when I asked if I could take a load of her horse manure. I think she felt sorry for me.

   

  I went to my local Peet's coffee shop and asked them to bag up their coffee grounds for me. They wore the face of pity as well.

  I watered and turned the piles religiously. By September I had created the most fabulous homemade compost. I had tears in my eyes when I saw the dark crumbly soil-like material at the bottom of the pile.

  I quickly became the stage mother of one big, glitzy family and took this show on the road: "Fungi, Bacteria and Earthworms: The Musical." I traveled around giving out buckets loaded with decaying leftovers, wrapped in Christmas ribbons, as holiday gifts. The relatives were a bit surprised, although grateful, yet they, too, wore that face of pity.

  That's OK, I reminded them. We're all in this together. Recycling. Reusing. Re-gifting. It was the season of sharing, after all.

   

  Feel free to toss in the fruitcake, if you still have it. Add manure, straw and water. Stab with pitchfork.

A Pretty “Weed” for your Garden

• Jeanne Price

• by Jeanne Price

  A weed has often been described as a plant that’s just in the wrong place. Gaura is a weed whose right place could be in your garden. It has been described both as a “noxious weed” and as something to “incite a moment’s awe” and “an absolute flight of fancy.” It is a North American native; in Texas and Louisiana it is considered a roadside weed. Here, you have to buy it from a nursery where it is usually available year round. Gaura lindheimeri has good reason to be a garden plant. A member of the evening primrose family, it is deer resistant, drought tolerant, a good cut flower in bouquets and blooms most of the year. It is sometimes called Butterfly Bush, not just because it attracts butterflies, though it does, but because the flowers resemble butterflies hovering around a tangle of stems and green mottled leaves. The genus includes about 21 species known as bee blossoms and also apple blossom grass.

  In a disturbed habitat it can be invasive and there is no known biological control for it. It is difficult to remove as it can reproduce from bits of rhizome left in the ground, much like Japanese anemone (Anemone japonica). The plant reproduces from seed as well as rhizomes. After blossoming, seed pods form along the stem. These are easy to harvest by running your cupped hand along the stem. Each pod contains a seed and the entire pod can be planted. The seeds take from two to three weeks to germinate. It tolerates hot climates and dry soils and is easy to cultivate.

  Once established it needs little water because of its very deep taproot. This fact also prevents successful transplanting, so gardeners should place them carefully. It blooms from spring through fall and even into early winter. It likes a sunny location in well-drained soil with some organic material as enrichment. In soil that is not well drained the roots will rot and once the taproot is broken the plant will die. Its large clumps of untidy stems grow up to two feet high or more and need to be pruned each winter to improve bloom. It’s long stems wave with every air current, making it a botanical mobile, creating the illusion of floating butterflies.

  I live in a bayside, cottage-style home and have attempted to create a cottage garden with drought tolerant plants. Gaura fits the bill. I have it on either side of the front walk where it bobs and blows in the prevailing breeze, nodding a gentle greeting with its white and pink blossoms. I have three cultivars: ‘Stratosphere’ and ‘Snow Fountains,’ both white, and ‘Siskiyou Pink.’ This last cultivar was developed in 1994 by Boldossare Mineo of the Siskiyou Rare Plant Nursery in Medford, Oregon. Mineo found it as a natural mutation and selected it to propagate. It has become the basis of other pink to red cultivars including ‘Sunny Butterflies’ and ‘Crimson Butterflies,’ both from Australia. Another cultivar, ‘Whirling Butterfly,’ aka ‘White Indian Feather’ is most like the wildflower, larger in size, and a favorite of pollinating insects. It is also low maintenance, hardy and needs a hard pruning to half or two-thirds of the stems.

  Master Gardener, Harvey Rogers, who has successfully grown Gaura at his Blackie’s Pasture project, where it grows four feet high, advised me to water regularly the first year and then only occasionally. Although in very hot weather watering could be once a week after it is established. He prunes plants to about eight or ten inches high when finished blooming. He told me that plants don’t need dead heading or added fertilizer.

  Gaura will add wild beauty to your garden.

A Rose By Any Other Name …

• D.F. Braun

• Eleanor Roosevelt said, “I once had a rose named after me and I was very flattered until I read the description in the catalogue: “No good in a bed, but fine up against a wall.”

  I have a number of celebrity roses in my garden and I started to think about how appropriate their names were after I read Mrs. Roosevelt’s comment.

  Years ago I saw a colorful picture of a cluster of floribundas in a catalogue and I giggled. Honestly! I was amused by the varied colored stripes of red, orange, pink, yellow even purple in each bloom as well as how each rose differed from the other on the same stem. The name? ‘George Burns.’ Of course! I sent away for it at once and the bush is as prolific in blooming as George was in creating laughter. In fact, when curious friends are attracted to it and ask the name, they too giggle when I tell them.

  ‘Barbra Streisand’ is a lusty, sharp lavender tea rose with a strong musky fragrance. Poor Barbra was not planted in the friendliest neighborhood. She’s rather boxed in by three leggy ‘Bonicas,’ but she seems to have fared well despite them. In fact, she’s grown taller each year and now the ‘Bonicas’ seem like her chorus line.

  ‘Audrey Hepburn’ should be the first choice of flowers for a bridal bouquet. A tea rose with delicate pointed pink buds, she never seems to fade in maturing. There is a fragility about the whole bush and the leaves are complimentary to the blooms in a bouquet.

  My ‘Mr. Lincoln,’ like his namesake, stands strong and tall. Although introduced nearly forty years ago it is still regarded as one of the best reds; its velvety dark scarlet petals do not burn in our hot Marin sun as easily as other red roses and they do not lose their fragrance.  In my garden ‘Mr. Lincoln’ stands six feet tall.

  I used to grow a ‘Dolly Parton,’ which like its show-business namesake is bigger than life, with huge six- to seven-inch double blooms that are very long lasting as cut flowers. The fragrance is exceptionally strong and spicy and the bright orange-red blooms are attractively set off by dark, green glossy leaves. The plants can grow to four feet. Unfortunately, for me, the blooms were sparse and the plant was prone to mildew.

  In 1982, the late grand old lady of the Grand Ole Opry, Minnie Pearl, was given a bouquet on stage of miniature roses that bears her name. Harmon Saville, the rose hybridizer made the presentation, and Minnie was beside herself. She’d be even more thrilled to know how well the rose has borne the test of time. Currently rated 9.5 by the American Rose Society, it is formidable both at the show table and in the garden.

  While the lovely David Austin roses have rarely done well in my very warm summer garden, I couldn’t resist two of them, both English “celebrities”:

  ‘Gertrude Jekyll,’ named in honor of the brilliant, trendsetting British garden designer and former Impressionist painter, is a rose among the most strongly perfumed Austins and while the buds start out small and scrolled, they quickly mature into buxom rosette shaped blossoms of hot pink. The bush can grow to four feet and in my garden becomes quite bushy and hedge-like and although lacking the first prolific blooms it is certainly worth keeping.

  ‘Brother Cadfael,’ another lovely Austin rose, named after the monk turned sleuth, has a definite U.K. feeling about it; a pale pink, robust cabbage. Why define it as a “celebrity” after a Benedictine friar? Its fragrance is “divine.”

  Last, but certainly not least, is ‘Queen Elizabeth,’ bred by the great American hybridizer, Walter Lammerts in 1954. This regal bush and bloom was the All-American selection for 1955 and today is still ranked as one of the top exhibition roses in the grandiflora class. The Queen is a very tall grower and shouldn’t be coerced into shorter heights by pruning too low, or she will spend the following growing season growing to lord over everything. Besides being a stately bush. the disease resistance, vigor and regal single lovely pink blooms are the reasons why it still enjoys a respectable rating by the American Rose Society. The Queen is in no danger of being dethroned.

A Salad Garden

• Julie Monson

• Some years ago, when I was dealing with some health issues, I received a gift from my daughter, the book Square Foot Gardening, by Mel Bartholomew. She was sending me the message that she wanted me to be well, and that I could do something about that myself: I could grow my own organic vegetables, without toxic pesticides or herbicides.   At the time, organic produce was extremely limited, usually tucked into a corner of the produce department, neglected and wormy.

  Our then suburban garden had a front yard and a back yard, neither of which lent themselves to rows of produce. But we had a small side yard, close to the kitchen, that received afternoon sun and was about the right size, not more than 10 by 15 feet, with access from the neighbor’s driveway and a narrow side-yard path. I plunged in, not quite knowing what I was doing. Of enormous help was my new book, Square Foot Gardening, recently revised and published by Cool Springs Press (2006).

  Until we moved five years later, I used this small garden as a classroom from which I learned what worked, what didn’t, and what was spectacularly successful. I learned, for example, that vegetables that take a fair amount of space like tomatoes, beans, squashes, and melons wouldn’t work in my small space. They took up too much room and limited my crop diversity. Conversely, I learned that this space and the sun it received was perfect for lettuces, herbs and a small group of green vegetables that I used for salads.   I called this side-yard garden my “saladier,” the French word for salad bowl. In the early evening, after I returned home from work, I put a medium-sized basket on my arm, grabbed my red-handled snippers, and headed for my saladier, pulling and snipping a basket full of greens (sometimes flowers) for our dinner salad. Nothing could have been more refreshing or satisfying, or tasty.

  How to begin: I took seriously Mel Bartholomew’s advice to think in square feet, in small spaces that are easy to manage, easy to change. First I had to remove the ancient lawn and add a concrete paver path through the middle of the space, connecting it with a gate and the front walk. After installing a soaking hose about a foot deep and amending the soil, I consulted a local nursery and sent for a vegetable seed catalog. Numerous seed catalogs are available now. Some nurseries regularly carry organic seeds and starts.

  After some experimenting, I found that I could plant three foot rows of different lettuces in the sunnier spaces, saving the shady bed for more tender parsley, basil, mint, chives. My most successful crops included radishes, various looseleaf lettuces including oakleaf and red oakleaf, romaine, and mizuna (a favorite from the mustard family), arugula, and celery. Celery starts came from the nursery. I snipped the leaves almost daily. A row of nasturtiums separated my garden from the neighbor’s driveway, adding a border, color, and tasty flowers. Mostly I planted seeds, and found that as I usually overplanted the seeds, I had to thin the baby seedlings, which are perfect for salads. As one row (or square foot) matured beyond the eating stage, I cleaned it up and started another one, and just kept the garden going, more slowly in winter, but still producing all year.

  Growing one’s own produce does not have to be a major production with raised boxes (though my little garden would likely have been more productive had I used raised beds), or long rows of corn, beets and chard. Even a small space tucked into a side yard can produce a very satisfactory, healthy, garden crop. My saladier worked beautifully for me and my family.

A tomato for every garden

• Jennifer Kinion
• 
  
  

  If you plan on taking the plunge into vegetable gardening this spring, you are in good company. A recent National Gardening Association (NGA) survey found a 19 percent increase from last year in the number of United States households planning to grow their own edibles. I'll bet many of those households will grow tomatoes. There is a tomato for just about every garden and every gardener, from the novice who just wants to try his or her luck to the passionate tomato connoisseur.

  On April 18 and 19, UCCE Marin Master Gardeners will sponsor its fourth annual tomato market featuring specially selected heirloom and hybrid tomato seedlings grown by volunteers. Proceeds from the sale will support the organization's garden education projects in Marin. This group of dedicated volunteers has been working throughout the late winter and early weeks of spring to plant and care for hundreds of seedlings at the greenhouse at College of Marin's Indian Valley Farm.

  Tomatoes come in more shapes, colors and sizes than you can shake a trowel at. The varieties selected for the sale were chosen for

  their adaptation to Marin microclimates and for their outstanding flavor. For descriptions of the 27 heirloom and hybrid tomato varieties offered at the sale, as well as growing tips and answers to frequently asked questions about tomatoes, go to http://cemarin.ucdavis.edu/Master_Gardener/Tomato_Market.htm. Shop early for best selection.

  Fans of slicing tomatoes for burgers and sandwiches will want to try varieties such as Big Beef, Box Car Willie or Cherokee Purple. Serious kitchen gardeners who crave plum tomatoes for homemade pizza or pasta sauce might choose Black Prince, a Siberian native, or Opalka, an heirloom paste variety from Poland.

  If you are an apartment dweller with no access to tillable land, or if you are simply pressed for space, consider planting one of the varieties recommended for container gardening, such as Bush Champion or Bush Early Girl.

  Do you want nothing more than to grab a handful of cherry tomatoes each morning to brighten up a brown-bag lunch? Plant a Sun Gold, Sun Sugar or Juliet and look forward to a steady stream of constantly ripening marble-sized gems. The list of varieties includes many names that conjure images of faraway travel and exotic pedigrees, such as Oaxacan Jewel, Principe Borghese and Shady Lady.

  The tomato market will feature heirloom and hybrid tomato varieties. What's the difference? Hybrid tomatoes are created for a particular purpose, such as disease resistance, color or shape, and are crossbred from two or more different plants. Hybrids do not produce reliable results from year to year with saved seeds, though.

  If you were to try to grow plants from the previous year's saved hybrid tomato seeds, the resulting plants would revert back to the characteristics of one of the original parent plants. Heirlooms, on the other hand, are open-pollinated, and saved seeds, which are handed down through generations of growers, sustain the varieties. As well as for their ability to replicate the original plant, heirlooms are valued for their taste, unusual markings, color and unique shapes.

  For many gardeners, the disease-resistant characteristics of many hybrid varieties are a worthy trade-off for not being able to grow plants from last year's seeds. Common tomato diseases in Marin County can wreak havoc on your crops. They include a fungal disease called verticilium wilt, which starts as a yellowing between the major veins of the leaves, and then moves throughout the plant to eventually cause whole leaves and stems to wither and die.

  Fusarium wilt, a fungus that infects tomatoes only, turns one side of the plant or branch yellow and gradually spreads throughout, eventually killing the plant. Root knot nematodes are yet another risk to tomato crops. They are microscopic, eel-like roundworms that attack a wide range of common vegetables.

  Tomato varieties that have been determined to be disease resistant to verticilium wilt, fusarium wilt and nematode attack are often marketed with V, F and N designations on their plant tags respectively.

  If you are unsure about the history of the garden soil you will be planting in, or you just want to reduce the risk of losing crops to these diseases, you might consider trying one of the several disease-resistant varieties available for purchase at the April tomato market.

  If you have never attempted vegetable gardening or you don't have any experience with tomato planting and care, don't let that stop you from giving tomatoes a try this year. Free expert growing advice is included with every sale.

  IF YOU PLANT

  - What: Organic Heirloom and Hybrid Tomato Market

  - When/where: 9 a.m. to noon April 18 at Pini Ace Hardware, Nave Shopping Center, 1535 S. Novato Blvd., Novato; 9 a.m. to noon April 19 at Marin Art and Garden Center, 30 Sir Francis Drake Blvd., Ross

  - Admission: Free; plants cost $4 to $5

  - Information: http://cemarin.ucdavis.edu/Master_Gardener/Tomato_Market.htm

A Visit to the Redwood Creek Native Plant Nursery

• Jeanne Price

• by Jeanne Price

  In early May I visited the Redwood Creek Native Plant Nursery near Muir Woods with my friend Nancy who volunteers there. Manager Chris Friedel had what he called an atypical day planned for his volunteers. For the first half of our three-hour stint, we were to collect native wild ginger (Asarum caudatum) slips for propagating in the nursery greenhouse. The new plants would be used in Muir Woods as a ground cover to restore areas previously trampled by off- path visitors.

  We collected about 300 slips in two locations and returned to the nursery to begin potting them up, but not before we took a little break. Afterwards we began washing pots, preparing our slips for potting, filling and planting the pots with the rooted runners we had collected. Planting seeds and pulling weeds are more typical volunteer work.

  Wild ginger is a good ground cover along the coast and grows in part shade and works well under redwoods. It likes an acidic soil. The root stock can be used as ginger in cooking. Its small reddish flowers lay on the ground where they attract insects into their “urns.” The insects then act to disperse the seeds. Wild ginger also propagates by runners that stretch out under the leaf litter and put down roots.

  The Redwood Creek Nursery is one of five native plant nurseries operated by the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy whose mission is three fold: to produce high quality plants needed for park restoration collected from native seed or propagules (runners or suckers used in the asexual propagation of plants); to create and foster a volunteer program; to educate community members, especially youth, about ecology and horticulture. The other four sites are in Tennessee Valley, Marin Headlands, the Presidio and Fort Funston. The five nurseries propagate over 400 of the 622 species native to the 75,000 acres of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area (GGNRA).

  The Parks Conservancy began professional support in nursery management and restoration in 1997 through a financial partnership with the GGNRA.

  The Redwood Creek Nursery works on the restoration of the creekside plants in the lower watershed and the redwood understory of Muir Woods. The watershed extends from Mt. Tamalpais to the creek’s outlet at Muir Beach and includes the old Banducci Flower Farm site. The watershed is home to some of the West Coast’s most imperiled species, including coho salmon and steelhead trout, the northern spotted owl and the California red-legged frog.

  Native plants are the base of habitats and food chains. These plants have evolved in conjunction with the area’s wildlife. Invasive plants disrupt that special relationship. Native plants must remain strong so that the rest of the ecosystem does not weaken. Plants are the first building block in restoring a native habitat.

  In his nursery Friedel grows everything from “trees to grasses to bring back the structure of what’s missing,” he said. The site grows 10,000 plants a year, about ten percent are used in Muir Woods, another ten percent go to Stinson Beach and the balance is used in the lower creek area near Muir Beach, he explained. All the plants are native to the area within the past 200 years, he answered when asked about how long a plant had to be here to be considered native. The lower creek area is currently the major restoration project for Friedel and his volunteers.

  A tour of the greenhouse revealed blackberry (Rubus ursinus), twinberry (Lonicera involucrata), elderberry (Sambucus racemosa) and dogwood (Cornus sericea)—plants in various stages of growth. In addition there were ceanothus, sticky monkey flower (Mimulus aurantiacus), coyote bush (Baccharis pilularis) and cow parsnip (Heracleum lanatum), all grown mostly from seed Friedel had collected. Outside the greenhouse are potted native Rhododendron macrophyllum. “These are rare,” he stated, “I know of only three populations here.”

  Freidel, originally from the Chicago area, graduated from Stanford University in 2001 with a BS in Earth Systems and has been the manager and restoration field coordinator for the Redwood Creek Nursery for the past three years.

  The Native Plant Nurseries pamphlet notes it takes a million seeds, over 91,000 native plants, 38,000 volunteer hours from almost 6,000 community volunteers, plus 246 native species at 49 restoration sites, five nurseries and “tons of love” every year to “grow a national park.”

  If you’d like to help “grow a national park” log onto www.parksconservancy.org and click on “Volunteers” for your choice of site and day, or call Chris Friedel on Tuesday to Saturday at 415 383-4390 to volunteer at the Redwood Creek Native Plant Nursery.

Accessorizing the garden with annuals

• Juliana Jensen

• Hardscape is the bones of the garden — the terraces, the boxes, and the paths. Perennials are the workhorses — showing up year in and year out to fill in the garden and give it shape. But the glamour spot goes to the annuals. They turn up for just a season and steal the show with their striking blooms and spectacular colors. Annuals can change the look or feel of a garden from year to year or just provide a pop of color to brighten a quiet spot.

  Annuals can play other roles in the garden as well. They can give you a gorgeous cutting garden so you can bring the outside glory into your home. They can fill pots to brighten an entryway or patio. Others emit fragrance to transport you to a garden from “The Arabian Nights.” Or you can experiment with an unusual annual plant for just one year.

  • Color dash: Annuals spark up the dull corners of your garden. At the garden shop, you will see the annuals: row after row of bright six-packs of marigolds, zinnias, nemesia, phlox or sunflowers. Planting these favorites in groups of three or more will fill in the empty spots with glorious colors. If next year you want to try a different color scheme, switch to different annuals for a new look.

  Cutting garden: Some gardeners like to use annuals for a spectacular outdoor summer show. While annuals look beautiful outside, they can also provide source material for indoor floral displays. There are snapdragons especially bred to grow into tall spikes. Sunflowers come in all sorts of cheerful varieties. Larkspur can grow to four feet and looks especially good against a garden wall. Bachelor’s buttons and calendula are smaller flowers that are adorable in a vase. Dianthus, or Sweet William, are fragrant and last well in water.

  • Containers: Annuals are the go-to choice for colorful pots of flowers to decorate a doorway or deck. Some particularly good choices for containers include phlox, lobelia, cockscomb and snapdragons. You can choose any combination of shapes and colors that pleases your eye. Choosing flowers from opposite sides of the color wheel is a sure-fire way to create a dynamite display. For instance, planting deep purple lobelia in a container with bright yellow and orange marigolds produces a vivid shock of color.

  • Scent: Ah, a fragrant garden! How lovely to step out in the evening and inhale the redolent air of summer. Your annuals can contribute to this experience. Nicotiana, also known as flowering tobacco, is a fragrant annual that can grow very tall. Phlox is not only fragrant, but also drought tolerant. Petunias are particularly fragrant in the evening. Dianthus, sweet alyssum and sweet peas can also have a lovely scent. Be sure to check for varieties of each type of plant that are fragrant.

  • Rare plants: Another fun use of annuals is to try out a rare or exotic plant — just give it a go. Some garden stores specialize in rare annuals and it can be a fun field trip to check out the oddball colors or shapes. Sometimes these grow beautifully and even come back for another year — ask me about my amaranth! Sometimes they don’t amount to much, but they don’t take much space and you can afford to risk it for the promise of a turquoise flower like the 3- or 4-foot spike of the Puya alpestris.

  • Shade annuals: There are annuals for shade gardens, too. While single and double impatiens used to be the go-to plant for shade gardens, they have recently been vulnerable to downy mildew and are not recommended. There are good shade alternatives, however, such as violas and tuberous begonias. The begonias, in particular, have luscious shapes and delicious, warm colors. Jumping jack violas are a favorite from my childhood: tiny, bright and funny-faced.

  If you would like to see any excellent display of annuals growing among perennials, visit the Sun Garden at the Marin Art and Garden Center.

Add native plants to your garden

• Anne-Marie Walker

• Do you know how Hollywood got its name? Toyon, a lovely native tree dotted the hills and at Christmas delighted everyone with holly-like bright red berries.

  This same tree graces many Marin hills scattered among other chaparral plants, some well-suited to grow in your cultivated garden. Following a few principles, you can enrich your landscape with native plants to get gardening on the wild side without tearing out your existing landscape. Incorporating natives into your existing garden will conserve water and create a more sustainable landscape requiring less maintenance and fertilizer.

  Before selecting and placing native plants in your garden, take note of sun and shade requirements, water needs and space requirements of each existing and proposed plant. Temperature, moisture, soil composition and exposure all determine what grows in a garden. Aesthetically, California native plants lend themselves to a wide variety of different conditions and styles. With observation, you find landscapes incorporating native trees like toyon, ceanothus, western redbud and strawberry tree. You will find native grasses, including fescue and carex inter-planted with native flowering plants.

  With good planning, your garden will attract pollinators and beneficial insects. In his Oxford tract garden at the University of California at Berkeley, Gordon Frankie has documented more than 60 species of bees happily covered in the purple pollen of lacy phacelia, a native that attracts syrphid flies that eat aphids. Native butterflies including the western swallowtail come to visit native milkweed while Indian paintbrush and yarrow attract other beneficials like ladybugs and mites that eat aphids. Suddenly, your garden will not only be low water use, but also pesticide-free and rich in habitat.

  California has more than 5,800 species of native plants of which 2,150 are endemic. So, how do you pick natives that will adapt to your garden? Grouping similar plant communities that are locally adapted helps to insure compatible soil and water needs. Remember to group same plants in masses for aesthetics and foraging pollinators. Keeping a foundation of shrubs and trees that remain evergreen will provide year-round visual interest.

  Many California natives go dormant in summer and fall. Wildflowers have gone to seed, perennials die back and native grasses are semi-dormant. Now is a good time to stop and be still in your garden before the arrival of winter rains. Listen to the acorns drop. Watch the berries turn red. Gather seeds from flowers; some you can even eat like chia, a seed produced by our native California salvia columbariae, whose blue flower and gray foliage pair well with two other natives, coyote mint and coast goldenbrush. Watch pollinators visit late summer-blooming California fuchsia, heleniums, salvias and penstemons. By planting natives, your garden will become a more natural ecosystem that supports biodiversity through native plants in the biome in which they coevolved with pollinators. For more information on native plants, go to botanical garden fall plant sales and to websites like Rancho Santa Ana’s website at rsabg.org.

  While informal assessments of biomass indicate an increasingly lower percentage of native plant species, scientific research is being conducted by the University of California in 39 natural reserve areas throughout the state. At the McLaughlin Natural Reserve, about 80 miles north of San Francisco, Susan Harrison has been monitoring native plants for 15 years. Her research points to a decline in the average number of native plant species impacting pollinators and other animals. Temperature changes and changing climate conditions are likely causal factors.

  Planting natives in gardens increases biodiversity. Remember there is no better time for gardening on the wild side than November to February, when winter rains help natives grow deep roots to survive dry summers.

Advantages of mixing native and nonnative plantings

• Julie Monson

• Natives typically grow more slowly than nonnatives; it takes more time for them to contribute to the primary structure of a garden. That can create a challenge but there are advantages to combining natives and nonnatives in the same landscape.Ê

  In our 12-year-old in West Marin garden, where many of the trees and major shrubs are large, if not yet mature, about 20 natives grow happily in the midst of nonnatives plants.

  Natives may not be as dramatic and colorful as other nonnative plant material, but their contribution to the garden creates lively evergreen variations in color (green) and texture. In our fenced courtyard, for example, Japanese maples provide ample shade for several wonderful native plants: huckleberries, sword ferns, maidenhair ferns, berberis (Oregon grape), western columbine and heuchera (coral bells). These mix happily with nonnatives like azaleas, camellias, podocarpus, nandina and the groundcover blue star creeper (pratia). It's primarily an evergreen pallet, and except for the ferns and maples, each plant blooms in its season, providing welcome color and attracting bees.

  I particularly like huckleberries, slow growing, but attractive evergreen shrubs from 4 to 6 feet. They take kindly to an annual trim to keep their shape. In early spring, their tiny white bell-shaped flowers attract bees by the hundreds.

  In the fall, their deep purple berries are sweet and attract birds. At the base of the huckleberries, I planted a patch of deciduous ferns (California polypody), and several bronze-leaved heuchera. In the spring, the carpet of pale blue flowers of the pratia ground cover provides a backdrop for the adjacent delicate blooms of the huckleberries and heuchera, an annual dividend to our otherwise mostly evergreen garden.

  The rest of the garden receives more sun and, being unfenced, is regularly visited by deer. Deer are almost as fond of native plants, especially young ones, as they are of nonnative plants. The stalwarts of the garden are the trees and large shrubs we planted at the start: coast live oaks, madrone, ceanothus, coffeeberry, baccharis (coyote bush), yarrow, fremontodendron and ferns. Young trees need to be protected from deer until their branches are out of browsing range. Installing three sturdy stakes 2 to 3 feet from the trunk, and wrapping flexible deer fence around the stakes protects young trees for a few years. The fencing is modestly unsightly, but it's not for long. The coffeeberry is now a handsome 5-foot hedge; at this time of year, it's covered with deep purple berries - a haven for small birds. The baccharis would take over if we didn't regularly prune it severely. It doesn't seem to mind and the deer leave it alone.

  These large natives share their garden space with nandina, lavender, various grasses, two ginko trees, podocarpus, choisya, maytens, Japanese maples and dogwoods. For the most part, all these plants thrive in our West Marin, Mediterranean climate and share climatic requirements with our natives. They tolerate our wet winters and dry summers. We adjust our irrigation month by month, and station by station, to water only as much as is needed to keep these mature plants healthy. Shade makes a huge difference in their water requirements, even though these mature trees have large root systems. Their needs are therefore compatible with those of our native vegetation.

  One of my favorite natives has been a fremontodendron, now 20 feet tall, which bloomed all summer in a sunny part of the garden. Another is yarrow, which almost serves as a ground cover in sunny places. Its bright yellow flower heads are one of the brightest of the flowering natives. I've mixed yarrow with one of the showier thymes and erigeron, all easy to grow and colorful during summer.

  One doesn't have to make a choice between natives and nonnatives: each can make a valuable contribution to the garden. Mixing them provides choices and opportunities. Gardening with natives serves important environmental goals. We know natives are important for the health of our native bees and they require less water. They also serve as beautiful companions for our more showy nonnative plants.

  IF YOU GO

  What: Betty Young, director of native plant nurseries at GGNRA, and Sue Fritzke, UC Marin Master Gardener, discuss "Plant Like a Native."

  When: 7 p.m. Oct. 7

  Where: Marin Art & Garden Center, 30 Sir Francis Drake Blvd., Ross

  Admission: $5

  Information:E-mail Gail Mason at agmbean@comcast.net

  The University of California Marin Master Gardeners are sponsored by UC Cooperative Extension. For questions about gardening, plant pests or diseases, call 499-4204 from 9 a.m. to noon, and 1 to 4 p.m. weekdays, or bring in samples or pictures to 1682 Novato Blvd., Suite 150B, Novato.

Aesthetic pruning of trees and shrubs

• Dave Phelps

• Have you ever seen master pruners at work? It appears as if they're in a trance, completely in the moment, having a deep connection with their subject. This is not, unfortunately, what most trees and shrubs encounter when the "mow, blow and go" team swings in with their hedge trimmers.

  Aesthetic pruning, or natural pruning, respects the natural shape, form and silhouette of the plants. It takes more awareness and effort than just hedging plants into little cubes and spheres.

  Pruning trees and shrubs can be a very grounding and rewarding endeavor. It can also be great exercise. Pruning allows us to be creative and good land stewards. The overall attitude the pruner should take is one of respect and of inquiry. Since form always follows function, assuming the right plant was planted in the space, the landscape function of the plant coupled with its phenotype will determine the pruning strategy.

  When approaching a shrub or tree to prune, first assess its overall health, noting why it's there in the first place, and determine if there are any main issues to address. Don't ponder for long. There are several steps to go through before the "aesthetic" part. The next step is to remove "The Three D's — dead, diseased and damaged wood."

  When making a cut, it is important to follow the guidelines that limit the possibility of harming the plant while maximizing the capability of the plant to seal off the wound and put up natural barriers to infection. The main cuts to use are the three-saw cut, the heading-back cut, and the thinning cut.

  The three-saw cut is a cutting procedure that protects a larger limb from ripping the bark down good wood and creating a larger wound. It involves making an under-cut first away from the branch bark collar, a second, top-cut just beyond the under-cut, allowing the heavier wood to break away safely, and a final cut at the growth ring. This cut encourages the plant to quickly seal off the wound with a callous roll initiated from the cambium layer under the bark.

  The heading-back cut is one that reduces the length or height of a branch by cutting back to a smaller lateral or a bud. It is a directional cut that determines which way the plant will grow in the future. A good rule of thumb is that the smaller lateral cut back to should be at least one-third the size of what is being cut. Never remove more than one quarter of the green leaves of any plant during the growing season.

  The other cut, the thinning cut, is one where an entire branch is removed at its place of origin; the growth ring. Never leave stubs or spikes, and don't make a flush cut. Stubs and spikes are hard for the plant to seal and flush cuts open up good wood to insects and fungal infection.

  The next things to cut off are at the bottom — suckers. These may originate from the roots, below a graft, or from the crown of the plant. Following that, midway up, are water sprouts. These branches go straight up and usually cause rubbing branches that inhibit sunlight and air circulation in the plant. Sometimes, these can be left and headed back to fill in an empty space.

  The last thing to remove is near the top: double leaders. While it is desirable for some plants to bush out and have multiple leaders, these should be broad, strong crotches. The narrow ones most trees create can cause problems in the future.

  After removing all of these, it is time to look at function and aesthetics. Sometimes the function of the pruning is to make plants look older than their years. Sometimes it is to promote flower or fruit production in the coming season. Sometimes it is to create privacy, and other times it is to develop a strong structure for future growth, or just to keep the plant out of traffic. Try to achieve a natural symmetry and good branch spacing for ample airflow and sunlight.

  It is important to consider how plants respond to being cut. If the growing tips of the plant are removed, the lateral buds and branches below it will grow more vigorously. Use this understanding to direct future growth.

  To learn more about natural, aesthetic pruning, come see a Feb. 9 demonstration by Peter Churgel at Falkirk Cultural Center in San Rafael.

Aging gardeners can continue their passion with a few tweaks

• D.F. Braun

• GARDENING REQUIRES vigor, muscle, time and dedication. The dilemma facing the aging gardener is not a simple one.

  The 89-year-old author/editor Diana Athill, writing about her love of gardening in "Somewhere Towards the End," stated:

  "I manage to do a little bit of work myself: tie something back, trim something off, clear some corner of weeds, plant three or four small plants, and however my bones may ache when I've done it, I am always deeply refreshed by it. Getting one's hands in the earth, spreading roots, making plants comfortable — it is a totally absorbing occupation — so that you become what you are doing and are given a wonderful release from consciousness of self. And so, for that matter, is simply sitting in your garden, taking it in."

  What aging gardener cannot relate to this description?

  Family and friends may suggest you simplify your tasks by removing high-maintenance plants, by letting some areas "go native" or by planting lots of shrubs suitable for a Marin County garden. A nongardening friend may even suggest that your roses take too much of your time. How about some geraniums instead? But how can you remove the plants that define you as a gardener?

  It may be time to take stock of your needs — on your own:
  • What chores please you?
  • Which ones do you find most rewarding?
  • How much time do you spend on strenuous chores?
  •Do you feel the need to simplify your tasks?

  Let's consider a few ideas that may appeal and ease your labors. 
  
  A few raised wooden beds for your herbs and  summer vegetables offer easier access and can be islands of rich earth under your control. Many catalogues now offer precut, insect-resistant kits that can easily be put together without the use of tools. You can assemble a raised bed
  on a 4-foot-by-8-foot piece of lawn or ground, then fill with a good soil
  mixture and you're ready to plant.

  If you compost consider using more compost tea. Place a full trowel of readied compost into a burlap bag or porous pouch and steep in a large container of water. It's ready for use for potted plants indoors or out and for the newly planted. A lightweight watering can will serve you well and require far less heavy lifting.

  Consider plants that will bloom each year without having to deal with too many annuals. A far corner of your garden where you may have done a bit of experimentation can be a fine plot for daffodils. If the bulbs are planted at least 9 inches deep they will grow again each spring. After blooming they should be allowed to dry out completely without being disturbed. Once a year care is all that's required for the next spring's "host of golden daffodils."

  Another easy plant is the bush peony. This year's heavy frost will create many magnificent blooms on this undemanding beauty. On the other hand, consider the iris (family Iridaceae), which asks only for a warm spot and will please you with blooms each late spring.

  Marigolds may be planted in "tired" beds. While some gardeners may find their fragrance unpleasant, the roots of the marigolds (Tagetes) exude thiophenes, which will kill nematodes. They also may be planted in  vegetable gardens to repel insects. Ancient gardeners believed they repelled vermin.

  Let's consider your roses in the hope of easing your labors a bit. In the January issue of the Marin Rose, the local rose society's monthly, consulting rosarian Betty Mott offered these suggestions:
  • Make no effort to save a rose — it can't be done.
  • You do not need to add magnesium sulphate (Epsom salts) to our soil in Marin.
  • New research suggests picking up dead leaves from the rose garden may indeed make the garden look better, but it will not reduce the incidence of disease in your garden next year.
  
  It also may help to tell you that after World War II the English garden guru Vita Sackville often reminded her readers that six years of war without care had not affected the growth nor the blooms of England's roses.

  Of course, we keep gardening because we are imagining the next lovely spring and being responsible for the great summer harvest. Perhaps this illuminates the reasoning behind the odd declaration of the French philosopher Montaigne: "I want death to find me planting cabbages." As a follower of the Epicurean thought he felt close to the "secret heart of gardening," which was a way of life.

All Kinds of Tomatoes

• Martha Proctor

• For its April 14 tomato market, the Marin Master Gardeners (MMG) have chosen 30 proven winners for Marin gardens! Ten of the varieties, new to the market this year, are exciting, exceptional tomatoes chosen for their superior taste and outstanding performance.
  
  With the cooler summer weather experienced over the past two years, many gardeners have been disappointed with a less than ideal tomato harvest. As this is the market’s 7th year, the MMGs have carefully evaluated the performance of an exhaustive list of heirloom and hybrid tomatoes. With more than 2000 varieties of tomato worldwide and several other classifications to consider (e.g., determinant vs. indeterminate, cherry vs. beefsteak, etc) choosing the right tomato plants to meet your needs can be quite challenging. Given a warmer summer, the tomato varieties featured in this year’s market will go a long way to ensuring that any tomato you choose will perform well in the microclimate of your Marin garden.
  
  Below is a profile of 10 exceptional new tomatoes featured in this year’s market. Each profile includes whether the tomato is 1. an heirloom or hybrid, 2. determinate (bush size which blooms in 4-6 weeks) or indeterminate (tall and bloom till frost), and 3. the number of days to maturity. Days to maturity is an important consideration: up to 65 days is classified as early, 66-79 days, mid-season and more than 80 days, late season. Inasmuch as tomatoes prefer day temperatures in the upper 70s or low 80s, growth and ripening of fruit are slowed by cool, cloudy weather. Thus, it is best for those in cooler microclimates/coastal areas to choose early maturing varieties; inland and warmer areas can better support mid-season and late maturing varieties.
  
  Bloody Butcher - 55-60 days, indeterminate, heirloom. A highly prolific, early tomato which produces medium sized, perfectly round, blemish-free 1-2" deep-red skinned fruit. Fruits tend to ripen quickly, so this variety is excellent for growing in areas with shorter summers.
  
  Cabernet - 60 days, indeterminate. Hybrid plant produces tremendous yields of very flavorful, small grape-like red tomatoes. One of the best-tasting, quality greenhouse varieties on the market.
  
  Black and Brown Boar - 65-75 days, indeterminate, heirloom. Strong growing plant and heavy producer of 3-4 oz. fruit. Great flavor, dark earthy tones in this dark reddish, beautiful tomato with metallic green stripes.
  
  Risentraube - 76-85 days, indeterminate, heirloom. This is probably the most popular small tomato with seed collectors. Plant produces extremely heavy yields of one inch, very flavorful, red cherry tomatoes, which grow in clusters of 20 to 40 tomatoes. Name translates to "Giant Bunch of Grapes." Grown by Pennsylvania Dutch as early as 1856.
  
  Haley’s Purple Comet - 70-80 days, indeterminate, heirloom/open pollinated. One of the best-tasting tomatoes in San Diego trial gardens. Develops its best flavor in hot weather. A vigorous grower which produces abundant clusters of 2" almost round, dark purple, cherry tomatoes with green shoulders.
  
  Chianti Rose - 78 days, indeterminate, open-pollinated, heirloom. An exceptional tomato which produces huge crops of 1-2 lb. gorgeous, rosy-pink, thin-skinned, succulent beefsteak tomatoes with a balanced, complex flavor.
  
  Indigo Rose - 75 days, compact indeterminate, hybrid. The only tomato with high levels of anthocyanins, very powerful anti-oxidants. Green when unripe, purple-red when ripe, the 1-2 oz., cocktail-sized tomatoes have a delicious flavor with “plummy” overtones.
  
  Blondekopfchen - 80 days, indeterminate, heirloom. Undoubtedly one of the best tasting cherry tomatoes. Deliciously sweet with a slight citrusy tart finish. A favorite snacking tomato and excellent choice for introducing tomatoes to kids who claim they don't like tomatoes. Plant produces clusters of 20-40 sweet, golden yellow, non-cracking, disease resistant tomatoes that grow well in most climates. The vines are large and sprawling, so need plenty of space.
  
  Michael Pollan - 80-90 days, indeterminate, heirloom. An egg-shaped tomato with green stripes named after the Berkeley author. Very popular in taste tests plus the bloom is reported to be quite showy. "Michael Pollan” is possibly susceptible to Blossom End Rot; be sure to water evenly to prevent this problem.
  
  Fantastic - 85 days, indeterminate, hybrid. The vigorous producer yields 3-5 inch delicious bright red, tomatoes with above average crack resistance. The most popular hybrid with its rich beefsteak flavor that Territorial Seed company sells. Does better if staked.
  
  A healthy garden relies on an inter-connected system in which beneficial insects, worms, sun, shade, moisture, and soil each play an important part. An age-old method often used to enhance productivity is intercropping or companion planting. Although unproven by research, companion planting is the technique of planting crops with desirable characteristics in proximity to each other. Planting beneficial plants among your tomato plants can create habitat for beneficial insects, deter problem pests, and enrich your soil. When selecting your companion plants, consider what each plant adds or takes away from the soil and what affect the proximity of the plant or herb will have on the health and flavor of your tomatoes. For example, planting basil nearby is thought to repel whiteflies and hookworms plus it enhances growth and flavor. Marigolds planted near tomatoes can sometimes repel nematodes, tomato worm, slugs and other general pests. Nasturtium may deter aphids and ward off fungal diseases. Parsley attracts hoverflies, which feast on tomato pests. Adding a few carrots to your tomato bed assists neighboring plants as carrots draw nutrients from deeper in the soil.
  
  Avoid planting tomatoes in a vegetable bed with brassicas (cabbage. cauliflower, broccoli, Brussel sprouts or kohlrabi), corn, or fennel as these plants inhibit tomato growth. Also noteworthy is the fact that plants in the Solanaceae family (tomatoes, potatoes, eggplant and peppers) are all susceptible to early and late blight fungus.
  
  Mark your calendar for April 14, the date of this year’s outstanding Marin Master Gardener (MMG) tomato market. The market will be held from 9:30 to 12:30 in two locations: at Pini Hardware, 1535 S. Novato Blvd, Nave Shopping Center, Novato and during the same time period at the Bon Air Center, just off highway 101 on Sir Francis Drake Blvd, Greenbrae.
  
  

All Stars for your Garden

• Dot Zanotti Ingels

• Spring is on its way and we will all soon be anxious to get outside to plant in our gardens.  Master Gardeners are always advising people of the importance of planting the right plant in the right place.  Now is a good time to do some advance planning with the help of the University of California Davis Arboretum.  The Arboretum’s All-Stars program is making plant selection easier and helps us avoid plants our gardens would be better off without.  The horticultural staff of the UC Davis Arboretum has identified 100 tough, reliable plants that have been tested in the Arboretum, are easy to grow, don’t need a lot of water, have few problems with pests or diseases, and have outstanding qualities in the garden. Many of them are California native plants and support native birds and insects. Many of the All-Star plants can be successfully planted and grown throughout California, but some may not be as well suited to all parts of Marin.  The Arboretum is the main source of horticultural information for a Mediterranean climate with hot, dry summers and cool, wet winters unlike the Pacific coast, which has a very mild climate where most plants flourish.
  
  Traditional methods of yard care often use lots of water, can contaminate streams and rivers with pesticide runoff, and contribute to air pollution with power equipment emissions. A visit to the Arboretum will teach you more about more environmentally-friendly alternatives such as Mediterranean-style garden design, water-saving irrigation systems, mulching, companion plantings, biological pest control, and other sustainable practices that reduce the use of water, energy, and chemical inputs and support native pollinators, birds, and beneficial insects.
  
  The UC Davis Arboretum was founded in 1936 to support teaching and research at the University of California. It occupies 100 acres along the banks of the old north channel of Putah Creek, in California's Central Valley. The collections include 22,000 trees and plants adapted to our Mediterranean climate. The plants are arranged in a series of gardens that represent different geographic areas, plant groups, or horticultural themes.  For those of you who are very visual and like to see before you plant, you may want to make a trip to see what they have.  You can schedule a guided tour or sign up for a cell phone tour.  There is no charge to visit the Arboretum. The gardens are open 24 hours a day, every day of the year. You can download a visitor map, or pick one up at the Arboretum Headquarters. The main path through the gardens is a 3.5 mile loop.  The office is open Monday–Friday, 8 a.m.–5 p.m. Parking is easily available.  It is free to park on Saturday and Sunday and costs $7.00 per car on weekdays.  There are permit machines in the visitor parking lots that accept bills, coins and ATM and credit cards.  The dog can come, but must stay on a leash.  Parts of the Arboretum are level and easily accessible to wheelchairs or people with limited mobility, and disability accommodations can be arranged with advance notice. They also offer PDFs of our educational exhibits for visitors with limited mobility.
  
  Some of the plants on the list can also be seen at the Marin Master Gardener’s display gardens at Falkirk Cultural Center, 1408 Mission Avenue in downtown San Rafael. 
  
  The UC Davis Arboretum is committed to practicing, promoting and teaching about sustainable horticulture. All-Stars also have one or more of the following features:

  • They are low maintenance
  • They are drought tolerant  
  • They attract beneficial wildlife

  
  The arboretum has designed gardens for you that include a layout and plant list.  The gardens include a California Native Garden, a Low Maintenance Garden and a Wildlife Attracting Garden.  They are based on a 10 by 10 foot space.  There are photos of the plants and each plant on the All-Star list comes with information on how to plant and care for your new garden entry.  The lists are easy to follow as is, or can be mixed and matched to achieve the look and goals you want.
  
  For information about all 100 UC Davis Arboretum All-Star plants, their care requirements, and how to use them in your home landscape, enjoy a visit to their website at http://arboretum.ucdavis.edu/about_us.aspx.  From there you can use the All-Stars database to find the right plants for your garden, search through a list of the 100 UC Davis Arboretum All-Stars, view an audio slide show about the All-Stars plants and download the 2011 Arboretum with a full list of all 100 All-Stars with detailed information about each plant plus so much more.
  
  The Arboretum nursery has All-Star plants for purchase.  They have also collaborated with nurseries throughout the state to stock All-Star plants well suited to the local conditions such as climate and soils.  The nurseries in Marin are the Sloat Garden Centers at 700 Sir Francis Drake Boulevard at Wolfe Grade in Kentfield and 2000 Novato Boulevard at Wilson in Novato.

Alternatives to Lawns

• Juliana Jensen

• Ah, the lawn:  a lovely green swath suitable for croquet and tea parties, children’s games and, of course, lawn chairs.   When I visit my uncle at his farm in southern Pennsylvania, I am astonished at the acres and acres of green lawns spreading around the houses in his area.    It must take hours of riding around on a power mower and buckets of fertilizer to keep these lawns at this peak of perfection.
  
  
  Here in Marin, we have dry summers, clay soil, hilly terrain, and frequent droughts.    It is not a natural climate for a lawn.   The water requirements of a lawn keep them expensive and impractical in our region.  Often lawns require pricey fertilizer or herbicides that are not good for our environment.   They take a lot of time to maintain for a homeowner, or add to the expense if a service is used.  
  
  Lawns have their place, of course.   Nothing beats a lawn as a place for children’s play.  A small patch of green can be a lovely accent in a garden plan.   But there are creative, fragrant, and aesthetically pleasing alternatives to maintaining a lawn at home.
  
  Now, instead of a lawn, picture this:  steppingstones through a Mediterranean pleasure garden of aromatic herbs, flowering low-growing ornamentals, and adorable miniature succulents.   When you step on them, a fragrance is released redolent of summer—apples, spices, violets.   You can harvest bits for a soothing bath or a delicious tea.  Most are drought-tolerant once established, reseed easily, and make no demands on you, other than an occasional shearing back.
  
  Let’s start with the herbs.   You can actually create a whole “lawn” of chamomile.  It tolerates foot traffic while producing sweet flowers for tea or baths.   When you step on it you smell the scent of apples.  Another good herb that tolerates walking on is thyme.  The low-growing varieties such as woolly thyme, Thymus lanuginosus, or creeping thyme, Thymus praecox arcticus, release an aromatic spicy scent when stepped on.  Thyme is especially nice around pavers.  
  
  The low-growing, flowering ornamentals also make a nice ground cover.   Mazus reptans, a Himalayan plant that sprouts interesting purple flowers, tolerates heavy foot traffic and works well between stepping stones.  Fragaria chiloensis, the beach strawberry, is a flat, pretty, native ornamental strawberry that spreads easily and produces white flowers in the spring and the occasional not-too-tasty fruit. Also look for the carpet-forming miniature daisy, Bellium minutum, the Santa Barbara daisy, Erigeron karvinskianus, or sea thrift, Armeria maritima.
  
  If you want particularly fragrant plants, consider a small variety of dianthus, Dianthus gratianopolitanus, which forms low mats of blue-gray foliage with pink blossoms from spring through fall that are deliciously fragrant.   Another easily spreading and fragrant flower is the native California sweet violet, sometimes sold as Viola odorata.   One of the tops in fragrance, for those who enjoy the scent, is the Bevan’s cranesbill, Geranium macrorrhizum.  This plant blooms in red and magenta flowers in late spring through summer and also provides autumn color.  
  
  Another approach to ground cover is the succulent garden.   This is very appropriate for our climate and appeals to a different, sparser aesthetic.  These plants aren’t really to be walked on, but they grow nicely along a gravel path and are satisfyingly diverse in color and shape.  Some colorful, succulent ground covers are Sedum spurium, Dragon’s blood sedum, and Crassula erosula, “Campfire.”   The Marin Master Gardeners maintain a beautiful succulent garden at the Falkirk Cultural Center that can be seen every day.  
  
  So give it a go.  You can start by just eliminating a small piece of your lawn.  Maybe you can put in a pathway with herbs around the pavers.  Or start a succulent rock garden in a patchy area where the lawn doesn’t grow very well anyway.  You may find that your creativity is sparked as the beauty of your garden swells to your independent tastes.    Let the professionals at the local park take care of the lawn.   You’re busy bathing in chamomile.

AMAZING Alstroemerias

• Martha Proctor

• If you are looking for a perennial that flowers profusely, requires minimal care and provides superb cut flowers, check out Alstroemerias! As exotic as orchids but far easier to grow, Alstroemeria, commonly called Peruvian Lily or Lily of the Incas, bears delicately marked, almost orchid-like flowers. The genus of approximately 50 species of flowering plants is native to South America. Many of the species originated in one of two distinct centers of diversity, central Chile (winter-growing Alstroemerias) and eastern Brazil (summer growing). The most popular and distinctive hybrids commonly grown today resulted from crosses between these two species. Ongoing research devoted to creating more widely adaptable plants has resulted in Alstroemerias that are essentially evergreen and flower most of the year. All are long-lived except a diminutive annual, Alstroemeria (Taltalia) graminea, which is found in the Atacama Desert in Chile.

  The genus was named by Carolus Linnaeus (1707-1778) to honor his close friend, Claus von Alstroemer, a Swedish baron, who collected seeds from the plant on a trip to South America in 1753. The plant was first described by the French botanist Louis Feuillée (1660-1732).

  For many years, only the tall deciduous type of Alstroemeria, which produces clusters of flowers for six weeks on two to five foot stems, was available to gardeners. Many gardeners hesitated to plant these otherwise gorgeous plants because of their tendency to become invasive. Alstroemerias are rhizome-like, tuberous perennials which can spread to form clumps twelve to twenty-four inches across.

  Many hybrids and about 190 cultivars have been developed with distinctive flecks, dark stripes and colors ranging from white, golden yellow, orange to apricot, pink, red, purple and lavender. In August 2006, after decades of research by Könst Alstroemeria BV in the Netherlands, Princess Lilies, the dwarf Alstroemeria, appeared on the market. This hybrid is compact, slightly taller than one foot and approximately twenty inches wide. It is tough, drought tolerant, ideal for containers and gardens and yet produces up to thirty buds on one stem. These wonderful dwarf plants will flower continuously from spring to late autumn provided their few needs are met. An interesting note and a tip to identifying this plant is that the leaves twist at the base so that the upper and lower surfaces are reversed and internally the anatomy has adapted to this reversed position.

  Plant the tubers as soon as you obtain them eight inches deep in full sun to partial shade preferably in late summer or early autumn. Transplants can be planted directly into the ground after the risk of night frost has ended. Plants prefer loose, fertile, well-drained soil but will tolerate a variety of soils. If your soil is mostly clay, it is advisable to dig in plenty of compost and grit to improve drainage. The roots are delicate and brittle so handle them gently, spreading them out in soft rich soil just below the surface. Add a balanced granular fertilizer to the soil before planting. Because dwarf Alstroemerias produce copious flowers, these plants perform best with adequate nourishment and water during growth and bloom. Provide sufficient water for the first three weeks of bedding; avoid allowing the soil to become waterlogged or excessively dry. Hand broadcast an annual side dressing of compost or aged manure in early spring.

  The plants may take a year to become established and productive, but once they are settled in, flowering is profuse. During the first two autumns after planting, cut back the dead stems and mulch with compost, just to give the roots extra protection for the winter. Container grown plants become established more quickly but perform better if they receive extra fertilizer as a side or top dressing. After flowering, plants become dormant and no additional water is necessary. Be aware that inasmuch as Alstroemeria is a member of the Amaryllidaceae, botanical families from which many pharmaceutical products are derived, some individuals develop allergic dermatitis from the species.

  In a well watered garden, snails, slugs and other pests find Alstroemerias quite a delicious treat. In a dry garden, these pests present less of a problem, but care should still be taken to protect the tender shoots of young plants.

  Alstroemerias are ideal border plants, feature plants in containers, and cut flowers. For the twenty years prior to 2006, dwarf Alstroemerias were exclusively available to the cut flower trade. With the introduction of dwarf Alstromerias to the market, gardeners welcomed the opportunity to provide a welcome splash of color in their gardens while concomitantly cultivating these excellent cut flowers. In fact, the more flowers you pick, by simply pulling the stem out of the ground, the more flowers they produce. I have several stands of Alstroemerias in my garden—how can you go wrong with their lengthy flowering period, beautiful color range, and basically trouble-free growing habit?

An all-natural healthy lawn? It’s doable

• Nanette Londeree

• Like wiggling your toes in cool, green grass on a sizzling summer day? Playing with the kids or tossing the ball with the dog on a soft carpet of lawn? People really enjoy cut grass and no other material — natural or man-made — is as good for recreational activities or provides the same verdant look.

  However, to keep those expanses pristine, likely lots of chemical fertilizers and pesticides are used. Add maintenance with gasoline-powered equipment and you can see this beauty comes at a hefty cost. But it doesn’t have to. You can have your own swath of emerald turf that is gentle on your pocketbook and the environment.

  And it may even be beneficial.

  “Healthy grass provides feeding ground for birds, which find it a rich source of worms and other foods,” reports “Healthy Lawn, Healthy Environment,” a publication of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. “Grass is also highly efficient at converting carbon dioxide to oxygen, a process that helps clean the air.”

  Kick the chemicals and go natural. “The reasons for natural lawns are many,” says Paul Tukey, author of “The Organic Lawn Care Manual.” “They’re safer for families, pets and the environment. They use fewer fossil fuels, water and fertilizer.” And it’s not that difficult.

  Tukey reflects that an organically maintained lawn “can be less expensive and, in time, require less of your time.” His recipe? “Treat your soil well with compost and natural fertilizers, pick the right grass for your climate and sunlight situation, water well, use the right tools and mow properly with a sharp blade.”

  All pretty doable.

  Growing a lawn organically begins with soil that drains well, is not compacted and contains necessary nutrients. Results from a simple soil test (do-it-yourself kits are available at most nurseries) will indicate the concentrations of the three most important ones — nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium (NPK) present in your soil.

  Chose a type of grass that grows well in your micro-climate, has resistance to pests and diseases, and is suitable for the type of use it will get. Lots of information on grass varieties are available at the University of California’s guide to healthy lawns website at ipm.ucanr.edu/TOOLS/TURF.

  In our drought-prone environment, watering is a key factor for a healthy lawn. It’s best to irrigate only when the grass really needs it and do it slowly, ensuring that water penetrates the top 6 to 8 inches of soil, encouraging roots to extend deep into the soil. Frequent light watering promotes shallow root growth, creating ideal conditions for weeds and disease. Irrigate early in the morning when evaporation and wind are minimal.

  Mow high, letting grass grow taller between cuttings. With more surface area to take in sunlight, grass can grow denser with stronger root systems, enabling the turf to withstand drought, tolerate pest damage and choke out weeds. Use sharp blades on your mower to prevent tearing and injuring the grass. And consider switching to a rechargeable battery-operated mower — heavy duty types are now available that are oh, so quiet and non-polluting. The self-propelled models make mowing a breeze!

  Feed your lawn by grasscycling, adding compost, compost tea or an organic fertilizer. Grasscycling is the practice of leaving the grass clippings on the lawn; as they decompose, they put nutrients right back into the soil. Compost improves the moisture-holding capacity of the soil, adds nutrients and feeds soil microbes. Once a year, place a thin layer of compost (¼ to ½ inch) on the lawn surface and use a broom or rake to spread it out.

  There’s a wide selection of organic lawn fertilizers on the market. While generally having lower NPK levels than synthetic fertilizers, organic types feed soil microbes as they break down, and can improve soil structure.

  It may take a while to transition from a chemically dependent lawn to a natural, organic one, but the benefits are well worth it.

An Aussie plant perfect for Marin gardens, too

• Marybeth Kampman

• A FRIEND WAS waxing poetic about the wonders of her new favorite water-wise plant, grevillea — an Australian plant that looks similar to a  bottlebrush bush. Bottlebrush bushes are quite common in Marin County; although they're nice, they're not magnificent.

  She told me that to really get a flavor of the wonders of grevillea, I would need to visit Strybing Arboretum in San Francisco. They were now in bloom and could be found in the Australia section of the garden.

  So I took her advice, packed up my camera and headed for the arboretum. Visiting the garden is akin to taking a virtual trip around the world of plants, since it has plants from Africa, New Zealand and, of course, Australia.

  The garden has many species of grevillea, which turns out to be much different than the bottlebrush bush. The bottlebrush also hails from Australia, but it belongs to a different family of plants, the myrtaceae family. Grevillea is a member of the proteaceae family, a family of handsome and structurally beautiful plants.

  Grevilleas are popular and widely cultivated in Australia. They are drought tolerant and come in a wide variety of colors, shapes, textures and sizes. The flowers occur in an inflorescence of up to 100 individual flowers. Grevilleas are often grouped together by their flower formation. Some flowers form clusters or a spiderlike flower, which can be either erect or pendent. Others form flower clusters around a terminal spike. In the toothbrush type, flowers are produced along a one-sided spike. There are
  also others with flowers that form a soft feathery spike.

  They are not self-pollinators; rather pollen is released before the female structure is receptive. The pollen is presented to a pollinator that transfers the pollen from one flower to another. Many of the species have flowers that produce nectar that attract birds and bees and other insects that act as pollinators. The Aborigines also enjoy the nectar of the flowers, which is shaken onto their hands and eaten directly or mixed with water to make a sweet drink. I do not recommend this, however, because some cultivated species produce small amounts of toxic cyanide.

  The shrub blooms year-round, but it is at its showiest in winter and early spring. After the flowers are spent, thinly walled seedpods develop, each containing one or two seeds. It is possible to propagate grevillea from these seeds, or by cuttings or grafting. Propagation from cuttings is usually the most successful and preferred way.

  Grevilleas prefer an open sunny location with well-drained soil. They prefer being planted on a slope or raised garden bed. Most grevilleas need regular watering for the first season to establish them and infrequent watering in later years. A slow deep-soaking method is recommended.

  Little fertilization is required. They have a very sophisticated root system consisting of tight groupings of many small rootlets, which enables the plant to find the nutrients it needs in impoverished soils. It is often recommended not to fertilize them at all, or only with a low-phosphorus, slow-release fertilizer.

  Grevilleas should be pruned regularly. Tip pruning is recommended from the time they are planted. The best time to prune is after flowering but during the warmer months. Do not hard prune during the cold months.

  During my visit to Strybing I spotted a grevillea thelemanniana, which had red spiderlike flowers and is a low-growing shrub that likes sun. Another grevillea with spiderlike flower formations is grevillea lavandulacea, which has small narrow leaves and bright rose-colored flowers.

  By far the showiest and largest grevillea in the collection is the royal grevillea or grevillea victoriae — a large bush covered with handsome, feltlike, bronze flower buds and beautiful deep coral blooms. The leaves are large, up to 4 inches in length, and are gray green in color, making it a wonderful addition to the garden any time of the year. The petite
  grevillea rosmarinifolia is a low-growing, small, rounded shrub with spiky
  leaves, similar to the leaves of the rosemary plant. The delicate pink and
  cream flowers occur in clusters at the end of the branches.

  At the end of the day I had become a new fan of grevillea. They would be a perfect addition to a habitat garden attracting bees and birds. The only negative attribute I discovered was that the foliage of some are known to cause skin irritations, so it's best if they're not planted where people would inadvertently come in contact with them.

  For now I am quite happy to look, not touch, and enjoy their splendor.

Anthracnose may be the culprit

• James Campbell

• Last spring, my ancient and beloved oak tree started dropping leaves as if it decided to switch from evergreen to deciduous. Adjacent oaks looked healthy and full of leaves, but when I looked up at mine, I saw more sky than canopy. The bark on the trunk looked healthy and showed no obvious signs of sudden oak death. This is when I learned about anthracnose.

  Anthracnose is the menacing name for certain leaf spot and twig blight diseases. There are many different (but closely related) anthracnose fungi and each fungus is specific to a particular host plant.  Anthracnose infects both deciduous and evergreen trees as well as shrubs. In some regions, it can infect turfgrass, cacti, succulents, fruits and vegetables. Despite the differing fungal causes, the way anthracnose spreads is the same.

  Anthracnose fungi produce numerous spores when they become active in the spring. These microscopic spores spread via rain or sprinkler water to new growth. After entering new leaves or newly expanded twigs, they germinate. If moist conditions prevail, a successive generation of spores will form within the leaf spots and spread throughout the canopy. Young leaves and shoots are generally the most susceptible while mature leaves tend to be resistant to infection. Leaf symptoms are often most severe on lower and inner branches.

  Shade trees such as sycamore, maples, elms and oaks are often host to anthracnose.

  In Marin county, all our native oaks can get anthracnose. Black oak seems to be most susceptible due in part to the fact that this is the first oak to break leaves. Valley and blue oak can also get anthracnose if it is a cool, damp spring. Coast live oak may also be affected, but their tough leathery leaves seem less susceptible than other species.

  On leaves, look for tan, brown or black tar-like spots. These spots can darken as they age and may also expand. Leaves can also become brown, curled, deformed or dead. A severe anthracnose infection of an oak will cause die back of current season twig growth. The time most people notice the anthracnose infection in their oaks is when the leaf drop begins. It will start in the spring and can continue into the summer. This can cause defoliation of between 50-75% of the leaves on an oak. When it happened to me, I thought my oak tree was dying.

  In most instances, anthracnose does not cause permanent damage to mature trees. When symptoms develop or become severe, anthracnose can’t be effectively controlled during the current season. Once the weather becomes dry and leaves mature, the spread of the disease will end, and the tree will begin to replace lost leaves. Generally, the disease is cyclical with several years between severe infections. Good sanitation helps, so be sure to rake and dispose of fallen leaves and twigs and prune native oaks by removing only small twigs and dead branches.

  While succulents may be some of the easiest plants to grow, they have a propensity to develop fungal diseases, including anthracnose, when moved out of their natural habitats. In my foggy, shady garden, succulents are the other place I have noticed anthracnose disease.  Anthracnose infects succulents that are grown in insufficient light, overwatered or watered using overhead irrigation. There will be brown lesions on the leaves or crown and there may be active pink, red or orange spore pads in the lesions. The remedy is simple: remove the infected plant to avoid further infection to other plants, remove overhead watering sources, or reduce watering.

  While it may look and sound scary, anthracnose is usually nothing to fear. To learn more about anthracnose and to see what other plants might become infected, visit the University of California Pest notes page: http://ipm.ucanr.edu/PMG/PESTNOTES/pn7420.html

April Showers Bring Flowers and Pollinators

• Martha Proctor

• With the blessing of April showers and the warming sunshine, lovely daffodils and hellebores began the parade of spring color and now are being joined by a rainbow of beauties from the white of pear blossoms to the deep purple of delphinium and cerinthe. In Marin County we are blessed with a Mediterranean climate, which provides us with an ever-changing palette of color throughout our delightfully long growing period of close to 300 days each year.
  
  As the reproductive part of the plant, flowers are the means by which most of the plants in our gardens attract pollinators. Pollinators—typically wind, bees, hummingbirds, butterflies, moths, flies, bats, beetles, and, rarely, water—carry pollen from one flower to another. The manner by which pollination occurs varies from plant to plant, with most plants having specific pollinators. To attract their pollinators, flowers develop bewitchingly colored petals, elicit pleasant scents/compelling odors or produce inviting nectars. Butterflies and birds are drawn to flowers with red and/or yellow petals while bees, which cannot see red, prefer blue and ultraviolet. Moths and bats focus on white or pale tinted petals.
  
  To further entice their pollinators, flowers seemingly adapt their shape to the needs of their pollinator. The size and shape of the flower's parts and their alignment are critical to assure pollination when the right pollinator visits. A long nectar spur protects the pollen from robbers and yet allows a welcome reward for the desired pollinator. For example, the tube-like shape of the fuchsia or snapdragon works perfectly for its pollinator, the hummingbird. Non-hovering insects and birds need perches or landing platforms as part of the flower, i.e., large, flat flowers allow poor fliers, like beetles, to land on top. Flowers with "landing pads" (e.g., the iris) enable insects, like bees, to walk into the base of the petals to collect the pollen. Plants that use wind for cross-pollination generally have flowers that appear early in the spring, before or as the plant's leaves are emerging. Wind pollination is the prominent method in grasses, most conifers and many deciduous trees.
  
  Pollination is a well-planned accident! Pollinators are attracted to flowers due to the sticky pollen or sweet nectar at the base of the petals, which supplies the nutrients they need. While feeding, breeding or hiding in a flower, insects rub against the stamens and get pollen all over their face, legs or mouthparts so that when they move on to the next flower, they carry some of the pollen onto the stigma of that plant. As described below, pollination subsequently leads to the creation of seeds that eventually grow into new plants. Germination of the seed occurs with increasing daylight in spring, warming temperatures, proper timing and quantity of moisture, and even with fire, abrasion, and also after passing through the digestive track of birds or animals.
  
  Flowers have male parts, stamens, that produce pollen, a sticky powder, and a female part called the pistil. The top of the pistil is called the stigma, and is often sticky. Seeds are produced at the base of the pistil, in the ovule. To be pollinated, pollen must be moved from a stamen or male part to the stigma of the female part. After this occurs, sperm are produced within the pollen grain and a pollen tube carrying the sperm grows toward the ovary at the base of the flower. Fertilization occurs when the pollen tube grows into the ovary and sperm are united with an egg. When the flower wilts, the ovule enlarges and a seed and/or fruit develops.
  
  When pollen from a plant's stamen is transferred to that same plant's stigma, the process is called self-pollination. Cross-pollination, which produces stronger plants, occurs when pollen from a plant's stamen is transferred to the stigma of another plant of the same species. To be effectively pollinated, the plants must be of the same species. For example, only pollen from a rose can pollinate another rose. Pollen from a daisy or an apple tree would not result in new rose seeds and ultimately rose plants.
  
  Some plants, such as mosses and ferns, which do not produce flowers, reproduce by spores. Cone-bearing plants (e.g., pine or spruce trees) reproduce when pollen produced by a male cone is passed by wind to a female cone of the same species. The seeds then develop in the female cone.
  
  Like all living things, a flowering plant's goal is to procreate by setting seed. However, once the petals become brown and unattractive, it's a good time to deadhead or trim off the spent flower heads. This encourages the plant to produce another round of blooms instead of putting its vital energy into setting seeds. The act of deadheading works particularly well for annuals which have short lives and are driven to set seed, as they do not need to store energy for another year's growth. Once cold weather sets in, leave the dead flower heads so that birds and other wildlife can forage on the seeds through the winter.
  
  Now that spring is here, enjoy the beauty as it unfolds in your garden and beyond. Almost 75% of all plants rely on pollinators. The other 25% of the plant kingdom reproduces with spores (for example: mosses and ferns) or seeds (cycads, gingko, conifer). More than 200,000 species act as pollinators. Welcome pollinators to your garden by creating a pollinator-friendly habitat with an ongoing display of a wide variety of colorful spring, summer and fall blooming native plants that supply pollinators with nectar, pollen and homes. For helpful information on specific plants and their pollinators in northern California, check out http://pollinator.org/PDFs/Guides/CalifCoastalStepperx4FINAL.pdf. Enjoy the show!
  
  

April's the month to plant for a summer full of tasty tomatoes

• Anne-Marie Walker

• IN THE GARDEN on a summer's day, the buzz of the bumblebees is a welcome sound for tomato lovers. Tomatoes are among the 8 percent of flowering plants fertilized not by honeybees but instead by bumblebees.

  Often referred to as "buzz pollination," the process works by sonication; sound waves that shake pollen free from the anthers to the pistil and stigma. The vibration is not caused by the bumblebee's wings, but rather by its breathing achieved through four holes, called spiracles, in its abdomen. If you don't see bumblebees in your garden, encourage them by planting an herb border of borage, rosemary and chives whose blue flowers attract the bumblebee. If fruit is still not setting, you can accomplish pollination with a gentle tap of your hand or wait for a bit of wind.

  The tomato, indigenous to the Andes, was domesticated in Mexico and brought to Europe by the Spanish. The name tomato derives from the Nahuatl language spoken by the Aztec. The first written description of the tomato was in 1544 by Pietro Andrea Matthiola, a Tuscan physician and botanist. He described it as the "mala aurea" or golden apple.
  
  Cultivation of the tomato spread throughout the Mediterranean, where the climate was supportive to growth. The oldest known European recipe for tomatoes (recorded in Italy where the fruit was eaten universally) was called salsa di pommodoro alla Spagnola, literally meaning Spanish tomato sauce.

  Technically, tomatoes in the wild are tender perennials with tiny leaves and sweet tiny fruit that grow in clusters much like grapes. Their growth pattern is indeterminate and the plants have a low, spreading habit making them perfect candidates for hanging baskets.

  We choose to grow tomatoes as warm weather annuals. Varieties of tomatoes are numerous and are categorized by vine habit of 'Indeterminate,' 'Large Determinate' and 'Determinate.' 'Indeterminate'
  vines grow and set fruit throughout the season and need good trellis support. 'Large Determinate' vines grow to a good size but not that much after that. 'Determinate' vines remain small to medium in size, and compact or dwarf vines are even smaller. Leaf size and canopy also vary by variety as do resistance or tolerance of diseases.

  So, a little homework before selecting your tomato variety can truly pay off.
  
  There is a reason that the homegrown tomato is one of the most popular garden vegetables (although technically a fruit as it is a ripened ovary) and that is flavor. Home gardeners select for taste whereas commercial growers select primarily for tough skins that hold up in shipping and secondly for bright color to attract the eye of the customer. Besides selecting for flavor, select for resistance by looking for the identification codes on the label following the cultivar's name.

  There is no cure for the following conditions other than resistant varieties and good garden hygiene. Disease-resistant codes include:
  
  • A: Alternaria stem canker — dark brown/black cankers on stems and leaves

  • F: Fusaruim wilt — soil-borne fungi that yellow, weaken, stunt or kill tomato plants (FF or FFF are also Fusarium)

  • N: Nematodes — tiny wormlike root parasites make leaves turn brown from bottom up

  • T: Tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) — causes irregular light and dark green pattern on leaves
  
  • St: Stemphylium — gray leaf spot

  • V: Verticillium wilt — soil-borne fungi makes older leaves turn yellow

  As Master Gardeners, we know the mantra, "right plant, right place." If you want a bountiful tomato harvest, there is no greater truism. Plant your tomato seedlings when the danger of frost has passed. In Marin, late April or early May is a good time. Fruit set occurs in tomatoes when nighttime temperatures are above 55 degrees and daytime temperatures do not exceed 90 degrees.

  Planting in the late afternoon minimizes water loss. Select a spot that gets about six hours of full sun, dig a hole about 24 inches deep and fertilize the soil with calcium and fish emulsion — a fish head and ground up egg shells work well.

  Tomatoes grow best in nearly neutral soil with pH of 6.5 to 7.0. Pinch off the lower leaves, handling the plant only by its leaves or root ball and set the plant in the hole with just two sets of leaves showing above ground. Back fill carefully as roots will form on the buried portions of stems.

  Finally, keep the soil around your tomatoes moist the first three to four weeks. Water-established plants deeply when the soil dries to about 2 inches, usually twice a week to once every 10 days.

  After the first fruit sets, sidedress the plants with nitrogen fertilizer once every four weeks. You'll enjoy your sweet-tasting bounty in about 70 to 90 days. During a cool spring or fall, watch for catfacing; when temperatures rise, watch for failure to set, catfacing and sun-scald discoloration the skin. You can best control these problems by maintaining plant vigor, even soil moisture and providing partial shade.

  During a dry spell, control blossom-end rot, the result of lack of calcium in the fruit because of plant stress, by maintaining an even soil moisture and a balanced fertilizer; 5-10-5 is adequate.

Arboretums are gardens of discovery and inspiration

• Jane Scurich

• In 1997, as a newly certified UC Marin Master Gardener, I volunteered at the Master Gardener information desk at that year’s county fair. One of the first questions, and one I will never forget was, “What tree should I plant in my front yard?” Whoa — where do we possibly start to answer this seemingly simple request?

  There were numerous obvious questions — Where do you live? (Marin County micro-climates are extremely diverse.) What is the purpose of the tree? Are you looking for a focal point outside your front window? Do you want to obscure a view of a roadway? Filter sound? Need shade? Would you like to grow fruit? Attract wild life? Enjoy beautiful blooms? Do you want an evergreen or deciduous species?

  So many choices; where to begin?

  A visit to an established local arboretum is an ideal way to explore many tree varieties that thrive in our area and see mature specimens. I am a visual learner, so seeing what a sapling will look like when it’s 45 feet tall and 25 feet wide is much more helpful than reading a plant tag that accompanies a 5-gallon nursery specimen.

  It’s also important to think in terms of seasons. Even in our temperate climate, trees exhibit seasonal change. A tree you love in April may not be your favorite one in November.

  As a young child, growing up in Memphis, my dad volunteered with the Memphis Men’s Garden Club to establish an arboretum. I remember those little trees — they were about my fifth- grade size. On a visit to Memphis for my 40th class reunion, I had an opportunity to wander through the towering canopies of those cute “little” trees. What a difference a few decades make!

  Arboretums speak to us about permanence. They offer an opportunity to see what a little sapling at the nursery will look like as an adult.

  Arboretums are created for visiting, to help us discover trees that grow well in our climate zone and to experience an amazing variety of trees we may not encounter in our neighborhood.

  We’re fortunate to have several outstanding arboretums that are part of larger botanical gardens in the Bay Area.

  The San Francisco Botanical Gardens has a global collection, but for me, none is more spectacular than the magnolias that bloom in late winter and early spring.

  In addition to the magnolias, towering redwoods, more than 50 varieties of maples, and even more varieties of pines are cultivated at the 55-acre garden in Golden Gate Park. If you are considering investing in a statement tree, you owe yourself an exploration of this garden.

  The Botanical Garden at UC Berkeley is filled with a renowned collection of manzanitas and California lilacs as well as many other trees that thrive in our Mediterranean climate.

  UC Davis features a Mediterranean arboretum. UC Santa Cruz Arboretum maintains collections of rare and threatened plants of unusual scientific interest.

  Markum Nature Park and Arboretum in Concord offers 2.4 miles of trails that will introduce you to 45 species of trees, many native to California.

  For those looking to bring a tropical tree indoors or add to their greenhouse, the Conservatory of Flowers houses a large collection of exotic palms as well as citrus, tropical fruits, coffee and cacao.

  I can plant a vegetable garden over a weekend and enjoy the fruits of my labor in 60, 90, 100 days. But trees? Trees are for the long term — think next generation, think permanence, think of an investment in the future. Passionate visionaries planted the seeds for us to experience the magnificence of decades old, mature trees. Take the time to explore our established local resources and make informed planting choices.

  Explore online, and plan a visit:

  • San Francisco Botanical Garden: www.sfbotanicalgarden.org

  • Berkeley Botanical: www.botanicalgarden.berkeley.edu

  • Markham Nature Park: www.markhamarboretum.org

  • UC Davis: www.arboretum.ucdavis.edu

  • UC Santa Cruz: www.arboretum.ucsc.edu

  • Conservatory of Flowers: www.conservatoryofflowers.org

   

Are gardeners using less pesticide?

• D.F. Braun

• by D.F. Braun

  Early this spring I participated in a number of gardening events where information on the IPM ( Integrated Pesticide Management) program was promoted. For those of us who have helped this program in the past it was encouraging to find that local gardeners are far more informed and sensitive to the necessary steps in maintaining a healthy garden. Gone were comments such as, “It takes too long. I just spray!” or “What do you mean, ‘Good’ bugs!”

  I.P.M. has mistakenly been interpreted as anti-pesticide of any kind. This is simply not true. The program is an effort to encourage gardeners to seek the safest means of ridding their gardens of harmful and toxic substances. It urges careful choices of pest control methods through identification and timing of applications.

  At one time gardening catalogs contained much more than lists of seeds and sundries. They were also vehicles for peppery disputes between gardening enthusiasts who engaged one another in successive issues. These catalogs made splendid reading, often giving warning of plants susceptible to pests and diseases, as well as remedies. Today’s nursery and seed merchants produce glossy, colorful catalogs lacking the eccentric evaluations but for tiny icons indicating needed sun exposure or numerical growing zones. Few offer any other suggestions for success or cautionary steps. Of the many catalogs I received this year only one, Spray-N-Grow, contained a goodly number of garden products “safe for people, plants and pets” with practical suggestions for their use.

  A recent trip to several local nurseries and garden supply stores proved to be a bit disappointing as there were few new products featuring the blue safe logo, “Our water, Our world.” However, there are choices among the makers of dormant sprays, fungicides, insecticides/miticides for safe use after identification of the culprits.

  An easy, inexpensive way of identifying the species doing damage is a magnifying glass and Mac’s Field Guide, a chart carried now in some nurseries that illustrate the good bugs as well as the bad. (You may be surprised at how many “beneficial” bugs there are.)

  Even though it is desirable to control some pests early, you can tolerate a small number of invaders to provide food for the “beneficials.” This can be done by sacrificing a small number of plants by not applying a pesticide. Spot application is usually best anyway and especially so when avoiding harm to beneficials.

  Lastly, remember that pesticides are chemical substances. Home gardeners often use more pesticides per square foot than commercial farmers. The “if-a-little-is-good, more-will-be-better” attitude has lead to serious misuse. Gardeners should read labels and follow the directions carefully.

  Again there is reason to be encouraged by the growing awareness of gardeners sensitive to the dangers to their gardens. Perhaps consumer insistence on safe remedies and refusal to purchase harmful pesticides will lead to a healthier environment.

  For everything you need to know about integrated pest management and a phenomenal tool for identifying pests and weeds in your garden, go to: www.ipm.ucdavis.edu.

Are weeds foes or friends?

• Dave Phelps

• Weeds are commonly referred to as "plants out of place." Any plant can be a weed when it is growing where it shouldn't — even the most revered native plant.

  To understand weeds we must understand their role. They heal out-of-balance ecologies and push succession forward. They are "nature's Band-Aids." Early soils are shallow, low in organic matter and typically have a high pH. The only organisms that grow well are bacteria.

  As soils weather, annuals arrive. They put all their energy into quick growth and seed production. The grasses generate large amounts of organic matter and the broad-leaved plants send down taproots to help deepen the soils and bring up mineral nutrients. Annuals grow and die, season after season, working to reduce erosion, build up organic matter, establish an organic mulch layer and deepen the root zone.

  Leguminous plants that have a symbiotic relationship with rhizobia bacteria also grow in these early soils. They are able to fix atmospheric nitrogen into a plant-available form and quickly add to the soil's fertility.

  As the amount of organic matter increases in early soils, saprophytic fungi, the decomposers, start to grow. Humic acids are developed. The pH of the soil starts to decrease. Over time, perennials are able to take root and later, as the process progresses, woody plants. Eventually other soil organisms proliferate, including the mycorrhizae fungi that assist perennials and woody plants in symbiotic relationships. As these changes in the ecology occur, the early annuals and legumes are seen less and less. They are no longer needed.

  But they do not disappear completely. They have evolved to have seeds that are viable for decades and even centuries. They're dormant in the soil, waiting until they are needed. When there is a catastrophic event such as a fire or a flood, they are there — the first responders to quickly do their job. They stop erosion and prepare the soil for later plants. When their job is done they again go into dormancy.

  But what if the catastrophic ecological disaster is manmade? What if the land is cleared for a road, a subdivision or a shopping center? What if salty synthetic fertilizers and toxic pesticides are applied to the soil?

  What happens is that these same early responders quickly germinate to heal the situation. But now they are in the landscape and gardens, unwanted, and have become weeds.

  It is sad that the same plants that have evolved for millions of years to fix ecologies are considered weeds in the garden setting. It is even sadder to see the typical reaction, killing them with herbicides, further degrading the ecology they were there to heal.

  Because of their tenacity and the long viability of their seeds, this cycle can go on for years while the collateral damage of the chemical controls continue to wreck havoc on the environment.

  Note that in a natural setting, when an ecology reaches a certain successional trophic level, the weeds are no longer needed and they go into dormancy, awaiting the next disturbance. The gardener's goal is to act to help them quickly push succession forward by mimicking their results so that they are no longer needed. This is accomplished by creating a condition where the soil's organic matter, the mulch layer, the soil's microorganisms and the pH of the soil are far enough along that the first responders are not needed and their seeds remain dormant.

  Establishing a healthy layer on top of the soil is the first step. This can be accomplished by adding a layer of organic mulch over a layer of compost. These layers can then be maintained by allowing leaves and plant debris to compost in place or by adding subsequent layers of organic mulch as it decomposes and is incorporated into the soil. Topdressing fine compost on turf areas and ground covers can help accomplish the same task.

  Sheet mulching is an important tool for the gardener to be able to quickly smother perennial weeds and interrupt the annual weed seed cycle. Sheet mulching adds a layer of recycled cardboard to these layers and accomplishes what would take "nature's Band-Aids" years to do.

  Niche management or weed displacement is another tool. Keeping a habitat niche occupied by healthy plants that compete for sun, water and nutrients makes weeds unnecessary. Maintaining this new homeostasis by promoting the creation of humus, soil biodiversity and niche occupancy is the key to holistic weed control and reducing the use of herbicides.

Are your trees decaying?

• Karen Gideon

• 

  While admiring large heritage trees in Marin you may see signs of plants in a death spiral, their canopies standing bare against the sky. It’s easy to point a finger at Sudden Oak Death as a culprit because it’s active and spreading in our county. But there are other pathogens responsible for decay and death in Marin trees.  Here are some tips on what to look for as you keep a watchful eye on your trees. 

  We start with some tree basics. Functionally, the roots fasten the tree to the earth and absorb nutrients and water from the soil. The root collar attaches the roots to the trunk. Bark protects the tree from extreme temperatures, sunlight, injury, pests and keeps tissues moist. The trunk is the central structure, with specialized cells and layers for transporting water and nutrients up and down the tree, regeneration and growth. Stems and branches in the canopy also transport nutrients and leaves are photo-synthesizers that convert sunlight into chemical energy to be released in the tree.  

  Healthy trees benefit from the right amount of water in the soil, rich nutrients and oxygen for the roots, solid bark protection with no injuries, a root/trunk collar that’s exposed to air, and appropriate, careful pruning.  As you examine your trees, watch for evidence that trees may be negatively impacted by gardening practices or pathogens.

  Look at the canopy – if you see thinning crowns, yellowing, wilting leaves, or dieback, make note. Inspect for pruning wounds that have not healed and missing bark.  Photograph any conks, fungi, deep trunk cracks or bleeding. Look for exit holes left by insects. Distressed trees are vulnerable to pathogens and insects that live naturally in the soil or travel in the air and water. Healthy trees live with the same threats but are able to resist infection because of their robust health. 

  You may find evidence of four common tree decay diseases - phytophthora, armillaria, verticillium wilt and cankers. While these diseases have similar presentation, which includes canopy die back, thinning of the crown, and slowed growth, they have distinguishable features to help you identify them.

  Phytophthora (root and crown rot) lives in soil and infects woody plants when conditions are beneficial to the fungus. Prolonged moist conditions can cause root or crown rot in trees and shrubs. If buried below the soil level, the root crown area may die and become dark brown as it decays. A canker may form under the bark and weep a dark stain.

  Armillaria root rot is caused by a fungus that infects cambial tissue responsible for growth. This causes the roots and trunk to decay and die. White fungal tissue forms underneath the bark that smells like mushrooms. Clusters of mushrooms may grow at the base of your tree in the fall or winter. 

  Cankers are caused by fungal or bacterial pathogens that enter the tree tissue after injury or infection. The tissue under the bark appears sunken and discolored. The canker may bleed, leaving a dark stain and fluid dripping from the bark. Fruiting bodies or conks may appear. 

  Verticillium wilt fungi infects deciduous trees in Marin. Common hosts include maple, ash, fuchsia, olive and rose bushes. This fungus attacks and darkens the xylem tissue, which delivers water and nutrients from the roots to the crown. The disease may focus on parts of the plant or girdle the trunk and kill the entire plant.

  If you have identified issues on your trees, head to the Integrated Pest Management website http://ipm.ucanr.edu/index.html for help or find assistance from a local arborist. 

  To keep your trees vigorous, ensure good drainage, move mulch and soil away from the root collar, and avoid watering close to or on the tree. Make correct pruning cuts in the right season. If you’re doing hardscape or garden adjustments, take care that you don’t damage the roots of trees. 

Aromatic entryway gardens look, smell great

• Barbara J. Euser

• In Greece, it is customary to place a pot of basil near the front door so that guests may brush their hands against it and savor the fragrance before entering the house. Aromatic entryway gardens create a welcoming atmosphere. The visual attraction of the garden is enhanced by the scent of the herbs, warmed by the sun.

  In two gardens I have created, I extended the principle to include perennial aromatic herbs: rosemary, lavender, oregano and lemon verbena. Two varieties of lavender grace the garden in my front terrace garden. One has grayish leaves and medium-length flower spikes. It threatens to take over the narrow raised bed. Regular pruning keeps it within bounds without dampening its enthusiastic presence.

  The second lavender has pale green leaves and is a more restrained presence. Its fragrance is not quite as intense as the gray-leaved lavender, though clearly recognizable. Its flower spikes are not long, integrating the blooms into its branches. I planted two Rosmarinus officinalis 'Prostratus' in the bed, one near the edge, hoping that its branches would eventually trail over the side of the bed. It has taken several years for that to happen, but some of its branches now reach the ground. The other rosemary is near the wall. Its looping branches give the effect of a piece of sculpture in the background.

  Hiding behind the rosemary is a single lemon verbena. It unfortunately has not flourished in this environment, but even a single leaf, rubbed between the fingers, emits a strong fragrance. A few leaves steeped in boiling water produce a savory tea.

  In the forefront of the bed, an oregano plant produces more than enough small, round leaves to flavor all kinds of dishes. It, too, requires pruning, and the dried leaves will last all winter long.

  In back of the gray lavender, I have attempted to espalier a bougainvillea. Its dark red blooms (modified leaves rather than true flowers; the flowers are tiny cream-colored forms that look almost like stamens) make a strong contrast against the whitewashed garden wall.

  On my olive farm, I built an entryway garden bed of stone. It is an entryway to a large patio, rather than a house, but the concept is the same. The fragrance of the plants sends a clear message -- "Welcome to this place." Here the lemon verbena is much happier and is developing into a round, bushy form. I also planted two gray-leaved lavenders and oregano, which is still struggling, establishing itself. The fuschia bougainvillea will eventually cover much of the stone terrace behind the garden bed. Two prostate rosemary plants are beginning to crawl and sprawl their way to the boundaries of the bed.

  Another fragrant plant that welcomes visitors is the rose-scented geranium. It is really Pelargonium graveolens. A single plant has grown to gigantic proportions, escaping its small bed and cascading down between two houses. Its leaves have a distinctive fragrance and are used to flavor desserts and jelly, as well as iced drinks. And, as some French friends told me, the fragrant leaves -- what they call citronelle -- help keep away mosquitoes: good reason to plant it near a seating area.

  All these plants are native to the Mediterranean region, and thus thrive in the Marin County climate. Once established, they require very little summer water. Mediterranean plants are naturally dormant during the summer months, when there is little, if any, rain. They grow and flower in the winter and spring. The fragrance -- and flavor -- of their leaves becomes more intense the drier they are. During the hottest days of August this summer, I decided to take pity on my garden plants and water them. Immediately, they all responded with new leaves and the lavenders sent out new buds. I'm not sure I did the plants any favor, however. There is good reason for their growth cycle; plants need some time to rest.

  In a Mediterranean climate, the Mediterranean natives described above will require only a minimum of water during summer months, making them a perfect addition to a Marin garden, and a welcoming, aromatic addition to your entryway.

  The University of California Marin Master Gardeners are sponsored by UC Cooperative Extension. For questions about gardening, plant pests or diseases, call 499-4204 from 9 a.m. to noon, and 1 to 4 p.m. weekdays, or bring in samples or pictures to 1682 Novato Blvd., Suite 150B, Novato.

As summer arrives, it’s time to think about conserving water

• Jane Scurich

• At we start irrigating our gardens, it’s important to carefully check existing sprays and drip lines. Turn each station on in the manual mode and observe. Often debris can enter the lines and obstruct the water flow, so get down on your hands and knees and inspect each emitter or opening in a dripline. Missing emitters can create a geyser, so watch as each of your stations run. Check for sprayers that are blocked by plants. You may be able to prune a few branches to allow the water to flow more effectively.

  Reevaluate water needs for all of your irrigated areas. Some of last year’s young perennials may now be mature and require less moisture. Review your programmable timers. Don’t forget to replace the backup battery to ensure the system continues to function in the event of a power outage. Once all of your irrigation systems are in good working order, write a note to self to check the irrigation system once a month.

  Now, take some time to access your overall irrigation strategy. Is it possible to relocate some of your plants so that those with similar cultural needs are clustered together to simplify irrigation? Are you using the most efficient irrigation to avoid overspray on areas like driveways and pathways? Have you considered eliminating or at least decreasing the size of your lawn? Are you aware of the Marin Municipal Water District’s weekly watering schedule? Have you researched recommended times and frequency for your irrigation system?

  There is a fabulous resource to help you answer many of these questions: marinwater.org/136/Conservation. You are just clicks away from a survey tool to help you develop a custom watering plan, sign up for a weekly watering schedule, learn about some valuable free tools, available rebates, and more.

  Some easily accomplished recommendations include:

  • Water before 6 a.m. or after 8 p.m. Midday watering may reduce water efficiency up to 30 percent because of evaporation and wind.

  • Reduce irrigation time by two minutes or eliminate one irrigation cycle per week. Experiment with lowering overall irrigation time. Look for signs of wilting or plant stress. Quite possibly, plants will adjust and thrive with slightly less moisture.

  • Add 2 to 3 inches of mulch around trees and plants. Organic mulches help to retain moisture and improve water absorption.

  If you’re planning some future design changes in your landscape, consider incorporating permeable materials. By moving away from solid hardscaping such as asphalt or concrete, and introducing permeable pavers, smooth stones and rocks or the newer porous cement or asphalt concrete, water will be allowed to absorb into the soil rather than rushing down streets and storm drains, collecting debris and pollutants on its way to the ocean.

  Consider creating a garden space or dry creek bed where winter rain can gather, slowly percolate into the soil, and help to replace groundwater levels that were greatly challenged during the long drought. Investigate your downspouts. Can water be redirected into the landscape rather than into the storm drains?

  Take a field trip to the Falkirk demonstration gardens at 1408 Mission Ave. in San Rafael. Informational signage regarding plant choice and irrigation needs will help formulate decisions for your home garden.

  Both the MMG and MMWD websites offer detailed DIY tips to help us all save our precious water and waterways — and our wallets. But if these self-help tools aren’t working, don’t hesitate to reach out to an irrigation specialist to ensure you are doing the best you can to use water wisely.

As the climate changes, sustainable garden design is essential

• Karen Gideon

• Our climate is changing, bringing greater swings in temperature, extreme storms, frequent year-round fires and unusual wet and dry periods. Folks are attempting to stem the tide by reducing waste, eliminating the use of plastics, and shrinking their carbon footprint. Our planetary roommates, the plants and animals that range from bugs to whales, are also feeling the impact of climate change and some species are dying out as their habitats disappear. For gardeners who spend time turning the soil and nurturing plant growth, this calls for the adoption of practices and garden designs that promote sustainability.

  Sustainability in the garden involves meeting your needs today without negatively impacting the ability of future gardeners to meet theirs. This includes your garden’s impact on water use and conservation, energy needed to make the products you use, protection of wildlife habitats, elimination of invasive species, and long-term plant and hardscape choices. Thinking about the elements of sustainability in the design phase of your garden development will save you heartache and hassle down the road, as well. Consider it doing your part to curb the effects of climate change.

  Conserving water

  One of the most important facets of garden design is the use and conservation of water. Clustering your plants by their water requirements and using low-need plants ensures that you won’t be overwatering needlessly. Irrigating with low flow emitters results in using less water and reducing run off. Lawns are like sponges with endless thirst, so consider minimizing or eliminating lawn space. Think about including a simple rainwater collection system in your design.

  Selecting plants that are the right size, grow in the right climate and are drought-resistant is critical. Using native plants in your garden is a short cut to low water use and contributes to the preservation of wildlife habitat. Learn which plants are invasive species and should not be planted. If you’re unsure, call the Marin County Master Gardener help desk for clarity. If there are invasive plants (i.e. vinca major, scotch or Portuguese broom, cotoneaster) in your garden currently, remove and replace them with natives like yarrow, ceanothus, calamagrotis and salvia. Planting them during our rainy season helps them root and get established.

  Hardscape design consists of the paths, retaining walls, driveways and patios in your garden. They can be constructed with environmentally friendly materials and design that utilizes recycling, promotes drainage, minimizes environmental damage and avoids toxic chemicals. The recycling and reuse of pavers, bricks, gravel, rocks and other hardscape materials is a wise choice. As you select your materials and design, check for permeability, which allows the rain to drain into the soil, not run off into gutters and creeks.

  Creating habitat

  Insects, reptiles and birds that keep pests in check and help with pollination need a wildlife habitat to nest, rest and find food. Planning some areas with deadfall, leaves and other debris for your pest patrollers is critical. Native plants and a source of water will round out a habitat for these hard workers, reducing your need for pesticides. Look for existing rocks and shady spots, and keep them safe from pets.

  Reserve space for composting your green clippings and plant debris — keeping the waste on your property and out of landfills. If you have an area that is infrequently used consider adding a system for rain capture, a bin for composting and a worm bin.

  The heart of sustainability is in your gardening practices and design. This includes mulching and composting, using organic means to nurture your plants and soil, and eliminating pesticides. By designing your garden with permeable hardscape, a home for your pest patrollers and pollinators, water-wise plant choices and natives you can do your part to leave the earth in better shape for the future. It’s an opportunity to have a positive impact on the planet.

  Even if your garden is tiny, if we all join together, we can make a difference.

Asparagus

• Marybeth Kampman

• by Marybeth Kampman

  “Asparagus … seems to inspire gentle thought."

  Charles Lamb (1775-1834), English essayist

  I was having anything but gentle thoughts about the prospect of eating Alsatian food. Everything I had read before I had embarked on our trip to Alsace Lorraine intimated that large portions of ham, sausage, and duck were the dishes of choice in the region. Being a Marin want-to-be vegetarian I was having serious qualms about my happiness eating in restaurants for the next ten days.

  Fortunately I could not have been more mistaken. Arriving in the small town of Euguisheim I asked our guide if he could recommend a restaurant that featured specialties of the region. When he replied, “You are in luck, the asparagus has arrived.” My ears perked up and my salivary glands began to awaken. “What do you mean?” I asked.

  “Well,” he went on, “asparagus has long been revered in the history of France. In the 16^th century King Louis XIV ordered special greenhouses built so that he could enjoy asparagus year round. It was thought of as a delicacy reserved for the rich. The French prefer white asparagus, which is much more labor intensive to grow. During the first weeks in April the white asparagus becomes perfect for eating and so we celebrate. It’s akin to the fall celebration of the Nouveau Beaujolais wine. And of course it must be accompanied with a glass of our wonderful Muscat wine.”

  I was dressed ready and waiting for dinner long before my more carnivorous husband. At the restaurant I ordered the special of the day: Assiette d’ Asperges—literally a plate of asparagus. I was presented with a large plate upon which lay a dozen or more perfect spears of thick white asparagus. Flanking it were two small tureens containing a mustard and a cream sauce and a small portion of Alsatian ham. A glass of chilled golden Muscat wine smelling of springtime accompanied it. I was in heaven.

  I proceeded to eat more white asparagus that week than I ever thought possible. Each town we visited displayed chalkboard menus proclaiming “Les Asperges sont Arrive!” Some restaurants offered the option of experiencing your asparagus devoid of any other distraction except for the mandatory glass of Muscat wine. Ham could be ordered separately as a side dish. Here was a place that certainly had its priorities straight!

  When I got home I did a little research on asparagus and found that I should be truly healthy as a result of my gastronomic adventures. Asparagus is a very good source of potassium and quite low in sodium. It is low in calories with less than four calories per spear and contains no fat or cholesterol. It is also an excellent source of folic acid. Folacin is necessary for blood cell formation, growth, and prevention of liver disease. It has been shown to play a significant role in the prevention of neural tube birth defects.

  Asparagus (Asparagus officinalis) is a very hardy perennial plant, an almost leafless member of the lily family. It is easiest to grow from crowns or rhizomes, the fleshy stems that store food. When you examine the crown you will see the roots on the underside and the buds of future spears on the top. When buying asparagus crowns to plant in your garden, choose crowns that are grayish brown in color, plump and healthy looking.

  Choose a sunny spot with sandy well-drained soil for your asparagus plot. Plant the crown of the asparagus in a trench 8-10 inches deep. Then cover with about three inches of soil. Even though it may be tempting, do not harvest the spears the first or second year. Instead, allow the plant to leaf out so that the fern like foliage can provide nutrients to establish a healthy crown ensuring a vigorous crop in years to come. Plants harvested too early in their life cycle become weak and spindly.

  White asparagus is the same plant as green asparagus, but it is grown without sunlight so that chlorophyll does not develop. The crowns are planted on the surface of the soil instead of in trenches and the dirt is then mounded up over the rows. White asparagus is less fibrous than green. Purple asparagus is a variety and was first developed in Italy. It has a higher sugar content, which gives it a fruitier flavor than green asparagus. It’s purple color turns green when cooked.

  It is personal choice whether the slender stalks or the thicker stalks are more flavorful. But in either case choose asparagus that is the darkest in color, or in the case of white, the lightest. The heads should be tightly closed.

  Whether you prefer your asparagus thick or thin, prepare it for cooking by breaking each spear by hand. The spear will naturally break where it is most tender. It is usually suggested that the thicker asparagus be peeled before cooking. Prepare by steaming, roasting, sautéing or microwaving, being careful not to overcook it.

  Nibbling on a tender stalk of slightly steamed asparagus I realize that asparagus does indeed inspire some very gentle and satisfying thoughts.

Aussie love affair keeps blooming

• Gail Mason

• THERE SEEMS TO BE two types of gardeners: those who live for flowers, and those who relish the texture and intrigue of foliage. For me, the leaves win.

  Don't get me wrong, flowers are fantastic. But there's nothing like eye-popping foliage combinations to keep the garden interesting. It's sort of like finding the perfect mate. If you fall for that gorgeous show-off, you may find that your love affair is short-lived. But if you find someone who's consistently engaging, you may have just found yourself a keeper.

  In keeping with this sensibility, I have fallen in love with Australian plants, where flowers are often strange or outlandish, but rarely the reason one has planted that particular plant to begin with.

  My love affair began somewhere along the way at the San Francisco Botanical Gardens at Strybing Arboretum. While walking through the Australian section I became entranced with the gorgeous drapery
  created by a large and graceful weeping ovens wattle (acacia pravissima), then charmed by the adjacent Seuss-like royal hakea (hakea victoria), looking like a startled cabbage. Turning around I saw lush groupings of some mysterious dark green, thick-leaved plants with bright blue berries on display and wondered to myself, "Can I try growing these at home?" My heart was captured.

  You know how it is when you're in love. I wanted to know everything about Australian plants. It turns out Marin shares the same Mediterranean climate with western and southwestern Australia and yes, Australian plants grow effortlessly in our gardens. They must have good drainage — plant them high or in a raised bed in porous soil — and as long as they get sun, a little water and NO phosphorus fertilizer, they'll be happy. And who can resist planting something called kangaroo paws or woollybush?

  More and more Australian plants are finding their way into our nurseries and demonstration gardens. It is essential, of course, to import only noninvasive plants that play nicely with our natives and other  Mediterranean climate plants. Purchasing plants from a responsible source
  is paramount.

  Australian plants have much to offer Marin gardeners. Many of the plants are nonthirsty, a huge plus given our boom or bust rainfall. They attract bees and hummingbirds and provide homes for many welcome insects. Many are wildly fast growing, often they are winter blooming, providing a colorful punch during the greyest days. They are capable of holding up hillsides, offering tough windbreaks, and living in terrible soil. What's not to love? As an added bonus, many are fabulous in cut flower  arrangements, so your pruning can produce wonderful table decorations.

  Here is a guide to some Australian plants that may be useful in your garden:

  Tired of rosemary but want similarly fragrant, drought-tolerant shrubs? Tuck in a lovely variegated Australian mint bush (prostanthera).

  What if you're looking for something a little larger, perhaps a small tree? I've developed a particular affection for the hugely misunderstood acacia, or wattle, as they say Down Under. Say the word Acacia and many people shrink back in horror, visions of tissue boxes and invasive yellow plants coming to mind. The California Invasive Plant Council) lists only two species, silver wattle (acacia dealbata) and Australian blackwood (acacia melanoxylon) to be invasive here. There are more than 1,000 species of these beautiful shrubs and trees, many of them gorgeous, noninvasive, low water use and not necessarily allergenic. Olives and pines tend to be a more common source of allergens. Pines start releasing pollen at the same time Acacia blooms, thereby perpetuating another myth associated with
  Acacia.

  The color, shape and variety of wattle is absolutely stunning. Blue bush wattle (acacia conveyi) is an extraordinarily fast-growing plant that will quickly reach 15 or 20 feet and can be used as a windbreak. Its softly blue-grey and has a jaunty uplifted appearance. How about replacing that thirsty willow with the equally weeping, but much less thirsty, river wattle (acacia cognata)?

  Looking for a quick way to screen out an unattractive view? Instead of using the often uncontrollable and messy bamboo, why not try a wispy and delicate willow wattle (acacia iteaphylla)? They move with the slightest breeze, creating a softly dynamic element to the garden.

  If you have a problem area where there is lots of heat but not much water, try the grassy dwarf mat rush (lomandra longifolia), used in Australia  alongside the freeways and only watered by winter rains. Forming a bright evergreen weeping mound, it's handsome planted in groupings and is absolutely indestructible.

  Check out Australian plants, and you might fall in love as well.

  LEARN MORE

  • Falkirk Cultural Center, San Rafael, www.falkirkculturalcenter.org;
  485-3328
  
  • San Francisco Botanical Gardens at Strybing Arboretum, www.sfbotanicalgarden.org;
  564-3239.
  
  • UC Santa Cruz Arboretum, Santa Cruz, http://arboretum.ucsc.edu; 831-427-2998 
  
  • UC Botanical Gardens at Berkeley, http://botanicalgarden.berkeley.edu;
  510-643-2755
  
  • Australian Native Plants Nursery, www.australianplants.com
  
  • "Australian Native Plants (Fifth Edition)" by John W. Wrigley and
  Murray Fagg (Reed New Holland)

Autumn is the season for gourds

• Juliana Jensen

• EVERY FALL IN every market there is a basket or a stand with an odd option for décor: gourds. Misshapen, particolored, vulgar in their
  warts and lumps, gourds are an intriguing autumn visitor. We don't
  eat them. We hardly know what to do with them. But they are so much fun, we can't leave them alone.

  Gourds were the first thing I ever planted independently in a garden as a child. I put the grocery store seeds in rocky soil against the back wall, wove a little wooden trellis about a foot tall and waited for my gourds. I didn't understand much about regular watering; nevertheless, my tiny vine yielded three or four teeny gourds — each one different. I considered it
  a grand success but didn't give much thought to gourds again until
  last summer, when I met my dear and long-lost friend Sally at a junior high reunion. Sally is a gourd artist but, honestly, I didn't really know what that meant.

  I had a lot to learn about gourds.  Gourds are members of the family
  Cucurbitaceae, which also includes squashes, melons, pumpkins and cucumbers. Common gourd species include Cucurbita pepo ovifera, Lugga cylindrica and Lagenaria siceraria. According to Marin gourd grower Ed Pearson, gourds are best planted in May or June — about the same time you'd put in zucchini — in full sun, the hotter the better. They do need water to produce a lot of fruit — despite a myth that they thrive on
  neglect — and quite a bit of space as they vine out like pumpkins.

  Once they fruit, gourds must be allowed to cure on the vine. If you harvest them while they are still soft-sided they will rot. They are usually ready for an October harvest. One plant will produce about 25 to 30 gourds — and none of them will look alike.

  There are many fanciful varieties: look for "Autumn Wing," "Small Pear" or "Swan Neck" to do well in Marin. "Koshare" is a wonderful orange-and-green-banded gourd that is a bush variety if you have limited space. According to Ed Pearson, sometimes you get an interesting variety simply volunteering from the compost pile.
  
  It turns out that gourds have quite a following and many uses. There are gourd crafters who turn gourds into utilitarian but beautiful birdhouses, water pitchers and flower pots. Sally's specialty is decoratively carved purses.

  Gourds can be carved, burned or painted into an array of imaginative ornamental objects. Take a look at the photo galleries of the American Gourd Society at www.americangourdsociety.org,
  or the Welburn Gourd Farm Festival at www.gourdfestival.com to see some spectacular and surprising artistic uses for gourds.

  Gourds also make fascinating musical instruments beyond the shakers we recognize from preschool. Although North Americans generally use gourds as percussion instruments, traditional African gourd instruments have a startling variety. The marimba-like balafon has a wooden keyboard strung over hollow gourd resonators. The kora has a large gourd base with long plucked strings stretched across a double bridge, played upright like an odd harp. The Brazilian berimbauis a similar stringed gourd instrument that probably owes it heritage to the African kora.

  If you want to make your own gourd musical instruments, there are some selected projects using household materials available on Berkeley's Caning Shop website,www.caning.com/html/tour_1.html. Look for "Making Gourd Musical Instruments." Some of the projects are simple enough for supervised children to complete. Children also can paint gourds into funny faces or turn them into turkeys or ghosts.

  Okay, you've grown your gourds and carved your birdhouses, now what do you do? You go to a gourd festival, of course. There are festivals held throughout the year and around the country, including several in California. The festivals include art shows, competitions, demonstrations and sales. A good source for more information on state gourd events is the California Gourd Society, online at www.calgourd.com.

  So let's get going, order our gourd seeds, and plan out a spot to grow them next summer. Who knows? Maybe you'll be autographing your gourds at the next gourd festival.

Backyard Sleuthing

• Nanette Londeree

• I LOVE ROSES. Joyfully strolling through the spring rose garden, I peruse abundant jewel-like new growth cloaking the rapidly growing plants and revel in their extraordinary transformation from spindly sticks a few short months ago, to bountiful mounds of perfumed blossoms.

  But there, out of the corner of my eye, I see, oh no — orange spots dotting the foliage! And, over there, droopy buds peppered with tiny holes and little lacquer-red crawly things. Yikes! What's going on with my plants? I can't say how many times I've asked myself that question.

  Sometimes the answer is simple, like when the wilted, rapidly shriveling plant is lying flat on its side, roots completely gone — clearly a pesky, chewing gopher at work. Or the tree rose with not a leaf in sight, just an enormous envelope of webbing encasing a wriggling mass of tent caterpillars.

  More often, figuring out what's ailing your rose is not that straightforward. Like the vet determining what's wrong with your vomiting, sneezing cat, it takes some detective work to diagnose the cause of plant problems, and in order to find an effective remedy, it's vital to correctly identify the cause.

  Figuring out what's troubling your roses, your indoor plants or anything else you've got growing, takes a Sherlock Holmes approach — collecting and evaluating information, and narrowing the range of possible villains. To help with your sleuthing, look for signs and symptoms.

  A sign is direct evidence of the cause of the problem, either the presence of the actual pest or some part of it, while a symptom is the change in appearance of the plant part — like spots on leaves or deformed flower buds. Observing a mass of foamy froth on a new rose bud would be a sign of spittlebugs; dry, grey, crispy-looking leaves in the summer would be a symptom of spider mites.

  While pests and diseases are often the first thing a gardener looks for, the culprit may not be caused by any living thing, but, instead, be the result of nonliving factors — mechanical or physical (being torn, cut, crushed, chewed, sliced or punctured from wind, animals and lawn mowers), environmental (temperature extremes, light, water) or chemical (nutritional deficiencies, toxicities, exposure to herbicides).

  Some things to consider when figuring out what's bugging your roses:

  • Know what a healthy plant looks like. This may seem like a no-brainer, but not all roses look alike. Having a clear idea of the size, color and form of a healthy plant and its blooms is a good tool for comparison.

  • Take a real good look at the plant; the cause of the problem may not be in the part of the rose that displays the symptoms. Check every visible portion of the plant; look for physical evidence of an injury, a pest or disease.

  • Know your enemies. Having an idea of the most common pests and diseases can give you a leg up on early detection. Find out who they are, what they look like, when they show up in the garden, and what damage they do.

  • Think about the history of the plant and its surroundings — how long has the plant been in its current location? Has anything changed for the rose itself or near it? What's the weather been like — frosty cold, devilishly hot, super windy and dry? Sometimes problems arise from activity in areas near or adjacent to the plant, like soil compaction after the addition of a new fence or patio.

  • Consider that it may be multiple problems; a plant stressed by drought or temperature extremes may be more susceptible to attacks from pests and diseases. Or, you might observe one problem that is really a symptom for another, like ants on roses — they're just an indicator of some sucking type of pest.

  • Look for patterns; do other roses have the same problem? What about different types of plants? Are all the plants with the problem in the same general area or different locations? Do you see damage to the same parts of the plants (e.g., growing tips, edges of leaves) on different plants?

  • Eliminate what it's not. Narrow down your list of possible suspects by ruling out those problems you know for certain are not the cause of the problem.

  • Double-check the obvious. It never hurts to look again for apparent problems; are raccoons chewing holes in your drip irrigation line? Did the next-door neighbor use an herbicide that may have drifted into your garden?

  • Make a preliminary diagnosis. Once you've collected all your information, decide what you think the cause of the problem is.

  • Keep an open mind and be patient; don't jump to conclusions about what the problem is. On more than one occasion I've reacted before confirming what's wrong with my plant, like dumping lots of water on a wilted potted plant only to see it look worse. When I finally got close enough to  determine what the problem really was, I found the drain hole in the pot had roots plugging it; the plant wilted because it was drowning!

  Back to those orange spots I observed on rose leaves, my sleuthing confirms it's the oft-present fungal disease of the spring and fall garden, rust. And the lacquer-red crawly things are rose curculios, the varmints drilling little holes in my new blooms. While I'd certainly prefer them not to be at home in my garden, knowing what they are is my first step in determining an effective remedy.

Bagrada bug is on its way

• Wendy Irving

• California finds itself concerned with a new exotic pest about six times each year, according to the University of California Cooperative Extension, the community outreach arm of the University’s Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources. Whether a plant, insect or pathogen, these foreign “hitchhikers” are without the natural enemies that keep them under control in their native territories, thus they have the capacity to wreak havoc on our agricultural, native and urban environments, not to mention your garden.

  The bagrada bug (Bagrada hilaris) is one of these invaders. A native of Africa, this nasty little bug was first sighted in California in Los Angeles in 2008, and is slowly marching northward.

  The shield-shaped bagrada bug is a relative of the much-larger brown marmorated stink bug. But because of its distinctive black color with orange and white marking, it is sometimes confused with the harlequin bug, a common American species. But bagrada is much smaller, only about ¼-inch long, and has subtle white markings that the harlequin lacks. Eggs, laid singly or in clusters, are barrel shaped, initially white and turning orange to red right before hatching. Newly molted nymphs of all stages are orange to red with legs, head and thorax that quickly darken to black. Don’t confuse these young bagrada bugs with beneficial lady bugs.

  The bagrada bug loves edibles in the mustard (Brassicaceae) family, such as cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, radishes, rutabaga and kale, but it will also feed on related ornamentals such as stock, sweet alyssum and nasturtiums, as well as grasses and weeds such as wild mustard and Bermuda grass. These insects have needle-like mouth parts that they insert into plant tissues, inject digestive enzymes and suck the juices. They go after leaves, stems, flowers and seeds, particularly damaging small plants and killing seedlings.

  The bagrada bug overwinters in the adult stage and lays eggs in the spring through early fall. They may shelter indoors during colder weather. Outside, begin to watch for bagrada bugs and their nymphs when temperatures reach 75 degrees. It’s best to monitor for these insects in the morning, after a day where temperatures have reached 85 degrees, as you may actually see them grouped together close to the bottom of the plant near or on the soil. The damage can be easier to spot than the insects themselves. Look for light green star-shaped lesions that bleach out over time.

  It may be inevitable that the bagrada bug will invade Marin, and early detection is so far the best weapon in the arsenal of defenses. Closely inspect susceptible plants and their containers prior to purchase, transportation or planting. A good time to inspect is right after watering when pests hiding in the space between the potting mix and the sides of the container may be flushed out and more easily detected. Try shaking your plant over a tray or sheet of paper and see what falls out. And look for those tell-tale lesions.

  According to UC’s Center for Invasive Species Research, as of last October, bagrada bugs have yet to be seen in Marin in any significant numbers, but they have impacted 22 other California counties, some close by. So Marin needs to be on the lookout.

  If you suspect you have found a bagrada bug, place it in a sealed jar, note where and when you collected it and bring it to the Master Gardener Help Desk at the UC Cooperative Extension office, 1682 Novato Blvd. Suite 150B in Novato, or the Department of Agriculture, Weights and Measures office next door.

  For more information on the bagrada bug and what can be done to control it, check out UC’s Integrated Pest Management website at www.ipm.ucdavis.edu.

   

Bare bones about bareroot roses

• Nanette Londeree

• If you've stopped in at your local nursery or home improvement center lately to check out the roses for sale, you may be a bit perplexed by what you find. Rather than healthy plants covered with voluptuous blooms, you face a veritable sea of lifeless looking, brown sticks wrapped in plastic and adorned with a picture of a sumptuous rose in bloom.
  
  Don't be put off by the rose's winter appearance. Instead, join the legions of American gardeners who purchase nearly 60 million rose plants a year and buy them bareroot - you'll get a much better selection and big savings to boot.
  
  Bareroot roses are dormant plants with all foliage and soil removed. The plants were harvested in the fall full of starch reserves that provide energy as they emerge from dormancy. They are light and transportable, easier to handle and plant, and generally less expensive. Dormant plants are available beginning in early winter, so you can get started planting earlier. They make a slower and better-paced transition into life in your garden as the season ramps up, adjusting without any transplant trauma.
  
  Before you shop, think about where you want to plant the rose and the general size, shape and color. There are thousands of varieties of roses on the market, so doing a bit of homework can help you select the right rose for your planting situation. Once armed with your rose wish list, focus on the quality of the plant and its health.
  
  Bareroot roses are graded according to the quality of their growth, their size once they leaf out and bloom and their productivity. More than 50 years ago, the American Association of Nurserymen, in association with the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), developed grading standards for budded field-grown garden roses in order to standardize rose sizes and to eliminate the outrageous claims made by some retailers at the time. There are three grades: No. 1, No. 1 1/2 and No. 2. The grades identify the number and caliper (diameter) of canes on each type of rose.Ê
  
  Specifications for Grade No. 1 require the bush to have at least three strong canes 5/16 inch in caliper or greater, branched not higher than 3 inches from the bud union (grafting point); all should have a well-developed root system. Grade No. 1 is the best; plants of this grade generally cost more than those of lower grades. While all grades will eventually grow to the same size for the variety of rose, it will take longer for the lower grades as they start with fewer, smaller canes.Ê Ê
  
  Many nurseries and garden centers set their bareroot plants in damp peat moss or similar material that retains moisture. This allows you to inspect the entire plant before you buy. Check the canes first; they should be plump with no wrinkles, have good green color with creamy white interiors (pith) and no dried or discolored buds. The root system should be well developed, sturdy and undamaged, not dry or mushy. The entire plant should be free from damage and obvious signs of disease.
  
  Don't buy dried-out roses. You may think that the rose bush will "perk up" when you plant it, but that's not necessarily true. Adjusting to a new environment takes a lot of energy on a rose's part. Putting it in the ground when it is already stressed decreases the odds of having a healthy, productive plant.
  
  If you're buying a packaged rose, feel its weight. The more moisture the package holds, the heavier the container - probably a good indication that the roots haven't dried out.Ê
  
  Some suppliers apply a thin coat of paraffin to the canes to enable them to keep the plants out of the ground and in transit for longer periods of time. Try not to buy waxed roses. They may look nice, but your plant has to grow through that wax and it may slow the development of bud eyes.
  
  Roses should have tags to properly identify them. The tags are usually small (quarter size), weather-tough metal labels attached to the plant at the base with a twist of wire. The tag has the name of the rose (registered with the American Rose Society). Check the tag to make sure you're buying the variety you want.Ê
  
  New varieties of roses will be patented and cost more than the nonpatented varieties. The owner of a rose patent charges the grower a fee or royalty for each rose sold, usually $1 or $2 per plant. It does not mean that the newer varieties are superior to older ones. There are many, many roses available whose patent has expired that are desirable additions to your garden. Bargain roses are always nonpatented varieties - with no royalties to pay, they can be sold at much lower prices.
  
  For more information on selecting good roses for Marin, check out the Marin Rose Society Web site at www.marinrose.org or the American Rose Society Web site at www.ars.org.
  
  The UC Marin Master Gardeners are sponsored by UC Cooperative Extension. The group's two books, "Bay Area Gardening" and "Gardening Among Friends," are available at local book stores. For more information about integrated pest management, contact the office at 1682 Novato Blvd., Suite 150B, Novato, or call the Master Gardener desk at 473-4204.

Bare root fruit trees a delicious idea

• Marie Narlock

• The first time I bought a bare root fruit tree I thought I was getting ripped off. Seriously? Hand over cold hard cash for something that looked worse than a Charlie Brown Christmas tree? I don't think so.
  
  But a funny thing happened to that sack of sticks. I planted it in about five seconds, and it grew and flourished. Within a season, it outshone my other fruit trees. And honestly, it was so inexpensive and easy to plant that — OK, I'll just say it — I became a convert.
  
  Now, I love naked fruit trees.
  
  Bare root simply means you're buying a tree that's dormant — that is, completely out of leaf — without an unnecessary bucket of soil underneath. Dormant trees are like sleeping babies; you can lift them up and move them, and they don't even notice.
  
  These trees usually come with their roots wrapped in sawdust instead of buried in soil. This may look a little odd, but it makes it a breeze to transport and plant them. Why? Because you don't have to lug around (or pay for) a heavy container of soil. This allows us frugal gardener types to pony up for a larger tree. I've planted $20 bare root fruit trees that were well more than 6 feet tall right out of the chute.
  
  Now is the time to start shopping around for bare root trees, which are typically available in nurseries in January and February. You'll know them when you see them. They're the outsiders at the nurseries — gangly bare branches rising out of sacks of sawdust. (They're often sitting next to their cousins, the bare root roses.)
  
  Once you get them home, be extra sure that the roots don't dry out. Even on the drive home, be sure the roots stay moist. You can soak them in a bucket of water up to 24 hours. Better yet, "heel" them in a bare patch of soil somewhere until you're ready to plant.
  
  "Heeling in" simply means you're planting your tree temporarily, such that you can easily dig it out a few days later when you're ready to place it in its permanent home. When you do plant your bare root tree, make sure the crown of the tree (where the roots meet the trunk) is not buried in soil and put any organic material such as manure or compost on top — not in the planting hole. Water it in and then let the rains take over.
  
  But let's get to the good part. What kind of fruit tree should you plant? What varieties are out there? How do you know what works in your climate?
  
  Horticulturalist John Valenzuela will answer these questions while extolling the advantages of bare root trees in his talk at 7 p.m. Jan. 3 at the Marin Art & Garden Center's Livermore Room. As chairman of the Golden Gate Chapter of the California Rare Fruit Growers, Valenzuela has decades of experience growing a vast array of interesting edibles. Think Parfianka pomegranates and white sapote, Indian Blood peaches and Australian finger limes. Yes, we're way beyond apples and pears here.
  
  Not that Valenzuela doesn't have plenty of advice for more familiar backyard fruit. He certainly does. But that's just the beginning.
  
  "We live in such an amazing growing area that there is a world of edibles available to us," says Valenzuela. "It's really not so hard for a Marin gardener to eat something out of the garden all year long."
  
  Valenzuela has many suggestions for gardeners in all of Marin's various microclimates.
  
  "For gardeners who live in summertime fog, go for berries," he says. "Raspberries and elderberries love cool summers."

  In the heat of northern Marin and pockets of West Marin, he suggests "Sweetheart" apricots, which have edible pits (like almonds), and perhaps a goji berry or jujube shrub. And for temperate central and southern Marin, he recommends dwarf black mulberries, loquats, macadamia nuts and strawberry guavas.
  
  "Have you ever tasted the edible sweet stems of a raisin tree or cut into a yellow-fruited guava?" he asks.
  
  For most of us, the answer is no. But that doesn't mean we're not up to the challenge! Armed with the basics of which edibles to try — and where to buy them — one can daydream of a garden filled with these tasty, unusual snacks. In the meantime, you can head to the nursery and check out all the bare root plants available right now.

Bare root plants are primed to grow

• Diane Lynch

• One of my favorite garden events of the year starts soon: bare root season. Deciduous trees, including fruits, nuts and berries, plants such as roses, asparagus, horseradish, rhubarb and hops, are field grown and uprooted during the dormant season to be sold in nurseries that go to the trouble of erecting big bins full of sand or sawdust to keep the large root systems damp.

  Why not just buy a fruit tree in a pot? Well, roots are key to a healthy, vigorous plant and bigger is indeed better. Bare root plants usually start coming into nurseries in late December and are available through January.  Lucky us, bare root season coincides with our (hoped for) winter rains.

  Buying bare root plants saves some money because the growers aren’t shipping pots of soil, just the plants. But the amazing variety of plants you can buy bare root is the real draw. Many fruit trees, with the exception of evergreen citrus, are available bare root and the number of cultivars is astounding. Apriums (a complex hybrid of plums and apricots) and pluots are fairly common. Pluots are more plum than apricot and have a smooth, plum-like skin, while an aprium is more apricot than plum and has a fuzzy, apricot-like skin. But have you ever heard of a pluerry? Neither had I, but it’s a mix of Japanese plum and sweet cherry — sounds delicious, huh? How about an azarole, which has blueberry-sized fruit with a sweet apple flavor? Or maybe you’d like to select from 50 or so apple varieties … so many, so little space.

  When you decide to get a bare root tree be sure you’ll have time to plant as soon as possible. The roots must stay moist or the plant will perish. If you must delay planting cover the roots with a damp towel or blanket, compost, or heel it in by temporarily digging a hole and covering the roots with damp soil. You’ll want the roots to have good drainage. Be sure to look for the soil line where it was planted so you don’t plant too deep — typically the graft should be above ground also. Be sure to mulch the plant well, keeping it away from the stem. Water daily for the first two weeks, then taper down.

  Fruit trees are rated by the number of chilling hours under 45 degrees they need to produce fruit. In our mild winters look for ones that are under 400 hours for good bloom and fruit set. Chilling hours are most important for stone fruits; pears and apples tend to be a little more forgiving.

  If gophers are a problem in your garden you may want to plant in cages. The roots on a bare root tree can be quite long so you could consider making your own using small but sturdy chicken wire (or even hardware cloth) to line the hole to keep the little monsters at bay for a while so your tree gets a good start.

  If you’re patient and have space to plant asparagus, this is the time to get the roots. We had asparagus at our little farm in Freestone and looked forward to the weekends in March and April when we’d gorge ourselves on this delicacy. They can take up to three years to produce in quantity, but then you’ll have lots every spring for a decade or two. One of our dogs had to be kept out of the vegetable garden because she loved dining on the asparagus!

  My favorite summer fruit is available bare root, including the most delicious of apricots, Blenheim or royal, the wonderful suncrest peach as well as the delectable greengage plum, which grows in my garden. So, if you’re up for trying new varieties and want plants that will have the best possible start, check out the bare root offerings at your local nurseries.

Bats have many positive benefits, unless they're living under your roof

• Nanette Londeree

• Bats. Their mere mention evokes visions of silent, blood-sucking creatures that haunt the night skies, or so the scary movies would have us believe. Centuries of superstition and misinformation have landed the furry, winged mammals with the undeserved reputation of nighttime villain.

  Well, it's not so. Overall, bats provide positive benefits to the environment, consuming huge numbers of insects, pollinating plants and dispersing seeds. As long as they're not roosting under your roof, it's a good thing to have them flitting about your garden.

  Belonging to the family Chiroptera, meaning "hand-wing," this incredibly diverse group of mammals has more than 1,100 species - about one-fifth of all mammal species. From the tiny bumblebee bat weighing less than a penny to giant flying foxes with 6-foot wingspans, these somewhat prehistoric-looking animals (bat fossils have been found dating back to the age of dinosaurs) are found around the globe in all but the harshest environments. Like all mammals, they have hair, bear their young live and nurse them. They are the only truly flying mammal with anatomical structures that allow for full-powered flight. For their size, they are the slowest reproducing mammals on earth (on average, mother bats rear only one pup per year), and are long-lived (five to 30 years depending on species).

  "Blind as a bat" is one of many misconceptions - all bats can see and many have excellent vision. Their dominant navigational method, like dolphins, is "echolocation." They travel and hunt at night by sending out beeps and analyzing the echoes that come bouncing back. With this finely-honed ability, they can detect obstacles as fine as a human hair in total darkness.

  More than two-thirds of bat species consume nocturnal insects such as moths, gnats, beetles and crickets with extraordinary appetites. A single little brown bat can eat up to 1,000 mosquito-sized insects in an hour. The bats in Bracken Cave in central Texas, home to the world's largest colony (some 20 million Mexican free-tailed bats) emerge at dusk like a river of wings and devour up to 200 tons of insects on a single summer's night. That's a lot of natural pest control!

  Most of the remaining species feed on the fruit or nectar of plants, playing vital roles as plant pollinators and seed dispersers. About 1 percent of bats eat fish, mice, frogs and other small invertebrates. And dreaded vampire bats? There are three species, all living in Latin America, which feed on the blood of cattle, horses and wild mammals. They don't suck blood Dracula-style; after finding a thin-skinned spot on the animal, they make a small incision and lap it up like kittens do milk.

  Insect-eating bats roost in tree foliage and cavities, under loose bark and in caves and crevices. As their natural habitats continue to disappear, more species are taking up residence in buildings and homes; the pallid bat (Antrozous pallidus), the big brown bat (Eptesicus fuscus), Mexican free-tailed bat (Tadarida brasiliensis) and Myotis species are the most common in our area. While you and your garden may benefit from a small colony of bats living in neighboring trees, having them living under your roof can cause problems. Squeaking and scratching sounds in attics, walls or chimneys especially during the warmer months at dawn and dusk are audible indicators of their presence, while visible signs include fecal droppings (guano) and urine that accumulate and stain ceilings and walls. Not only are these waste products undesirable, they can attract other insects and have a strong, unpleasant odor.

  Bats do have the potential for transmitting disease, particularly rabies. It's estimated that one in every 1,000 bats is infected with the disease, and exposure to humans is generally through handling infected animals. Generally, sick bats will be on the ground, so don't pick one up or handle it. For assistance, contact WildCare in San Rafael at 456-SAVE (7283) for guidance on what to do if you find injured or orphaned wild animals in your home or garden.

  If you find a bat stuck in your home, most likely it's an errant traveler, young and lost, rather than a sick one. First, don't panic; next, isolate the room the bat is in by closing off all openings; then open all doors and windows in the isolated room so the bat can find its way out. Once you've seen the bat exit, close everything. For more detailed information on removing bats from indoors, go to Bat Conservation International's website, www.batcon.org, for a video with step-by-step instructions.

  If you need to remove a colony of bats from your home, you'll first need to identify their entry points. Look for holes or cracks beneath eaves, around chimneys, air and plumbing vents and loose boards. (Don't attempt this May through September when parents are caring for their flightless young - most bats leave in late fall when you can introduce your exclusion methods.) Seal entryways with caulking, putty, duct tape, self-expanding polyurethane foam or hardware cloth (1/4-inch mesh) after you have excluded the bats. If you want help with removal or exclusion, contact WildCare.

  Some summer evening, take a seat in the garden right after sunset, and for the next hour, see if you can spot some of these shy little critters swooping about in search of a meal of mosquitoes. With a little information and understanding, you can protect a little piece of their habitat right in your own backyard, and reap the benefits.

  LEARN MORE

  - UC IPM, www.ipm.ucdavis.edu

  - Bat Conservation International, Inc., www.batcon.org

  - Organization for Bat Conservation, www.batconservation.org

  - WildCare, www.wildcarebayarea.org

Bats, a gardener’s true friend

• Karen Gideon

• Why do gardeners care about bats? We care because they are our most beneficial mammals. They are natural garden pest patrollers and nutrient cyclers as 70% of all bats are insectivores. Some bats are flower feeders, offering their pollinator services as they feast. One species loves agave and pollinates the plant that gives us tequila. Fruit-eating bats disperse seeds and help with reforestation.

  Right off the bat, let’s dispel some myths about these nocturnal creatures. Bats are not blind. They have good vision and use a type of sonar called echolocation to navigate. Out of 1,100 species of bats, only three bat species feed on the blood of cattle in Latin America. And while all bats do not have rabies, it’s possible to become infected by handling any rabid wild animal.

  Of all mammals on the planet, bats make up 20% of the total mammalian population. They’re the only mammals able to take true powered flight. That said, they are unable to launch to fly like a bird and must drop from a perch and swoop into flight. That’s why they roost hanging by their feet.

  Some species colonize and hang together, literally, engaging in extensive grooming. They have social structures and live in large colonies, roosting in caves, culverts, belfries and bat houses. Other species are more solitary, roosting in the bark of trees and man-made structures. Most females give birth to one baby a year and can live up to 40 years.

  Bats have been negatively effected by the loss of habitat, disturbance of roosting locations, climate change and the decline of insects due to overuse of pesticides. A disease called white-nose syndrome (WNS) is wiping out millions of bats across the country. The pathogen is a fungus that infects bats during the cooler months in hibernation, rousing them early so they use their stored fat prematurely and die of starvation in the spring. While WNS has recently been detected in Northern California, it has not yet been detected in Marin County.

  A consortium of agencies working together as the Marin County Bat Monitoring Project, onetam.org/our-work/bat-monitoring, is gathering information about Marin County bats. Led by the U.S. Geological Survey along with Point Reyes National Seashore, One Tam is studying where our 13 bat species roost, if and when they hibernate, where they hunt and what influences put them at risk. Using lightweight mist nets the scientists capture bats and fit them with radio tags for tracking.

  While bats are good for the environment and our gardens, it’s a bad idea to have them living in your home. Guano, or bat poop, is a powerful fertilizer, but it is also hazardous. It can attract parasites, mites and fleas and sometimes trigger an asthma attack due to airborne mold spores. If you have guano in your home, staining your siding or collecting in your attic, it’s time to contact a professional wildlife removal service.

  The most effective technique to eliminate bat visitors is exclusion, which is a system of narrowing tubes attached to the entrance and exit that allows bats to leave your home but not re-enter. Don’t exclude bats from May through September when they are tending their young. Repair and caulk any openings larger than ¼ inch to keep them out.

  If you find a downed or injured bat in your garden, call Wildcare (415-456-7283) for instructions on bat capture and transport. It’s important to emphasize that you should never handle a bat with your hands. Not only are you at risk for rabies but there are other pathogens that can be spread by wild animals that could make you sick.

  Bats are gardeners’ friends. Protect them by maintaining their natural habitats like tree hollows, snags and palm trees. Build a bat house in an isolated area in your garden with water nearby. You can promote a robust insect community by eliminating your use of pesticides.

Be kind to to your plants' roots so they can thrive

• Martha Proctor

• WHAT CAN YOU as a gardener do to support the plant roots in your garden? Plant roots perform some of the most vital functions on our planet by providing sustenance and support for most plants and thus, secondarily, for much of human life and activity.

  Roots are considered to be part of a plant, usually below the ground, that lacks nodes, shoots and leaves, holds the plant in position, draws water and nourishment from the soil, and stores food. Up to 90 percent of a tree's roots can be found in the top 18 inches of soil beneath and around the trunk of the tree. Nutrients, oxygen and water are more readily available in that top level of soil. Surprisingly, the mass of a tree's roots can be up to five times greater than that of the foliage above ground. Roots are critical as they are the source of all nutrient exchange between the plant and its surrounding soil.

  The tip of the root, called the root cap, has the task of forcing its way into near-solid earth. Behind the cap are root hairs, thin hairlike outgrowths of root cells, which excrete organic compounds into the narrow region of soil in close proximity to the roots, the rhizosphere.

  The rhizosphere contains many bacteria that feed on sloughed-off plant cells and the proteins and sugars released by roots. To access the available nutrients, plants produce thousands of root hairs per square centimeter. These root hairs greatly increase the surface area of the root system, allowing the roots to absorb water and minerals more efficiently and more extensively.

  For example, the mass of root hairs increase a tree's "feeding" area by two to 10 times. Root hairs are short-lived and are only produced on growing tissue, not on woody root material.

  As the upper horizon of the soil is the area where most feeding roots, nutrients and most soil organisms coexist, top dressing the soil with compost and green manure helps to promote a healthy population of microbes and produces the best-looking and healthiest plants. If the soil is healthy, the plant is more likely to develop a vigorous lateral root system. From these lateral roots, vertical roots, called sinkers, can develop anywhere along the length of the laterals, increasing the plant's access to nutrients and its stability.

  It is no surprise to gardeners in Marin County that roots have a harder time creating pathways through clay or compacted soils. Roots can suffocate with overwatering or in compacted soil. Weakened roots become more susceptible to pests and soil borne diseases.

  The addition of compost/organic matter improves the soil structure, which in turn, improves pore space, allowing easy and deep root growth. Adding a 2-inch layer of mulch such as straw, newspaper and cardboard assists the root system as it helps to prevent moisture loss and discourages weeds. The weed roots would otherwise compete for the available nutrients. Avoid piling mulch around the trunk of a tree/shrub as it  encourages root or crown rot.

  To facilitate their search for food and nutrients, the roots of approximately 80 percent of all vascular plant species enter into a symbiosis with certain fungi. The word "mycorrhiza" describes this mutualistic association between fungi (myco) and the roots (rhizae) of plants. Although only a small part of the plant root is symbiotic with the mycorrhizal fungus, this association is advantageous for both organisms.

  The plant gains increased exploration of the soil (rhizosphere) and thus a wider sphere from which to draw in water and nutrients. The fungus uses the carbon provided by the plant for its physiological functions, growth and development.

  Mycorrhizal fungi are thought to improve water absorption, increase drought resistance, reduce transplant shock and exude substances that reduce infections caused by soil pathogens. Thus, mycorrhizae are especially vital in soils with low nutrient availability, poor structure or
  low water-holding capacity. A mycorrhizal relationship also occurs in plants
  that do not have roots, such as mosses and liverworts.

  Together the roots, mycorrhizae and the microbes in the soil promote the decomposition of various minerals. Use caution when using soluble fertilizers, herbicides and fungicides as these can diminish fungal populations.

  Before buying a plant, if possible, carefully slip the root and soil mass slightly out of the container to check the condition of the roots. The roots of root-bound plants grow to the bottom of the container and then begin to encircle it. Even after being transplanted, they will not branch out but continue to encircle the planting hole. To avoid this, soak the roots for up to an hour in water and then separate and trim them back before replanting. A plant in a small 4-inch pot will more readily adapt to its
  new environment than a larger, more developed and possibly more root-bound plant. Healthy, appropriately grown, container plants successfully adapt when properly transplanted.

  So when the soil warms enough for planting this spring, remember how important the roots are to the health and vitality of your plants.

Be sure to protect yourself if you’re heading outdoors

• Faye Mark

• When spring arrives, gardeners look forward to the warmth of the sun and the budding of the bushes, trees and bulbs. The next thing you know, we are at the nursery loading up on plants, soil and other goodies. We look forward to spending time outdoors, thinking about our successes and failures from the previous year, and are anxious about freshening up our garden in preparation to receive new plants. Whether you are a novice or an expert, health and safety precautions are important to protect yourself, your family and your pets as you head out to your garden, vegetable plot or lawn.

  • Dress to protect. Wearing eye goggles, a mask to prevent inhaling dust, a hat with a wide rim to shade the face, head, ears, and neck, heavy duty gloves, long pants, long-sleeved shirt, close-fitting clothes and no jewelry go a long way in preventing injury, exposure to harmful chemical, insects and the sun. Sturdy shoes with slip-resistant rubber soles, and hearing protection when using motor-driven equipment are also worthy of consideration.

  • Honor your limits in the heat. Long periods of time in high temperatures can lead to serious health problems. Stay hydrated and drink plenty of water.

  • Body mechanics. Proper body mechanics are important to an injury free summer. Maintaining a strong core will go a long way to keeping the rest of your body healthy. If you are lifting anything or stretching your body to reach a particular place, be mindful to engage your core muscles. Keeping your stomach tight will protect your back. When lifting heavy objects, lift with your legs and keep the object close to your body.

  Tip: Raised beds provide an excellent environment for plants and reduce much of the bending and stooping of a traditional garden. If you are working at ground level for long periods of time, use a kneeling pad, knee pads or a garden seat to alleviate stress on your lower back. New ergonomic and light-weight tools reduce repetitive stress injuries while digging, weeding and transplanting. Gloves with reinforcement pads in the fingers make gripping easy while reducing strain and pressure points on your hands.

  • Safety first. Keep sharp tools and machinery in a shed or storage area that can be locked and away from children and pets. Before using machinery, remove objects from the area that can cause injury or damage equipment such as sticks, glass, metal, wire and stones. Use safety devices on equipment, whether manual or electric, and ensure it is locked or turned off and unplugged when left unattended. Check your equipment before each use and limit distractions while using it.

  • Know your plants. Many plants can be toxic in some way to humans and animals causing skin reaction, allergy or even poisoning. Teach young children never to eat anything that they pick or find in the garden, be it mushrooms, flowers, berries or leaves. Wait until children are older before you show them what can and can’t be eaten.

  Tip: Ponds and water features can be fatal for children and pets. Ensure that your pool, ponds and water features are safe and covered or fenced. Use a pond cover or wire mesh just below the water surface to protect children and pets. Remove any items that may collect standing water, such as buckets, old tires, and toys. Mosquitoes can breed in them within days.

  • Pesticides and fertilizers. Read all instructions and labels before using, whether they are organic or not. Be aware that as herbicides become more organically oriented using ingredients such as orange, clove and peppermint oils, their smells may be of interest to small children and pets. Again, teaching your children to never eat anything that they pick in the garden until they are old enough to know what can and can’t be eaten is an important caution to take.

  Gardening is an excellent way to get outdoors and to get physical activity. Before you start gardening this season, protect yourself!

Bees, flowers have electrifying connection

• James Campbell

• As the old song goes, birds do it; bees do it—“it” being pollination, of course.

  What exactly is pollination and how does it happen? If you’re picturing a bee carefully carrying pollen from the male part of the flower (anther) to the female part of the flower (stigma), you’ve got the process and the flower parts right, but it turns out there’s nothing deliberate about pollination. In fact, it’s just dumb luck.

  The real reason a bee visits a flower is because it’s hungry. It may be collecting pollen to bring home to the hive, but more often it’s out for a bite to eat. Sipping nectar gives bees energy, and if they’re honey producers, nectar is the main ingredient.

  Most flowers have markings called honey or nectar guides. Like the stripes on a runway guiding 747s at SFO, these guides tell bees where to land, where to taxi and where to go for nectar. These nectar guides are a clever flower ploy to make sure that bees pass by the pollen on their way to the nectar. With a flower like the iris, we can see the nectar guides, but most are invisible to the human eye because they are ultraviolet. Fortunately, bees have no problem seeing ultraviolet markings.

  When bees make contact with a flower’s anther on the way to the yummy nectar, the pollen is drawn to the hairs on the bee by static electricity. Remember as a kid when you rubbed a balloon on your head to stick it to the wall? It’s the same basic science. Only it’s much cooler when bees do it.

  The sparks keep flying as bees zip through the air to forage on a feast of flowers, unwittingly losing electrons and gaining a positive charge. Flowers on the other hand, have weak negative charges. Since opposite charges attract, the negatively charged pollen adheres to the positively charged bee, which sets the stage. The stigma of a flower, that’s the female part, has a sticky substance that catches the pollen as the bee brushes by, and that’s when pollination happens. This can occur on the same plant, or on another plant of the same species that a bee visits — that’s called cross-pollination.

  Static charge also helps a bee decide which flowers to visit. When a bee lands on a flower, its strong positive charge switches the weak negative charge of the flower into a positive charge for about 100 seconds. Amazingly, that’s how long it takes a flower to refill its nectar glands that were just emptied by the bee.

  If another bee comes along in that 100 seconds, it will feel the flower giving it the brush off. That’s because the nectar-generating flower has a positive charge instead of the negative charge the bee was expecting. Think of it this way: when you played with magnets as a child, what happened when you tried to put two positives together? They wouldn’t join. But positive and negative magnets? They stuck together perfectly.

  You don’t have to be a scientist to appreciate bees, yet the science is pretty remarkable. What’s equally remarkable is the importance of bees, which account for one out of every three bites of food we eat.

  To learn more about these fascinating creatures, how to attract them to your garden and how they are under threat come to my free talk at “The Secret Life of Bees” 11 a.m. Oct. 15 at the Novato Library at 1720 Novato Blvd., Novato, and 7 p.m. April 6 at the Larkspur Library, 400 Magnolia Ave., Larkspur.

Before you fertilize, stop and think: Do you really need to?

• Nanette Londeree

• It’s spring and the garden is growing like crazy, especially with the bountiful rain in May and early June. Do you think it is time to feed the lawn, the tomatoes and veggies, roses and other flowers? Before you haul out bags, boxes or bottles of plant food and sprinkle, spread or pour them on, consider whether you really need to. Are the products beneficial to the plants? To your wallet? And to the environment?

  We routinely describe fertilizing as “feeding” plants, but that’s not accurate. Plants feed themselves, producing their own food, sugars and carbohydrates, through the process of photosynthesis. Most of the 18 chemical elements plants need for healthy growth are already in the soil or the air and don’t need to be added regularly.

  Rather than fertilizing on a calendar-based schedule, watch your plants and give them only what they need, at a time when they can use it. Understanding the needs of specific plants and identifying nutrient deficiencies in the soil are first steps in figuring what, if anything you should be adding. Also consider the cost of the fertilizer and any potential impact it may have on the environment.

  Test your soil to see what levels of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium (N-P-K), the chemical elements most quickly used by plants, are present before adding more. Too much fertilizer can damage plants or cause other problems. Excess nitrogen, especially fast-release forms, can produce lush growth that’s attractive to pests like aphids. In lawns it stimulates growth that requires more water, more frequent mowing and can lead to increased opportunities for disease. And that surplus fertilizer can end up running off into storm drains, ultimately making its way into bodies of water like the bay, where it can have a negative impact on fish and other aquatic animals.

  Slow-release fertilizers seem like a boon to the gardener — saving time and effort with a single application for the season. Pellet-like granules of multi-element fertilizer are coated with a substance that slowly breaks down allowing the release of a small, steady amount of nutrients over time. However, if you use a drip system for irrigating, this type of fertilizer won’t do you much good unless the granules are placed directly below the emitter. If you water often with a hose, you may speed up the fertilizer release process and give the plant more than is needed. And if you apply too early in the season, the nutrients can get flushed out of the soil by spring rains before the plant has had the opportunity to use them.

  Some of the most expensive products, that are also tough on the environment, are multipurpose ones that tout one-step care for feeding and protecting against weeds or disease and insect pests. Why treat your plants or lawn with pesticides if they don’t need it? Would you give your family daily doses of antibiotics just in case one might be exposed to an infection? Imagine the cost of that, the toll it would take on their body, and the possibility that it may weaken their natural defenses and make them less able to fight off disease. Using pesticides in a preventive manner is basically the same approach for your plants. You’ll save a lot of money by staying away from combination products and be kinder to the environment at the same time.

  If you do need to provide specific nutrients to your soil, consider using natural fertilizers. Often sold as meals, these agricultural and farming by-products release nutrients slowly over a longer period, allowing plants to absorb them more efficiently. Compost, with a relatively low N-P-K ratio, does double duty, providing nutrients and improving soil quality. If you’ve got lawn, leave the clippings after mowing (called grass cycling); they will break down and put nitrogen back into the soil.

  Use fertilizer wisely; just give your plant what it really needs, when it can best use it.

Beginning Beekeeping

• Barbara J. Euser

•  

  The honey bee population in the United States is declining. Articles have been written and news items aired lamenting this fact. Honey bees are indispensable unpaid agricultural workers: they are responsible for pollinating 90 percent of California’s almond crop, for example. Although other insects also pollinate flowers, honey bees, living in large, exceedingly well-organized colonies, are the most efficient. Without pollinators, fruits, vegetables, nuts and other crops cannot develop.

  In mid-April of 2007, my husband and I decided to take a small step to help maintain, and hopefully increase, the honey bee population in Marin County. This will, of course, benefit our own garden, as they pollinate our flowers and fruit trees. Since honey bees forage an area of about twelve square miles, our hive will also benefit our neighbors.

  I asked a friend who keeps bees what I needed to do to get started. He told me to buy the book “Beekeeping for Dummies” by Howland Blackiston and read it. Then, he said, buy a bee hive. Once you set it up, you can buy your bees and install them.

  That sounded simple. I bought the book, bought the hive—really a bottom, body, and top sold separately, and tried to find the bees. I called Bee Weavers in Texas, but they had sold out. The friendly woman I spoke with suggested I try to find bees locally. I found www.citybees.com, a website which provided a list of local suppliers and beekeeping organizations in the Bay Area. The nearest bee supplier was in Vacaville. I called and learned that April was the end of their season for selling bees: I could pick them up the next day, or wait until next year. Over the phone, I bought one “package” of bees. It would weigh three pounds, include about 4,000 bees and one small separate container with the queen inside.

  My husband Dean and I had read portions of our Dummies book. By this time, I had carefully painted the bee hive a very pale green to reflect heat and prolong the life of the wood. (Later I learned that some beekeepers prefer hives of unpainted wood. To eliminate unhealthy spores that can accumulate on the inside walls of the hive, they simply replace their hives every few years.) We would pick up our bees the next day. And we realized we desperately wanted someone to help us install them in their hive. I called the beekeepers I knew, but could not reach them. Then Dean called a friend in Sonoma County. Kathy responded enthusiastically. Not only would she come help us install the bees, she would bring a feeder, a screened bottom, a tin-covered top, sugar syrup to feed the new bees, and a stand to put our bee hive on. Our simple project assumed a new dimension.

  Saturday morning, Dean and I drove to Vacaville. Tom, the supplier, went through a detailed description of how to install the bees and check on them and feed them for the first few weeks. Standing around his demonstration hive with several other bee purchasers, we realized we were entering a community. With admonitions to call him if we had any trouble or questions, Tom carried our package of bees to the car.

  Although I had asked for Italian bees, Tom gave us Russian bees. Russian bees were imported to the United States fairly recently because they demonstrated resistance to a type of mite that can infect bees. The main advantage of Italian bees is that they are better suited to Marin’s Mediterranean climate. Both races of bees can thrive in Marin.

  Kathy arrived soon after we got home. First we walked around the garden to find the right site for the hive. She selected a spot with good sun where the door to the hive would face east and where we could easily work behind it. She assembled a sturdy stand made of cinderblock pylons and four by fours.

  Kathy and I put on our hats and veils. I put on long-sleeved leather gloves and gingerly carried the box of bees to the hive. Working bare-handed, Kathy sprayed some water on the bees to keep them from flying. Then she sharply tapped the box on the stand. The bees tumbled to the bottom of the box. Quickly, she pried the feed can out of the box. She slipped the plastic container holding the queen bee out of the box and I replaced the feed can to keep the other bees inside. Using rubber bands, Kathy fixed the queen’s container onto one of the frames and put the frame back in the hive. Then Kathy sharply tapped the box down again, I removed the feed can, and, as I inverted the box, she tapped the bottom of the box so the bees fell through the open hole into the hive.

  Carefully, she put the feeder on top of the hive. She poured sugar syrup into a shallow container with a cork float in it. She drizzled honey made by her own bees onto the wooden surfaces. Then I put the top on. The bees had reached their new home.

  The next morning, as soon as the sun hit the hive, we watched bees busily leaving and returning. Our journey as beekeepers had just begun. We had much to learn. And we had discovered an active, generous, enthusiastic community of local beekeepers to help us along the way. My next article on our beekeeping adventure will include our first honey harvest.

Benefiting from how Native Americans cared for the land

• Jeanne Price

• WHAT IF YOUR garden was as big as all outdoors? What if you spent every day tending this wild garden, because everything you ate came from it, as well as all your tools and medicine? If you had been a Coast Miwok or a member of one of the other tribelets inhabiting the Bay Area you would live in and for your garden all your life.

  In her book, "Tending the Wild," M. Kat Anderson contends, "Without an Indian presence, the early Europeans explorers would have encountered a land with less spectacular wildflower displays, fewer large trees and fewer parklike forests."

  Yes, they lived off the land, but they also took care of the land -- cultivating, seeding, burning as well as harvesting.

  Many of the wildflowers we find lovely were important food sources for the Coast Miwoks who inhabited Marin and southern Sonoma counties. The seeds of up to 30 plants such as tidy-tips (Layia platyglossa) and owl's clover (Castilleja densiflora) were gathered by the pound, cleaned, roasted, ground, moistened and made into seed cakes, baked into a flat bread or boiled for mush or soup.

  Oak acorn mush was a staple of Miwok meals. If acorns failed, buckeye seeds would do. Acorns were ground daily, leached and boiled with hot stones. Acorn bread from tan oaks (Lithocarpus densiflorus) has been described as "deliciously rich and oily."

  In the spring they ate many kinds of greens, cooked and uncooked, including the leaves and fibrous stalks of monkeyflower (Diplacus aurantiacus), miners' lettuce (Claytonia perfoliata), angelicas, thistles and bracken fern tips (Pteridium aquilinum). They gathered the tender stalks of cow parsnips (Heracleum lanatum) sweet anise (Foeniculum vulgare), young shoots of cattails (Typha latifolia) and the roots of tules (Scirpus lacustris). All parts of native clovers were eaten.

  The most favored clover was called "saal" by the Miwoks and the whole plant was eaten raw. This plant is now presumed extinct, last seen here in 1969. They seasoned their food with salt from salt grass (Distichlis spicata) or seaweed. They knew how to process wild plants to remove toxicity, but preserve nutrition.

  In the summer they gathered wild berries. Fruit was also used for drinks and soups. Anderson writes, "California Indians' management of fruit-bearing native plants in many ways laid the foundation for domestication of some of the berries grown today. Many of today's berries have benefited from crosses with wild genetic resources, which has conferred such benefits as disease resistance. Thus the stewardship and preservation of these wild plant resources by California Indians has tremendous value today for the berry farmer."

  Soap root was eaten when food was scarce, but only after the bulb was cooked. More often it was used for bathing or made into fibrous brushes. Wild cucumber (Marah oreganus) was used as a soporific to ease headaches and to render fish sluggish and easy to catch by hand. Honey from wild ground-nesting native bees sweetened their meals.

  Hairy cat's ear (Hypochaeris radicata) leaves were eaten raw with salt. Baked brodiaea (Dichelostemma pulchellum) root tasted like new potatoes. Ripe purple pepper nuts (Umbellularia californica) were a spicy condiment. Pepperwood nuts were also roasted and made into bread. Seaweed from the rocky shores was roasted or fried. A cool and delicious cider was made of crushed manzanita seeds (Arctostaphylos). Manzanita bark and leaves were used for medicine. A drink was also made from the leaves of Phacelia californica.

  While researching for this column I made a trip to the Marin Museum of the American Indian in Novato and met Colleen Hicks, director of the museum who gave me access to its library and exhibits. There I also met John Farais, one of the museum's directors who is a chef specializing in using native local plants and developing his own recipes with these ingredients. "What could be more local than natives?" he asked.

  He gave me some madrone (Arbutus menziesii) bark he had toasted in the oven and instructed me to make tea either hot or cold. After steeping it in boiling water the fragrance was woodsy and its flavor delicate.

  The Coast Miwok were masters at basket making using willow shoots, sedge roots and bracken fern roots to design intricate patterns and decorating their baskets with feathers and abalone shell. They are today highly prized and rare.

  Wild plants also furnished the natives with medicine: wild cucumber for treatment of boils; yarrow for snake bite; angelica for colds and cuts; California mugwort (Artemisia douglasiana) for fever and stomachache; cow parsnip for cough, and fresh oak galls to clean teeth.

  Even poison oak was used as charcoal made into a paste, and rubbed on the skin, which was then punctured to create tattoos, according to Sylvia Barker Thalman, author of "The Coast Miwok Indians of the Point Reyes Area."

  The University of California Marin Master Gardeners are sponsored by UC Cooperative Extension. For questions about gardening, plant pests or diseases, call 499-4204 from 9 a.m. to noon, and 1 to 4 p.m. weekdays, or bring in samples or pictures to 1682 Novato Blvd., Suite 150B, Novato.

Berries all summer long

• Martha Proctor

• One of my favorite childhood memories is picking wild blackberries in Inverness during summer vacations. Those that made it back to our house were delicious over oatmeal cereal or baked in a yummy blackberry cobbler. All the scratches and cuts were well worth it!

  Growing berries in your garden is relatively easy and can provide tasty treats throughout the summer and fall.

  BLACKBERRIES

  Blackberries come in two basic types: erect or trailing; both have thorny and thorn-less varieties. Trailers require a wire support system. All blackberries grow best in full sun in deep well-drained fertile soil. To ensure a good crop of berries, keep the soil fairly moist, but not wet throughout the growing season. Topping the soil with mulch and adding compost and leaves helps maintain moisture in the soil and moderate extreme temperatures during summer heat. Like the wild Himalaya blackberries that I still enjoy, all varieties of blackberries are vigorous and long-lived.

  Prune blackberries in mid-summer to maximize next year’s crop. After harvest, cut out all canes that fruited this year as they’ll not fruit again. Preserve some new canes as these will bear fruit next year.

  Varieties that do best in California are either trailing or hybrids between uprights and trailers called semi-erect. Blackberry cultivars that do well in Marin include ‘Apache’ (thornless), ‘Olallieberry’ (thorny, trailing), ‘Triple Crown’ (thornless, prolific), ‘Boysen’ (thornless) and ‘Marion.’

  BLUEBERRIES

  Rabbit eye, low-bush and high-bush are the three types of blueberries grown in the United States. The low-chill varieties of the Southern high-bush blueberry, Vaccinum corymbosum, a vigorous shrub, are the best adapted for our region. Plants are attractive, long-lived shrubs that do best in full sun or partial shade in areas where summers are hot. Recommended varieties for Marin include ‘Misty,’ ‘Earliblue,’ ‘O’Neal,’ ‘Sunshine Blue’ and ‘Sharpblue.’

  It’s best to plant 2- to 3-year-old plants as it takes at least three years for blueberry plants to become established and healthy. Although it goes against the grain, remove all blossoms as they appear in the first one to two years. Plant in acidic soil (pH 4.5 to 5.5) that is kept moist during the growing season. Good drainage is critical to prevent root rot as these berries do best with ample watering. Top dress with a layer of pine needle mulch to conserve moisture, allow adequate aeration, maintain correct pH levels and suppress weeds. Blueberries have shallow roots so they don’t like to be disturbed.

  STRAWBERRIES

  When choosing strawberries, select plants grown in containers or as bare root. In early spring, set plants 12 inches apart in a sunny location so the growing point is above the soil line and the roots are buried. As the plants have shallow roots, water regularly so plants receive about 1 inch of water a week. Don’t let the soil get soggy, but do try to keep it moist. Mulch around the area to conserve moisture and keep the berries clean.

  Day Neutral and Short Day are the two basic types of the common garden strawberry. For Marin gardens, Day Neutral varieties —’Seascape,’ ‘Selva’ and ‘Albion’ — which produce the bulk of their fruit from April through October do well. As for Short Day, the recommended varieties, ‘Chandler,’ ‘Sequoia,’ and ‘Rainier’ deliver one crop a year in late spring or early summer.

  RASPBERRIES

  Raspberries have the same cultural needs as blackberries — deep soil, moderate fertility with ample organic matter, and consistent moisture. They do best when grown on wire trellises in regions like Marin where springs are cool and warm up slowly. They grow well throughout Marin, but do less well in foggy regions. Summer-bearing raspberries produce one crop in early summer and everbearing bears its main crop in the fall and another in early summer.

  Recommended summer-bearing varieties include ‘Canby,’ ‘Comox,’ ‘Nootka,’ ‘Skeena’ and ‘Willamette’; ‘Amity,’ ‘August Red,’ ‘Fall Red,’ ‘Indian Summer’ and ‘Oregon 1030’ are good fall-bearing cultivars.

Berries can be a delicious addition to your backyard

• Marie Narlock

• "I found plenty strawberries, ripe and prime; and green summer grapes, and green razberries; and the green blackberries was just beginning to show."

  — Huck Finn, from Mark Twain's "Huckleberry Finn"

  Berries can be like kids: they need a little training and a fertile place to grow, but the rewards are enduring and great.

  I grow berries because I like how prolific and delicious the fruit is. Sure, it took a little planning, but now I almost take my berry batch for granted. It's neither large nor particularly attractive, but it does crank out blackberries, boysenberries and raspberries by the pint. My blueberry and currant shrubs also are backdrops in my landscape.

  "There's a berry for every gardener, even if the only space you have is in a container," says organic garden instructor Wendy Krupnick.

  In her upcoming talk on Feb. 7 at the Marin Art & Garden Center in Ross, Krupnick will present the key ingredients to successful berry growing. You're invited to come learn how to select, plant, care and harvest a variety of berries — from the ground-hugging native strawberry to the towering hawthorn berry.

  Here's a quick rundown of berries that are suitable for Marin's climate — and space considerations.

  • Growing strawberries in pots: If your gardening is limited to a deck, or if you like to keep your edibles in containers, then strawberries are your best friends. Krupnick prefers the so-called "day neutral" varieties because they pump out fruit for months at a time. Of all the berries, strawberries need the most water and fertilization. This is especially true when you're growing them in containers. Strawberries love to "dangle," so containers are a natural fit. Just be sure to plant new ones every couple of years to avoid diseases and increase yield.
    
    California is graced with a low and tasty groundcover called woodland strawberry (Fragaria californica) that sprouts delicate white flowers followed by sweet red berries. You'll need to give it a little water (and beat away the birds), but it will be worth it. The woodland strawberry enjoys a little shade and works well for the cracks between stepping stones.

  • Shrubs for medium-sized gardens: If you're like me, you're always looking for a wee bit more gardening space. That's why edible shrubs are so compelling, since they fill general landscaping needs and crank out healthy fruit. It's hard to beat blueberries, whose snappy blue fruit is unsurpassed for health benefits. They also provide brilliant autumn color.
    
    "Just be sure to provide consistent irrigation and mulch," reminds Krupnick. "Blueberry roots are fibrous and shallow-rooted. They don't want to dry out."
    
    Blueberries also appreciate acid soil. I've found the Sunshine Blue variety to be reliable producers.
    
    A cousin to blueberries is the California native huckleberry (Vaccinium ovatum). This is an elegant, tidy shrub with sweet fruit provided you give it a little sun. Its only downside? It grows painfully slowly (especially in the shade). We're talking inch by inch, year by year. Plant one today, enjoy fruit with your grandkids decades later. But hey, gardeners are supposed to be patient. Right?
    
    Another interesting mid-sized berry plant to consider is a currant. These plants are deciduous, meaning they drop their leaves in winter. The fruit that forms soon after ranges from black to see-through red. Add to salads or eat right off the plant.

  • When you've got something to hide: When you've got a view — or a neighbor — that's better left unseen, an edible hedgerow is a fun way to solve the problem. California's native elderberry (Sambucus Mexicana or Sambucus nigra) is a formidable plant with autumn berries that are good for elderberry wine — as well as pies, jellies and jams. Some good choices for good-tasting fruit are "Adams" for pies or "Johns" for jelly. Elderberries like water, mulch and compost to achieve their maximum size of up to 20 feet tall.
    
    Another plant with edible berries that makes a good living fence is the hawthorn (Crataegus), of which there are more than 25 species. Most have long, sharp thorns and grow up to 25 feet. They have showy flowers in spring and deep yellow, orange or red in fall.

  • Managing the cane berries: Training, corralling, disentangling. Call it what you want, sometimes what you need is a whip and a chair. That's just life when you're growing blackberries and raspberries. But don't despair. There are numerous strategies for keeping your berry patch in control, starting with selecting the right varieties.

  "There are some wonderful thornless blackberries," says Krupnick.

  These include varieties that are not only free of thorns but which also can be cut to the ground every year and be counted on to pop right back next season. (These are called primo cane varieties. Other types are less forgiving, requiring the gardener know which canes are new and which were last season's. Who has the time?)

  Raspberries are another place where choosing a primo cane variety makes things easier. One good selection is "Autumn Bliss," which starts bearing in July and cranks out the fruit well into fall. Cut to the ground in winter, but do spend some time cutting out the wimpy canes in spring or summer. Allowing the most vigorous canes to grow will make your yields larger and allow for good light and air circulation.
  
  Be aware: raspberries need serious containment, because their underground runners can travel significant distances and pop up where you don't want them. I dug a trench 6 inches wide and almost 3 feet deep around my raspberries to stop them from invading their neighbors. I placed a thin piece of sheet metal in that trench and backfilled. That was a few years ago and so far so good.
  
  The alternative? Tear them all out and succumb to the $6 per pack price tag at the grocery store.

   

   

Berry bushes can bring splash of color in winter

• Nanette Londeree

• Hungry for some color in your winter garden? All you need is a few easy care, berry-producing shrubs.

  Splashes of fire-engine red, pearly white, metallic turquoise blue or amethyst purple can add some pizzazz to your outdoor space and supply much needed food to birds during the coldest months of the year.

  We're not talking about the ubiquitous pyracantha or cotoneaster, but other, underused treasures. There are evergreen varieties, whose foliage is punctuated with brilliantly colored fruits, and deciduous plants that strut their eye-catching fruit like jewelry on bare skin. From neat and tidy little bushes to moderate-sized trees, many are happy with little to moderate water during the dry time of year, and don't need much else other than an occasional trim to keep them in shape.

  If you're after multiseason interest, try the red chokeberry (Aronia arbutifolia "Brilliantissima"). In spring, lustrous deep green leaves are adorned with showy clusters of dainty white blooms, tipped with pink. Come early fall, the plant will dazzle with its vividly colored foliage and dense clusters of lustrous red fruits. The black chokeberry (Aronia melanocarpa) delivers glossy dark purple fruit, a striking contrast to autumn's wine-red foliage. These plants do best in full sun but can handle partial shade and require little water once established.

  American beautyberry (Callicarpa americana) is an apt name for this native plant that is valued for its stunning fruits. The medium sized, deciduous, open form plant sports light green foliage and, in spring, small lilac to pink flowers. In the fall the American beautyberry flaunts tight bunches of vibrant jewel like violet purple berries that last into winter if the birds don't get them first. Plant in full sun and provide regular water for the best display.

  The elderberry family (Sambucus) is a treasure-trove of dazzling berry-producing plants, from the bicolored "Aureomarginata" that dons asparagus green foliage with creamy yellow edges, to a star of the garden, "Black Lace." This variety is clothed in finely cut eggplant purple foliage reminiscent of a Japanese maple. Stems topped with flat-topped sprays of creamy soft pink flowers mark the spring display followed by blackish-red berries that entice birds, or the gardener interested in making elderberry wine and jam. "Black Lace" prefers partial to full sun, and will naturally top out at about 8 feet tall but can be pruned into a smaller shrub; it does best in moist soil, although it will tolerate dry soils. Whatever variety you select, harvest only the blue or purple berries; the red berries of other species are toxic.

  Looking for holiday decorating ideas? Fill a container with cut branches of the snowberry shrub (Symphoricarpos albus). The plump pearly white berries adorn branches from late summer through early winter. Named by Thomas Jefferson for its large fruits "as white as snow which remain through the winter making it a singular and beautiful object," this deciduous North American native does best in full sun with little to moderate water.

  If it's evergreen plants you're after, get year round interest with Oregon grape (Mahonia aquifollum). This dense, bushy western native plant can grow to 6 feet tall. It is adorned with glossy, spiny-edged deep forest green foliage that turns burgundy red in winter while new growth is deep bronze. Dense spiky clusters of lemon yellow blooms are followed by blue-black berries in the fall. Reliably deer resistant, Oregon grape thrives best with some shade along with other acid-loving trees and shrubs. Depending on the environment, this easy care shrub can do with little water.

  A reliable favorite of mine is heavenly bamboo (Nandina domestica). Don't be fooled by the lacy foliage cloaking this workhorse of a shrub. It tolerates intense heat with little water, and near freezing temperatures. Deer and other pests don't bother it, and it provides a range of color over the seasons. New foliage has varying shades of green; summer heat turns on vivid reds and oranges that deepen to crimson in the fall. Large sprays of tiny cream-colored flowers are followed by strawberry-red berries that persist throughout the winter. And for something different, try N. domestica "Alba" — it sports plump white berries. An added bonus — the foliage and berries make a gorgeous long-lasting addition to floral bouquets.

  Striking metallic turquoise blue berries are unique to Viburnum davidii, a compact evergreen shrub with sprays of pinkish white flowers spring through fall. The handsome, deeply veined foliage is often accented with both blooms and berries over a long period of time. This Viburnum does best in partial shade with other acid-loving plants.

  Most local nurseries carry and can obtain these attractive shrubs — ones that you and the birds can enjoy.

Beware of pine bark needles

• Karen Gideon

• Many of Marin's neighborhoods were built in the '50s and '60s, and developers planted Monterey pine trees for fast growing landscapes and windbreaks. As these pines become stressed from aging, drought and climate warming they are more susceptible to disease and pests. Two pine bark beetles, the red turpentine beetle and the five spined ips, are common culprits in Marin County urban interface areas.

  The best way to check for pine bark beetles is to inspect your pine trees.

   

  The red volcano-like pitch tubes of the red turpentine beetles, Dendroctonus valens, are fairly easy to locate. Small numbers are rarely fatal to the tree. To find the adult beetles which are about ¼" long, dark red, and about the size of a grain of rice, you'll need to peel back the bark of an infected tree. There you will see "beetle galleries" — winding patterns of tunnels chewed by the beetle's strong mandibles and packed with sawdust. They create wide cave-like egg-laying tubes inside the bark near the tree base. This is a clear sign of infestation that disrupts the flow of nutrients in the inner bark, and can sign stress from insufficient cultural care or injuries to the tree.

  The California five spined ips (Ips confusus), part of the group of engraver beetles, also leaves an orange-brown boring dust in bark crevices. Look for fading foliage in the top half of your pine and evidence of fine sawdust about halfway up the trunk or on branches. This beetle attacks in the stem tips and canopy, high above ground, and is often overlooked by homeowners until the tree's crown begins to yellow, flag and die. They can be hard to spot. Their tunneled galleries are Y-shaped and the adults overwinter, using the pine trees as breeding material in the spring, producing multiple broods. The ips is capable of rapid, widespread reproduction and can kill the pine tree and spread to other pine trees.

  Because the deadly ips beetle lives under the protection of thick bark, little can be done once the tree is infested. You can prune limbs if the infestation is just starting, but once it is in the trunk, the tree needs to be removed. This must be done carefully to protect nearby pine trees that may also be stressed and susceptible. If the tree is chipped or cut for firewood, the remains need to be wrapped in thick, clear plastic sheeting and solarized for several months to kill resident beetles or larvae.

  Prevention is the best way to keep your pines healthy and beetle free.

  Protection from bark beetles requires good cultural practices to lessen susceptibility. Diversify your landscape and choose trees that are well suited to your environment. Research the care requirements — know the proper watering frequency and pruning needs. Improper planting or transplanting technique, poor site choice, or planting at the wrong time of the year all increase susceptibility to infestation.

  If you've had a beetle infestation in your yard, consider planting non-host trees. If you have a stand of pine trees, thin them so that the branches have plenty of light and circulating air. Avoid damage to your pine tree from sunburn, improper pruning, or physical injury. Irrigate your tree at the edge of your canopy, not by the trunk.

  Much is gained by the simple act of observation. Take a few minutes to check out the bark and canopy of your pines. And if you start to see changes, look for the signs of these two bark beetles. If your trees are large and well established, and you see a few indications of beetle activity, make note of it and continue to observe your trees. If your trees are small to medium in girth and you see multiple instances where the beetles have breached the bark, contact your local arborist.

   

   

Big, tall and old: California’s rich with landmark trees

• Anne-Marie Walker

• In your summer travels about California, why not look for landmark trees, those whose majestic beauty, ecological interest or historical significance convey landmark status?

  California has more than 200 native trees, some of which range widely while others are limited to geographic regions. Majestic beauties include redwoods as well as other trees, including California buckeye, California sycamore, California bay and California fan palm and certain species of pine and oak occurring only in California. Because of its rich biodiversity, scientists designate our state the “California Floristic Province.” This biodiversity is partly due to the state’s large territory spanning 13 degrees of latitude and its Mediterranean climate. When glaciers carved out areas of North America, species of trees once more widely distributed throughout the Northern Hemisphere became isolated in California and our arboreal treasures awaited discovery.

  'HOME OF BIG TREES' 

  Travelers come to California from all over the world to see our majestic trees: the world’s biggest, tallest and oldest trees. The rush to find gold in 1849 accelerated the discovery of landmark trees and suddenly headlines proclaimed California “The Home of Big Trees.” Fortunately, when commercialism threatened destruction, John Muir and others stepped forward to encourage preservation. California’s biggest landmark tree is Sequoiadendron giganteum or giant sequoia, which now exist only in 75 isolated groves on the western side of the Sierra. The biggest is General Sherman in Sequoia National Park. Listed in America’s National Register of Big Trees, this is most likely the largest tree on Earth. Research is being conducted on how these long-lived giants, sometimes 2,500 years old, are faring in the midst of California’s drought. Concern has deepened since scientists observed browning tops on giant sequoias.

  The tallest tree on Earth is Sequoia sempervirens, California’s coast redwood. Often living 2000 years, you can find the tallest in Redwood National Park along California’s north coast. Hyperion, named after the Greek God of Light, measured 379.7 feet tall in 2007. The longest-lived tree on earth is the bristlecone pine found in Inyo National Forest in eastern California’s White Mountains. Living sometimes more than 4,000 years, bristlecone are only 30 feet tall.

  HISTORICALLY SIGNIFICANT

  While not as massive, tall or long-lived as the aforementioned trees, many of California’s native trees are significant ecologically and historically. California buckeyes grow in drifts on dry hillsides, canyons and along streams. In spring, buckeye present a mass of floral fireworks that attract pollinators. Native Americans valued buckeye for bark and seeds eaten after soaking to remove toxins. California sycamore groves were deemed sacred places by Native Americans. Growing the largest leaf of any native tree in North America, sycamores provide nutrients and shade for the larvae of the Western tiger swallowtail butterfly. Walk quietly among California sycamores to hear their wind song.

  California bay trees, also called California laurel, are common in Marin. The fruit ripens in the fall and resembles a small avocado; both bay and avocado trees are in the Lauraceae plant family. Native Americans roasted the fruit of bay and ground the nut into meal. When the Transcontinental Railroad was completed in 1869, the Golden Spike was nailed into a railroad tie made from California bay.

  Relict from a time when the state’s climate was more tropical, the California fan palm is the only palm native to the western United States. Some of the largest specimens can be found in our capital, Sacramento. Its fan-shaped leaves were used by Native Americans for shelter, food, clothing and baskets.

Bird bye bird

• Karen Gideon

• 

  Sparrows naturally eat grass seeds and small berries so they might find your garden seeds appetizing as well. Photo: Karen Gideon

  I’m a birder and a gardener so in the spring when I seed my garden and fertilize fruit trees, I wonder who will reap what I sow. Will it be the crows eating my baby lettuces in a gulp? Or blue jays carrying off my strawberries? While I thank the birds for feasting on slugs and caterpillars, I also employ tactics to ensure that my fruit and veggies reach my table instead of a bird’s beak.

  Some of the worst offenders are our common backyard birds such as crows, house finches, robins, scrub-jays, and crowned sparrows. These are birds I enjoy listening for and watching. So, it helps to focus on ways to deter and exclude birds without losing their pest patrolling and melodic company. We can learn from small farmers and fruit growers how to protect our plants by repelling, frightening the birds, and isolating the trees, vines and plants.

  
  

  

  Scrub-jays may poke and pull seeds before they sprout and remove the whole plants after they leaf. Photo: Karen Gideon

  The first step is to make sure that you are not attracting birds to your garden. Check the area around your vegetable garden or fruit tree. Consider removing bird attractants such as bird baths, bird houses and feeders to locations away from fruit trees or vegetable beds. If you want to continue to feed birds, it may help to move your feeder a good distance from the edible garden.

  A common bird deterrent is the use of visual scare tactics. Birds are quick to react and to escape sudden movement and loud sounds. The flutter of shiny mylar ribbons can unnerve the most curious scrub-jay. You can also use whirligigs. Twirling in the wind, some are created as objects d’art and can be placed throughout the garden. Foil pie plates attached to branches with string may have the same effect.

  Scarecrows placed in the garden may frighten a few birds. But they must be moved around weekly to be believable.  Placing owls and rubber snakes in the garden have some short-term effectiveness but also must be moved to appear real. Combining visual repellents with auditory noisemakers can increase their effectiveness. While orchard managers may set off loud devices, local suburban gardeners typically use windchimes or rotating noisemakers.

  

  Crows are among the most curious and smartest birds. They habituate quickly to devices used for frightening birds. Photo: Karen Gideon

  Birds are smart and can figure out the scary source is fake and habituate to the sounds of most noisemakers and visual scare tactics used in a suburban environment.

  Chemical repellents rely on noxious odors, hot and bitter tastes, and other sensual aversions. Keep in mind that you are applying the repellent to a food source you will later consume and you don’t know how the birds will respond to the chemicals as they could make the birds sick. Instructions must be followed carefully. And the efficacy of these repellents is uncertain.

  
  

  

  Covers and netting on freshly planted garden soil can be held aloft with hoops or simple framing to keep birds out. Photo: Courtesy of UC Regents

  
  The most effective way to reduce the damage caused by birds is to use quarter to half inch netting or/and fencing to keep your plants isolated.  To protect newly planted vegetables or seedlings, a chicken wire cage or netting can keep the birds at bay.  The key is to find a row cover or netting that allows pollinators through and keeps birds out. The floating row covers are easily placed over the bed of veggies with or without a frame. Typically, after the plants reach maturity, the protection can be removed. Protective covers may limit your ability to check on the plants regularly or to irrigate easily unless you use drip irrigation.

  
  For fruit trees and vines, tenting with protective netting requires a frame or tent structure to keep the cover from resting on the branches. Place the protection high and wide because birds can perch on the edges and eat the fruit through the netting. There will be some initial costs in building the frame, however, the frame and netting may be reused.

  Birds provide natural pest control in the garden. When discouraging birds from causing havoc in your garden, either through scare tactics or netting, remember you may lose the benefit of their voracious appetites for slugs, beetles, and caterpillars.

  

  While some birds may be a garden nuisance, hawks can help keep your garden pest free. Photo: Mark Gideon

Birds in the garden — friends or foes?

• Karen Gideon

• If you’ve ever been jarred from sleep by the drumming of a woodpecker against your house you might pull up the welcome mat for birds. Perhaps you spent a day preparing your soil and carefully sewing seeds for vegetables only to find a flock of robins upending your garden rows. And then you remember seeing a chickadee with a moth in its beak and a phoebe hunting stealthily through the air for mosquitos. So which is it — should you attract birds or keep them out of the garden?

  Birds are the sustainable gardener’s primary pest patrollers as flies, caterpillars, spiders, beetles and snails make up most of their meals. And during the spring, when insects are flourishing in warmth and moisture, birds are feeding spiders and other bugs to their nestlings all day long. One approach to managing this garden asset is to attract the birds while limiting their exposure to your plants or home. You can garden with nature rather than trying to eliminate it from your garden.

  To attract birds to your garden you can supply the basics — food, water, a place to nest and safety from predators. A birdbath is as simple as a bowl of water in your garden or an elaborate fountain. Make sure the water is moving or cleaned regularly so it doesn’t become a home for mosquito larvae. Birds like to nest discreetly so make sure you have a mixed canopy of shrubs and trees. Cultivate native plants with seeds that they love to eat. Native grasses like Calamagrostis foliosa attract wrens, juncos and sparrows and native shrubs like toyon or Myrica californica offer flowers and berries.

  To ensure the birds have insects and snails, hold back on blowing away your leaf litter and let the decaying leaves provide a home for beetles, crickets and slugs. The leaf blowers can damage bird nests in the spring and drive away your birds. Put a bell on the cat or bring your cat inside so they don’t hunt and frighten the birds.

  To protect your home from nesting birds, make sure you have sealed all holes and loose boards. Nesting can be messy, so hanging something flashy like foil from the corner or eave the birds are eying will deter nesting there. Mesh netting placed over eaves and flashing can deter woodpeckers and flickers.

  To protect seeds and plants from birds, you can tent your vegetables with ¼- to ½-inch mesh netting, making sure to secure the bottom of the netting so they can’t get under it. After your seeds have sprouted, you can reuse the plastic berry containers to make mini tents over the seedlings. Scare tactics, whirligigs, foil strips flapping in the wind, scarecrows, rubber snakes or plastic owls have some level of deterrence if they are moved around. Some gardeners pitch netting around their plants and leave one uncovered for the birds — so there’s an abundance of food for everyone.

  You can encourage birds by putting up feeders. It’s prudent to research the type of seed the bird you are trying to attract eats. Watch for rodents — the falling seed could create a new food chain in your yard that includes mice and rats. The same goes for nesting boxes — research this by species. If you love how the nuthatches search for insects in the bark of your oak trees, you could encourage them to overwinter with a nesting box. If you enjoy the acrobatics of swallows, a patch of mud in the yard gives them the plaster they need for their nests.

  As usual, the answers to sustainable gardening questions are rarely yes or no or friend or foe. Working with nature and taking advantage of the checks and balances in your mini-ecosystem, brings results that help your garden thrive. In this case, leveraging the pest control offered by birds while minimizing damage to your garden and home is the prize.

Blossom end rot...and what to do about it?

• Wendy Irving

• Your tomatoes ae coming along beautifully – good sized plants, nice foliage, blossoms and burgeoning fruit. Then you see something disturbing. The developing fruit is showing brown spots on the blossom end of the fruit, soon to develop into larger lesions. With the wetter than usual May this year, it is not surprising. But what is going on?

  This is unmistakably blossom end rot. Blossom end rot not only affects tomatoes, it can impact peppers, and cucurbit vegetables such as squash, eggplant, zucchini, cucumbers, and pumpkins. But, it is very common in our beloved tomatoes! Blossom end rot is a physiological disorder in which the tissue of the blossom end of the fruit (the portion of the fruit opposite the stem) breaks down and rots. Hard, discolored areas may develop inside the fruit, either with or without external symptoms. The disease is not associated with soil contact or with damage to other plant parts. So, what is it?

  Blossom end rot is caused by a lack of calcium in the fruit, but it is not as simple as it seems. Just adding calcium to the soil probably won’t do the trick. There may be low levels of calcium in the soil, but more likely there is plenty of calcium, but the ability of the tomato plant to access that calcium has been impaired in some way. Drought stress, unseasonal rain, alternating soil moisture extremes, salty and/or sandy soil, and damage to a plant’s roots all can inhibit calcium uptake, as can waterlogged or cold soils, and too much fertilizer.  Movement of calcium within plants depends on active transpiration (transpiration is the movement of water from the soil through the plant to evaporate into the air). Because leaves transpire more than fruits, calcium moves more easily into leaves, where it remains.  Calcium is not later redistributed from leaves to fruits.  This preferential distribution of calcium to leaves can be made worse by over-fertilizing with nitrogen which promotes excessive production of leaves.  In addition, high relative humidity, or low relative humidity in combination with hot, windy weather can limit transpiration, thus preventing calcium from reaching fruits. What can you do about it?

  Avoid conditions of too much or too little water.  Irrigate evenly. Do not allow the soil to either dry out or become saturated. Mulch the soil to retain moisture during dry periods.  Avoid cultivation near plants that would damage roots.  Use nitrate (NO3-) rather than ammonium (NH4+) forms of nitrogen fertilizer.  Do not over-fertilize.  Test your soil periodically to determine if there is sufficient calcium in the soil.  If not, add calcium (lime, bone meal, eggshells).  Check the soil pH on a regular basis, particularly if you use lime as a calcium source.  A pH of about 6.5 is ideal for growing most vegetables.  Finally, grow vegetable cultivars that are tolerant of calcium deficiencies and less likely to show blossom end rot symptoms.

  The good news is if you make the proper corrections now, your indeterminate tomatoes can still give you good, useable fruit as the season progresses.

Boxwood blight arrives, but not in Marin — yet

• Doris Gates

• There’s a new bad guy in the Bay Area, and its name is boxwood blight. It’s a fungus that infects plants in the boxwood family, and it can do serious damage.

  All species of Buxus, one part of the family, seem to be susceptible, some more than others. Two popular varieties, American or “common” boxwood (Buxus sempervirens) and English boxwood (Buxus sempervirens ‘suffruticosa’), appear especially vulnerable. Other plants in the family, such as sweet box (Sarcococca spp.) and some spurges (Pachysandra spp.), may be hosts.

  Boxwood blight only recently arrived in California, where it has appeared in San Mateo and Santa Clara counties. To date, it has not been seen in Marin, but it is probably only a matter of time. The disease was first identified in England in the 1990s and is now found throughout Europe. It was detected in the United States in 2011 and has since spread to more than 20 states across the country.

  The fungal pathogen, Calonectria pseudonaviculata, causes boxwood blight. It thrives in mild, damp weather, especially in temperatures from 64 to 80 degrees. Spores are spread by wind and rain, and they may be carried by birds, animals, shoes, clothing, and gardening tools. Wet leaves or high humidity are required for infection.

  The disease does its damage quickly, sometimes in less than a week. First signs include circular brown spots on leaves and distinctive black streaks, or lesions, on stems. Fungus spores, either white or salmon-colored, may appear on the underside of leaves, particularly in humid weather.

  Leaves turn tan or brown, plants rapidly defoliate and dieback occurs. Roots remain healthy, but the weakened plant usually dies, sometimes the result of secondary causes. At present, there is no known cure.

  An invasion of boxwood blight can be devastating to homeowners because boxwood is widely used in home gardens for both hedges and decorative elements. A mature hedge may be relied upon for privacy or a windbreak, and replacing one can take time and money.

  So what is a gardener to do? First, although there are no known cases yet in Marin, it pays to be alert for symptoms. If you see something suspicious, bring a cutting (in a plastic bag) to the UCCE Marin Master Gardener help desk in Novato. We can assist with a diagnosis.

  Second, if you are planning new plantings, it could be wise to avoid boxwood for now. Over time, disease-resistant strains and new control techniques may be developed. If you do purchase new plants in the family, it is recommended that you isolate them for a least a month before putting them into your garden.

  Third, if or when boxwood blight hits closer to home, or if you want to be proactive, there are some defenses. Avoid overhead watering, which can help spread the disease, and don’t work with boxwood under wet conditions. Practice good sanitation, remove fallen debris, and disinfect pruning equipment frequently. A layer of mulch can help to prevent fungus spores from settling into the soil.

  Fourth, a word about fungicides. Some horticulturists believe that fungicides may be a preventative measure. Others think they suppress symptoms but don’t prevent spread of the disease. Fungicides are not a cure for diseased plants, and whether they are effective in prevention is still under study.

  Last, if a diagnosis of boxwood blight is verified, all affected plants should be removed immediately to prevent spreading. Infected material and fallen leaves should be bagged and sent to the landfill, because home composting alone is not likely to kill the disease.

  Any spores left behind can survive in leaf debris and soil for many years. So a good cleanup can mean a lot to the long-term health of your garden.

Boxwood leafminers can mean big trouble for beloved boxwoods

• Diane Lynch

• Boxwoods are one of the most iconic and ubiquitous garden design choices for shrubs.  They are almost like a lawn in that they give the eye a rest from the activity of the rest of the garden, while providing year-round structure and interest when plants are out of bloom.  They can be clipped into fanciful shapes or simply into crisp outlines around a little wildness within their confines.

  So how did such an essential, charming plant end up with so many possible diseases?  Boxwood blight is a fungal disease (Cylindrocladium pseudonaviculata) that features brown leaf spots with dark edges, black cankers on stems and severe dieback and defoliation.   Fungal diseases such as Phytopthoras can also cause root rot, resulting in yellowing of leaves as entire parts of the plant die.  Macrophoma leaf spot caused by a parasitic fungus (Macrophoma candollei) causes reddish brown spots.  Volutella stem canker, caused by the fungus Pseudonectria buxi, can take out entire parts of the plant. There is seemingly no end to the fungal pathogens that can cause problems for boxwoods.  Nematodes can cause problems as the microscopic worms eat through the roots. Boxwood even has its own spider mite, Eurytetranychus buxii. Now, if all the other diseases weren’t enough, there are boxwood leafminers (Monarthropalpus flavus).

  Are your boxwoods looking unhappy and not so healthy?  Do you see yellow to brown spots on the leaves?  Is the canopy sparse? Is there premature leaf drop? It’s possible you have leafminers.  These unfortunate pests do a lot of damage and since boxwood grows slowly, removing infected plants and putting in new ones makes for a rather dowdy hedge; some big and some small is not a good look for a hedge you’d like to be all one size and uniformly trimmed.

  The culprit is a tiny orange fly that looks a bit like a mosquito.  They insert their eggs under the leaves of this larval food, which hatch into larvae or maggots and cause the leaf to blister as they tunnel through, munching as they go. After all this eating they’re exhausted and ready for the next stage so they pupate and hang from the leaves to await transformation into adulthood.  The newly hatched females emerge from the leaves leaving a hole behind when they exit. The adults look like a swarm of orange gnats when they fly and then they mate.  The next generation of eggs is safely ensconced in the leaf tissue and, their biological destiny fulfilled, the adults die.  The larval stage will overwinter and become active in the spring.

  The blisters mess with the vascular tissue and cause leaves to drop as the flow of nutrients is disrupted.  Damaged shrubs grow slowly, have sparse canopies, tip dieback, and drop leaves prematurely.  These pests rarely kill the plant but can make it pretty unattractive.

  What to do?  Select less susceptible cultivars such as Suffruticosa, Pendula, Argenteo-variegata, Handworthiensis, Pyramidalis, or Varder Valley.  Encourage green lacewings and spiders and other natural controls, which improve the overall health of your garden.  Healthy plants will tolerate insect damage better. Try to reduce the population and hard prune before the adults hatch out.  Clean up debris under plants in fall and winter to get rid of the pupae still in the leaves.  Some pesticides such as avermectin and imidacloprid have shown promise, but they’re not environmentally friendly and could be responsible for contributing to honeybee decline. Research is ongoing, so currently UCCE recommends using the hard pruning method and designing your new boxwood garden installations with pest-resistant varieties as listed above as opposed to using pesticides.

  With so many threats out there, if you have healthy boxwoods consider yourself lucky or diligent and enjoy this delightful and important garden staple.  

Breaking down the mystery of composting

• Dot Zanotti Ingels

• We all know about the benefits of composting for our plants and our garden soil, but it seems that there is lots of complicated advice that needs to be simplified and demystified. The answer for many of us is to make composting easy and let the natural decomposition processes do the heavy work instead of you.
  
  The real composting work is done by a variety of critters. Some you can see, but most you cannot. All those critters need you to do is provide them with food, water and air.
  
  There are lots of different ways to compost your organic waste. Some require special equipment and more technical knowledge of composting technique. Some methods only work for small amounts of waste and some can accommodate whatever you have to put in.
  
  So a good place to begin is by asking yourself about your composting needs:

  • How much time and effort do you want to spend? Do you want to invest in some basic equipment?
  • What are you planning to compost and how much do you have? Kitchen food scraps and garden waste are it, for most of us. A large family and a large yard make a lot more compostable material than a couple or a small garden.
  • Do you have space to set up an area designated to compost? If you have the space for a bin or more, great. If not, no problem.

  Anything organic will decompose. The microorganisms (the invisible bacteria and fungi) that do the big work need to be fed both nitrogen and carbon to do their best work. The most common green (or nitrogen source) compostable materials include kitchen scraps (fruit and vegetable peelings, coffee grounds and egg shells) as well as fresh leaves, grass clippings and garden waste.
  
  It is important not to include dairy products, meat, fish, bones and pet waste. They do not breakdown well and attract unwanted vermin. Do not put in weeds that have gone to seed, invasive weeds like crabgrass or diseased plant material. The seeds and disease will probably not be killed unless you are composting at high heat and will end up back in the yard when you spread your compost. If something has been treated with a chemical pesticide or herbicide absolutely do not put it in your compost pile.?
  Carbon sources are called brown materials, which include wood chips, dried leaves, sawdust, shredded newspaper, torn up cardboard and paper egg cartons. If you have your compost in a pile, it is vital to keep your compost as moist as a damp sponge. It is also important to mix it up as often as possible to keep it aerated. Remember that the microorganisms and the big guys (such as earthworms, mites, grubs, flies, etc.) need food, air and water to do their best work.?There are so many compost methods. Each has its own pluses and minuses. Here are a few options, starting with the easiest:

  • Pit composting. Dig a small hole about a foot deep (to discourage pests), put all your kitchen scraps in and cover. Place holes throughout the garden, and renew your soil easily. It takes about three months for decomposition, depending on soil temperature.
  • Pile composting. First, find a good place to put your pile. It can be in sun or part shade. If you have the space, it is great to have two piles. One is being actively fed and the other is finishing its work making dark, crumbly soil. There are several commercial products available to hold your pile. Bottomless, tiered, plastic compost systems with a lid work well. You can add or subtract tiers to make turning easier and to accommodate the amount of waste you have at a time. Barrel-style systems can make turning composting material easier, are more resistant to animals and can reduce the processing time. However, you either need two or a stockpile of fresh waste because you'll need to compost in batches.
  • Wire mesh enclosures. It is cheap and easy to build. It can be tough to work your pile, though, because the wire can be easily crushed or bent. A wire mesh enclosure is totally exposed, so vigilance will be needed to keep the pile from drying out.
  • Multibin systems. Usually three bins are used, which allows you to have compost in various stages of development. Making them easily accessible with removable slats makes your work easier. This is a good system for people with large amounts of waste to compost.
  • Worm bins. They are usually small, compact and fast. You need about a five-gallon plastic bin with a lid. Put holes in the container for air and to let the liquid gold escape. Use newspaper strips as a base for the worms; add kitchen scraps and a handful of red wriggler worms. They need to live in a cool, dry place away from predators.

Breaking up is NOT hard to do

• Karen Gideon

• Few activities offer a greater example of “give and take” than gardening with perennials. We care for our plants by watering, mulching and composting over their lifetimes while they offer us beauty, fruit, and flowers.  With time your favorites age as they develop woody crowns, crowded and clumped roots, and produce less bounty.  Ah, the specter of fading beauty presents itself once again and we are called to action.  Fear not, brave gardener – there is an easy remedy.  It’s time to “divide and conquer!”

  Plant division is an ancient practice that increases the vigor of a plant and provides new plants for additional landscaping or gifts for like-minded gardeners.  While we’ve all heard that “breaking up is hard to do,” actually it’s not. Division is a great way to get new plants and infuse your garden with new life.  It’s also a prudent thing to do to perennials every few years and is usually successful if you follow some basic principles.

  Most division takes place when the perennials are finished blooming in the fall and in the spring when conditions are favorable. Since plant division involves splitting or dividing of the crown and root ball, its use should be limited to plants that spread from a central crown and have a clumping growth habit like daisies, asters, agapanthus, yarrow, anenomes, achillea, irises, columbine and chrysanthemums. Fruits and vegetables can also be divided – like rhubarb, artichokes, asparagus and herbs including thyme, marjoram and tarragon.

  Division is a soil-building opportunity!  While lifting, forking and dividing your plants, it’s a chance to amend old and prepare new soil. Work in some compost, leaf mold and bone meal when you build the new home for divided plants.

  While the technique may differ depending on the type of root structure of the plants to be divided, there are common tools to get ready. Have a bucket of water nearby, a fork or shovel or two for lifting, and implements for either cutting the roots or pulling tubers apart and some isopropyl alcohol or nine parts water and one part bleach to sterilize your knives and pruners. 

  Trim and water the plants to be divided a couple of days before you divide.  Do your division on a cool, cloudy day or find a shady spot.  Have the soil in the new beds prepared and fill your gift pots with moist soil and compost.

  The plants need to be carefully lifted from the soil.  Depending on size and consistency of the soil, you can lift them with a shovel, hand-forks, pitch-forks, or hand trowel.  Dig around the base of the plant deeper than the root structures. If attempts to lift the plant out of ground prove too difficult, sending a shovel or spade into the center of the crown will split the plant.  Working as a team or one side at a time, the plant can be pried apart into two or more clumps.  Smaller plants can be divided by one person by using forks back to back in the center.

  Lift and shake off any loose soil. Rinsing the roots with water can be helpful.  Look for natural fractures between bulbs, root clumps, or rhizomes and gently split these fissures with your hands.  If they don’t come apart easily, they can be cut with a sharp, clean knife. 

  All plant divisions must be kept moist during this process.  If the roots or rhizomes are allowed to dry, the plants may not survive.  If there is a delay in replanting the new plants, keep them in moist soil mix in a container or in water.  Be careful not to damage the roots and keep the portions good sized.

  Successful division produces new roots.  To keep the plant’s energy in the recovering root structure, trim off any dead growth and some of the leaves at the top of the plant but retain enough greenery so the plant is can still supply energy to the roots. The remaining mother plant from which you took the divisions can be replanted immediately. Water thoroughly, add compost and mulch the replant. Keep an eye on your new plants and protect them from extreme weather.

  Over the next spring and summer, your newly divided plants will begin their new lifecycle.  Blooming, growing, thriving, the plants proliferate. You’ll fall in love again. And in due time, when the fade of age begins, you’ll be ready again to divide and refresh.

Bright spots of color help lift the drabness of the winter garden

• Martha Proctor

• WINTER OFFERS a breathing space for the garden and gardener, but when for days on end the sun never shines, some bright spots of color do wonders to lift the drabness of the winter garden. Now is a good time to see where your garden is lacking in winter interest and to add some
  year-round stars to perk things up.

  Winter-blooming flowers carry forward the beauty and complexion of the garden as fall fades into winter. Fortunately, there are numerous varieties.

  It's important to select plants that will perform well in the microclimates within your garden. Not all plants can weather the cold and heavy rains typical of our Mediterranean climate. Even though there are many plants that bloom in the winter, many of them are not suitable for Sunset hardiness zones 15, 16 and 17 in which Marin County sits. Fortunately, there is an enticing selection of colorful, winter-blooming bulbs that complement the blossoms and berries of a variety of outstanding vines,
  shrubs and trees. Here are some worthy additions to your winter garden:

  • Helleborus: From mid- to late winter, hellebores produce beautiful bell-shaped flowers in a wide variety of colors, including white, green, pink, red, purple and mahogany. These plants are also appreciated for their attractive foliage and because they are deer resistant. Plant in partial or full shade in good, well-drained soil amended with plenty of organic matter. Helleborus niger, also known as Christmas Rose, and Helleborus orientalis (Lenten Rose), both popular cultivars of this plant, thrive in many Marin gardens.

  • Rhododendron: Several varieties of rhododendron add color to the winter garden from Christmas until late February. Rhododendron 'Christmas Cheer' (tight trusses of pink to white flowers) and rhododendron 'Rosamundi' (pink) are two excellent large leafed cultivars. Two Belgian Indica hybrid azaleas, 'Albert and Elizabeth' (white with pink edges)
  and 'Paul Schame' (salmon), both profuse bloomers with lush foliage and large semi-double or double blossoms, do well where temperatures don't fall below 20 degrees. For best results, plant in well-drained soil in an area with morning sun and afternoon shade.

  • Camellia: Camellias provide beautiful, showy blossoms as early as October and as late as May. The most well-known camellia, camellia japonica, is a favorite of many California gardeners. Among the many named winter-blooming varieties of this popular cultivar are 'Daikagura,' 'Debutante,' and 'Elegans,' all of which produce blossoms in various shades of pink. 'Silver Waves' and 'Alba Plena' bear double white flowers; 'Tom Knudson'
  and 'Tomorrow,' large red flowers, and 'Wildfire,' semi-double orange red
  flowers. Camellia oleifera, the hardiest of all camellia species, produces
  small, fragrant white or cream flowers in autumn and early winter. Camellias
  grow better and bear more attractive flowers if grown in well-drained, amended, slightly acidic soil in partial shade. For the best results, protect blossoms from wind and rain.

  •Cyclamen: Cyclamen persicum, known commonly as poor man's orchid, bears showy lavender, pink, purple, red, salmon or white flowers from fall into spring. The flowers, suitable as cut flowers, are carried above a clump of attractive, heart-shaped, basal leaves, many with silver mottling. Cyclamen prefer partial shade or partial sun and a fairly rich, porous soil, which has been amended with lots of organic matter. Protect plants from snails and slugs.

  • Clivia: Clivia miniata produces brilliant large clusters of funnel-shaped orange flowers from early winter to late spring. Flowers appear on stalks, which rise above dense clumps of dark green, strap-shaped leaves. These beautiful plants do best when planted in groups in shaded areas of the garden. As clivias are damaged by freezing temperatures and survive only to 25 degrees, plant them in a well-protected, shaded area of the garden.

  • Rhaphiolepsis: Rhaphiolepsis indica, Indian hawthorn, is a profuse bloomer that bears fragrant, showy white to nearly red flowers from late fall to mid-winter. Plant in full sun.

  • Clematis: Two evergreen clematis, Clematis cirrhosa 'Wisley Cream' and clematis 'Freckles' reliably bring forth cream-colored, small, bell-shaped flowers all winter into spring. Clematis cirrhosa 'Wisley Cream' was selected in 2002 to receive the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Merit, which is given to recognize outstanding garden plants. Clematis require excellent drainage and a sunny, sheltered position that is protected from the wind.

  • Ribes: A California native, ribes speciosum (fuchsia flowering gooseberry) is treasured, despite its thorny stems, for its deep crimson to cherry red flowers, which last from winter into spring. Ribes sanguineum (pink winter currant), also native to California, produces drooping 2- to 4-inch clusters of 10 to 30 small, deep pink to red flowers. Plant in well-drained soil in full sun or partial shade.

  Other noteworthy plants that can add sparkle to a winter garden include:

  • Bulbs: Galanthus nivalis and galanthus elwesii (snowdrops), chionodoxa lucillae (glory of the snow); vines: jasminum mesnyi (primrose jasmine), jasminum nudiflorum (winter jasmine)

  • Perennials: primula malacoides (fairy primrose), chaenomeles (flowering quince) and himealis (winter pansies)

  • Trees/shrubs: garry elliptica (silk tassel bush), tagetes lemmonii (Copper Canyon daisy) and callistemon (bottlebrush)

  With all these wonderful winter blooming specimens to choose from, it shouldn't be quite as hard to wait for the first daffodils and crocus to emerge in early spring.

Brighten up with white

• Dot Zanotti Ingels

• My garden is a riot of color that steals the daytime show. But I have noticed that I like to sit outside at dusk and in the evening and all that color becomes lost in the darkness.

  Your garden does not need to close down at sunset. Enter white. When the bright colors fade into the night, the whites step up. They can appear luminescent as they reflect the moonlight and light from streetlights, house windows, garden twinkle lights, torches or candles.

  Even during the day, white in the garden livens and brightens shady areas. The concept of a totally white garden has its supporters. The white garden can feel refreshing and pleasantly formal. Nature does not provide us with a monoculture of color but, against a leafy green or shadowed background, a single color can stand out dramatically especially if the hue is white.

  Notice next time you eat outdoors in a restaurant patio at night. Those that are well planned for day long use will have white or silver-gray incorporated into the plantings to bring life to the patio at night.

  A bonus to introducing white into your garden is that many white night-bloomers are heavily scented after dark. It is nature’s way of attracting pollinating moths but it is a total winner for us as well. Some are more subtle and require a close-up sniff. And there are some like night-blooming jasmine that can fill your garden with the kind of aromatherapy that will encourage you to linger with a glass of wine.

  If your garden is large and seems like a big black hole at night, planting some white in the depths can go a long way in making it more welcoming. That would mean incorporating some white shrubs like hydrangeas and roses or climbing vines like the jasmine. Providing some garden lighting to highlight the white plantings is even better.

  For any size garden it is important to plant white around where we will be seeing it as we sit in our conversation or dining areas. This visually makes the space feel bigger as you become a part of the night garden. If you have garden paths, lining them with the whites or silver-gray helps light the way. If your garden is a deck or patio this works for you as well.

  All of this white gardening can be done in-ground or supplemented with pots. The pots provide you with versatility and let you bring the glow and scent even closer to you. They also let you easily change them seasonally which becomes more important in the smaller spaces.

  So what to plant? A white garden must include green foliage. Vibrant, dark green foliage is a distinctive contrast but the dark green may be lost in the night light. Paler green foliage may provide increased night glow. Silver-leafed plants, especially those with fuzzy foliage, also seem to glow.

  Definitely check out the Nicotiana alata. It does well in Marin and provides height and fragrance along with its evening glow. It reseeds readily and pops up here and there for a fun surprise. If you do not want it where it sets root, it is easily pulled up. Many traditionally favorite flowers may also come in white like petunias and echinacea. White daisies are virtually no-fail. Ground cover roses fill in up front. Remember variegated like my favorite hostas. Lamb’s ears, lamium and artemisia are great silver-grey choices.

Bringing Back the Victory Gardens

• Marie Narlock

• VOLUNTEERS NEEDED ----

  Victory Gardens 2008+ is an organization that designs, builds, and maintains edible landscapes at a variety of sites through San Francisco, including the Slow Food Nation Victory Garden at SF’s Civic Center. Volunteers—experienced and novices alike—are needed throughout the year. Email your contact information and availability to info@slowfoodnation.org with “Victory Garden” in the subject line.

  It wasn’t so long ago that gardening was patriotic.

  The victory gardens grown throughout the United States, Canada, and Britain during World Wars I and II lessened the strain on public food supplies and provided a way for civilians to make a tangible contribution.

  In addition to buying war bonds and conserving raw materials, and with encouragement and guidance provided by the U.S. government, Americans planted and tended over 20 million war gardens during WW II, ultimately accounting for forty percent of all vegetables consumed in our country. This reduced the need for food rationing and enabled commercial agricultural producers and distributors—whose labor pool declined as workers went off to war—to focus on feeding the Allies abroad.

  It also enabled individuals to make a meaningful difference to their country and to their countrymen, many of whom had sent family members off to fight abroad. Unlike our current administration’s post-9/11 message of “get shopping,” the government’s post-crisis credo sixty years ago was “get growing.”

  Just twelve days after Pearl Harbor, a U.S. National Defense Gardening Conference was held and the Secretary of Agriculture set a goal of 10 million urban gardens and 5 million farm gardens for 1942. That goal was reached and even more gardens were grown the next year.

  The National War Garden Commission was created to educate and motivate Americans to leave no empty plot unturned and unplanted. Uncultivated plots were derisively called “slacker land.” Corporate America echoed the call, as did private foundations, schools, and seed companies. “Sow the Seeds of Victory,” one of Uncle Sam’s posters blared. “Our Food is Fighting” declared another. A more comical placard urged Americans to “can vegetables, fruit, and the Kaiser too.”

  Spurred by these messages, families replaced lawns with Buttercrunch lettuce, De Cicco broccoli, and Blue Lake beans. They tucked Sugar Daddy peas in their ornamental beds, Butternut squash in vacant lots, and Sugar Baby watermelons in decrepit baseball fields. A few trail blazers worked side-by-side at community gardens—the first of their kind. In 1943, Eleanor Roosevelt tore up the White House lawn and served as inspiration and example.

  These gardens were grown before the age of synthetic fertilizers and weed whackers, let alone chemical weed killers. Bagged compost and drip irrigation systems were nonexistent. Instead, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, brothers and sisters grabbed their shovels, their picks, their wheelbarrows and – quite literally – dug in.

  San Francisco Victory Gardens, past and present

  Our forefathers left more than their hearts in San Francisco. Thanks to temperate climate and get-involved leanings, San Franciscans grew some of the best and biggest victory gardens in the country, with hundreds of side-by-side plots lining Golden Gate Park and many more dotting the hilly neighborhood terrain. The City doled out free water, seeds, and access to tools, and residents took to the cause like their military counterparts in battle.

  Never the City to shy away from a good party, San Franciscans danced in the streets at Victory Garden Fairs—and crowned a Victory Garden queen. Most every public park in San Francisco included a food garden, and City Hall was transformed into a landscape filled with lettuces, herbs, and a multitude of delicious vegetables.

  Which is just what’s growing there today!

  Today we have another excuse to dance in the street: volunteers from Victory Gardens 2008+ have transformed City Hall once again. Gone are the water-gulping grass and boring green shrubs. Today’s landscape is teaming with colorful, healthy food that will feed residents from all walks of life through local food banks and meals programs. Funding comes from a variety of organizations such as Slow Food Nation, and guidance and passion comes from leaders like Alice Waters, SF artist Amy Franceschini, and Mayor Gavin Newsom himself.

  Although there certainly aren’t any shortages of wars out there right now—and food rationing is fortunately a thing of the past—this revival comes with a broadened definition of “victory” to mean “growing food at home for increased local food security and to reduce the food miles associated with the average American meal, not to mention (as) a way of saving money during a time of economic instability.”

  In light of the fact that today’s food typically travels 1,500 miles from field to table, it’s not difficult to imagine the benefits (including taste!) that locally-grown food provides. It also reminds us how history shows that planting a garden can be a satisfying, peaceful act of patriotism.

  Ecologically sound, socially just, economically helpful, historically symbolic: victory gardens make an impact during wartime—and anytime.

Bug-eating bats help control garden pests

• Nanette Londeree

• Being bugged by pesky mosquitos or moths? Want some help reducing their numbers? Encourage bats to hang around.

  Often having the undeserved reputation of nighttime villain, these furry, winged mammals are beneficial to the environment — consuming huge numbers of night-flying insects, pollinating plants and dispersing seeds. As long as they’re not roosting under your roof, it’s a good thing to have them flitting about your garden while you sleep.

  While not likely to win awards for cuteness, these shy, gentle and intelligent little creatures belong to the family Chiroptera, meaning “hand-wing.” The flexible wing structure is much like a human arm and hand, except it has a thin membrane of skin extending between the “hand” and the body, and between each finger bone. The “thumb” extends out of the wing as a small claw, which bats use to climb up trees and other structures. They can see just fine, though their dominant navigational method, like dolphins, is echolocation, sending out beeps and analyzing the echoes that come bouncing back. With this finely honed ability, they can detect obstacles as fine as a human hair in total darkness.

  NUMEROUS SPECIES

  This diverse group of mammals has more than 1,200 species with the pallid bat, the big brown bat, the Mexican free-tailed bat and other Myotis species being the most common in our area. More than two-thirds of bat species consume, with extraordinary appetites, nocturnal insects like moths, gnats, beetles and crickets. A single little brown bat can eat up to a thousand mosquito-sized insects in a single hour while a nursing mother will devour the equivalent of her body weight each night. Bats will fly from half a mile to sixmiles from their roost to a feeding site, using temporary roost sites there until returning to their main roost.

  Most of the remaining species feed on the fruit or nectar of plants, playing vital roles as plant pollinators and seed dispersers. And vampire bats? There are three species, all living in Latin America that feed on the blood of cattle, horses and wild mammals. They don’t suck blood Dracula-style; after finding a thin-skinned spot on the animal, they make a small incision and lap it up like kittens do milk.

  LONG LIFE

  Bats have a relatively long life, five to 30 years depending on the species; they’re about the slowest mammals to reproduce for their size, and usually produce only a single pup. At birth, the baby bat will weigh in at about a quarter of the mother’s weight, and will be cared for in maternity colonies where females congregate to bear and raise their young.

  Insect-eating bats roost in tree foliage and cavities, under loose bark and in caves and crevices. As their natural habitats continue to disappear, more species are taking up residence in buildings and homes. Mounting a bat house on your property is one way to provide a safe place for them to live while protecting your garden from night-flying insects.

  ROOF PROBLEMS

  Bats living under your roof can cause problems with accumulation of fecal droppings (guano) and urine that accumulates and stains ceilings and walls. Not only are these waste products undesirable, they can attract other insects and have a strong, unpleasant odor. They have the potential for transmitting disease, particularly rabies, so be sure to vaccinate your dogs and cats against rabies.

  Generally, sick bats will be on the ground, so don’t pick one up or handle it. For assistance, you can contact WildCare in San Rafael; its Wildlife Hotline, 415-456-SAVE (7283), offers guidance on what to do if you find injured or orphaned wild animals in your home or garden.

  Some summer evening, find a spot in the garden right after sunset, and for the next hour, watch for these shy little critters swooping about in search of a meal. With a little information and understanding, you can protect a piece of their habitat right in your own back yard, and reap the benefits.

Build and protect your soil

• Nanette Londeree

• Got dirt? Want healthy soil instead?  While some may use the terms dirt and soil interchangeably, they are NOT the same thing. Simply put, dirt is dead, while soil is vibrantly alive. Dirt is a lifeless mixture of minerals, air, and water. In addition to these basic components, soil includes animals and other living things, along with their waste or decaying bodies. Whether you grow tomatoes or cabbage, strawberries or peaches, roses or houseplants, your soil is a main ingredient for healthy, productive plants. The good news is that with knowledge, a little effort, and some good organic materials, you can transform dirt into healthy soil!   

  

  Earthworms shred plant residue, mix soil, provide channels for roots and are an indicator of healthy soil. Credit: Sippakorn Yamkasikorn, Pexels

  Perfect soil smells sweet, is loose, friable, and well-drained. It has plenty of nutrients and a pH between 6.5 and 7.5. The crumbly, dark material supports a diverse and complex soil ecosystem, teaming with large numbers and types of organisms. And it’s the life in the soil that powers plant growth. Commonly referred to as the soil food web, the biologically active part of soil includes  microscopic bacteria, algae, fungi, and protozoa; more complex life forms like nematodes and micro-arthropods, and visible creatures - earthworms, insects, and small vertebrates. One cup of soil may hold as many bacteria as there are people on Earth! 

  The primary producers for the soil food web are the photosynthesizers – plants, algae and bacteria. They manufacture carbohydrates from sunlight, carbon dioxide and water while adding organic matter to the soil. Next come the decomposers, root-feeders, and parasites that break down organic matter. They hold nutrients in their body, and when they die, they become slow release fertilizer for plants. Shredders, predators, and grazers like nematodes, millipedes, and earthworms, are the next level, breaking down residue and enhancing soil structure. Higher level predators – larger arthropods, mice, voles, birds, and other above ground animals, keep lower level populations in check, and improve soil structure by burrowing and passing soil through their gut. Damage to any level of the soil food web can throw off its delicate balance and negatively impact the entire soil ecosystem.  

  

  Plant diversity provides for a more diverse population of soil microorganisms. Credit: Jill Fugaro

  The simplest thing you can do to build your soil structure and maintain a healthy soil food web is to add organics - compost, vermicompost, organic mulches, or composted animal manure will increase soil organic matter levels. Follow Mother Nature’s easy method - put an inch-thick top-dressing of organic material on your planting beds and don’t mix it in. Let earthworms and other creatures do the work.

  With every addition of organic matter you’re building up a reservoir of slowly released nutrients that increase your garden’s productivity over time. Once you’ve got healthy soil, you can maintain it with five easy steps: disturb the soil as little as possible, grow a wide variety of plant types, keep the soil covered, continue to add organic matter, and minimize the use of synthetic chemicals. Here’s how: 

  Minimize disturbance: Limit tilling and turning the soil where possible; it can create a hostile environment for creatures in the soil. 

  Maintain plant diversity: Many of the substances soil organisms feed on are produced by plants. The greater the variety of plants, the more diverse the population of soil microorganisms will be. 

  Keep it covered: Use plants, their residue or mulch to cover soil to help conserve moisture,  moderate temperatures, suppress weed growth, and provide habitat for soil critters that spend some of their time above ground.

  

  Protect soil by keeping it covered with plants and mulch. Credit: Arnaldo Aldana, Unsplash

  Add organic matter: Any plant or animal material that goes through the decomposition process  provides nutrients and habitat to soil microbes, binds soil particles into aggregates and improves the water holding capacity of soil. 

  Kick the chemicals: Synthetic fertilizers and pesticides used to enhance plant growth may be toxic to microorganisms in the soil. Adding organic compost rather than synthetic fertilizer and utilizing an integrated pest management approach can help reduce the use of chemicals. 

California natives add color during drought

• Juliana Jensen

• Drought, drought, drought, worry, worry, worry — what’s a gardener to do?

  Don’t fight Mother Nature: summers in California are dry. It’s a fact. Learn to embrace what grows naturally — California natives.

  Marin Master Gardener Bob Mauceli moved here from the East Coast only three years ago, but has already learned to incorporate natives in his Novato garden. He described his property as “a five-story sloping brick” — quite a challenge. But I’m sure many can identify with his appraisal of his steep hillside of hard-packed clay soil.

  Mauceli is a birder and lover of wildlife, so he wanted to create a habitat that would encourage birds, butterflies, and bees to call home He searched for plants that produce seeds and berries that attract birds and bees. He also recognized he had limited liquid resources and a challenging gardening site.

  Thoughtful research has led Bob to plant a curated collection of California natives. Careful observation has helped him determine that smaller plants establish themselves faster than larger transplants. He also knows that drought-tolerant does not mean “no water needed”.

  For the first two years, transplants require regular irrigation. Once established, supplemental water can be removed. Even the usual planting instructions to add organic matter can be ignored when planting natives — they actually prefer the soil that’s already sitting there. And please, no fertilizer.

  Native plants have co-evolved and have a symbiotic relationship with our native birds and other beneficials. Urban sprawl has eliminated many of the naturalized areas where our feathered and winged friends live and propagate. Planting native serves many purposes:

  • Reduces the need for summer irrigation

  • Eliminates the need for costly fertilizers that often run off and pollute our water supply

  • Attracts the birds, bees and butterflies necessary for pollination

  Spring is the best time for planning: determine your needs and identify plants that will thrive in both sun and shade. Learn which natives are successful under vintage oaks and other large trees. Plan for planting in the fall, just before our (hopefully) rainy season.

  Although Mauceli’s native garden is only in its third year, he is delighted to see the wide variety of bees that have already discovered the ceanothus (also known as the California lilac) he has planted. If you haven’t discovered this variety of colorful, fragrant shrubs, now is prime bloom time. Plan a trip to a native nursery or one of our local botanical gardens to explore this world of delightful garden plants that ask so little of you and provide so much interest in the landscape.

  You don’t need to think of California native plants for your entire garden, just plan where they will work best. Save your limited water supply for the vegetable garden or a prized floral collection.

  For inspiration, visit the Marin Master Gardeners’ demonstration gardens at Falkirk Cultural Center in San Rafael. In the Mediterranean Climate Garden you will find many California natives. For a full list of the plants in this garden, go to marinmg.org and click on the link to “Garden Projects” on the home page. Then click on the link to “Demonstration Gardens” and then “Falkirk Cultural Center.”

  The Marin Chapter of the California Native Plant Society is a great resource for information and plants. You might want to check out its spring plant sale April 11, at the Richardson Bay Audubon Center & Sanctuary in Tiburon. For more information about the sale and about gardening with natives, go to cnpsmarin.org.

  Finally, join Mauceli as he celebrates Native Plant Week with his lecture on “Gardening with California Natives” sponsored by the Marin Master Gardeners on April 18 at the Tamalpais Valley Community Center in Mill Valley. Mauceli will walk you through the process of identifying the best natives for your landscape, planning for a successful garden transformation, and exploring the vast variety of colorful, fragrant natives that could claim your garden as their new home.

   

Camellia, azalea and rhododendron flower blights

• Martha Proctor

• 

  C. Sasanqua with petal blight. Photo credit: UC MMG Instagram

  For several years I have been dealing with a common problem that specifically affects camellias called camellia flower blight and caused by the fungus Ciborinia camelliae.  In the spring when the flowers appear, small, brown irregularly-shaped blotches develop on the petals.  These blotches grow larger and eventually the flower turns brown and dies.  Infected petals develop prominent dark brown veins which gives them a netted appearance.  Affected flowers often fall off the plant prematurely, often as intact flowers.   The disease only affects the flower so occurs solely while the plant is in flower. 

  Camellias infected with Ciborinia camelliae develop dark, hard, irregularly-shaped black nesting structures called sclerotia within the base of the decaying petals. These survive after the flower dies and remain dormant in the soil during the winter.  The sclerotia germinate as the plant comes into flower the following year.  They produce small, brown cup-shaped reproductive structures called apothecia which sometimes can be found on the soil surface below an affected plant.  These apothecia release huge numbers of spores, some of which are carried upwards in air currents to the flowers of the plant.  Spores have been known to lie dormant in the soil for several years and travel on the wind up to 12 miles.  To infect the flower, the petals need to be wet, so infections are more common in mild (59^oto 70^oF), wet weather.  

  Azaleas and rhododendrons are another plant species that are highly susceptible to another fungal flower blight called Ovulinia petal blight.  Ovulina azaleae infects flowers of both native and introduced azaleas and rhododendron as well as mountain laurel, especially where there are heavy morning fogs. The fungi cause disease which results in the premature death of blossoms. Drooping, wet flower petals remain attached or tumble onto nearby leaves.  

  The Ovulinia fungi infect wet blossoms when temperatures are mild, 50^o to 70^oF.  Similar to the camellia petal blight, this fungus infects only the petals of blossoms, causing white to brownish spots that can enlarge rapidly.  This fungus produces sclerotia, that are black, flattened, irregularly-shaped and approximately one-eighth inch to two-fifths inch long.  As with camellias, the resultant apothecia forcibly discharge large numbers of spores that are carried by the wind onto emerging blooms where they germinate. The spores are also spread by insects, especially bumble bees.  This makes it possible for the fungus to spread between many blossoms within several days of an initial infection. 

  Using sanitary practices in the garden is the best way to control this disease.  Remove and dispose of fallen, old, and infected flowers.  Do not add camellia, azalea or rhododendron petals or leaves to composting piles or mulch as it’s almost impossible to heat the compost pile to 140^oF, the temperature required to kill the petal blight fungi.  Remove the top layer of potting soil when new azalea, camellia or rhododendron are purchased and replace it with pathogen-free soil.  Plant in a well-ventilated location.  Avoid overhead irrigation. Use drip or micro-sprinkler irrigation instead.

  If cultural methods fail to provide adequate control, consider applying an appropriate fungicide such as chlorothalonil, thiphanate methyl, or triforine one month prior to bud break or before any rainy weather to help reduce the chance of infection.  Reapplication may be warranted every 10-14 days while foggy or rainy conditions continue.  If petal blight is persistent, gradually replace susceptible plants with resistant plants. Best results ensue when good sanitation and cultural practices are followed.

  The best prevention for any fungi or pest infestation is a healthy plant.  For the best performance, plant  camellia, azalea or rhododendron plants properly to maintain good health.  Space plants well and prune them to provide good air circulation.

  Each year after blossoms are spent, apply a fresh layer of uncontaminated organic mulch between host plants.  Maintain a four-inch mulch layer to help suppress Ovulinia and Ciboroinia camelliae petal blights in the soil.  Keep mulch several inches away from the trunks of the plants.

Can California feed the U.S. with less water?

• Marie Narlock

• If you think taking shorter showers and letting your lawn turn brown is challenging, try farming during the drought.

  Many of California’s farmers are watching their crops — and their livelihoods — wither and die. Harvests are significantly smaller, which means higher prices at grocery stores and restaurants, and 17,000 fewer farm jobs last year alone. One out of 10 acres has been left unplanted, resulting in a $2.2 billion hit to the economy. Fresno County, which has historically sold more produce than any county (and 23 states) in the nation, could lose up to a quarter of its orchards and fields this year.

  Our precious groundwater has become harder and more expensive to tap, and the scars on the earth are pronounced: in some areas the water table has dropped 500 feet from all the wells being drilled, and the ground has dropped more than a foot as a result. Determining who gets federal water and who doesn’t in the Central Valley is mired in politics and history and environmentalism. But the overriding and indisputable problem is a persistent lack of rain.

  Unfortunately, the forecast doesn’t look good either. A recent study indicates that the worst droughts in California have been when conditions were both dry and warm, and global warming is increasing the odds that dry and warm years coincide. Best guess? The future looks hot — and dry.

  California produces half the fruits and vegetables eaten in the U.S., and uses 80 percent of our water to grow it. But can we keep pumping out produce at this pace? If drought is the new normal, what can farmers do to maintain their plots using less water?

  It turns out some farmers are finding success using strategies already employed by experienced backyard gardeners and organic farmers. While some of these methods may seem impractical for farms that stretch out thousands of acres, circumstances may eventually force changes. In other words, conventional farmers may find that instituting sustainability measures becomes a survival strategy, not just a marketing decision. Here’s what we all can do — including farmers — to ease the effects of the drought and maintain our prominent position as America’s food stand.

  • Switch from overhead to drip irrigation. Spraying water instead of dripping it is a recipe for waste and weeds. Drip irrigation is more expensive to install upfront, but it can result in greater crop yields. Most important, it is hugely more water efficient.

  • Compost and mulch. Compost improves soil structure and increases water retention. Mulch suppresses weeds and further helps retain water. Together, they form an agricultural dynamic duo that has been relied upon by organic farmers for thousands of years.

  • Plant the right plant in the right place. This is a tough subject when it comes to agriculture. Why? Because some of the crops currently grown aren’t really suitable for California. Crops like cotton, almonds, corn and rice take gargantuan quantities of water to grow, and yet we persist in growing them. Perhaps in the future they will be more the exception than the rule. Similarly, our appetite for lawns will — hopefully — diminish, as more people come to understand how inappropriate they are in California’s Mediterranean climate.

  • Use cover crops. Grains and legumes grown in the off-season retain water and soil fertility, suppress weeds and invite good insects. No, it isn’t as easy as buying synthetic fertilizer by the barrel, but the payoff is greater yields with less water.

  • Hold water onsite. Just as backyard gardeners are catching on to grey water and rainwater catchment systems, farmers can rely on ponds and tanks for water storage. Of course, rain has to fall to be caught, but finding ways to store every last drop on site can actually add an attractive element while leaving the groundwater untouched and, optimally, recharged.

   

Caring for gift plants at holidays

• Jane Scurich

• It's the season for holiday plants, and oftentimes the first ones that come to mind are poinsettias, cyclamen and Christmas cactus.

  While these plants remain widely available and often are given as gifts, a look around our local florists and garden centers can create visions of succulents, tillandsias, orchids and hellabores dancing in your head.

  Tillandsias are the current darlings of the floral design world. Also known as "air plants," there are more than 500 varieties, all within the bromeliad family. They are available in an astounding array of shapes, sizes and colors. Currently, they are quite popular in glass globes and terrariums; some tiny ones are ready for tree hanging.

  I have read numerous care instructions for tillandsias and this is what works for me: once a week I fill a basin with water and allow it to come to room temperature. I submerge each plant for an hour and then place it in a colander to drain before returning it to arrangements in my home. While there are many recommendations for misting each week, I find that challenging for nearby furniture.

  Recently, I attended a centerpiece design class taught by Jennie Strobel, container specialist for Sloat Garden Center. To incorporate tillandsias in containers, she recommended placing a few bits of gravel on the soil and anchoring the air plant on top. This prevents the plant from being in constant contact with moisture tillandsias do not tolerate.

  Succulents are appearing everywhere, from bridal centerpieces to showcase gardens, and are available in a staggering range of shapes and sizes. They also can be used in wreaths and floral arrangements. The plants, however, do not like sitting in moisture. Enjoy them in your gift arrangement, then plant them in fast-draining soil (cactus mix comes in bags at garden centers) in regular sunlight. If you're an apartment dweller with no sunny window, don't be shy about re-gifting your succulents to a friend with sunny outdoor space.

  Hellebores also can land on many holiday gift lists. Commonly referred to as Christmas roses (Helleborus niger or black hellebore), these easy-to-care-for plants are becoming increasingly popular, and for good reason. Their leathery evergreen leaves and lovely flowers make attractive houseplants and can be transitioned into the outside for a lifetime. They thrive in partial to full shade, with good air circulation and well-drained soil amended with compost or organic matter.

  Orchids, especially the Phalaenopsis or moth orchid, are gift plants with amazing longevity and are available in multiple colors and bloom sizes. Finding the perfect location in your home, removed from heat vents and direct sunlight, is critical to extending the bloom period.

  After the blooms have ceased, Bruce Rogers, "The Orchid Whisperer," recommends, "Cut back three growth nodes from the end of the bloom stalk." Do not cut the bloom stalk to the base of the plant as this will require a much longer growth period before it re-blooms. Continue to water "weakly weekly": once a week, water with half-strength orchid fertilizer, allowing the water to flow through the pot. Do not leave the plant sitting in a puddle.

  Traditional holiday plants such as poinsettias, cyclamen and Christmas cactus may be coming your way this holiday season. When they arrive, it's worth remembering that wet roots are taboo so get rid of that shiny foil. It inhibits drainage. They also do not tolerate drafts from a fireplace or furnace vents.

  Both the poinsettia and the Christmas cactus should be watered when the surface is dry to the touch. Cyclamen prefer to be kept moist and can wilt quickly. Water at the soil level, but keep moisture away from the area on the tuber where the leaf and flower stems grow because this may cause the plant to rot.

  Paper white narcissus are my personal favorite to fill my home with fragrance and bloom. These bulbs are easy to be forced in soil, gravel or sand. Enjoy them while they are in bloom, then compost them.

  Amaryllis are also easy to grow, traditional flowering gift plants. After enjoying their long bloom period, they can easily becoming a part of your landscape. While it is possible to encourage them to re-bloom at holiday time, it is much easier to allow them to acclimate to your garden and bloom on their own timetable. A step by step plan for encouraging amaryllis to bloom again next holiday season can be found online at www.usna.usda.gov/Gardens/faqs/AmaryllisBloom.html.

  Here's wishing you a happy holiday season filled with bulbs, corms, annuals, perennials and a wide array of flowering plants.

   

Caring for roses in drier times

• Nanette Londeree

• Drought — we're in the midst of one that may influence the way we garden in the future. While recent drenching rains have eased the imminent threat, the potential for significant restrictions in future water use remains. What will that mean for your roses? Aren't they water hogs that need lots of water to survive?

  Not necessarily.

  The amount of water a rose plant needs depends on a number of variables, including the age, size and location of the plant, the nature of the soil it is growing in and the air temperature, humidity and wind conditions. While roses perform best with ample water, they can make it on much less; the plant may not grow or produce many flowers during the hot summer months, but they will survive.

  Often watered frequently for short amounts of time, garden roses develop shallow roots and subsequently have a tougher time when there is reduced water availability. But it's not how they start out. Most modern roses are grown in production fields located in hot areas such as Bakersfield and Phoenix. They are deeply watered only once a week (furrow irrigation for about half a day), no matter if the temperatures are triple-digits range for weeks. And they do just fine.

  To maximize your water use and keep your roses healthy, consider these tips:

  • Smaller may be better: After the big spring bloom, trim plants back to reduce their overall size. The more foliage on the plant, the more water it will require to remain healthy. You may lose some bloom, but come fall with its cooler temperatures, you should get a good crop of flowers.
  • Go light on fertilizer: Many rose growers apply high nitrogen chemical fertilizer monthly spring through early fall; this stimulates growth requiring the plant to use more water. And the resulting succulent new foliage is attracts aphids. If you fertilize, try a less soluble form of nitrogen and apply it in small portions throughout the season. Organic materials, such as manure, fish emulsion or blood meal, or slow-release fertilizers fill the bill. Or think about reducing) the aphid cycle this season and don't add any supplemental fertilizer.
  • Timing can make a difference: Water during the early morning hours when temperatures and wind speed are the lowest, and stretch the time interval between irrigations where possible. Roses do best when 50 percent of available water is depleted between irrigations.
  • Check your tools: No matter what system you use to water your roses, make sure they're in good working order.
  • Technique makes a difference: To encourage your roses to develop deep roots, water your plants slowly and deeply; apply water only as rapidly as the soil can absorb the water. Divide your watering cycle into shorter periods to reduce runoff.
  • Mulch, mulch, mulch: By adding a layer of mulch to the soil in the spring, you can moderate soil temperature, reduce water consumption and reduce weeds. The amount of mulch you add depends on the texture and density of the material you're using. A good rule of thumb is to add two to four inches of mulch.
  • Watch out for weeds: Weeds will compete with your roses for precious water.
  • Protect against pests: Spider mites thrive in dry and dusty conditions. During the hot days of summer, the insects can defoliate a rose plant in short order. Forceful spraying of leaves, especially the undersides, is a good method for keeping their populations at a tolerable level.

   

Carnivores in the Conservatory

• Jane Scurich

• Summer’s here—what are your plans? How about somewhere exotic? Borneo? Madagascar? Have you checked out airfares recently? Ouch!!!

  For a quick and extremely affordable journey to the tropics, how about a short drive across the Golden Gate Bridge to the Conservatory of Flowers in Golden Gate Park? The Conservatory offers an opportunity to experience plants indigenous to equatorial regions between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn.

  The orchid and bromeliad collections are breath-takingly beautiful, exotic and allow our minds to travel miles way from home. As my son, Scott, always says when he enters, “Aah, it smells like Hawaii.” Primeval cycads and ancient philodendrons welcome you to the lowland tropics.

  So, how do you entice the small fry to be excited about visiting a “living museum?” How about an exploration of the carnivorous plants? Don’t get too close, or . . . .

  The Asian pitcher plant, or Nepenthes, grows in both the highland and lowland tropics—terminology which relates to the relative temperature of the area based largely on altitude —think of the lowlands as ground level at the equator and the highlands as the cloud forests at about the five to ten thousand foot elevation. These vining carnivores thrive in areas with extremely poor soil, lacking in vital nutrients. Some have even been found growing in pure silica sand where vegetation has been destroyed by fire and the soil has washed away. In order to survive, the plants have been on a long evolutionary journey; developing pitchers to collect insects, and digestive enzymes to dissolve their catch and assimilate the nutrients.

  The pitcher plants attract their prey with color, shape and nectar. The peristome, or rim of the pitcher, produces the highest concentration of nectar. The unsuspecting visitor is attracted to the sweet nectar and reaches for a treat—his last! The slippery, waxy rim offers a one way ticket to an inescapable pool of digestive enzyme—enzymes to digest its capture and nourish the plant.

  While most pitcher plants attract small insects such as midges, flies and ants, the larger pitchers have been known to ensnare mice, rats, and even small monkeys. But capturing larger prey takes a toll on the digestive process of the Nepenthe, and often shortens its life span. Not unlike a steady diet of prime rib for our digestive systems!

  The pitcher plant is a study in contradictions: the fluid which the pitcher contains acts to digest the flesh of its prey, but has also aided in the survival of explorers, who relied on the water in the pitchers to sustain their lives while on extended explorations. The fluid is also a habitat for a variety of mosquito larvae. Some pitchers have developed symbiotic relationships with frogs, midges and termites—lunching on chosen insects while providing habitat for others!

  If you are eager to experiment with a carnivorous plant at home, let me caution you: the growing requirements of the most exotic ones require an investment in time; learning about their specific needs, and an investment in resources; the plants are often difficult and most always, expensive, to acquire. The growing conditions require diligent temperature and moisture monitoring. For real life advice on growing these exotics, visit “Nepenthes University” http://www.cpjungle.com/nepenthesuniversity.htm, an extensive and engaging exploration of the pitcher plant, written by a young man in my home town of Memphis, TN, who became enamored with carnivorous plants as a high school student in 1975.

  After you visit the Conservatory and experience the rare and impressive collection of thriving Nepenthes, if you are interested in acquiring a specimen, check out http://www.orchidweb.com/nepenthes.aspx and do lots of research before embarking on this project.

  These exotics, native to the tropical regions of the world, have evolved to survive extremes of many conditions, but over-pampering is a known killer. But, there are carnivorous plants, indigenous to the U.S., easily available and fun to grow. The Venus fly trap, native to North and South Carolina, is one of the easiest carnivorous plants to grow and can thrive in your home with modest requirements: high humidity, wet roots, poor acidic soil and lots of sun. These captivating plants are readily available at most local nurseries and on line at http://www.petflytrap.com.

  And did I mention, Nepenthes is Old Greek for "soothing grief"? Tell that to the late unsuspecting fly!

  Did you survive the carnivores? Now celebrate with a visit to the current Special Exhibit, The Butterfly Zone, where more than 25 varieties of free-flying butterflies cavort among the brightly colored blossoms, sipping nectar and distributing pollen. Night Safaris to search for mysterious moths start at 8 p.m. on the first and third Thursdays of the month May 1 to October 2, 2008, and are included with admission. On these evenings, the Conservatory will close at 9:30 p.m. The Conservatory hours are Tuesday – Sunday, 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. For more information, visit www.conservatoryofflowers.org or call 415-666-7001.

Check your garden for pests

• Jane Scurich

• How's your garden these days? If you're a regular reader of this column, you know Master Gardeners recommend monitoring your garden — strolling — observing, seeing what's happening. I try to live by this advice and have to admit I have recently discovered some really disturbing problems!

  Phormiums are among my favorite plants for adding a bit of drama to the landscape and containers. These New Zealand natives are upright, striking, eye-catching, drought tolerant, and until recently I thought they were indestructible. I was dismayed to discover a disgusting layer of thick, white, furry stuff on the base of the sword-like leaves of two container plants.

  That was not the only damage I found. A tall, strong, beautiful dahlia, robustly blooming in a container on my deck, was considerably less attractive thanks to strangely mottled leaves. Worm-like squiggles transformed the dahlia leaves into road maps with ever-changing and overlapping routes.

  But nothing could prepare me for the devastation to my beloved birch tree. For 35 years I have looked out my window to view distant hillsides through the graceful limbs of my beautiful birch. Suddenly a few weeks ago, I was looking at ravaged limbs, stripped of bark — wounds open to the elements.

  I knew I needed help. I suspected mealybugs were the culprit involved with the phormiums but the other two problems were perplexing. For help accurately identifying the pests and preparing a plan of action, I turned to the University of California (UC) "Pest Notes," an online database that supplies UC's official guidelines for pest monitoring (www.ipm.ucdavis.edu).

  Research confirmed the phormium problem to be mealybugs. I have found an occasional mealybug on my indoor orchids and have been successful treating them by dipping a cotton swab in alcohol and gently rubbing the infected area as recommended by the American Orchid Society.

  This phormium pest was a challenge on a much larger scale. High populations of mealybugs can inhibit plant growth, not to mention create an unsightly appearance. I tried the alcohol swab process and the integrated pest management (IPM) recommended strong blast of water and then an insecticidal soap. I'm keeping a close watch on these plants as it will probably take several weeks of treatment to eradicate the pests. Interestingly, only my container grown phormiums have suffered this infestation.

  I identified the dahlia leaf culprit as leafminers. The larvae feed just beneath the surface of the leaf, leaving an obvious trail. The good news is that this damage is mostly cosmetic and usually does not kill the plant. I followed the recommendation to remove the infected leaves and keep the plant well irrigated. My dahlia does appear a bit naked, but it is continuing to bloom and new leaves are emerging from the leave nodes.

  Imagine when I learned that the damage to my birch tree has been done by my some of my favorite entertainers — the tree squirrels who fly through the neighboring cypress and scamper across my fences. I do not have a solution to this problem. The tree specialist who has skillfully pruned my birch for many years was as surprised as I to see this damage. His research was quite similar to what I learned on the IPM website; "the squirrels strip the bark to feed on the cambium layer causing injury to the tree." The cambium is a thin layer of living tissue just under the bark.

  Recommended squirrel control methods include the use of pellet guns or dogs running free. Unfortunately, neither of these remedies is likely to work in my neighborhood. Squirrels are a part of life in Mill Valley.

  So, what is the result of my garden observations? I need to continue observing. Every day is different. Some pest challenges are easily corrected, some are more challenging, and some I just need to learn to live with.

   

Choose Your Mulch Wisely

• Nanette Londeree

•  

  It's often said that you can’t get too much of a good thing. Most gardeners would tell you that is true of mulch, and you’d get an earful about the virtues of the stuff. It is one of the easiest and least expensive things you can do in the garden that provides a plethora of benefits.   By simply adding a layer of mulch to your garden right now, you can moderate soil temperature, reduce water consumption, add nutrients to the soil, reduce erosion, encourage earthworm activity, reduce weeds, improve the garden’s appearance, save time and save money. Dollar for dollar, that’s a pretty good return on your investment!

  But you actually can have too much of a good thing—you can create a problem rather than a solution if you’re not careful about what kind of mulch you add, when you add it and how much you add. So, before you head off to the home improvement center or landscape supply place, think about what you’re trying to accomplish with the mulch, and where you plan to use it.

  Mulch is basically a protective blanket placed over the soil and can be either an organic or inorganic material. Organic mulches decompose over time and include  grass clippings, tree leaves and wood chips. Gravel and black plastic are examples of inorganic mulches that generally don’t break down, thus don’t have to be replaced as frequently. When deciding on what material to use, make sure that it doesn’t deplete valuable minerals as it decomposes, or affect soil pH significantly; that it doesn’t present any inherent risk for poisoning or flammability. Or, that it doesn’t reflect so much light that it produces heat that actually can damage plants. Consider some attributes of a variety of popular organic and inorganic materials:

  Black polyethylene plastic does a great job in preventing weed growth and holding water in the soil, though isn’t recommended if your area is poorly drained. You can get material that has small holes in it that breaks down fast if it’s exposed to sunlight.

  Cocoa bean hulls, the dark brown shells of cocoa beans are attractive, easy to apply, are fairly stable and their appealing chocolate scent disappears quickly. Be careful if you have dogs; the hulls may contain residual theobromine that can be poisonous to them.

  Grass clippings are a quick source of nitrogen though they can form a thick mat that water can’t penetrate. They decompose rapidly building up a great deal of damaging heat, making them a short-lived mulch and potentially harmful to plants. Be careful not to use clippings from lawns that have been treated with herbicides.

  Gravel, pebbles and crushed stone are permanent and will provide good weed control. These materials reflect solar radiation and can result in a very hot environment during the summer.

  Newspaper can effectively keep down weeds; to keep it from blowing away, weight it down by covering with another mulch material. Avoid using paper with color dyes that may be harmful to soil flora.

  Shredded bark from redwood or cedar trees may be available from tree trimming companies. If they’re fresh, they tie up soil nitrogen as they break down, making it unavailable to the plant, so you’ll want to add some compost or well aged manure on the soil before adding the bark.

  Tree leaves are best used shredded or composted; they’re easy to get, attractive as a mulch, and after they decompose, dig them into the soil and add a new layer of mulch on top.

  Wood chips contain bark and pieces of wood of various sizes, make an attractive mulch and provide good weed control. Wood chips may attract termites and other insects. Be sure that they are from healthy trees so that you don’t perpetuate any pest or disease.

  While the best time to add mulch in our climate is mid- to late spring, it is beneficial anytime in the growing season. If added too early in the season, it can result in soggy soil that warms slowly. Before mulching, remove weeds and work the soil lightly to prevent a hard layer from forming on top under the mulch that water and air can’t penetrate. It’s also a good idea to have the soil moist, so the mulch doesn’t rob it of its moisture.

  The amount of mulch you add depends on the texture and density of the material, and the quality of drainage in the soil. A good rule of thumb is to add 1½ to 3 inches of mulch. Much more than this, or “too much of a good thing” and you may restrict air and water movement that can result in “mulch toxicity,” where anaerobic (without air) conditions are created. Symptoms of mulch toxicity include yellowing of the plant leaf margins, scorching or dropping of leaves and occasionally entire plant death. Carefully spread an even layer keeping it a few inches from the stem of the plant or the trunk of a tree. Wet mulch piled against the base of the plant can attract mice and voles to nest or cause them to rot.

  Mulch is a marvelous thing—and no single mulch is perfect for every individual and garden. You may find you want to use different types in different parts of your garden. Just remember, you can have “too much of a good thing”!

Choosing options to invasive plants

• Marie Narlock

• Remember that old flame, the one who eventually drove you mad? You were drawn in by those seductive eyes, but looks were deceiving. What started as an innocent romance morphed into obsessive phone calls and a whole lot more together time than you wanted or needed. You felt smothered. Powerless. It was a fatal attraction.

  That's how it is with invasive plants: they lure us in and then create havoc. We ask ourselves how something so beautiful - or, on the other hand, so ordinary - could become such a nuisance.

  Ever tried to get rid of ivy? How about morning glory? Like vixens, those alluring purple flowers are hard to ignore at the nursery. Pick me, they say. But the love affair ends when those cablelike runners start prying shingles off the exterior of your house. Party's over. Time for a new vine. Only, what's this? You clip and tug and dig, but that vine won't be leaving anytime soon.

  Hint: don't choose Morning Glory's sidekick, pink jasmine (Jasminum polyanthum). Opt instead for the tamer bower vine (Pandorea jasminoides).

  But there's much more to the story than that — especially when viewed on a statewide level. Invasive plants cause serious economic and ecological damage as well as being annoying. They reduce livestock forage, increase the risk of fire and flooding, interrupt recreational activities, lower land value, choke waterways, and jeopardize animal and human health.

  Sadly, they also crowd out the native plants that give each area of California its own unique look and feel. (One need only take a walk on Larkspur's King Mountain, where a more apt name might be Broom Mountain.) This change occurs because the native species can't compete or the environment becomes altered because of the invading plant. Soil fertility and stabilization shifts. The availability of light declines. The birds and the bees don't like the new fare so flutter elsewhere, leaving the bigger critters hungry. The biggest thug in the forest wins.

  But this isn't you, right? You always know what you're planting. You've checked the list of California's noxious plants. You trust that your local nursery would never sell you something like this. You've never had a plant turn on you. Yeah, me neither.

  Thirty-seven percent of the species listed on the California Invasive Plant Council Inventory were accidentally introduced. That means an unsuspecting soul picked up a rogue seed on a shoe or hoof, an immigrant packed seeds in his suitcase, a tractor dug up a buried seed, or packing material from heaven-knows-where contained a little sprout. The rest - 63 percent - were intentionally introduced, mostly through nurseries. See? It's not all your fault.

  So what should a responsible gardener do? Learn which plants to avoid (and

  always rely on botanical - not common - names.). This is easier than it sounds, thanks to excellent resources like the California Invasive Plant Council's "Don't Plant a Pest" website (cal-ipc.org/landscaping/dpp/).

  Here are some common plants to avoid and some good alternatives to consider:

  • Ice plant (Carpobrotus edulis): No, this is not part of the coastal scrub plant community. Plant dewflower or rosea iceplant (Drosanthemum floribundum) instead.
  • Periwinkle (Vinca major): Spreads rapidly and smothers others. If you want a colorful, easy groundcover, consider freeway daisies (Osteospermum fruticosum).
  • Purple Pampasgrass or Jubatagrass (Cortaderia jubata or Cortaderia selloana): Tiny seeds can be carried up to 20 miles. Reduces wildlife habitat and creates a fire hazard. Opt for Lindheimer's Muhly grass (Muhlenbergia lindheimeri), a large, dependable grass with blue-gray foliage. It develops large flower spikes in fall and winter. Good in lousy soil.
  • Broom (any kind - Retama, Genista, Cytisus, Spartium): Brooms have invaded over a million acres in California and created serious fire hazards in residential areas. Flowers produce thousands of seeds and entire plant communities have been wiped out. If it's yellow flowers you're after, opt for Jerusalem sage (Phlomis fruticosa) or Japanese kerria (Kerria japonica) or forsythia (Forsythia x intermedia).
  • Cotoneaster (Cotoneaster lacteus or Cotoneaster pannosus): Often used for median strips and along freeways. Birds have spread the berries into wildland areas. If it's berries you're after, consider Toyon (Heteromeles arbutifolia) or Redberry (Rhamnus crocea) instead.
  • Blue gum eucalyptus (Eucalyptus globulus): Common along the coast. Extremely flammable (remember the East Bay hills fire of 1991?). Choose one of California's striking native trees instead, such as the Catalina Ironwood (Lyonothamnus floribundus asplenifolius).

Citron and Buddha's Hand

• Marybeth Kampman

• It is the time of year that we are all overwhelmed with sweets. One of the most famous yet most maligned players of the season is the fruitcake. I must admit that it is not my favorite. I remember as a child receiving leaden boxes in the mail from distant relatives containing what appeared to be a sticky brick. This was always a disappointment to a child hoping for a gingerbread house, which though equally inedible, was much more pleasing to the eye.

  The most fascinating part about the fruit cake was its smell – spicy, foreign, somewhat musky and intriguing. Unfortunately it always smelled much better than it tasted.

  Fruit cake is made of flour and sugar and fruit—not your fresh farmers market variety of fruit but preserved fruit. Because it is a winter time delicacy it was made with fruit that has been put up or preserved. Most recipes call for candied or crystallized fruit. Candied fruit is made by placing barely ripe fruit in increasingly stronger solutions of a heated sugar syrup. The syrup eventually replaces the water content of the fruit making it incredibly sweet and sticky. Many fruits succumb to such treatment including pineapple, cherries, oranges and the ever mysterious, strong tasting citron.

  In doing my holiday shopping at my local farmers market I was happily musing at how my eating habits had changed over the years. Because I am live in Marin, I am blessed with the opportunity of frequenting a weekly farmers market that provides an ever changing assortment of local, seasonal food. I no longer have to depend on sweetly preserved fruits for the ingredients for my holiday baking.

  While picking out a bag of succulent Satsuma oranges, a most unusual fruit caught my eye. lt looked like a large lemon than had mutated and grown tentacles. The sign below it stated that it was Buddha’s hand. Well I knew that this was Marin, but had the new age scene infiltrated the farmers market?

  I asked the farmer what the unusual fruit was and she said citron. The disconnect lasted a few minutes. Other customers around me all were mumbling, “Hmm, I wonder what you do with citron, I’ve never seen it before, how strange,” and then it dawned on me—CITRON that nasty yellow stuff in fruit cake. How could anything so beautiful and exotic be related in any way to the yellow globs cemented in a fruit cake?

  I asked the farmer for more information about citron and she said it was wonderful for baking. It could be grated and use as a substitute for lemon peel or zest in bake goods and fish dishes. She then went on to say that many people thought that it brought good luck and that placed in a room it would freshen and scent the air. It could be preserved in vodka making a beautiful presentation in a decorative bottle, and then enjoyed throughout the year. I bought a small “hand” and took it home to investigate further.

  Citron has been around for a long time. Its place of origin is thought to be in northeast India. Seeds were found in Mesopotamian excavations dating back to 4000 BC. It is considered the first citrus fruit grown in Europe. Among the better known cultivars are the Corsican, Diamante, Etrog and fingered citron or Buddha’s Hand.

  Buddha’s hand, Citrus medica var. sarcodactylus, is dark yellow in color, with a thick bumpy skin, covering finger like segments. Unlike an orange or lemon it does not have a fleshy fruit but rather a thick white dry pith. It is seedless or has loose seeds. It is the highly fragrant skin of the fruit that is used to flavor baked goods.

  Citron trees are small thorny and irregularly shaped. They grow readily from cuttings taken from branches replete with foliage that are two to four years old. They must be quickly buried deeply in soil. The tree is sensitive to frost as well as intense heat and drought. It grows well in areas such as the coast of Southern California and inland valleys

  As to the Buddha reference, the fruit may be given as an offering in Buddhist temples, symbolizing happiness as it resembles a hand in prayer. In other eastern cultures it is considered a source of prosperity and good luck. In India, Kuvera the god of wealth is represented holding a mongoose with jewels in one hand and a citron in the other.

  The strong tasting citron that is most familiar to fruitcake aficionados has usually been candied commercially. It is possible to create a fresher tasting confection by candying citron in your kitchen. Boil one cup of sliced peel in water for 10 minutes, drain and repeat 3 times. Next immerse the peel in a simple syrup solution of ¼ cup sugar to ½ cup water. Add the peel and boil until all of the sugar is absorbed and the peel is transparent. Spread on racks to dry. Perhaps this year even I will be tempted to try my hand at baking a fruitcake.

Citrus ideal for California gardens

• Anne-Marie Walker

• What says sunshine more than a bowl of citrus on a kitchen counter?

  Citrus is notable for fragrance found in blossom, leaf and fruit. Each of us has experienced the sudden fragrant and intoxicating haze created as we peel an orange. This volatile, flammable oil is generally toxic to bacteria and insects and is a plant defense mechanism. Fortunately, over time, we have developed positive responses to citrus as do bees hungry for citrus nectar.

  Native to Asia and a member of the Rutaceae family, citrus is ideally suited to the California garden. Evergreen, prolific and low maintenance, a citrus type can be matched to everyone's garden. The cultural requirements of citrus include:

  • Six hours of sun, preferably south-facing exposure

  • High summer heat to develop sugar

  • Low winter temperatures to cause acid levels to drop — but avoiding freezing temperatures

  • Temperatures between 70 and 90 degrees for steady growth

  While it is possible in Marin to plant citrus year round, the best time to plant is in spring. This permits the shallow roots of citrus to establish before cold weather. Plant the root ball just a bit above grade and build a water basin wider than the spread of the leaves. Citrus are good candidates for 5-gallon or bigger containers. Water once a week during warm weather moistening the entire root area that can extend up to twice as far as the tree canopy. Mulch can help keep citrus moist but keep mulch away from the trunk collar.

  Citrus are heavy feeders benefiting from regular monthly fertilizing. In general, harvest oranges from December through May, limes from August through March, mandarins from January through April and lemons year round. Remember you need not harvest the fruit all at once. Because citrus fruit contains little starch, a desired sugar-acid ratio should be reached before harvest. Taste is the best indicator of ripeness. Once picked, they will not sweeten whereas citrus left on the tree will get sweeter.

  Citrus trees have relatively few pest and disease problems. The best defense is proper irrigation and fertilization. Common citrus pests include whiteflies, thrips, mites and rots. These bring black sooty mold on the rind of the fruit, which can just be washed off. Snails and slugs will eat flowers and fruit. Pick them off in the early morning. Aphids, scale, or spider mites may infest a tree. Control of ants helps ward off scale. If your tree suffers from scale, cut it out, pruning to allow sun into the interior of the tree. Keep a look out for a new invasive, the Asian citrus psyllid. It is a small brown insect about the size of an aphid and can jump or fly. It carries an exotic disease that causes irregular yellowing of leaves and inedible, bitter deformed fruit.

  There is no cure.

  Lastly, fruit quality can be impacted by several factors. Generally, citrus bloom in spring. Puffy fruit with a thick rind can occur with off-bloom fruit, set from a summer or fall blossom. Simply discard this fruit. Fruit splitting is caused by dry weather followed by a good rain. Proper irrigation practices best mitigate these problems.

  A bountiful harvest of citrus allows you to juice, make jams and jellies, as well as candied rind. Peels can also be used to make flavorings, dried powder zests and libations including limoncello, an Italian lemon liqueur and vin d'orange, a sultry fortified wine made from Seville oranges, also known as marmalade oranges. More possibilities include citrus butter, citrus salsa, citrus curd and citrus cakes.

  How lovely to share your garden's citrus bounty with friends and family during the holiday season.

Citrus leafminer a sour reality for Marin

• Wendy Irving

• Oh no, here comes an annoying problem for those of us who take pride in our beautiful garden citrus trees. An insect native to Asia is invading California’s citrus groves.

  It showed up in Southern California in 2000, making its way from Florida, where it was first spotted in 1993. The little pest is creeping northward and arrived in Marin in 2012.

  The citrus leafminer (Phyllocnistis citrella) begins its assault on the new leaves of lemons, limes, oranges and other citrus varieties and related species. Larvae feed on the interior of the tender leaves, creating little tunnels (mines) as they go. There are other mining-type pests, including the citrus peelminer, but as its name suggests, it goes after the fruit (and stems). The citrus leafminer is the only mining insect that attacks the leaves.

  Citrus leafminer damage is easy to spot. As the yellowish larva moves through the leaf, it leaves a noticeable meandering trail of frass (feces) just under the surface. Emerging from the mine in its last stage of development, it moves to the edge of the leaf, rolling the leaf around itself and pupating, distorting the shape of the leaf.

  The adult that eventually emerges from the pupal stage is a tiny moth, less than ¼ of an inch in length. The adult does not cause damage, but a newly emerged female quickly mates, laying eggs on the underside of the leaf that hatch within a week. The larvae then molt four times over the next two to three weeks. The entire life cycle of the citrus leafminer is just about seven weeks. Knowing this cycle can help you control the spread of this pest.

  Fortunately, there is more good news than bad with this new invader. Not only is damage easy to spot (look for it if shopping for a new tree), but citrus leafminer infestation does not necessarily have a major impact on the growth and fruiting of mature trees, since these have many hardened leaves to sustain them that the pest usually leaves alone. Young trees may not grow as well or as quickly if infested, but they will seldom die.

  The heat in the interior of our state seems to suppress leafminer numbers. Our cooler coastal areas can have populations that last throughout the summer and well into fall, but the problems created are mainly cosmetic.

  So, what if you discover that the citrus leafminer has taken up residence in the leaves of your prized Meyer lemon? What do you do? The University of California encourages the use of biological/cultural control before the use of pesticides, although there are a few that, applied correctly, can be effective without hurting the natural predators that can eventually control the citrus leafminer. Luckily, unlike some other foreign invaders, there are natural enemies of this bug in our state, such as tiny, parasitic wasps whose larvae feed on the citrus leafminer larvae (Cirrospilus and Pnigalio).

  Leaving well enough alone to allow the balance of nature to do its thing may be enough, although it might take a couple of years, and you may be rightly concerned now about a very young tree. Timely pruning and fertilizing to assure limited new growth during the citrus leafminer season, and removing suckers and water sprouts (both actions limiting mining sources), can be helpful. Pheromone traps are available that attract male citrus leafminers — not to control them, but to help correctly identify the moth and choose the appropriate course of action.

  More good news comes from Eric Richardson, an inspector for the County of Marin Department of Agriculture, Weights and Measures, who says our natural predators must be doing their job because the incidents of citrus leafminer infestation and damage are down significantly from a high in 2013. But if you suspect that your citrus is affected by the pest, please don’t hesitate to call the Marin Master Gardener help desk or go to the UC Integrated Pest Management site at ipm.ucdavis.edu for helpful tips on management and care.

Citrus offers a slice of history

• Marie Narlock

• The juicy lemons and oranges we relish in winter share an exotic past. In addition to being fragrant and delicious, citrus fruits have saved lives, enticed nobility, kept religious traditions alive and maybe even started the Mafia.

  Fossilized leaves suggest citrus existed 7 million years ago, and it’s seen significant cultivation for 2,500 years. Every variety available today comes from four pedigreed ancestors: citron, pomelo, papeda and mandarin. These fruits swapped genes for thousands of years, creating tastier varieties as they evolved. Eventually humans got involved and what we see stacked at the grocery store is the end result: zesty lemons, limes, oranges and grapefruits bursting with vitamin C, folate and potassium.

  A native of China, India and Malaysia, citrus often played a religious role. Citron perfumed Buddhist temples, its distinct shape conveniently resembling a human hand praying to Buddha. Jewish people used a gold, bumpy citrus fruit called an etrog for religious rituals as well as for medicine, to combat seasickness and intestinal problems, and as an antidote to poison.

  Citrus accompanied Persian travelers westward along the Silk Road, arriving in the Mediterranean around 400 BC. The rare, tangy fruit delighted Mediterranean nobility, who bragged about its healing and cleaning powers. When lemons arrived in Rome years later, they quickly became a sign of privilege and wealth. Not so for the uppity aristocrats of the Middle Ages, who considered fresh fruit beneath them. Instead, they gorged on heavy foods and suffered nasty teeth, skin diseases, scurvy and rickets. The peasants, conversely, ate citrus with abandon, lapping up the nourishing juice and pulp so they’d have energy to work. Power to the peasants!

  Citrus disappeared from the Mediterranean as sanitation declined, but enterprising Arabs kept it alive by simultaneously spreading the word of Islam and filling their gardens with colorful, aromatic citrus. From there things sped up. North African farmers brought citrus to Spain’s Alhambra. The tangerine arrived from — where else? — Tangiers. Valencia and Seville oranges appeared. The Chinese confirmed 27 citrus varieties. The sour flavors of Arabic cuisine caught on. A Scottish surgeon proved citrus curved scurvy. The Hapsburgs gave citrus the thumbs up — and importing citrus became big business.

  In fact, it was such big business in Sicily in the 1800s that problems arose. There, among the sweetly scented groves, underhanded racketeers made offers that growers couldn’t refuse, wielding power by extortion and intimidation. These thuggish tactics came to define the Mafia, leading some historians to conclude that Cosa Nostra began in the citrus trade.

  Which brings us to today — in our corner of the world, in our own gardens. Today, California’s $1 billion citrus industry is booming, but a threat is looming. A bacterial disease called huanglongbing, or citrus greening, is causing citrus trees to defoliate and die. Early symptoms include asymmetrical, blotchy leaves, green on one side and yellow on the other. Over multiple years, an infected tree produces smaller fruit, bitter juice, and dieback of leaves and limbs until succumbing altogether. So far there’s no cure and it’s on every arable continent. In fact, it’s in every county surrounding Marin, but amazingly it hasn’t reared its head here yet. Experts say it’s only a matter of time.

  It’s hard to know when — and how hard — Marin will get hit. How will we make lemonade out of those lemons? In the meantime, all we can do is savor every squeeze that we already have and treat our citrus trees like the nobility they’ve served for millennia. Situate citrus where there’s plenty of warmth and sun (six hours a day in February). Provide organic, slightly acidic, well-draining soil (get your soil tested if you’re not sure your soil is up to snuff). Thin fruit to avoid overloaded branches. Protect from frost. Use drip irrigation. Add a layer of mulch.

  Then slip a slice of lime into a margarita. It’s your turn to be part of history.

Clean up now for a pest-free spring garden

• Jane Scurich

• Fall is a fabulous time for planting: the still-warm soil, decreasing daylight hours, cooling temperatures and — hopefully — the promise of rain will welcome new plants.

  But, there is another important project that will help bring you healthier plants with fewer pests next spring and summer: fall garden maintenance!

  UC Marin Master Gardeners love mulch and we encourage mulching at every opportunity. Mulch conserves moisture, helps protect delicate roots from sudden temperature changes, inhibits weed germination and growth, and can make the garden look really neat and tidy. But before you spread that mulch and cover the dead leaves, it’s important to remove debris from under and around plants, especially those in the camellia/rhododendron/azalea family, fuchsias and roses. Debris from these plants often contributes to spreading a variety of fungus and molds, and allowing insects to overwinter in a cozy, protected environment.

  We also encourage composting as a way to reduce waste and incorporate invaluable micronutrients into your soil. But some plant material should not be added to your home compost unless you are absolutely certain it reaches 150 degrees or higher. Before spreading mulch, diligently remove fallen leaves and flowers of the above-mentioned species. Dispose of these contaminants in the trash.

  The two biggest challenges I have for my roses are the rose curculio and the rose snail. At first site, the curculio (or rose weevil) may make you think you are seeing a lady bug — but don’t be deceived! On close examination, you’ll notice these bright red insects have long, curved black snouts. They feed on buds and are quite destructive. After feasting on the buds, they drop to the ground to pupate in the soil and emerge as adults in late spring to early summer. I have often been told that there is only one generation of them each year, but I continue to find rogue curculios on my roses even in September!

  Rose slugs, actually a member of the sawfly family, are tiny yellow-green worm-like creatures that feed on the soft tissue of roses, sometimes completely skeletonizing the leaves. A small infestation may only create a cosmetic nuisance, but a larger population can greatly weaken the plant. These critters also pupate in the soil, so cleanup of infested leaves is critical for control.

  Your annual and vegetable gardens can also be harboring overwintering spores, bacteria and disease that can contaminate next year’s plants. Remove any obviously diseased or suspicious-looking plants and vines, and do not add them to your compost. Destructive tomato hornworms, beetles and other insects overwinter in the pupa stage in plant debris, so eliminate spots for them to shelter.

  While you’re in cleanup mode, take time to remove tomato cages and other plant supports. Spray them with the garden hose and allow them to dry in the sun, sanitize with a 10 percent bleach solution to more thoroughly eliminate bacteria. Scrub your garden tools similarly before storing them for the winter. I keep a container of disinfecting wipes handy to swipe my hand tools on a regular basis and help deter the spread of fungi and bacteria.

  Your local nesting birds will also appreciate a clean house to return to in spring, so don’t forget to empty and disinfect birdhouses and feeders. Birds work hard all summer, feasting on insects in your garden, so welcome them back next spring with a spotless home.

  Many of us continue to garden year-round in our Mediterranean climate and we rarely worry about our irrigation lines and hoses freezing, but it’s still prudent to cleanup and protect our tools and garden supports from the (hopefully) coming rain.

  There’s hardly anything welcoming about a bunch of slimy, mildewed squash vines greeting us in the garden after our first drenching rains! A few hours of preventative maintenance can help avoid an unappealing mess and improve your chances for fewer pests next spring.

Climate chaos in the garden

• Dot Zanotti Ingels

• The average number of severe weather events that occur in a year is proven to be affected by climate change. Climate change has become a controversial and political issue in the United States and elsewhere. Is it part of a natural warming cycle that would be happening anyway? Or is it anthropogenic (human-induced)?

  I think we can all agree that our weather at home seems increasingly unpredictable. Some people will argue that these swings are also cyclical and all will be well, but the consensus among scientists knowledgeable in the subject is that increased carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere are to blame.

  We certainly know that we are in a prolonged drought in California. We are increasingly seeing the implications of this drought in our state agriculture, in our open space native plants, grasses and trees, and in our home gardens.

  NO REST FOR PLANTS

  According to Sustainable Gardening, some plants and trees are not thriving because the winter cooling period is not long enough for them to get the rest they need for optimal production in the warm season.

  Longer warm periods can mean more generations of pests each year. The life cycles of insects, including the beneficial ones, may become out of sync with their prey. The already threatened honeybees can be out of sync with the plants they feed on.

  Our amazingly resilient native plants are threatened by changes in temperature, rainfall and pests. The stresses they experience reduce their abilities to survive and reproduce. Recent studies have found that our ancient and young redwoods are not drawing water as easily as they do in years with normal amounts of precipitation and abundant fog.

  Hotter summers can cause heat stress even to warm-season crops like tomatoes, especially since we are skimping on their water.

  According to the National Wildlife Federation, birds are altering their ranges to cope with warming climates. Many bird species have already shifted their ranges north or up mountain slopes. Some local birds may find new species in their neighborhood competing for resources. You may see some new feathered friends in your yard.

  Pollination can be affected by early springs if the pollinators are not yet out and about the garden. Unstable spring weather can lead to early blooms and subsequent frost damage.

  Some agencies such as the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration are updating hardiness zone maps to reflect the new normal in certain areas.

  WHAT TO CONSIDER

  What does this potential climate change mean for Marin gardens? It is, of course, impossible to say what Mother Nature has in store for us in the years to come. But for right now you might want to:

  • Tour your garden frequently with a careful eye to notice what is happening. Check on the health of landscape plants and edibles including fruit trees. This has been an especially hard year for some fruit trees such as those infected with blight. Experiment with more diversity in your garden. A garden with a variety of species can look attractive even if some are struggling and provide insects and birds with culinary choices.

  • Continue the trend of shedding water-thirsty landscape specimens for succulents or perennials from Mediterranean climates that thrive without summer rain. If you are planting long-lived species like trees, consider which species thrive in a warmer, drier climate.

  • Compost, compost, compost. Adding organic matter makes soil healthier, allows it to hold moisture better and helps to insulate plant roots from temperature extremes. High-quality compost added to the garden allows the soil to absorb carbon dioxide and store it in the ground.

  • Think sustainability! Plant a food garden. It is fresh and as organic as you want it to be. If you do not have the space or interest in growing your own food, frequent one of our many local farmers markets. You can source more than just fruits and veggies there. Local ranches sell their meats, cheeses, ice creams and more.

  Our gardens and local farmers are our first line of defense in times of erratic climate. The future is uncertain, but together we can encourage the health and sustainability of our gardens.

Coaxing My Wisteria to Flower

• Marilyn Geary

• When I first caught a glimpse of the little bungalow I now call home, I was captivated by its arbor of wisteria and grape vines. What could be more delightful than sitting in the shade in the springtime under fragrant, cascading wisteria blossoms? I imagined an abundance of pendulous flowers and dangling grape clusters. Since then I have harvested enough grapes to make cases and cases of Concord jelly each October, but I have seen just a few straggly wisteria blossoms in spring.

  I’ve discovered that many gardeners have been similarly frustrated. Inducing wisteria to flower is a common problem. It’s been said that growing wisteria is like getting a pet dog. It will be with you for years, and you’ll spend a long time training it. My wisteria seems more like a wild critter than an untamed puppy. I set out to determine more about the blossomless beast taking over my arbor.

  Wisteria is a member of the five-petaled pea family, Fabaceae (formerly Leguminoseae). The genus, named for the anatomy professor Caspar Wistar (1761-1818), includes ten species of deciduous climbing vines, two native to the southern United States and the others native to eastern Asia. Chinese wisteria (Wisteria sinensis) and Japanese wisteria (Wisteria floribunda)are the species most commonly found in nurseries and gardens.

  Chinese wisteria is grown for its showy racemes, clusters of individual flowers on a single axis. These plump clusters range from six inches to a foot long. Its blossoms open all at the same time, usually before the leaves appear on the plant. The compound leaves usually have 7-13 leaflets.

  Japanese wisteria has longer blossoms, from 12 to 18 inches in length. It blooms later in the spring with the expanding foliage, and its flowers open gradually, from the cluster base to the tip. The compound leaves usually have 13-29 leaflets. American wisteria (Wisteria frutescens)is less fragrant than Chinese wisteria, and its racemes are much shorter, about six inches long. Each species is available in cultivars with colors ranging from white to pink, lilac, and purple.

  Since I could not recall the blossoms on my wisteria, I looked for other identifying features. Tracing the twirling vines until my head spun like a top, I determined that my wisteria vine twined counterclockwise as seen from above. This characteristic identifies it as a Chinese wisteria; the Japanese wisteria twines clockwise around its support.

  Wisteria will grow in relatively poor-quality soils, but it does better in a moist, well-drained soil. It blossoms best in full sun. My Chinese wisteria enjoys sun all day long, so its lack of blossoms must be due to another factor.

  Wisteria’s fruit is a long, flat pod that turns brown as it dries on the vine. Hot days cause the mature pods to split, releasing their poisonous seeds in an explosion that flicks them far from the pod shell. Wisteria grown from seed may take decades to bloom, so it’s best to purchase a plant propagated through root cuttings or grafts. Chinese wisteria may take up to twenty years to mature. My wisteria, planted by a prior owner, is well established with a strong, thick trunk. It was planted in the Seventies, so immaturity can’t be the cause of my wisteria’s failure to flower.

  Too much nitrogen fertilizer also results in a lack of blossoms. Like other legumes, wisteria hosts Rhizobia soil bacteria in its root nodules. The Rhizobia name comes from the Greek rhiza for roots and bios for life. When established in the root nodules of legumes, Rhizobia bacteria fix nitrogen, converting atmospheric nitrogen into compounds enriching the soil. Too much nitrogen encourages leaf growth at the expense of blossoms, so mature wisteria should not be fertilized with nitrogen. Wisteria rarely requires any fertilizer, and I have never fertilized my wisteria. Too much nitrogen fertilizer is not its problem.

  Wisteria, especially Wisteria sinensis and Wisteria floribunda, are hardy and aggressive, growing so fast that they are considered invasive species in the southern United States.  Both the Chinese and Japanese species can grow up to 25 feet tall and work best twining up and over a sturdy, durable arbor or pergola away from your house. They can damage weaker structures and tear shingles off your roof. They have long lives, some vines surviving 50 years or more.

  The prime example, a Chinese wisteria in Sierra Madre, California, is over 100 years old, weighs more than 250 tons, and covers more than one acre. The Guinness Book of World Records names it the world’s largest blossoming plant, one of the seven horticultural wonders of the world. This wisteria produces more than 1.5 million blossoms every year with 40 blooms per square foot and is at the center of Sierra Madre’s annual Wisteria Festival.

  Clearly, pruning is essential to keep wisteria under control. Proper pruning also encourages wisteria to bloom. Wisteria plants produce numerous stolons, above-ground stems that develop roots and shoots at short intervals. If not restrained, wisteria will produce excess vegetation and limited fruits and flowers.

  I have snipped off shoots of my wisteria frequently, but not thoughtfully, to promote blossoms. Wisteria should be pruned at least twice a year. In summer, after the blooming cycle is complete, the long wiry tendrils should be pruned back to within four to six leaves from where they join the main stem. This pruning reduces the amount of growth and allows more sunlight in to foster flower budding.

  In the late winter dormant period, when all the stems are bare and you can see what you are snipping, these side shoots should be cut off even further, to within 1-2 inches of the older wood, leaving only 2-3 buds. It’s important to avoid cutting off the woodier spurs, modified branches bearing the flower buds. The flower buds are larger and plumper than the leaf buds. They are usually fuzzy, particularly in early spring when they begin to grow. Proper pruning focuses the plant’s energy on the flower buds rather than stem growth at the expense of flowers.

  If careful, heavy pruning still does not produce blossoms, root pruning is recommended. This technique involves cutting the roots 2-3 feet from the trunk of the wisteria and applying phosphate fertilizer. Pruning the roots alters the ratio of nitrogen to carbohydrates in the plant by reducing the nitrogen absorbed by the roots. The phosphate fertilizer stimulates flowering.

  Now that I’ve discovered how to encourage my wisteria to bloom, the thought of springtime blossoms gives me an Edward Scissorhands-like urge to prune it for optimum flowering. I hope we’ll be together for a long time, so the sooner I start coaxing my vigorous creature to blossom, the happier we’ll both be.

Cocktails from your garden

• Wendy Irving

• No doubt this season, fun and unusual cocktails are “in,” and home gardeners are thinking about the challenge of growing plants, herbs and spices that, with a little imagination and some homework, can become delightfully tasty and attractive adult beverages to share with friends and family.

  Those of us who have grape vines, or healthy apple and pear trees in the garden, may have tried our hand at making wine and hard ciders. Some with access to barley and hops make beer, often from commercially available kits. UC Davis Extension offers lots of videos online and programs about wine and beer making, but for those really serious about brewing and distilling, there is a rigorous master brewers program that prepares students for the IBD DBE — the Institute of Brewing and Distilling, London, diploma in brewing examination.

  Perhaps the challenge of growing barley to distill scotch, corn to make bourbon, potatoes and grains for vodka and gin, sugarcane for rum and agave for tequila is a bit impractical for the average home gardener, not to mention the legal and safety issues of distilling at home.

  But, put on the hat of the mixologist instead of the brewer and distiller and the list of edible herbs and flowers that you can grow to garnish cocktails, flavor syrups to add sweetness and interest, or use to infuse additional flavors into distilled beverages, is almost endless. Your creativity — and knowledge of what is edible or not — are your only limitations.

  Try some of these herbs, easily grown in your garden — angelica, anise hyssop, basil, cilantro, dill, fennel, lemongrass, lemon verbena, mint, pineapple sage, rosemary, sage, savory, scented geraniums or pelargoniums and thyme. To release the essential oils of those plants in the mint family, such as spearmint, basil, sage and anise hyssop, don’t muddle them. Place leaves in the palm of your hand and slap your hand once or twice. You’ll release the aromatics without bruising the leaves, and look like you know what you are doing in front of your friends!

  Some flowers safe to add color and flavor to your cocktails and infusions are borage, calendula, elderflower, honeysuckle, jasmine, lavender, marigold, nasturtium, roses, viola and violets. Try freezing some of these in ice cubes as well.

  Of course, there are the trees — apple, apricot, cherry, fig, lemon, lime, lychee (cold-sensitive), olive, orange, peach, plum, pear and pomegranate (for a great homemade grenadine). Don’t forget vines and berries — blackberry, blueberry, currant, hops, raspberry and sloe berry, nor fruits and vegetables, such as asparagus, green beans, celery, cucumber, melon, miracle fruit, peppers, pineapple, rhubarb (stalks only), strawberry, tomatillo, cherry tomatoes and watermelon.

  Gin is a favorite spirit of mine. It is basically a vodka made from barley, rye (and perhaps a little wheat or corn) and flavored with juniper berries. Other ingredients common in gin are lavender, cardamom, ginger, coriander, citrus peel; you might want to add some flavors of your own — it just takes imagination!

  Speaking of which, I went in search of a gin that I had heard was intended to capture Mount Tamalpais in a bottle. Lance Winters, master distiller at St. George Spirits in Alameda, wanted to make a line of terroir-inspired gins. His Mt. Tam gin incorporates the aromas and tastes of Douglas fir, coastal sage, bay laurel, wild coastal California juniper berries and coyote mint.

  Hopefully, this has inspired you to consider planting your own cocktail garden. According to the book “The Drunken Botanist,” by horticulturist Amy Stewart and speaker at California statewide Master Gardener conferences, “every great drink begins with a plant.”

Colorful plants from Australia do well in California

• Katie Martin

• There are 1,679 species of plants in Marin County, according to the revised edition of "Marin Flora." The California flora numbers 5,800 species, according to "The Jepson Manual: Higher Plants of California."

  Most of California has a Mediterranean climate with warm, dry summers and cool rainy winters. The same climate is found in the Mediterranean regions of southern Europe and also northern Africa, southern Africa, Chile and southwestern Australia.

  With our recent drought and limited water supply, many gardeners have been choosing drought-tolerant California natives for their gardens. It makes good sense: California natives are adapted to this Mediterranean climate we live in and they are adapted to the pollinators, pathogens and predators here.

  Why then the sudden interest by nurseries, horticulturists and home gardeners in Australian plants? First, plants from southwestern Australia are also adapted to our California climate. Many of them are drought tolerant and deer resistant. And there are so many interesting ones from which to choose. One source says there are 20,000 species of plants in Australia, a startling difference to the 1,679 species of plants in Marin County, according to the revised edition of "Marin Flora," and the 5,800 species of California flora, according to "The Jepson Manual: Higher Plants of California."

  Some Australian plants have become invasive pests in California. Most of us are familiar with eucalyptus - it is listed as an "invasive non-native plant that threatens wildlands in California." The California Invasive Plant Inventory also lists Australian saltbush, Atriplex semibaccata, as invasive. Growers, horticulturists and nurseries must act with diligence and concern to prevent the import of Australian plants that may become pest plants here.

  A visit to an Australian gardens will give gardeners a better idea of how Australian plants can fit into our California landscape. You can see some fine examples of Australian plants at Falkirk Cultural Center in San Rafael. Through a joint effort of Marin Master Gardeners and the City of San Rafael, an Australian plant garden was established last November. Several species of acacia, grevillea, kangaroo paws and Australian mint bush are thriving. The Flora Grubb Gardens in San Francisco has wonderful displays of plants in the Proteaceae family: leucadendrons, grevilleas, banksias and proteas. The hot reds, vivid pinks and deep maroon colors are eye popping.

  The University of California at Santa Cruz Arboretum has 30 to 40 acres devoted to Australian plants. It estimates it has 2,000 species, forms or cultivars growing. Since 1978 the Arboretum has tested several hundred species of Australian imports, many of which have now been introduced into the nursery trade.

  With so many spectacular plants to choose from, it is difficult to describe just a few. But here are three popular plants from Down Under:

  - Banksias are evergreen shrubs or trees. They will grow in full sun with moderate water, and good soil drainage is required. The spectacular, cylindrical clusters of flowers give way to woody seed cones. The foliage varies in different species. Plant size varies from prostrate species, to shrubs at 10 feet tall, to trees that reach 30 feet or more.

  - Anigozanthos are perennials with erect, swordlike leaves. Their fuzzy tubular flowers, divided and curved at the tips, gives them their name, kangaroo paws. They grow in full sun with regular water. Foliage clumps can spread from 1 to 3 feet. Kangaroo paws prefers sandy soil, but will do well in a loose, light soil with good drainage.

  - Proteas are evergreen shrubs with unusual and beautiful flower heads.  The flower is actually a tight cluster of tubular flowers surrounded by colorful bracts. They make wonderful, long-lasting cut flowers for your home. These plants may not be easy for the novice to grow, because they are fussy about growing conditions.Ê Proteas need soil with good drainage; some prefer an acid soil. Protection from wind and good air circulation around plants is also important.

  If you're looking for something different that will grow well with your California natives, that's colorful and exciting, try some Australian plants.

Comfort in the Garden

• D.F. Braun

• An old gardening friend has a wonderful photograph of two grandchildren walking a well-worn path through her garden. As a frequent visitor I know lemonade awaited them at the end of a hidden retreat. During the summer there were many old friends invited to enjoy her Marin oasis, to walk from one garden “room” to another, through her rose garden to tomatoes and summer herbs and finally to a quiet, formal spot under trees where aging friends could enjoy tea or martinis. Casual lunches and dinners were enjoyed close to the house where large pots of herbs were easily accessible to the kitchen and filled the warm air with wonderful fragrances.

  I recently visited my old friend and found her once again in her garden where I noted a number of changes. Now widowed, her grandchildren grown and many old friends gone as well, she has simplified her gardening tasks in subtle ways: the beds of annuals have been replaced by perennials, a large area of summer vegetables has been given over to spring daffodils and the rose bed is no longer hidden behind a hedge. She finds her garden now more of a sanctuary; it has moved from the form of conviviality to repose.

  To quote the writer Alice Munro, “Old people now and then—clear-sighted but content on islands of their own making.”

  Much has been written about the need to garden, not just for agricultural needs, but because gardens respond to a set of human needs. A book of photographs titled “Transitory Gardens, Uprooted Lives” offers a visual and written record of makeshift gardens that the homeless created in the slums of New York City. Made of largely random materials: toys, stuffed animals, flags, found objects, milk cartons, piles of leaves and at times a simple row of flowers, they are called gardens because they are deliberately constructed. What brought them into being? Why did people lacking the bare necessities invest so much of themselves to create these sites? Perhaps, in the midst of turbulence they were able to find comfort in a spot of their own, a sanctuary of repose.

  A touching story tells of a soldier stationed in Iraq, a sandy nation, who missing his garden at home asked his wife to send him soil, fertilizer and some grass seed so that he could have the sweet aroma and feel the grass beneath his feet. Now, when his squadron has a mission they take turns walking through the “green, green grass of home” to bring them good luck.

  Another story, closer to home in San Francisco, tells of an unlikely pair: he a retired man who had grown up on a farm in Mississippi and she a one-time farmer’s daughter who met on an empty lot in the Bayview district (a rough area, to say the least.) He was there to cut down a dying bush and she had come to dig worms as fishing bait for her brother. Chatting together, they decided to try to plant a garden there. After obtaining permission from the city, they cleared the land of beer cans, engine oil, old batteries, spark plugs, refrigerators and fast-food flotsam. They plowed, fertilized and sowed a variety of seeds and afterwards, having cordoned off the area with yellow tape, continued to nurse the flowers, herbs and vegetables that soon began to sprout. The wonder of such a garden in their neighborhood soon brought out many nearby residents. Many of them were meeting each other for the first time. Several other gardens in this area have cropped up and now, where addicts, pushers, and vagrants dominated the scene, there are different kinds of congregations. More people leave their homes to gather in the gardens.

  These scenes would all have pleased Epicurus, the Greek philosopher who believed in the ability to enjoy life. What you may not know is that in order to teach his philosophy of “joie de vivre” he purchased a house and land outside of Athens, which became known as The Garden School, the third permanent school after Plato’s Academy and Aristotle’s Lyceum, but unlike the Academy and Lyceum it was the first school to enjoy “academic freedom.” Epicurus’s garden reflects the core of his philosophy. His disciples, who ate the fruits and vegetables they grew there, learned quickly the ways of nature; growth, enjoyment, decay, and death.

  Epicurus believed that human beings are not naturally given to serenity or a love of life, but it can be found in the garden.

  Go quickly! The flowers await!

Community gardens create food, flowers and friends

• Dave Phelps

• 
  OUR TIME ON this planet is short. How then should we spend our allotment? There are arguably three main reasons to live: to experience, to create and to serve. There is a multitude of ways in which people partake in these lofty goals. Gardening is one that magically satisfies all three.

  Experiencing the transformation of raw organic debris into fertile humus and then into a cornucopia of fresh nutritious food is also deeply satisfying. The rhythms of the garden — digging the soil, sowing the seed and harvesting the crops — can be a grounding and reverent practice. Meanwhile, the awe that can be inspired by the direct observation of the ineffable dance of insects, worms and other microorganisms and fungi as they interact and support — or decimate — our plants, can be a powerful experience to some, an example of the universe looking back on itself as we explore our
  sentient existence.
  
  Meanwhile, we have the need to express ourselves, to create. We take the raw elements of the earth and envision our garden with its various plant combinations and succession schemes. The products of our labor, the fruits, vegetables, herbs and flowers, become our banquets and bouquets. The question of what to plant, when and where to plant it, and how to feed it and train it repeated throughout the growing season and into the
  winter cover crops can keep the mind engaged, challenged and strong.

  In the end, what have we done? By serving our community and the ecology that supports it, we receive the gift of what it means to be good land stewards and a productive part of our local and world community. By supporting the beneficial insects, by teaching our young healthy
  lifestyles and by building the fertility of the soil, we gain the satisfaction
  of leaving behind something improved for the further enjoyment of future
  generations while doing our part to heal our local ecologies. This ability to
  serve ourselves, our environment and our community instills in us a sense of purpose, of gratitude and of pride.

  So, how can we best share these with our greater community? Enter the community garden. A community garden can be a place of refuge to escape daily drudgery or boredom, a place for meditation and grounding, as well as a place for people to grow and thrive. In addition to the positive physical, emotional and psychological benefits, there are the added benefits of social networking, getting to know the neighbors and making new friends, the bonding of the local tribe. The interactions made in the healing environment of a garden can form lifelong relationships, promoting the sharing of ideas, interests and concerns, and nourishing the soul of the community.

  As we move closer to oil scarcity, the depletion of water supplies, global warming and the resultant political unrest, the close-knit community with a productive garden can form the safety net should things get difficult. A community accustomed to working together for the health of its members and the environment is one that can survive difficult situations.

  How unfortunate that a community such as Marin has more than 200 people waiting to get plots in six neighborhood gardens, and other communities who want gardens are up against political walls trying to get
  their garden plans approved. There are likely more people who would like a plot but don't get on a waiting list because of the possible five-year wait. Most gardens have as many people waiting for a plot as they do have plots within the garden.
  
  In December's Marin County Community Garden Needs Assessment, six specific actions were noted that will help support the four primary needs: "secure funding, long-term management, education and skills training, and expanding garden availability to meet cultivation needs and reduce waiting lists." Along with sharing resources and collaboration, the need to revise existing ordinances that inhibit community garden development was cited. The Marin County Community Garden Conference on April 29 at 50 Canal St. in San Rafael will help build the community garden network as well as momentum toward fulfilling the actions described in the needs assessment.

  The needs assessment further describes not only the need for expansion of these opportunities within the county, but also more of the tangible benefits such as better nutrition, exercise, environmental literacy and improved neighborhood aesthetics that community gardens provide.
  It would seem that public support for community gardens would be a no-brainer, but there is still quite a bit of outreach and community education needed to bring better awareness and understanding.

Community gardens grow more than just edibles

• Dot Zanotti Ingels

• As you might expect from a Master Gardener, I cannot imagine not having a place to plant the food and flowers that I want. I am fortunate to have a place to garden right outside my door. Not everyone is so lucky, however. For people who live in densely populated situations, community gardens have become a popular option.

  A community garden is any piece of land that is gardened by a group of people. Most community gardens are found in urban areas where densely saturated housing leaves little bare ground for gardening. But a community garden can be a school garden, a garden at a developmental residential facility, or a median strip maintained by a neighborhood or a senior living community.

  Community gardens can be found throughout the world. Some are geared toward beautification, primarily in the form of flowers. Some provide people with small plots where they can grow veggies for their personal use. Others give low-income families and community groups a chance to work together to provide a shared bounty of flowers, edibles and green space to gather. Still others are a combination of all of these so that people can garden individually or communally.

  The emphasis on all the models is on "community." Community gardens bring people together from various backgrounds, ages, races, cultures and social classes. They often grow much more than flowers and food.

  The benefits of community gardening are multi-pronged:

  • Community gardening provides organic food choices for people who might not otherwise be able to afford them. People who garden tend to eat more fruits and vegetables on a daily basis. The gardeners have control over what they plant and how it is fertilized. Community gardeners plant crops that are often not available in grocery stores. This helps immigrants feel more connected to their cultural foods.
  • Gardeners find a place to learn and share skills. Community gardens provide a place to compost items that would normally end up in the landfills. People who garden together get good fresh air, vigorous physical activity and can make new friends.
  • A blighted area can see reduced crime and neglect when people come together to create a garden space where they can safely gather, feed their families, become less alienated from their neighbors and play. Stress is reduced, property values go up and the community learns the value of living things and sustainability.
  • Community gardens serve as outdoor classrooms where kids can learn about communication, responsibility, cooperation, nutrition and patience as well as lots of science and math.

  Marin County has an estimated 86 community gardens.

  • There are eight community gardens where groups of people are coming together to grow fruits, vegetable and ornamentals. The gardens are on public or private land, and the individual plots are rented by the gardeners at a nominal annual fee.
  • There are an estimated seven residential gardens in Marin that are shared among residents in apartment communities, assisted living and affordable housing units. These residential gardens are mainly cared for by residents living on the grounds.
  • There are three institutional gardens in Marin that are attached to either public or private organizations offering beneficial services for their residents.
  • Demonstration gardens are used in educational and recreational settings. Marin demonstration gardens can be found at Blackie's Pasture in Tiburon, Falkirk Cultural Center in San Rafael, Indian Valley College Organic Farm and Garden in Novato, and Marin Art and Garden Center in Ross.
  • Approximately 50 of the 57 public schools in Marin have gardens. There are many more private school gardens.

Community gem in San Rafael's Falkirk

• Dot Zanotti Ingels

• Falkirk Cultural Center is a 19th-century country estate listed on the National Historic Register. The Queen Anne Victorian, designed by Clinton Day, was built in 1888 by Ella Nichols Park, and purchased by Capt. Robert Dollar in 1906.
  
  Falkirk is named after Dollar's birthplace in Scotland, and his descendants occupied the house until 1970. The estate was saved from demolition in 1974, and the cultural center is now owned and operated by the City of San Rafael.
  
  The grounds are lovely and fully open to the public, but meeting the center's maintenance needs requires a significant effort. In collaboration with Falkirk and San Rafael, Marin Master Gardeners have spent the past few years establishing five gardens that demonstrate various aspects of sustainable gardening practices and water conservation. The gardens are adjacent to the vintage, working greenhouse on the estate.
  
  These public gardens belong to everyone so think of them as your own. Get to know them at Second Saturdays, a new series of talks that include hands-on demonstrations and experiences that will cover various aspects of home gardening. The first begins at 9 a.m. Sept. 8, with Master Gardener Glenn Smith discussing "Growing and Dividing Cymbidiums." On Oct. 13, Green Jeans Garden Supply owner Kevin Sadlier will discuss "How to Grow Southern Hemisphere Plants in Marin" with Green Jeans Garden Supply owner Kevin Sadlier.
  
  We encourage everyone to come to learn and to work after the talks. You will meet the Master Gardeners working in the Falkirk Gardens and really get to know this gem of a non-edible community garden.
  
  The five gardens include:
  
  

  • A dramatic Succulent Garden that presents the interesting variation of forms, colors, and texture these plants exhibit.
  • The Beneficials Garden provides shelter and forage for native bees, butterflies and hummingbirds.
  • The Mediterranean Garden presents plants from five areas of the world — California, Chile, South Africa, Australia and the Mediterranean basin — that share our climate of wet winters and long dry summers.
  • The Lathe House Garden is in the process of renovation. It is being planted with many perennials that have been propagated from seed by Master Gardener Sandy Waks. It has the feeling of a cottage garden with a variety of plants coming into flower all the time.
  • The Under Oaks Garden is planted with examples of plants that need no summer water and other characteristics that make them suitable for living under our oak trees. Master Gardener Elizabeth Finley has chosen big bold grasses such as Festuca californica "California Fescue" and Doug Irises plus ground covers that flourish in dry shade.

  There is wonderful educational signage and the plants themselves are all labeled. It is easy to know what you're looking at and admiring. You can see how and where the plants can work in your home garden. It takes the guesswork out of looking at small nursery pots and trying to decide.
  
  Classes are followed by a "work party" where members of the community can work alongside Master Gardeners putting into practice those valuable skills utilized in sustainable gardening. It's fun and a great learning experience. You can help with propagation, pruning, composting, mulching and irrigation system repair. Now and then there are cuttings available to take home.
  
  Bring your pruners, your gardening gloves, family and friends and make it a regular practice.

Compost, mulch and amendments help replenish soil

• Martha Proctor

• The best way to ensure that you have a healthy, productive garden is to provide your plants with rich, fertile soil. Soil in most residential landscapes is neglected and over time becomes depleted of nutrients. Replenish the soil by working organic matter into it every year. Restore and maintain the soil so that it provides the essential air, water, and nutrients your plants require to thrive.

  The depth of the topsoil in your garden, the depth of roots and penetration resistance roots encounter are all indicators of soil health.

  - Avoid compaction. Many gardeners, anxious to get into their gardens in early spring, work their soil when it is still too wet. The soil should not be dug until it is sufficiently dry enough to crumble when worked and has reached a temperature of 50 degrees. Soils high in clay content are easily damaged if worked when wet. Foot traffic and heavy equipment crush the soil's pores, which limits plant's roots access to nutrients, air and water.

  Most gardens in Marin are primarily composed of clay soil. Clay soil retains nutrients but, because of its fine particles, has less pore space so the soil can become compacted. Plants become dwarfed and starved for nutrients, water and air.

  - Amend the soil with moderate amounts of compost. For soil that is primarily clay or sand, or is compacted, incorporate 2 to 3 inches of organic matter into the upper several inches and top dress with 2 to 3 inches of mulch every year. Organic matter is any material originating from living material that has died and decayed, such as peat moss, manure, crop residues, compost or cover crops. Any organic material that is applied to the surface and incorporated into the soil is called a soil amendment. If organic matter is added to clay soils, the soil becomes easier to work and lets roots and water soak in more readily.

  Mulching is the application of organic or inorganic matter (such as stone or polyethylene black plastic) solely to the soil surface. Avoid putting mulch right up against the trunks of trees or shrubs.

  When soil doesn't drain well, roots are deprived of oxygen. Healthy soil depends on a robust population of microbes and earthworms to recycle nutrients and maintain pore spaces in the soil to let in air and moisture. Adding compost limits compaction in clay soils, helps soil control temperature, promotes the growth of microorganisms, and releases small amounts of nitrogen and other nutrients through continued decay.

  In addition, organic matter provides the glues that lead to good structure, good drainage and good tilth. Instead of feeding plants, feed the soil by adding organic materials such as compost and mulch. As organic matter continually decomposes and disappears, soil building must be a continuing process in the garden.

  Compost can be made at home from yard waste and kitchen scraps (no meat), or purchased in bags from your local nursery or garden supply store. As compost or other organic matter decomposes with the help of the soil microbes, it releases inorganic nutrients that can be used by growing plants. Raised beds or terraces are good solutions for improving extremely poor or shallow soil, or soil with poor drainage.

  Be sure to follow recommendations regarding the amount to apply to your situation because use of too much organic matter can be detrimental. A good rule of thumb when incorporating compost as a soil amendment is 25 percent of the planned depth, i.e., 2 inches of organic matter worked in to a depth of 8 inches.

  - Amend the soil with manure. Dried animal manure supplies nutrients to plants and microorganisms and helps to aerate the soil. Any garden supply store will stock various manure types with application rates posted on the bag. Fresh cattle manure should be applied in fall or winter. Work the manure in right after spreading as this helps decompose the manure and lessen odors. Compost can be spread and incorporated like animal manure.

  - Use cover crops. A cover crop is a temporary planting, usually put in during the fall, which adds organic matter and protects the soil from wind and water erosion. Cover crops consist of fast-growing plants that are grown from seed during fallow times in a vegetable garden. After clearing the garden of a harvested crop, sow the cover crop seeds.

  When the soil warms up in the spring, work the resulting crop into the soil as deeply as possible, two to three weeks before planting the next batch of edible crops. Decomposed cover crop materials provide nutrients directly into the soil, thereby increasing biological activity, water filtration and soil tilth. Legumes such as fava beans, soy beans, crimson clover, red clover and hairy vetch are particularly valuable to Marin growers because they add nitrogen to the soil. Roots improve the tilth more than the tops of plants. Fine grasses and clover roots work on the upper 6 to 12 inches; alfalfa and sweet clover have taproots that extend deeper. When they die and rot, the roots leave channels for water and air movement in the soil.

  - Top dress with mulch. Once your plants are established and warm weather begins, top dress the soil with mulch. Mulching reduces moisture evaporation, suppresses weeds, moderates soil temperature and helps prevent soil compaction. In addition, mulches decompose slowly thereby adding organic matter over a longer period, providing an excellent way to continually add organic matter. Use bark in perennial beds if possible, since it decomposes more slowly. Grass clippings (that are free of herbicides) are an excellent material for veggie gardens.

  - Control weeds. Weeds crowd plants, compete for nutrients and moisture and often harbor pests. Hoeing, hand pulling, rototilling and mowing are effective mechanical means to get rid of weeds.

  The health of your soil determines the health of your plants. The mantra of Master Gardeners - "compost, compost, compost, mulch, mulch, mulch" - still rings true. The best way to amend the soil's structure and to provide oxygen, moisture and nutrients is to add moderate amounts of compost or a cover crop, and top dress with mulch. Begin by testing your soil for pH and nutrient content. Follow these recommendations and with time, your garden soil and the plants you grow will reward you with beauty and bounty.

Confessions of a first-time composter

• Juliana Jensen

• When I first moved from San Francisco to my home in Mill Valley 18 years ago, I was mystified to discover what appeared to be an enormous heap of straw and leaves and dirt in a remote corner of the yard. A little prodding revealed a slightly odiferous and steamy center. My first thought on finding this unsightly mess? Haul it out! I now realize, of course, that what I hauled away was an enormously valuable resource: a well-established compost pile. It has been many years since I was that foolish novice gardener, and I realize that I need to bring composting back to my garden.

  Compost is a fantastic resource for the garden. In Marin, our soils tend to be heavy clay. Adding compost lightens the structure of the soil making it easier for the plant roots to grow and collect water. The organisms in compost — from the microscopic bacteria and fungi to the familiar earthworms — aerate the soil while releasing essential nutrients.

  The result is plants that are less stressed and need less water. Good compost can also reduce, or better, eliminate the need for chemical fertilizers creating a healthier environment for all.

  There are many ways to compost. It is really important to the success of the project to choose a method that suits your disposition. I didn't think I was up to re-creating the giant pile with the required shoveling and turning. I couldn't face the worms: it was too much like having another pet.

  I didn't think I had even the basic skills to construct a wooden bin system. There is a simple method of creating a wire hoop and tossing in the compost, but I didn't want to encourage the rodents already scuttling through the underbrush. What to choose?

  I lighted on the tumbling composter. It is essentially a rotating plastic garbage can attached to a frame. The compost is layered inside the container and then "tumbled" every few days to mix and aerate the compost. These composters generally fit in small spaces and are rodent-resistant. They can create compost as quickly as four to six weeks. I had found my method.

  Now that I had my composter, what to put in it? Good compost requires a mix of "greens" and "browns." Essentially, "greens" are fruit and vegetable scraps, coffee grounds and tea bags, egg shells, fresh yard trimmings, manure from nonmeat-eating animals, weeds that haven't gone to seed and houseplants. "Browns" are dry leaves, small amounts of pine needles, untreated sawdust, and shredded paper, cardboard or newspaper. It is important not to compost meat, bones, fish, dairy products, fatty or greasy foods, diseased or nuisance plants, treated wood, ashes from a barbecue, or glossy or heavily colored paper.

  At last, I had a use for those coffee grounds, the lettuce that had gotten away from me in the vegetable bin in the fridge, the newspapers that had escaped recycling, all those leaves and garden bits from my enthusiastic pruning! I happily layered my composter with all my browns and greens and started tumbling.

  Here is what I discovered: For the first couple of days, there might be a bit of a stink coming from the composter. Just as I was despairing, the compost settled and took on a rich, earthy odor that was much more acceptable.

  Another thing, compost is full of microorganisms, but also organisms you can see: bugs, worms, flying things. If you know you want them to be there, it's not quite so disturbing to peek in and see them. Also, the composter gets a bit heavy. It wasn't a matter of easy spinning like a "Wheel of Fortune" dial. It took a push and a humpf to get it around. I also discovered that you can't just toss in the potatoes, cardboard and woody vines. Things need to be chopped enough to break down quickly.

  So how did it come out? Well, it's definitely not hunks of carrot anymore. There are some sticks and lumps (the corn cob was a mistake). I've learned which things don't compost quickly, and to tear cardboard into smaller pieces.

  But overall, my garbage and scraps have turned into a beautiful soil amendment just waiting to feed my garden.

  The University of California Marin Master Gardeners are sponsored by UC Cooperative Extension. For questions about gardening, plant pests or diseases, call 499-4204 from 9 a.m. to noon, and 1 to 4 p.m. weekdays, or bring in samples or pictures to 1682 Novato Blvd., Suite 150B, Novato.

  LEARN MORE

  • Read: An excellent pamphlet on composting, "Growing Gardens from Garbage: A Guide to Composting, Mulching and Grasscycling," is available from the University of California Cooperative Extension Master Gardeners office in Novato. 

  • Click: A lot of useful information on composting is available on the Marin Master Gardeners website, ucanr.org/sites/MarinMG. 

  • Walk: If you want to conserve water with your freshly made compost and also get advice on irrigation systems, call Master Gardeners at 499-4204 for a bay-friendly garden walk appointment.

Conifers' gifts continue after the holidays, too

• Nanette Londeree

• It's the time of year our homes are decked out for the holidays, perfumed with the fragrance of live greens - spruce, firs and pine trees, cedar swags, colorful wreaths - a mixture of all. We relish the sensory delights these plants provide for their short stint indoors, then, come January, we pretty much forget about them for another year.

  These oft-neglected garden plants are conifers, a group of generally trouble-free plants with tough constitutions that need little care to keep their good looks throughout the seasons. They have so much to offer, they're worthy of a place in your garden - especially the dwarf varieties that grow slowly and take up much less space, water and nutrients.

  Conifers, known botanically as gymnosperms, are plants that bear cones. Native to the earth's Northern Hemisphere, the majority are evergreen with thin needles, or scalelike leaves that help reduce moisture loss and shed snow easily. If you think of conifers, you may conjure up visions of towering trees atop snow-covered mountains, majestic redwoods along the trails of Muir Woods or the ever present utilitarian junipers lining the front yards of entire neighborhoods. And while they are the oldest, tallest and most massive trees on the planet, they're a lot more than that. You can find them in an amazing range of forms, colors, and sizes - from the gargantuan, such as the General Sherman tree (Sequoiadendron giganteum) in Sequoia National Park, with a mass of more than 52,000 cubic feet, to tiny miniature plants such as Picea abies 'Thumbelina' that grows just a bit bigger than a large grapefruit.

  "Far from being dull," writes renowned horticulturist and author Adrian Bloom in his book "Gardening with Conifers," "to the observant this group of plants can be both awe-inspiring and magical."

  In the garden, conifers provide a rich tapestry of structure, form and color especially this time of year when the luxurious growth provides a striking accent to an otherwise wintry scene. And dwarf conifers can accentuate the tiniest garden space - even a container. The American Conifer Society describes dwarf conifers as plants growing 1 to 6 inches a year, and the even smaller miniature conifers as growing less than an inch a year. Their elfin size may be a result of natural seed mutation, environmental conditions during their evolution or rooted cuttings from witches' broom - tangled, dense, snarled clumps of branchlets that grow on full-sized trees. Yet others may be the handiwork of the cultivators grafting a normal growing species onto a dwarf rootstock, slowing down the growth of the conifer and creating a new dwarf cultivar.

  The increasing popularity and availability of dwarf and miniature conifers has grown dramatically in recent years, providing gardeners with fantastic selections of four-season palette color, shape and texture. You'll find plants in every shade of green, unexpected blues to shades of near purple, shimmering silvers, gleaming yellows and golds and variegated combinations. New spring growth may sport lighter and brighter shades while winter foliage can take on hues of red, copper or bronze. Their cones and seed-bearing fruit add yet another dimension to their visual appeal and are useful to wildlife, especially birds by providing shelter and seeds. The plants may be ball-shaped, weeping and pendulous, ground-hugging and carpetlike, or narrow and upright, varying from pencil-thin pillar shapes to columns and slim conical or pyramid shapes. Textures may be fine to coarse and anything in between.

  Dwarf conifers make great foundation plants, accent plants, add interest to flower beds, rock gardens, trough gardens and containers. They mix well with a broad range of companion plants from roses to grasses, succulents to perennials.

  Generally not fussy plants, they do best planted in full sun and well- draining soil high in organic matter, regular watering during the dry part of the year, and the sparing use of fertilizer.

  This time of year you'll see the common Alberta spruce, Picea glauca 'Conica,' in itty-bitty pots. While considered a dwarf, it can reach nearly ten feet tall, while relative, Picea glauca 'Jean's Dilly,' is much smaller, denser and slower growing (four feet in twenty years). If you're looking for a tinge of stunning blue, consider Picea pungens 'Sester Dwarf,' the perfect small form of Colorado blue spruce, only one-fourth the size of its larger parent. In the blue-green range, the long, soft needles of the southwest white pine, Pinus strobiformis 'Coronado,' give a full, fluffy look to this rounded classic beauty.

  A favorite of mine, commonly called Hinoki cypress, is Chamaecyparis obtusa 'Nana Gracilis,' adorned with luxurious dense, forest green bunches of shell-shaped foliage on a globelike bush. The golden relative, Chamaecyparis obtusa 'Nana Lutea' displays dense, golden sprays of foliage. And if you like delicate threads of sunny gold, Chamaecyparis pisifera 'Golden Mops' shines in the garden all year on a mounding one- to two-foot-tall plant.

  Bright white new growth on Tsuga canadensis 'Moon Frost' nearly glows on a moonlit night, and in winter, it's blushed with pink. If you like Deodar cedars, the striking Cedrus deodora 'Feeling Blue' is covered with soft, gray-blue needles on a gracefully weeping plant that may reach 3 feet tall in ten years.

  So, after you pack away the holiday season, keep the sensory pleasures of conifers in mind. Whether you have lots of gardening space, or a postage-stamp lot, you can find space for a few dwarf conifers.

  The University of California Marin Master Gardeners are sponsored by UC Cooperative Extension. For questions about gardening, plant pests or diseases, call 499-4204 from 9 a.m. to noon, and 1 to 4 p.m. weekdays, or bring in samples or pictures to 1682 Novato Blvd., Suite 150B, Novato.

Conserve Water, Our Liquid Gold

• Dave Phelps

• “Whiskey is for drinking but water is worth fighting over!”
  
  What Mark Twain said has been true since wells were dug and rivers dammed.   It will likely be a big problem in the near future.  The movie “Blue Gold” brought to our attention the recent and on-going acquisitions and consolidations of the world’s fresh water supplies by a small number of multi-national corporations and select private investors.  It also pointed towards price setting and profiteering similar to what we’ve started to see with oil, a similar, non-renewable, and very precious resource.  The web site www.PeakWater.org follows current events.
  
  Did you know that new landscapes are not allowed to use overhead irrigation within two feet of a sidewalk or driveway?  Or on areas less than 8 feet wide? Or on slopes exceeding 15%?  Did you know that those old impact sprinklers will not meet new irrigation efficiency requirements? These and other new rules are better ways to manage water in the landscape.
  
  By the time Governor Schwarzenegger declared drought in June of 2008 after the driest spring in 88 years, and sent SBX7-7 or the “20 by 2020” Water Conservation Plan to legislation, water conservation in California had already been in full swing.  Assembly bills AB 325, 2717, and 1881, the Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance, were being developed and implemented.  Finally, in 2010, after local water agencies were given a year to come up with a better plan to meet local conditions, the ordinance was approved and became effective as law in September of that year.
  
  The population of California is growing by roughly a person a minute with about half of urban water being used as irrigation, with and estimated 20 % of that being wasted. While many people in California understand these issues, few appreciate the brilliance, holistic nature and thoroughness of the current legislation. Many don't even know there are new rules.  A big part of the performance metrics of “20 by 2020” was to get all water users metered.  Now many areas in California whose water use was never even measured are seeing metered water bills and a future of dramatic rate increases.  Times have changed.
  
  The details of MMWD’s Ordinance 421 can be found on their web site at www.marinwater.org; look for the ”Landscape Plan Review Requirements: Users Guide” in the Conservation section. It should be noted that this ordinance, being a locally improved version of AB 1881, mandates a wonderful blend of education and outreach, conservation incentives, pollution prevention, addressing soil and the use of compost and mulch, as well as watering to a water budget set by the present, local climate.  It mandates weather-based controllers among other requirements and has raised the bar for the landscaping industry.  It has and will save us a lot of water.
  
  As with anything official these days, there are a few acronyms to get accustomed to.  The first is ETo; this is “reference evapotranspiration,” and is the combination of the evaporation and transpiration of water vapor from a cool season grass in a particular climate and day of the year.  The next are MAWA and ETWU; they are, respectively, the “maximum applied water allowance” and “estimated total water use”.  Simply put, they refer to how much water you are allowed, given your climate, and how much your landscape is estimated to use, given your landscape plan.  Together, these concepts allow for water to be applied as part of a water budget that is set as a percent of what it would take to keep a cool season grass healthy.
  
  Another important acronym is WUCOLS.  This is the “water use classification of landscape species” and gives a value of how different plants grown in different climate zones use differing amounts of water.  When plants are grouped onto irrigation valves or stations where the plants all have the same WUCOLS rating, that is called hydrozoning.  This allows for both very efficient programming of the irrigation system, but also allows designers free reign to use whatever plants they want—so long as when the square footage of the different hydrozones are added up, the total does not exceed the MAWA.  Brilliant.
  
  The Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance sets the standard for irrigation system efficiency by setting a minimum “distribution uniformity” that can be easily tested.  It minimizes the chance of invasive plants or fire prone plants being used, and even promotes the use of non-potable water such as reclaimed water, grey water and rainwater.  The ordinance also mandates a drainage plan be included so that water that falls on the site is encouraged to stay on site.  Turning our old drainage systems into infiltration systems helps to recharge our aquifers, protect our storm water systems, and ultimately, our creeks and bay.
  
  Many other requirements minimize the loss of water through leaks and breaks.  Separate irrigation or sub meters are also mandatory on most landscapes.  This allows for water use monitoring and is another tool to catch leaks quickly.
  
  Old water regulations used to tell you which days you could water your lawn.  These regulations tell you how much mulch you need to use and promote more appropriate plants.  The comprehensive and holistic approach that is climate driven is exactly what is needed to promote both the conservation of our most precious resources, as well as good land stewardship and respect for our climate and our environment.  While some complain about more rules, this legislation should be embraced.  Hopefully the days of seeing potable water going down the storm drain will be a thing of the past.  It’s about time.

Create vibrant color palette in autumn landscape

• Marie Narlock

• I'm always intrigued by folks who look down their noses at our Northern California autumns. "I miss the East Coast," they say, "where there's fall color."
  
  True enough, New England does put on a show. If you're lucky enough to catch it at its peak — which lasts a few weeks at best — it's quite stunning. Typically, the farther north you go the earlier the season begins. Of course, the farther north you go the colder it gets, too. Want to sit outside and enjoy those fall colors in Vermont? Bring a parka.
  
  That's why autumn in Marin is so spectacular: the days are warm, the fog has lifted, and the autumn colors arrive. Not the clobber-you-over-the-head experience, but enough to remind you that summer is a thing of the past. As an added bonus, there are numerous flowers that bloom during these sublime months, with the result being a landscape that can best be described as a fall bouquet.
  
  It's not difficult to create a landscape that glows in fall. Just adding a few specimens can transform your summer garden into a fall microcosm. This is where you'll want to zero in on the deep hues of red, orange and yellow. No pastels allowed no matter how cheap they are at the nursery (save those for spring).
  
  Yes, you could paint your garden using only fall foliage. But why limit yourself? Choose a combination of foliage and flowers and the result will be a garden that pays tribute to the season. Here are a few to consider.
  
  Scarlet standouts
  
  I defy anyone to find a plant with redder autumn leaves than California's native grapevine (Vitis californica "Roger's Red"). It was recently determined that this vine is actually a hybrid between the native vine and the non-native wine grape (Vitis vinifera). But don't let that stop you. This vine is stunning, providing unparalleled fall color and, as an added bonus, tantalizing grapes that birds love. Plant it, and stand back: it's a vine after all, reaching lengths of 30 feet or more. Don't have that much space? Try its cousin, Vitis californica "Walker Ridge," which tops out at 6 to 10 feet and sports both red and orange leaves.
  
  If finding space for a climber is out of the question, but you're still craving those red leaves, then consider a Dogwood tree (Cornus florida). In addition to offering lovely spring flowers, Dogwoods turn burgundy red in fall.
  
  If you prefer a shrub, the California native Red Twig dogwood (Cornus sericea) may be a better option. This elegant shrub colors up beautifully in fall (and bares its bright red stems in winter). Native to riparian areas, this dogwood appreciates supplemental watering.
  
  Let's not stop at leaves. One of fall's most knockout firecracker red flowers is our native fuchsia (Zauschneria or its new name, Epilobium canum). This shrub is a sight for the eyes — and a drink for the hummingbirds. Blooming through summer and well into fall, the native fuchsias are vigorous growers and come in a variety of sizes and shapes, often with grey foliage. They like heat and, although not absolutely necessary, a little extra water in summer.
  
  Go orange
  
  The most fluorescent orange imaginable comes from the Chinese Pistache tree (Pistacia chinensis). Seriously, this one looks backlit. It's also a reliable tree, working equally well in lawns or garden beds. One variety of the common smoke tree (Cotinus "Grace") has particularly striking fall foliage, taking on both orange and purple hues. Its burgundy flowers during the rest of the year make it a striking accent plant.
  
  As for flowers, it's hard to beat lion's tail (Leonotus leonurus), a drought-tolerant shrub that grows 3 to 6 feet tall and sports deep orange blooms through summer and fall. As an added bonus, deer don't like to munch on this plant.
  
  Flashy yellows
  
  I'm always astounded by the towering, colorful warmth of a Ginkgo tree (Ginkgo biloba) in autumn. Unbelievably, this tree dates back to prehistoric times, 200 million years ago, when it grew all over the planet. Today it's native to two regions in China, but thanks to our welcoming climate it has become a regular visitor. This is a slow grower, with very distinctive leaves, that grows to about 50 feet. Be sure to get a male Ginkgo, since the females produce foul-smelling fruit.
  
  If you have room and are a native purist, consider our state's lovely sycamore tree (Platanus racemosa), whose fall foliage turns deep gold before dropping. This is a speedy grower, jetting up to 75 feet. It takes wind and heat, but it enjoys some water. Note that sycamores may be allelopathic, meaning their roots and leaves emit chemicals that create inhospitable areas for planting underneath. Don't try to garden under a sycamore because you will be disappointed (and take note on your next hike how there is rarely much growing under sycamores).
  
  There are some excellent yellow flowering plants in autumn, including the upright spikes of the torch lily (also know as the red hot poker or Kniphofia). Check out the diminutive "Candle Light" and 5-foot giant "Yellow Cheer." Another no-brainer is the ever-present yarrow (Achillea), which comes in a variety of colors if you don't want yellow. It provides the perfect landing pads for butterflies. 

Creating a Garden Album

• Marybeth Kampman
• by Marybeth Kampman

  The rainy days at the end of winter find many of us curled up in front of the fire doing some virtual gardening, perusing garden catalogs. A book that should be included in your stack of things to be read is the manual to that new digital camera that Santa brought you this year. You may discover that your camera can serve as one of your most useful garden tools.

  It is fun and enlightening to take regular photos of your garden. One approach is to stand in the same spot(s) in your garden once a week, or month, and snap a picture. At the end of the year you will have a very clear idea of how your garden has progressed through the seasons.

  You may also choose to chronicle the growth of a certain plant, your favorite or your problem child. Taking pictures of plants that are your pride and joy when they are at their peak is a common thing to do, but what about taking a few showing their progress throughout the season? You will find that you become more appreciative of the intricacies of Mother Nature as you follow the life cycle of your plants. If you choose to focus on the plant that just doesn’t seem to thrive no matter what you do, you may be surprised at the information that presents itself in a series of photos taken over the season.

  It is also very helpful to take pictures of the layout of a bed, noting color combinations or plantings that work well together. It will help in the future seasons if you are interested in rotating your plants or just remembering those plants that seem to get lost in the foliage of the overly exuberant ones. Unsure of who that stranger is that took root in amongst your flowers? Snap a photo of the intruding plant and take it to the garden store or library to identify it.

  Try taking before and after pictures of how and where you planted. Bulbs come to mind. Did the gophers really eat your bulbs or did you just forget where you planted them? How deep did you plant that rose—did you try adding different amendments this time? Take photos as you work—shoot a photo of each of the steps you take in planting or transplanting. Take a picture of the bag that tells what amendments you are using and one of the measuring cup to document the amount you used. A picture of the tag that came with the plant is also very handy to have. I often find when referring to them later in the season that they were labeled with seemingly disappearing ink.

  When you prune take before and after shots—not only will you feel good about your day’s labor but you will have a record of the way you went about the task. Use the photos as a reference to find out if you were correct in cutting that main branch—did it really encourage the growth of the smaller ones? Take another shot in a few months and compare; learn from your work. If you hire someone to do the work, chronicle what they are doing so that it can be repeated if successful or changed if not successful.

  Got a plant that is sick or not thriving? The Master Gardener at the desk in Novato will welcome you with open arms if you bring in a sample and photos of the plant growing in your garden. (Master Gardeners volunteer for UC Cooperative Extension.) Putting a problem in context really helps the problem solving process.
  
  

  Or how about the plant that is covered with tiny little bugs? Sometimes even using a magnifying glass it is difficult to really see the critter and even harder to describe it to someone else. Don’t despair—most digital cameras, even the less expensive and older versions have a macro setting. Macro mode will bring you up close and personal to whoever is taking up residence among your plants. You will not see exactly how magnified the subject is until you download and view them on your computer screen.

  There is one caveat to using the macro mode and that is that you will need to stabilize your camera. The easiest way is to use a tripod. There are many inexpensive tripods available that work quite well. Because of the magnification and large aperture used in macro mode, any motion of your hand puts the photo out of focus. You may even consider using the timer setting on your camera. Set up the shot, start the timer and stand back and let the camera do the work. The photo will come out flawlessly because the camera shake will be eliminated.

  When the sun comes out, go out and take photos of your garden. Next year at this time you will find yourself engrossed in gardening catalogs and in your personal garden album.

Creating a sustainable future with landscaping

• Juliana Jensen

• 'Sustainable gardening." That sounds about as drab as a gray school uniform or an old beige sofa. But that isn't it at all.

  Sustainable gardening is about choosing to create a beautiful garden — edible, ornamental or both — that is in harmony with our natural ecosystem. It is a matter of bringing a mindfulness and care to design choices that will create not only healthy vegetables and beautiful flowers in the small bit of Earth in our backyards, but will also help to promote the diversity and health of our region and even our planet. This is truly a case of "Think Globally, Act Locally." How often do you actually get to have such a profound effect with very little effort?

  There are several basic principles of sustainable gardening. We need to build soil, conserve water, invite wildlife, make smart plant choices and contribute to the health of our community by saving energy, reducing waste and eliminating chemicals, pesticides and pollutants from our gardens. Here are a few of the ways this can be done.

  • Building soil. Every Master Gardener's mantra: Compost, compost, compost! Adding compost to your soil will enrich it with organic nutrients, improve the texture, and provide a welcome use for kitchen scraps. Keeping a layer of mulch on top of the soil around plants with improve water retention and encourage growth of earthworms, particularly if you resist tilling the soil. Over time, your backyard dirt will improve to a rich, loamy-textured soil where it will be a pleasure to plant.
  • Conserving water. With the looming drought, this point is more important than ever. Water can be conserved by careful irrigation methods, such as a drip system with a timer. Plants can be hydrozoned, with the thirstier plants placed together so they can get more water without overwatering the plants with lower water requirements. And thoughtful plant choice, including choosing native plants that evolved for our climate, will help conserve water.
  • Inviting wildlife. Wildlife needs food, water, shelter and places to raise their young. Letting your garden go a little "wild," with a diversity of plant material and a little overgrowth, can be a big aid to wildlife. A benefit of choosing native plant species is that you are providing a home for native birds and insects, particularly native bees. The native wildlife has evolved to coexist with the bloom cycle of native plants so that the proper nourishment is provided in the appropriate season. A shallow ceramic platter or jar filled with fresh water, will be a popular stop for your local wildlife. It is a great delight to have a garden filled with cheerful birds, floating butterflies and noisy bees. Keeping a field guide handy is a great way to increase your pleasure as you learn the names of your garden visitors.
  • Making smart plant choices. You can design a beautiful garden using plants that have low water requirements. Every category of plant — trees, shrubs, vines, ground covers, perennials — offers choices you can enjoy in your garden. Publications such as "Plants and Landscapes for Summer — Dry Climates of the San Francisco Bay Region" produced by the East Bay Municipal Utility District and "California Native Plants for the Garden" by Carol Bornstein, David Fross and Bart O'Brien provide inspiring pictures and plant lists. You also can be careful when choosing the variety of plant to opt for one that is disease- and pest-resistant to reduce the need for chemical applications.

  Saving energy, reducing waste, eliminating chemicals. If you do the things outlined here, you will already be a long way to achieving this goal. Your rich soil will not require synthetic fertilizers and your thoughtful planting choices, as well as willingness to live with less than perfection, will eliminate pesticides. You also can reduce your contribution to greenhouse gasses by choosing hand-powered tools whenever possible, by using solar-powered outdoor lighting or water features, and by growing your own organic food.

  Don't worry! You will not be left to muddle through this by yourself. The Bay-Friendly Landscaping and Garden Coalition has produced an excellent online publication, "The Bay Friendly Gardening Guide," a 70 page how-to guide that can be found at www.bayfriendlycoalition.org/bfguidedetail.shtml. This information-packed guide is not just a technical manual, but covers such topics as gardening for a sense of place and gardening through the seasons.

  Another helpful resource is the free public seminar to be given by Marin Master Gardener Betsy McGee from 11 a.m. to noon Feb. 8 at the San Anselmo Public Library. She will be highlighting some of the major points in the guide and explaining how to implement the ideas.

  The University of California Marin Master Gardeners are sponsored by UC Cooperative Extension. For questions about gardening, plant pests or diseases, call 473-4204 from 9 a.m. to noon, and 1 to 4 p.m. weekdays, or bring in samples or pictures to 1682 Novato Blvd., Suite 150B, Novato.

   

   

Creating feng shui in your garden

• Dot Zanotti Ingels

• We are all looking for a little slice of paradise in our gardens. We want our gardens to be a place to unwind, entertain and get closer to nature. The secret to achieving this goal is to balance everything in your garden.

  The best reward for my gardening efforts is a lasting and personal space that I can share with flora, fauna, family and friends. This means I make a plan to balance design, decoration, planting and maintenance in my garden.

  Master Gardeners are always talking about integrated pest management (IPM). A proactive IPM approach encourages the use of methods that support long-term prevention or suppression of pest problems with minimum impact on human (and pet) health, the environment and non-target organisms. A central principle in IPM is the integration of several control methods such as:

  • Planting resistant varieties of our favorite plants and planting a variety of species to attract pollinators and beneficials to our yards.

  • Environmental controls and cultural practices such as planting the right plant in the right place, caring for our soil, proper fertilization, proper watering, and keeping the garden free of debris and weeds.

  • Biological controls include conserving beneficial organisms by the judicious use of pesticides. An IPM program can often be carried out with almost no use of chemical controls.

  Following these scientific principles brings balance to our vegetative garden but, to me, it is equally important to apply design principles to my garden so I am just as welcome there as my plant and insect friends. Everything in our lives is connected. I want my garden to nurture me. I want it to be an extension of my indoor space. I want a symbiotic relationship between me and my garden. I want a tranquil place in nature that is inviting, relaxing and energizing.

  Feng shui is the art and science of creating harmony and balance in our environment. It is the understanding of vital life force (chi) energy present in all living things. The goal of a feng shui garden is to work with the beauty of nature and enhance all of the earth’s elements — such as wood, water, metal, fire and earth — to achieve the balance and positive energy flow we want in our overall landscape design.

  The five elements of feng shui can be represented in the garden by plants and objects. Here are some of the hardscape approaches to bring the elements into your garden:

  • Earth — soil, rocks and boulders and clay flowerpots

  • Wood — an arbor, planting boxes, benches

  • Water — a fountain or birdbath

  • Fire — solar lighting, lanterns, candles, firepit

  • Metal — wind chimes, planters, furniture

  What do feng shui and IPM have in common? That everything is connected. Universal life principles, the wisdom of feng shui and IPM work together to create a dynamic, healthy and beautiful garden.

   

Creepy, crawly spiders help keep garden pests in check

• Nanette Londeree

• Spiders get a bad rap; many people go to great lengths to get rid of them.

  Is it their other-worldly appearance? Concern about being bitten by a poisonous type or simply the idea of “creepy, crawling” things? Whatever the reason, before eliminating them, it’s good to understand the invaluable role they play keeping pest populations in check.

  Found around the globe with at least 37,000 known species, spiders inhabit everywhere but the oceans and Antarctica. These eight-legged predators consume mostly insects and other spiders, injecting venom through their fangs to paralyze or kill their prey.

  Spiders you may encounter indoors are cellar spiders, cobweb spiders and funnel weaver spiders, while in the garden, you’re most likely to see crab spiders, jumping spiders, orb weavers and wolf spiders.

  Cellar spiders, also known as daddy long-legs, make irregular tangled webs in basements, storage sheds, ceilings and other dry locations with low light. Another creature often referred to as daddy long-legs is a harvestman, which is not a spider at all. This arachnid does have eight long skinny legs, but its body is one round segment and it doesn’t produce silk.

  Cobweb spiders are frequent inhabitants of dark corners in basements, abandoned buildings and piles of wood, hanging upside down in irregular, sticky webs. Their brown bodies are globular like widow spiders but they’re harmless (unless you’re an insect or spider). Funnel weavers are the most common spiders found in homes, particularly during late summer and early fall. The sit-and-wait predators produce dense mats of silk around cracks or recessed areas they use as a retreat.

  Colorful crab or flower spiders have enlarged front legs that give them a crab-like appearance. They hunt during the day and often appear on blossoms where they blend with their background and pounce on unsuspecting prey. Hairy-looking jumping spiders don’t build webs but stalk and swoop down on their target. They have excellent vision, the ability to jump impressive distances for their size and tremendous appetites.

  It’s hard to miss an orb weaver; the enormous mature females are adorned with exotic looking black and yellow markings. They spin elaborate webs in concentric circles in the garden and wait for prey to become entangled. With long, hairy legs, wolf spiders hunt by running down prey on the ground.

  The spider of greatest concern in our area is the black widow. Easily recognized, the mature female is shiny black with a distinctive red hourglass marking on her underside. These spiders seek out holes, crevices, trash and clutter, and are often found around homes, outbuildings and rock walls.

  Only large female black widows can injure people. Within an hour of being bitten, symptoms begin to appear that may include rigid stomach muscles, sweating and pain that can be local, radiating or regional, or simply resemble the flu. If bitten, seek medical attention immediately or call the California Poison Control Center at 1-800-8-POISON. Anti-venom for black widow bites is available and bite victims can go from intense pain back to normal in 30 minutes.

  The false black widow, harmless to humans, can be mistaken for its dangerous cousins; it’s slightly smaller, chocolate brown and does not have the red hourglass on the underside of the abdomen.

  A spider that gets a lot of press is the poisonous brown recluse.

  “No populations of brown recluse spiders are known to ever have resided in California,” according to Rick Vetter, Department of Entomology, University of California, Riverside. “We do have a healthy widespread population of a related species, the desert recluse, but it is found exclusively in the southeastern California deserts where not many people live.”

  If you happen upon spiders in the garden (other than the black widow), just ignore them and let them do their thing — helping to keep your garden pests in check.

Cucumber beetles

• Martha Proctor

• Gardeners beware!  With the onset of warm days, there is a ravenous pest than can move rapidly onto its favored plants, curcurbits or melons (especially honeydew, crenshaw and casaba), and begin making large holes in the foliage and scarring the melon’s outer skin and crown.  In fact, this colorful pest is known to feed on more than 200 alternate host plants.  The adults consume the tender young shoots, flowers and stems on beans, squash, corn, potatoes, tomatoes, peas, beets, asparagus, eggplant, cabbage, and other vegetables as well as the shoots and blossoms of just about all the stone fruits (including peaches, apricots, plums).  This major pest of curcubits and culprit in question is the western-spotted cucumber beetle (Diabrotica undecimpunctata) and western-striped cucumber beetle. (Acalymma vittatum)

  The western-spotted cucumber beetle is the most abundant species in California.  Adult western-spotted cucumber beetles are shiny, 1/4" long, with long antennae and black heads.  Their greenish-yellow coloring and the twelve black spots on their back make them easy to identify.    Larvae are whitish and slender with three pairs of short legs; the head and tip of the abdomen are darker.  Don’t confuse our welcome visitor, lady beetles (commonly known as ladybugs), who have short and stubby antennae, with cucumber beetles.

  Beetles overwinter as adults in weedy areas and move into our gardens as soon as plants start to come up.  They lay yellow-orange eggs at the base of plants or in soil cracks.  Hatching larvae burrow into the ground seeking out roots, feed there for 2 to 6 weeks, pupate and emerge as adult beetles and then attack the aboveground portions of the plants they favor.  Fortunately, the feeding of the larval stage beetle causes little harm to plants.  There are three generations a year.    

  Cucumber beetles are difficult to control. Unfortunately, there are no effective cultural controls or effective natural enemies for these pests. Start checking your garden for cucumber beetles soon after transplanting or when seedlings emerge. Inspect chewed leaves, petals, and fruits for adults (especially leaf and fruit undersides touching soil), in flowers and at stem bases. The best strategy for most vegetable gardens is to place protective cloth, individual cups or cones over emerging plants and remove it when plants are old enough to tolerate damage.  On stone fruit trees, early harvest may be the only option.    

  Prevention and early control are essential. The least toxic method of extermination is hand picking and dropping the pests into a bucket of soapy water to drown. This can prove difficult as the beetles are most active between dusk and dawn, fly readily, and move quickly. Because the larvae are underground, the only life stage that’s treatable is the adult beetle stage.  Spray with pyrethrum, Neem, or spinosad products. In fall, remove garden debris as these are likely to become overwintering sites. In fall or spring, it can help to lightly till soil to kill eggs and larvae.

  Both species of cucumber beetle are vectors of squash mosaic virus and the pathogen that causes bacteria wilt of cucurbits, Erwinia tracheiphia.  Bacterial wilt causes susceptible plants to wilt and die.  Also, other cucumber beetles can pick up the bacterium from infected plants and transfer it to healthy plants.  To prevent bacterial wilt in susceptible crops, scout out beetles twice weekly at the seedling stage.  Remove and destroy any wilted plants.  Bacterial wilt is most severe in cantaloupe and cucumber, less so on squash and pumpkin and rare in established watermelon plants.

  The recommendation is to consider treatment on adult beetles with pesticides when numbers reach an average of 1 beetle/plant during the seedling to 4" tall stage.  If infestations are severe and an insecticide is used, it must be used with caution to avoid injury to bees. 

  Once plants get large enough, they usually survive.  To minimize the chance of having a cucumber beetle infestation, rotate plants to avoid overwintering and shield young seedlings. 

Cultivating your own food doesn't have to cost a bundle

• Marybeth Kampman

• Gardening is in. Everyone is trying his or her hand at growing his or her own. For some the decision stems from wanting to establish a relationship with the food they eat. For others it is a way to commune with nature and get exercise. And then there is the practical side of gardening - it saves money.

  I garden for all those reasons, but recently wondered how economically viable it is to grow your own. Viewing some of the prices at my neighborhood gardening center made me question the possibility of creating a flourishing garden on a budget. So I took the challenge and decided to see if it was possible to be a truly frugal gardener.

  Planning is the first step to starting a garden that will be truly sustainable. Planting a successful garden takes more than a strong back and a shovel. Some basic knowledge about your site and what it takes to make a garden thrive are necessary. Instead of hiring a garden planner, try joining the DYI (do it yourself) movement. The result may be that you will find yourself more connected to your garden. If you plan and understand your garden's underlying structure, your gardening efforts will be more successful and therefore more rewarding.

  Designate some time to do some online research. A great place to start is the California Gardening website (http://cagardenweb.ucdavis.edu), developed by the UC Statewide Master Gardener Program in conjunction with the University of California Cooperative Extension. Here you can discover your climate zone and find information specific to it.

  Along with gardening basics, there is information for plant selection, seasonal tips and dealing with pests and weeds. A helpful calendar of classes and events lists hands-on learning experiences for the home gardener.

  You can also download free PDF files filled with gardening and landscaping tips from the Bay-Friendly Landscaping and Gardening Coalition, a nonprofit that focuses specifically on promoting sustainable landscaping and gardening practices in the Bay Area (www.bayfriendlycoalition.org).

  Raise your beds

  For the new or urban gardener, raised beds or container gardening is a good option. When visiting gardening stores, you may be tempted by the beautiful but often pricey pots and containers. Try instead to get in touch with your creative side and repurpose and recycle containers and lumber into raised beds or planters.

  A good place to start is Marin Freecycle (www.marincountyfreecycle.org). Recently I searched gardening supplies and came up with offers for used lumber, pots and garden sculptures. Everything posted is free, and you can request items or advertise things that you no longer need. You may even find yourself making a plant exchange buddy.

  Another site that offers free materials along with opportunities to swap or barter items or services is MarinMax (www.marin max.org/index.cfm). It also lists garage sales and other resources for recycling.

  If you are feeling particularly creative, head over to the East Bay Depot for Creative Reuse (www.creativereuse.org). It is a treasure trove of discarded goods just waiting to be repurposed into garden art, trellises, birdhouses or unique water elements.

  Build healthy soil

  Remember that gardens are all about the soil. Of course you should start your own compost or worm bin. You can find out everything you need to know, about composting at www.howtocompost.org/default.asp. Until your compost gets into full production, go to your local soil company; it's cheaper to shovel and haul your own soil, compost or mulch than to buy it by the bag in a garden store.

  Horse stables often give away bedding for free. To avoid burning tender plants, horse manure should be composted for three to six months before putting directly on the garden. Contact your local rabbit rescue organization for rabbit pellets, which make great fertilizer and can be directly placed on the garden.

  Many tree services offer free wood chips that can be used for mulch or decoratively for walkways. Be sure to inquire about the type of wood being chipped.

  Seeds and cuttings

  The least-expensive way to garden is to grow plants from seeds or cuttings. It pays, however, to be mindful of the origin of the seeds you are planting. MCSTOPP (Marin County Stormwater Pollution Prevention Program) offers a comprehensive list of nurseries selling natives and organic seeds (http://mcstoppp.org/garden.htm). Another great site to view images and find out more about a particular plant is CalPhotos(http://calphotos.berkeley.edu//flora), where you can browse plants by their scientific or common name.

  Once your garden is underway learn to save seeds by going to the Seeds of Change website (www.seedsofchange.com). Many local groups such as Sustainable Fairfax (www.sustainablefairfax.org) and Marin Open Garden Project (http://opengarden

  project.blogspot.com) include seed saving and exchange programs.

  Save water

  Creating a water-wise garden will save you money for years to come, as well as being kind to the environment. Learn about water-wise plants by using sustainable irrigation methods. Go to the UC Marin Master Gardener Water Wise Plant Selector Guide (http://groups.ucanr.org/MGPG/index.cfm). Once you have set up a system, use the Marin Municipal Water site (www.marinwater.org) to set a weekly watering schedule.

  You may also want to learn more about new laws for rainwater and gray water harvesting; find the latest updates online at Marin Municipal Water's site.

  If you are like me, your Web search will lead you to new ideas and options for creating a beautiful sustainable garden on a budget.

Darwin, Divas and Worms

• Annie Spiegelman

• “We are the worms . . . We are the children. We are the ones who make a brighter day . . . so let’s start giving.” Isn’t that a Lionel Richie hit from the eighties?

  It’s time we started showing some respect and gratitude for the underappreciated earthworm, the night crawlers, and their boy back-up band, fungi and bacteria. They are the true heroes and workhorses who do all the necessary dirty work to keep our soil full of nutrients. It’s said that in the late 1800’s, British scientist and naturalist Charles Darwin spent nearly 40 years studying earthworms! Obviously this respected scholar and naturalist had way too much time on his hands. He SO would have benefited from Wikipedia. Maybe then he wouldn’t have bored his friends to tears for 40 years with his controversial theories of evolution, and signed copies of his painstakingly detailed but endearing tome, “The Formation of Vegetable Mould Through the Action of Worms, With Observations of their Habits.” I didn’t make it past the first chapter . . . but here is what I learned before I took a nice nap:

  1. Worms help air and water enter and circulate through soil.

  2. They break down organic matter, such as leaves, into nutrients plants can use.

  3. Worms secrete slime, which contains nitrogen, one of the most important elements for healthy plants.

  4. One pound of red wigglers in a compost pile can eat nearly 65 pounds of food scraps in 3 to 4 months!

  5. They eat and dump, and leave behind those precious worm castings or pure fertilizer.

  6. Recent studies by the Rodale Institute show that worm compost has growth benefits that exceed even those of plain compost!

  (Are you wondering how Darwin knew about the recent Rodale study? C’mon, the guy was a genius!)

  Red Wigglers or Eisenia foetida are all the rage. They are your garden superstars but luckily they’re not demanding divas. They don’t need a center-stage spotlight on them! They thrive in moisture and dark. They don’t insist on organic Evian water in their dressing room, but they do require some good ol’ fungi, bacteria, a banana peel or two and yesterday’s Sports page to create nature’s best fertilizer in their castings.

  Their castings are rich in trace minerals, plant nutrients and growth enhancers. They have a NPK (nitrogen, phosphorous, potassium) ratio of 3.2-1.1-1.5. The nutrients are readily available to the plants. If you’re anything like yours truly and sometimes overfeed your plants, as any good Jewish mother will, the good news is that the castings are incapable of burning your plants. Work a top layer into your perennial borders, vegetable garden or around trees, especially in the spring, and you won’t have to fertilize again for the season.

  I have good news for those of you who don’t have the time, space or guts to build and maintain your own worm bin. Allow me to proudly introduce to you an organic gardener’s and diva’s best friend. Terracycle Worm Poop! Yup, you read that right. Worm poop in a recycled bottle. Now that’s American ingenuity!

  It all began back in 2001, in a Princeton University dorm room, after former students and future CEO’s Tom Szaky and Jon Beyer witnessed a classmate feeding food scraps to a box of worms. They learned their classmate fed the worms in exchange for their castings, which were loaded with the abundant nutrients he required to support the special plants he was furtively growing in his basement. Szaky and Beyer’s idea was simple and brilliant: take waste, process it, and turn it into a useful product. The next summer Szaky and Beyer took all of the Princeton Dining Services waste and processed it in their prototype “Worm Gin.” By the end of the summer, they had perfected their processing and found their first investor. The company grew quickly and now Home Depot, Whole Foods, Target, Walmart and Wild Oats are carrying the TerraCycle line.

  However, if you’ve got the time and energy to build your own worm bin, go for it!

  We are the worms, we are the future . . . All together now!

Deal with garden’s pests and diseases now

• Dot Zanotti Ingels

• I am writing this column while watching the rain pour and the wind blow with gusto. I can see my apple, peach and pear trees. The leaves are gone and the beautiful structure of each tree is in full view. I like this time of year for so many cozy reasons and one of them is less demand for garden work. It is easy to be lured into thinking there is nothing to do but, in fact, a bit of effort now can lead to fewer problems later in the year. The best time to manage problems of pests and diseases from the past year is before the precious plant buds that hold the promise of yummy treats to come break open.

  The most common insect pests and diseases we receive questions about at the UC Marin Master Gardener help desk are codling moth, fire blight and leaf curl. The three problems are caused by three different vectors.

  Leaf curl

  Leaf curl is caused by a fungus and is seen on nectarine and peach trees. The fungus spores overwinter underneath bud scales and other protected spots. Leaf curl shows up as distorted, reddened, puckered and curled leaves that are visible in spring. The leaves fall off and fruit production is reduced if the disease is severe.

  Fire blight

  Fire blight is caused by bacteria and is found here mostly on pear and apple trees. Fire blight infections overwinter in the wood and, in spring, the bacterial ooze is spread by bees and rain. Common symptoms of the disease start with brown spots and shrivel on leaves. Stem and blossoms can rapidly expand as the blight clogs the water-conducting vascular system of the host and causes areas of dead and discolored tissue.

  Codling moth

  Codling moth is an insect. Codling moth has the greatest potential for damage of any apple pest, yet it can be effectively controlled with properly timed treatments. It causes two types of fruit damage: stings and deep entries. Stings are entries where larvae bore into the flesh a short distance before dying. Deep entries occur when moth larvae penetrate the fruit skin, bore to the core, and feed in the seed cavity. Larvae may enter through the sides, stem end or calyx end of the fruit. One or more holes plugged with frass (poop) on the fruit’s surface are a characteristic sign of codling moth infestation, but calyx entries are difficult to detect without cutting the fruit.

  Dormant treatments

  In fruit trees, yearly applications of a dormant treatment are the key to successful pest management. Dormant spraying is a generic term for any spray applied to leafless deciduous trees during fall, winter and early spring. Some dormant sprays are applied to control over-wintering insects, while others are used to prevent disease infection.

  In Marin, dormant sprays are applied from late November until the latter part of February or until you observe the beginning of the bloom. The dormant spray is the most important because it is the least disruptive to beneficial insects and the environment and is easy to apply.

  Dormant season applications of specially refined oils (often called insecticidal or horticultural oils) are effective against many insects common to most deciduous fruit trees. They work by smothering the insects. Dormant season applications of copper or a synthetic fungicide are used to limit infection and prevent the spread of bacterial and fungal diseases like fire blight and leaf curl. For diseases with long infection periods like fire blight, it may be necessary to make several applications to protect new emerging shoots and flowers, especially during rainy spring weather.

  Spraying is super easy to do yourself. Thorough application and coverage is essential for successful treatment of problems. The oils and fungicide can be mixed and applied together. Wear protective gear (goggles, mask, long sleeves and long pants). Pump sprayers are the best way to evenly and thoroughly apply the material. Trees should be hydrated and do not spray in heavy fog, rain or freeze.

  Check with your nursery for help in selecting the best products for you and the best timing of application for your variety. Get your trees protected and wait for the wonderful fruits of your labors.

Debunking the myths about growing tomatoes

• Marie Narlock

• There's a lot of nonsense floating around about how to grow tomatoes. But you don't have to fall for it.

  To grow the tastiest tomatoes, rely on facts — not fiction. Here are common misconceptions about growing the queen of summer:

  • "They're all the same. I can buy any tomato, anywhere." Sure, and maybe you should've mail-ordered your kids, too. If you want to take your chances with an unknown variety grown and sprayed heaven knows where and drop-shipped to your local nursery, then go for it.

    If you want hand-selected tomatoes homegrown by experts at the lovingly restored Falkirk greenhouse in San Rafael, buy them at the Master Gardener tomato market on April 26 at the Bon Air Shopping Center in Greenbrae or Pini Ace Hardware in Novato. It's where you can choose Green Zebra, one of Alice Waters' favorites. Or perhaps Enchantment better suits your taste, since it's perfect for sauces. Or maybe Carmello's your style, the No. 1 tomato in Europe because of its sublime sugar and acid balance.

    Visit the Master Gardener website at www.marinmg.org to learn more about these and other varieties geared for success in Marin County and will be available at the tomato market.

  • "I should spray my tomatoes with magic-grow solutions." Let's start with the basics. Tomatoes shouldn't be sprayed at all, not even with water. Wet tomato leaves invite diseases. As for fertilizer, if you've amended your soil with compost, you're probably good to go. If you're a diehard plant feeder, use a fertilizer higher in phosphorus than nitrogen — and only when fruit appears.

  • "I live in the fog. There's no hope for me." That may be true if you want a tan, but not if you want luscious tomatoes. You just need the right varieties, such as Celebrity or Moskvich, noted for their ability to withstand cool temperatures.
    
    
  • "I only have a deck, so I'm out of luck." A handful of tomatoes grow happily in containers, including New Big Dwarf, which stay just 2 feet tall but pump out juicy tomatoes up to a pound each.
    
    
  • "We're in a drought, so I shouldn't grow tomatoes." News flash: every year is a drought year in California. We live in a Mediterranean climate that's bone dry every summer, remember? If you think growing tomatoes uses lots of water in your backyard, just think of the water it takes to seed, transplant, feed, irrigate, spray, harvest, wash, package and ship them to your local grocery store. Bottom line? There's no comparison. Water your tomatoes regularly (at the roots, not the leaves) until fruit sets and then cut back to once a week. Add a thick layer of mulch to keep moisture in and weeds out.

  • "I should plant my tomatoes ASAP so they get bigger than my neighbor's." Competitive tomato growing is challenging if you're impatient. Why? Because until the weather (and the soil) warms up, that sweet little tomato plant is going to just sit there. Wait until May 1 to plant your tomatoes. Planting earlier is usually a waste of time, and it invites disease.

  • "I need to buy those tomato cages at the nursery." Proceed with caution. Indeterminate tomato plants — that is, the ones that crank out fruit until it gets cold — grow from 6 to 12 feet tall. Those wimpy cages aren't going to cut it. Buy or build heftier supports for these monsters. Determinate varieties only grow 3 to 4 feet tall and are fine with little or no support.
    
    
  • "I should grow tomatoes upside down because I saw it in a magazine." My personal favorite. What's next? Growing redwood trees upside down? Stick with the good old-fashioned roots in the ground and the plant growing upward and chances are you'll be slicing tomatoes for summer barbecues before you know it.

Demonstration garden a way to learn best practices for growing your own edibles

• Anne-Marie Walker

• A good gardener is always looking for new ideas for growing edibles beautifully, productively and water efficiently.

  This past summer, UC Marin Master Gardeners planted a demonstration garden in the edible garden at Marin Art and Garden Center (MAGC). Seeds of heirloom squashes, lettuces, scarlet runner beans and sunflowers were inter-planted in one raised bed. Mingling compatibly in a second bed were tomatoes, sweet bell peppers, onions and herbs.

  These warm weather crops will be harvested the first two weeks of October by third- and fourth-grade students attending Dig It, Grow It, Eat It workshops taught by UC Marin Master Gardeners. The workshops allow the students to not only harvest vegetables, fruits and seeds, but also learn about nutrition. Lessons include learning about edible plant parts, pollination and propagation, as well as seed and soil science. Working their way through learning stations, students begin to appreciate the promise of bud swell, roots and leaves. As they taste the harvest, they gain an understanding of the human body’s need for healthy food one bite at a time.

  A productive garden should always be about judging the state of the soil, the health of the plants, the diversity of the species grown and the design of the garden. Successful gardens use scientifically proven best practices to increase the abundance of bloom, and production of fruits and vegetables.

  Have you ever wondered about the impact of soil temperature on seed germination? How about the accuracy of seed packet data on days to germinate, days to flower, days to set fruit? And, in an increasingly drier, hotter California, how much water did it take to grow these warm weather crops and what was the yield? In the edible garden data is posted publicly on germination, water applied and the yield. When you visit, be sure to view the four varieties of heirloom winter squashes: ‘Lakota,’ ‘Sweet Dumpling,’ ‘Waltham Butternut’ and ‘Golden Hubbard.’ In early summer, a mesclun mix of lettuces grows among the young squash seedlings. In late summer, a mix of additional leafy greens were planted under the squash leaves increasing yields in the raised beds. Planted close together, but not too crowded, the greens grow rapidly and need daily water only during germination. Afterward, shaded by the squash leaves, water was applied only two or three times a week. A small concentrated space produced a larger yield.

  In addition to the Edible garden at MAGC, you can visit other garden areas tended by UC Marin Master Gardeners: the habitat garden, the herb and medicinal garden, and the garden of the sun featuring water-wise plants. In the nursery area near the Butterfly Cottage, Master Gardeners propagate many of the plants used to beautify MAGC. Stop by 30 Sir Francis Drake Blvd. in Ross from sunrise to sunset daily.

  Dig It, Grow It, Eat It teaches many things, most of all that we care for the earth because we love it, and we love the earth because we care for it. When we learn about the rich and varied differences in plant life, we feel hopeful expectancy, the promise of nourishment and the joyful sense of accomplishment; “I grew it myself!”

  Dig It, Grow It, Eat It is not just for the young, but also for those young at heart.

Designing serenity

• Julie Monson

• The presence of water in the garden, whether it's a quiet drip into a basin or a fountain's cascade, seems to enhance the viewer's experience and make the garden a more inviting, inspiring space.

  Historically, gardeners found imaginative ways to incorporate water into the landscape. Enclosed Islamic gardens, for example in Granada, feature pools and fountains surrounded by orange trees and flowers. In formal French gardens, water in broad canals, basins and fountains add grandeur and scale to vast vistas. In contemporary gardens, one often finds a "water feature" like a large ceramic pot, water bubbling from its top, or a small fish pond nestled among some rocks. In the Japanese gardens in Kyoto, water - real or imagined - is an intrinsic element at the center of the garden's meaning.

  Zen gardens are often dry, where water is imagined rather than real. Perhaps the most well-known Zen garden in Japan is Ryoan-ji, believed to have been constructed about 1500. This small, enclosed garden is composed of 15 skillfully placed rocks on five "islands," surrounded by raked sand. The only green comes from a rim of moss surrounding each rock group. Later Zen gardens tended to use larger, boulder-size rocks. Those in Ryoan-ji are almost delicate. This is not a garden to walk through. One sits on the temple veranda and contemplates a serene abstraction of nature, where raked sand can represent water and the rocks represent whatever you can imagine.

  One should not be misled by this garden's simplicity to think that it is easy to maintain. It requires almost daily care to remove leaves, weeds and debris, as well as to rake the sand.

  Another Zen garden, Daisen-in, is within Daitoku-ji, a temple complex of about a dozen temples and gardens, all linked majestically with stone walkways lined by rows of maple or pine trees.

  Heavily influenced by Chinese garden traditions, Daisen-in's garden features a dramatic mountain scene of vertical rocks in one corner through which flows a sand stream over more rocks into a "river" of sand below.

  We were there on a rainy day and able to take our time to contemplate this dynamic scene quietly, as there were no other visitors. It is difficult to explain why this arrangement of rocks and sand could be so fascinating - mesmerizing.

  I wondered if it could begin to feel so powerful if it had been formed with actual water. Could the representation of water be more convincing than water itself?

  Not all Zen gardens are without water. Tenruyi-ji, dating to about 1270 and also influenced by Chinese garden tradition, contains a large, irregularly shaped, rock-lined pond containing a few islands and bays. Visitors sit on the veranda of the adjacent large temple to quietly observe the water, the rock islands and the hillside opposite, covered with evergreen trees and shrubs.

  The scale is much larger than Ryoan-ji, for the garden spreads up the hillside in two directions and includes several linked paths, a stream and small teahouses. Away from the temple itself, one finds blooming azaleas, a few rhododendron, iris and other flowering trees and shrubs. For the visitor, this garden combines ample opportunity for contemplation and for walking through an exquisitely designed and maintained garden.

  We visited Saiho-ji (also called the Moss Garden), in a softly falling rain. Created about 1339 under the direction of a Zen priest who strongly believed in the benefit of meditating while viewing a garden, Saiho-ji is, at first glance, simplicity itself.

  Although there is an adjacent temple with a veranda, the visitor contemplates this garden by walking through it. Simple paths wind around a very irregularly-shaped, rock-lined pond. Moss covers every inch of the gently undulating earth. Slender maple trees filter sunlight onto the moss carpet. In the gently falling rain, sufficient sunlight came through to lighten the spring maple leaves and moss, so that even the air seemed to glow.

  At the home of our Japanese host, a traditional garden includes a shady corner that contained several large rocks, one of which was scooped out at the top, creating a small basin.

  Drops of water fell into the basin from a branch of bamboo. Beneath the basin, small pebbles provided drainage and home for a few small ferns. In the late afternoon, we sat on the sill of his open sliding glass door, sipping tea and contemplating the meaning of this serene scene.

  In my own garden, I've attempted imaginary water with a dry, stone-filled "stream" that winds through a portion of the garden. This stream also functions as drainage in very heavy rains.

  As for real water, a small shady pond contains a few water lilies and adds moisture to nearby moss, hakone grass and bamboo. A stone water basin greets visitors near the courtyard gate. By these simple measures, water, real and imagined, adds magical serenity to the garden.

  The University of California Marin Master Gardeners are sponsored by UC Cooperative Extension. For questions about gardening, plant pests or diseases, call 499-4204 from 9 a.m. to noon, and 1 to 4 p.m. weekdays, or bring in samples or pictures to 1682 Novato Blvd., Suite 150B, Novato

Designing with low-maintenance succulents

• Dot Zanotti Ingels

• We all tend to have a style that we use when planning and planting our home gardens. I would classify mine as cottage. I plant densely and like riotous color and lots of texture.
  
  Outside of a few pots of jade plant, succulents have never been in my radar as I wander through nurseries. I thought of them as prickly and unfriendly. Since I have been trying to plant with the goal of using less irrigation water, I have been giving succulents a long look and, it turns out, I have grown to love them in my garden.
  
  Much to my surprise, I came home from a visit to Arizona with a miniature desert in a shallow container that is happily living in my kitchen bay window that has southern sun exposure. I have found soft-leaved succulents that can live with plants from a Mediterranean climate.
  
  I am not alone. Many of us are expanding our plant palettes to include the many varieties of these plants that can now be found in demonstration gardens and nurseries.
  
  People who do not want to spend a lot of time working in their gardens have found that succulents allow them to have beautiful gardens full of variety, color, texture and flowers are perfect for them. They require less care because they tolerate drought and are not too picky about their soil as long as it drains well. Because they retain a high moisture content in their tissue and they do not contain volatile oils in their leaves, succulents can be a great choice for a fire-wise garden.
  
  Succulents, which can survive drought by storing water in their leaves, stems or roots, are not limited to use in rock gardens. You do need to select varieties that are adapted to your garden's unique growing conditions. Some succulents are frost sensitive. If you have soil that does not drain well, you can plant in a raised bed, pot or any fun container. Containers of various sizes can be placed in your garden to provide interest.
  
  Nurseries stock bagged soils designated for succulents. Most succulents are shallow-rooted, so a container that is 10 to 15 inches deep is often enough. Because they are so efficient at collecting, storing and using water, you need to irrigate judiciously. You can drown them with too much water and their roots will rot. They love the light, and most species need at least four hours a day of sunlight. Most succulents do not need fertilizing. If you plant your succulents in pots, they can benefit from a designated succulent fertilizer or an all-purpose liquid fertilizer that is diluted to one-quarter strength every six weeks during the spring and summer growing season. They can be very easily propagated.
  
  The design principles for planning your succulent garden are the same as for planting any garden. You will want to consider the scale of your property and how much of it you want covered in plant material. Variety of height and width of plants should enhance and complement the style and size of your home and garden. Color is always an important design element. Succulents can be found in shades of blue, silver, bronze, gray, crimson, yellow, chartreuse, lavender or variegated. The colorful leaves of succulents are dramatic and quickly become a focal point.
  
  Succulents can be planted in masses to create a tapestry effect or a single plant can be used to provide dramatic contrast. Many of them display amazing flowers. Texture is important because it refers to the way light hits plant surfaces and how a plant feels. You may not want to plant a prickly plant next to a walkway or where children play. You may want to contrast the textures of your plants to provide visual variety.
  
  Deborah Lee Baldwin has written a book named "Designing with Succulents" (256 pages, Timber Press, $29.95) that is loaded with beautiful pictures and ideas. Local nurseries offer more selections.
  
  If you'd like to learn more about succulents and how to use them, Marin Master Gardeners's dramatic succulent garden at Falkirk Cultural Center in San Rafael displays varieties from around the world. You can view the garden's plant list on the Master Gardener website at marinmg.org. Click on the link to "Plant Showcase" on the homepage and follow that to the Succulents, Grasses and Ferns link.
  
  Also on June 8, Master Gardener Jessica Wasserman will teach a class at Falkirk called "Learn Container Gardening Using Succulents and Companion Plants." She will share great imaginative design skills. A $5 donation is requested.

Designing your Garden with Drought-Tolerant Plants

• Jeanne Price

• Is your garden dying in order to reduce your water bill? Put in drought-tolerant plants in October to catch the winter rains and use less water next summer.

  On Thursday, October 2 at 7 p.m. Deborah Whigham of Digging Dog Nursery in Albion, Mendocino County, will talk about “Designing Your Garden with Drought Tolerant Plants” at the Marin Art and Garden Center in Ross. She will present ideas on designing with exotic or unusual drought tolerant plants and feature photographs of distinctive garden designs by her husband, landscaper Gary Ratway, including the lavender gardens at Matanzas Creek Winery in Santa Rosa. The focus will be expanding palettes with discoveries she and Gary have made with either familiar species or with new ones.

  Whigham is a horticulturist and co-owner with her husband of the Digging Dog Nursery, which she has been running for 20 years. Her philosophy of plant selection is a no nonsense approach. She expects more from a plant than one season and has put together a collection that has layers of interest. She thinks of plants in terms of their personalities and what they have to offer. She said some are “shy,” some “hardworking” and some “coarse but fun.”

  Whigham selects all the plants, runs the nursery and writes the catalog where each plant is described, not only in detail, but with suggested companion plantings. The nursery is a catalog store and reservations must be made if you intend to visit in person.

  She will talk about some of the more unusual drought tolerant plants from her nursery and bring some to sell. These may include unusual red hot pokers (Kniphofia), rock rose (Cistus), sea holly (Eryngium), and evergreen grasses, pheasant’s tail grass (Stipa arundinacea), thatching reed grass (Thamnochortus insignis) and red hook sedge (Uncinia rubra).

  One of her specialty plants is Kniphofia, native to Madagascar and tropical South Africa, better known to the layman as red hot poker. However, some of her plants are not red hot in color. She offers new hybrids in creamy yellow, chartreuse, and melon. All are as hardy and reliable as the red version—those heat and drought tolerant red hot pokers that have survived years of neglect in abandoned gardens.

  Using these and other drought tolerant plants will not only help to conserve our limited and increasingly expensive water supply in Marin, they can create a colorful and pleasant—even lush—garden. It will attract bees and butterflies, be fragrant—think lavender—and green in color, as well as environmentally correct. Cactus, sand and succulents are not the only choices for low water planting. Using plants native to our area will mean less work for you and make for a more disease-free garden.

  There is a word for this kind of landscaping—xeriscape. It means an area specially designed to withstand drought conditions and reduce water consumption. The word was created in 1981 by the Denver, Colorado Water Department by putting xeros, a Greek word for “dry” with landscape. Xeriscape uses native and water-efficient plants and then groups them together according to their similar water needs for effective water use. The word is not to be confused with “zeroscape” (lots of rocks, green concrete, few plants), which cannot be recommended.

  Even if all you want to do is save money on water, you will have also designed a more care free, healthy and even beautiful garden, if you create a xeriscape.

  So if you are looking for some new drought tolerant plants to add variety to your garden come and learn from Deborah Whigham. A number of the plants she will describe can also be found in local nurseries.

Dig in to your garden info

• Dot Zanotti Ingels

• 

  Welcome to my puttering shed. There is my garden journal front and center with everything I need to keep me organized while smiling.

  Generally, I would tell you I am an organized and efficient person.  With my gardening, however, I often fly by the seat of my pants.  My Master Gardener training and many years of experience certainly help me focus on the importance of my soil, my microclimates and planting the right plant in the right place. It did not, however, help me keep track of my hits and misses so I do or don’t repeat them.

  When someone mentions the basic garden tools we should have, we immediately think of things like trowels, shovels and good gloves.  I have learned that a garden journal needs to also be in my arsenal.  Keeping a garden journal will help improve your gardening skills, give you a written record of your garden layouts, plans, successes and failures.  It will help you get better results and keep an inventory of your plants, seeds and ideas.

  My garden journal is a written and photographic record of my garden.  It isn’t pretty and I keep it mostly in a three-ring binder.  There are smudges and things fall out sometimes, but it helps me keep track of favorites, plants that were bad ideas and suggestions for the future.  It helps me focus on my garden goals of lots of color, a variety of veggies, and an abundance of pollinator plants. Pictures are on my laptop in their own file or in the binder.

  There are all kinds of on-line templates for jump-starting your garden journal.  I have a small book that was given to me for my quick notes.  I suggest you think of a format that is fun and easy to access and use. 

  Here are some tips about what can be included in your garden journal:  

  • Microclimates: Take notes about the microclimates in your garden that are unique to your property.  Where are the sunny, semi-sunny or shady spots?
  • Seed notes: If you like to start your own seeds, keep track of when you start them and when you get the transplants in the ground.  Sometimes we discover we rushed the season or should have started earlier. Are there seeds best started in the ground rather than indoors? Keep an inventory of the seeds you saved. Make a wish list and find the seeds or starts for next year.  
  • Plant inventory: Make notes about which varieties of plants and veggies you are growing.  Would you like to grow them again?  What were the best producers, the healthiest plants or the prettiest plants?  

  Keeping the ID tags from plants only works if you remember where you put them.  On the back of the tag, write any information about the plant you may not remember and put them in the binder. 

  

  I planted the tall scabiosa too close to the front and there is not enough variety of texture and color. I took this pic to remind me next year.

  Note where you got the plants and how many plants or veggies were planted.  This helps with planning and the best utilization of your space, especially if your garden is small, like mine.  Did you try a new variety of food or flower from the market that you would like to try to grow yourself?   

  • Photos: Take a picture of where you planted your veggies so you can rotate the crops next year.  Note the position of annuals planted.
  • Flop list: Keep track of failures as well.  Note what happened.  Were they poor producers, did they have major bug problems or did you put the plants in the wrong place? 
  • Plant division timing: Dividing perennials keeps them producing at their best.  Write down when you do the job so it does not get way behind. 
  • Sources: Keep seed catalogs and plant sources in your journal as well as articles and pictures from print media for inspiration.  If you need to budget, your journal is a great place to keep your receipts and expense records.  

  
  Mostly, your garden is your happy place.  When you are in your garden, notice how it feels or what inspires you.  Make a note.  Make it peaceful, joyful and fun.

Digital photography let's you see your garden in a new way

• Marybeth Kampman

• A few years ago not everyone was used to the concept of digital photography and film was still readily available. A lot has changed in the past few years. Now few are without the ability to take a photo; most cell phones can and many people carry a small camera for that "just in case" moment.

  Digital cameras are easy to use, lend themselves to taking a seemingly endless number of photos at a reasonable cost. Along with the predictable family shots in front of tourist attractions, people are unabashedly taking pictures everywhere — from restaurants to museums, street corners to elevators. Their pictures are of food, shadows, interesting patterns
  or juxtaposition of unusual objects, they document items they want to purchase in stores or take pictures of their cars in parking lots so they can find them again.

  That's exciting because it says people are using their cameras as an extension of themselves to document their world as they see it. Staid, composed, staged shots are becoming more rare, being replaced by quirky angles, unusual lighting and original subject matter.

  Why not bring this informality and personalization of photography to your garden photography? But while digital photography allows you take lots of photos and delete what you don't want, it's easy to become indiscriminate. Taking a good photo still requires time, thought and planning.

  First, know how your camera works. Read the manual and take it with you; I guarantee you'll forget what one of those pesky buttons does at some critical moment.

  Start with an open mind and be flexible. I was once assigned to do a photo shoot in a succulent garden. I wasn't a fan of succulents and I wasn't sure what I'd encounter. After an hour I'd fallen in love with their geometric and architectural shapes and patterns. I found myself taking a different approach than if I was photographing a rose garden with its soft feelings and colors. Here are a few other ways to get great garden pictures:

  • Pay attention to the light. Discover the beauty of overcast days. Get up early and skip happy hour. The light is often the most beautiful the hour after sunrise and the hour before sunset. Learn to take advantage of those special times of day and plan your photo shoot around them.

  • Get down and uncomfortable. All too often the best shot involves getting yourself into an awkward position. This is where a camera with a swivel screen can come in handy. Tripods with bendable legs that can wrap around a tree branch or stake can also be very useful. They provide
  you with a "third hand" that stabilizes the camera in tight situations. Often nature presents stunning arrangements and groupings. Other times it's important to do a little styling of the shot by removing errant twigs, weeds or dead flowers.

  • Remember to turn around. Often the best shot is the one viewed from a different perspective. Walk around your subject and pay attention to what else will be included in the photo. Zoom in and zoom out, not just with your lens but also with your body. Try moving closer and farther away from your subject and see which approach you prefer. Squat down or hold your camera up high. Since it is no longer necessary to use an optical  viewfinder, take advantage of the freedom of movement that using a LCD viewing screen gives when composing a picture.

  • Don't restrict yourself to beauty shots. Use your pictures to document your garden experiences. I take at least two photos when taking a picture of a plant that has an identifying label — a beauty shot and a photo of the label. It's easy to forget the exact name of the photographed plant.

  You also can use your camera to document garden ideas that strike your fancy. Take pictures of watering systems, garden designs, hardscape or color combinations you admire. Go to the garden supply store and take pictures of plants before you buy them. Include, of course, the pictures of the labels that give care, light and water requirements. Not only will your garden be more attractive and well planned, but you'll save money.

  Your camera can be a great tool to help you identify a plant or shrub you'd like to include in your garden. Take a picture to your garden supply store or bring it in to the Master Gardener's help desk for help identifying it. You can also take a picture of a diseased plant. While you're at it take multiple pictures of close-ups of the problem and also pictures of the entire plant and its habitat. This information will be invaluable in sleuthing out the cause of the problem.

  Digital photography offers endless possibilities for exploring your creative side. You'll see the beauty of your garden and become more informed through the lens of your camera. All you need is a memory card as big as your imagination.

Dirty talk with the Dirt Diva

• Jennifer Kinion

• In "Talking Dirt," Annie Spiegelman sets out to deliver a "down-to-earth guide to organic gardening" for new and experienced gardeners. This five-part guide starts with the basics: designing and planning a garden, picking tools, soil building, irrigation and pest management. The author serves as cheerleader and teacher, maintaining a balance between infectious enthusiasm and practicality.

  Acknowledging that today's gardeners are coping with a range of challenges unknown to previous generations of gardeners, Spiegelman asserts a simple philosophy: "Being an organic gardener is not about going back in time. This isn't your mother's garden or your grandmother's either. It's simply smart, safe and sustainable gardening."

  The other parts of the guide build on the first, as Spiegelman offers guidance on specialized gardening topics such as edible flowers, vegetables, bulbs and herbs. Using an upbeat, conversational writing style, Spiegelman provides details and step-by-step instruction as appropriate, giving readers the sense that they are working one-on-one with a garden coach. Her flower chapter, for instance, includes one of the most thorough and helpful descriptions of cut flower care I've found in a general gardening guide.

  "Talking Dirt" (286 pages. Penguin Books, $15) is written for a geographically nonspecific audience, so a section on gardening with native plants includes examples of good choices for different regions of the United States. There's enough information on each horticultural niche to engage gardeners of every stripe, whether their particular interest is seed starting, tomato culture or building an environment to attract butterflies.

  If you've read Spiegelman's previous writing, you know how much of a rose fanatic she is, and it is no surprise to find that she devotes a portion of the guide to rose care. Throughout the guide, Spiegelman keeps readers focused on the backbone of a healthy garden: "If you don't continually build, bless and bolster your soil (the foundation of your garden) with organic matter (compost) you'll simply be wasting your time and money."

  Early in the book, Spiegelman admits that initially, her own forays into gardening were more prone to trial and error than success. Inspired in part by her local Master Gardener program, she shifted her focus from quick fixes to the ongoing work of building a healthy garden from the ground up. Success with these ecologically sound, scientifically researched tactics led to a new appreciation for soil microbes and the organic matter that fuels them.

  "The idea of free horse manure, which I'd heard was a zesty crop fertilizer, gave me the same endorphin rush as a Macy's semiannual shoe sale," she admits.

  The author injects hipness and humor into each passage. Don't be surprised to find yourself laughing out loud at Spiegelman's references to her own garden gnome phobia. I had to giggle when I realized that a section entitled "Snacking and Drinking on the Job" was not about what gardeners eat while weeding, but about the nutrients that crop plants like to "snack on" during the growing season.

  "Talking Dirt" isn't all fun and games, though. Spiegelman also dishes the dirt on the horticultural industry's dark side, providing sobering facts on pesticide and herbicide use. Encouraging readers to explore alternatives, she suggests easy-to-achieve, positive steps such as embracing less-toxic product options for pest control and fostering an environment that supports beneficial insects.

  The topics in "Talking Dirt" are interspersed with profiles of recommended plants, each graded with the proprietary (and amusing) rating system of the author's own Dirt Diva Royal Horticultural Society. The system, which "rates plants on their practical botanical merit and their level of whining," takes into account factors such as water use, visual appeal and disease resistance. An illustration by artist Maggie Agro accompanies each plant description.

  One of the joys of this book is that Spiegelman so expertly sums up the little "aha" moments that go into the education of a gardener. As an advocate of building soil fertility with cover crops, Annie tells us how to accomplish it, and then provides a friendly kick in the seat to encourage us to keep doing it: "Plan to do it every fall and or spring; like flossing your teeth, it should become a habit (You don't floss just twice a year, before your cleaning. Or do you?) You can't just build your soil one year and then stop."

  Novices will appreciate this no-nonsense guide to gardening tasks, and experienced gardeners will discover new techniques and tricks. Spiegelman hooks readers with her quick wit, easy writing style and enthusiasm, and will keep them engaged with her deep knowledge of the subject matter. Read "Talking Dirt" from start to finish for informative fun, and then keep it handy on your gardening reference shelf.

  The University of California Marin Master Gardeners are sponsored by UC Cooperative Extension. For questions about gardening, plant pests or diseases, call 499-4204 from 9 a.m. to noon, and 1 to 4 p.m. weekdays, or bring in samples or pictures to 1682 Novato Blvd., Suite 150B, Novato.

Discover the magic of Marin Art & Garden Center

• Nanette Londeree

• HIDDEN IN PLAIN SIGHT. Stunning gardens brimming with flora and fauna right in the heart of Marin -- that's the Marin Art & Garden Center (MAGC).

  You may routinely speed by the signature wavy brick walls as you travel east or west on Sir Francis Drake Blvd in Ross, and miss the opportunity to savor the horticultural bounty of the space that was home to the Marin County Fair for nearly 30 years. The center, which is free and open to all from dawn to dusk, contains a unique and eclectic collection of mature trees and diverse plantings that offer something for everyone. Half of the center's dual personality presents a lush environment reminiscent of the formal gardens of bygone days while the other is current and topical -- focused on sustainable gardening practices, growing native and low-water-use plants and educating the public about the importance of environmental stewardship.

  As you stroll through the nearly 11 acres of grounds, you may have the sense of peaceful spaciousness intermingled with an abundance of seemingly secret spaces. You may happen upon the bustle of activity from resident art, history and horticultural groups involved in a plethora of ever-changing events that take place in a variety of settings -- a theater in a renovated barn, an outdoor amphitheater a grove of redwood trees, an art and horticulture library in an octagonal tank house, or simple meeting rooms with enchanting garden views.

  Celebrating its 65th anniversary this year, MAGC had its origin in the 1940s as a vision of Caroline Livermore and Gladys Smith, two members of the Marin Conservation League who rallied to preserve the beautiful and historic property replete with its lovely, though languishing, gardens and irreplaceable trees. The center was incorporated in 1945 as a living memorial, with its primary mission to promote appreciation and education of the arts, horticulture and environmental conservation.

  Mature trees form the framework for the garden spaces with dozens of varieties, native and ornamental, evergreen and deciduous. A few are glorious heritage specimens -- a towering dawn redwood (Metasequoia glyptostroboides), planted in 1947 from seed collected during an archeological expedition to China, forms a canopy over a Victorian gazebo. A giant sequoia (Sequoiadendron giganteum) was brought from Yosemite Valley as a small tree in the 1880s. In the heart of the property, where a 60-foot regal magnolia tree (Magnolia grandiflora) reigned for 130 years, a vast circle of 20 to 25 small trees retain the majestic atmosphere. In addition to these stately trees, there are elms and oaks, maples and cedars, ginkos and crepe myrtles, so densely planted in portions of the garden they produce a cathedral-like ceiling.

  Exploring the site, you'll find myriad plant settings. The Rose Garden, encircled by decorative wrought iron fencing (to keep out the roaming deer), is overflowing with more than 150 varieties of healthy, floriferous plants, maintained without the use of pesticides.

  A few steps beyond the Rose Garden is the Memory Garden, a serene circular glen adorned by an assortment of plantings surrounding a supine stone maiden. It was created early in the history of the center as "a place of quiet beauty for remembering."

  Adjacent is a soothing pool fronted by a new addition, the Bay-Friendly Demonstration Garden. This previously neglected space now sports a vivid tapestry of low water-use, colorful and fragrant, deer-resistant plantings, installed over the past year as a joint venture with Marin Municipal Water District, UC Marin Master Gardeners and MAGC.

  The eastern portion of the gardens feature California native plants, a succulent garden filled with colorful, uniquely shaped plants -- aeoniums, aloes, agaves, sedums, echeverias, dudleyas and more. The compost demonstration area provides visitors with options for producing compost in their own backyard and the newly developed rain garden, a collaborative project with SPAWN (Salmon Protection and Watershed Network), displays rain catchment, distribution and colorful, low-water-use plantings.

  The Habitat Garden contains a bounteous collection of larval host plants that attract many species of butterflies, while the mixture of California native and Mediterranean climate perennials, annuals and grasses create a kaleidoscope of colors during the peak of bloom summer to fall. The low outstretched limbs of an immense English oak (Quercus robur) provide an anchor location for the Master Gardener's "Exploring Habitats" field trips -- educational opportunities for first and second graders to engage in a variety of learning activities related to habitats and the environment.

  The horticultural bounty of the center is made possible in part by a multitude of microclimates and growing conditions, and water supplied by existing wells. A seasonal stream, Kittle Creek, bisects the property providing a riparian habitat and wild lands intersected by a nature trail surround the eastern border.

  The vibrant landscape at MAGC is maintained as a pesticide-free zone and is certified by the National Wildlife Federation as a habitat sanctuary. The diversity of plants provides fruits and seeds for more than 30 species of birds and a host of beneficial insects. It is also home to a number of owl boxes used for rodent control in conjunction with the Hungry Owl Project (HOP). One box is connected to a continuously running video camera during the breeding season for viewers to observe the development process of the barn owl from egg stage to fledgling.

  "I am keenly aware of a sense of history whenever I walk through the Marin Art & Garden Center," reflects Gary Scales, former mayor of Ross and avid horticulturalist. "The towering heritage trees create a setting that almost speaks to you. The diversity of plants and shrubs invite me to explore."

  Next time you're traveling by those wavy brick walls, take some time to come in, park the car or bike and stroll through this public jewel. You'll find magic in the beauty and tranquility -- all hidden in plain sight.

  The University of California Marin Master Gardeners are sponsored by UC Cooperative Extension. For questions about gardening, plant pests or diseases, call 499-4204 from 9 a.m. to noon, and 1 to 4 p.m. weekdays, or bring in samples or pictures to 1682 Novato Blvd., Suite 150B, Novato.

Don’t let weeds overtake your garden

• Nanette Londeree

• The pounding rains of winter are a distant memory, but the veritable carpet of green that now surrounds us as a result of all that water is not. Plants are growing lustily everywhere you look, including ones you don’t want — the weeds in your garden.

  You know the saying: a weed is simply any plant in a place you don’t want it. Are you seeing grasses, dandelions, bindweed, wild blackberry and others popping up in your lawn, flower beds or vegetable garden? Even in teeny spaces between bricks on your patio? What’s a gardener to do with such a bounty of weeds?

  Often the easiest and fastest answer is to whip out the weed killer. You won’t see instant results, but with a minimum of labor, anything sprayed with the product will die in the coming weeks. However, with a bit of effort, you can have immediate results while protecting people, pets, wildlife and the environment from potentially toxic herbicides.

  If your weed management approach is “let them be,” knowing they’ll eventually die back, think again. Some weeds are aggressive and invasive; tops may die down, but roots remain alive until conditions are right for them to grow. Many spread by seeds; that one little dandelion plant in your lawn can produce nearly 2,000 seeds during a single growing season!

  My garden sprouted more weeds this year than probably the last three combined. Tackling the gargantuan task of manual removal was made easier by taking on a little section at a time. Committing 10 to 15 minute increments of weed pulling a couple times a week and snagging family to do the same, we got most of it done over a few weeks. To simplify the process:

  • Get them while they’re young. Weeds with tender leaves and less developed roots are easier to extract.

  • Pull while the soil is still moist — as soil dries out it tightens its grip on roots. Irrigate a day or two before you start pulling.

  • Yank them out before they develop seeds. If you’ve got tall weeds and can’t pull them, use a string trimmer to cut them down before they flower.

  • Get the whole thing, roots and all. Grab the weed close to the ground, twisting the plant slightly as you remove it. Leaving even a portion of the roots is enough for them to regrow, especially those with deep taproots like dandelions, or the lengthy tenacious roots of bindweed.

  • Use tools for difficult spaces — an old screwdriver can help pry out those nasty ones shooting up between pavers or in the cracks of a driveway. For areas blanketed with tiny weeds, try a stirrup/hula hoe. Push and pull the hoe just under the soil surface to loosen weeds for easy removal.

  Once those vexing weeds are gone, keep them from coming back. An ounce of prevention really does save you a whole lot of time and effort in the future.

  • Don’t disturb soil unless you need to. Dormant seeds brought to the surface and exposed to air and light will be ripe for germination.

  • Block their growth by covering open areas with landscape fabric (weed block) and topping it with soil or mulch. Water and air gets through, but weeds can’t easily penetrate the barrier.

  • Crowd the weeds out by planting densely; keep ample space for air circulation, but minimize exposed soil.

  • Mulch, mulch, mulch! Cover the surface of soil with 2 to 3 inches of organic material such as fir bark or wood chips.

  • Water the plants you want, not bare soil. Deprive weed seeds of moisture they need to germinate by using drip irrigation or soaker hoses.

  With some upfront planning and effort, you can have a good looking garden with a minimum of weeds for the season, without using toxic chemicals — good for your family, pets, wildlife and the environment.

Dracula orchids an exotic addition to gardens

• Jane Scurich

• Looking to expand your orchid collection? How about a Dracula?

  At a fascinating presentation on Dracula orchids I discovered that the reason Gary Meyer, vice-president of the Pleurothallid Alliance, an affiliated specialty group of the American Orchid Society, lives in San Francisco’s Richmond District is because it’s ideal for growing Draculas. Fog, moderate temperatures — immediately I started thinking about the possibilities of growing these inimitable orchids in parts of Marin.

  Draculas are native to Central America, Columbia, Ecuador, Mexico and Peru. Ideal cultural conditions exist at higher elevations of these regions. They rely on high humidity, which makes the foggy west side of San Francisco ideal. They cannot tolerate a freeze or extended periods of hot dry weather.

  Draculas are epiphytic and thrive clinging to mossy branches of trees in cloud forests. The majority of their blooms extend downward or horizontally from the plant. They can be planted in well-ventilated plastic pots or baskets that allow the flower spikes to hang below the plant or mounted on bark. Sphagnum moss or a combination of tree fern bark and chopped sphagnum or perlite is an ideal potting medium to help retain moisture and simulate their native environment. Draculas have no pseudobulbs and minimal water storage tissue.

  More than 100 species have been identified since they were discovered in the 1880s. They were classified in the genus Masdevallia until 1978 when they received their own genus classification.

  Meyer has spent years traveling to isolated areas where Draculas grow in the wild, and is actively involved in efforts to conserve the areas where these plants thrive. Challenges for Dracula orchid survival in their native environment include loss of habitat, overly ambitious collectors and climate change.

  For years I have been fascinated by the adorable “faces” these tiny orchids exhibit. Many of you may have seen online photos of blooms that look like monkeys, bats or lambs, and questioned if they were real or digitally enhanced. You need to see these tiny treasures in person to appreciate their uniqueness. The name “Dracula” literally means “little dragon” for the flower’s resemblance to mythical beasts and is not a reference to the infamous Count Dracula.

  Where to find these exotic plants? A few calls to local nurseries uncovered no availability. Meyer mentioned the Pacific Orchid and Garden Exposition (POE) as where he purchased his first Dracula in the Bay Area. Look on its website for upcoming events at orchidsanfrancisco.org.

  Local orchid society meetings are populated with passionate orchid growers who truly want to share their love and expertise with attendees. These welcoming venues offer advice and member-grown plant sales to expand your orchid knowledge and collection.

  • Marin Orchid Society: marinorchidsociety.com

  • San Francisco Orchid Society: orchidsanfrancisco.org

  • Pleurothallid Alliance: pleurothallids.com

  Some Bay Area nurseries that routinely stock Dracula orchids include:

  • Hawk Hill Orchids: hawkhillorchids.com

  • Columbian Orchid Imports: colombianorchidimports.com

  • Hanging Gardens: hanginggardens.org

  Looking to see Draculas in bloom? The Conservatory of Flowers has one of only two cloud forest galleries in the U.S., and conserves an extensive and growing collection of these high-elevation orchids.

  Can we grow these darlings in Marin? They need shade, high humidity, no extreme temperatures, and minimal fertilizer. While their success will require a commitment to regular moisture and protection from freezes, I believe that for many of us, these can be exciting new additions to our outdoor orchid collections.

Dreaming of spring in cold of winter

• Juliana Jensen

• January is a peculiar time in California. We can have brilliant, cold days that draw us outside or tremendous rain storms that force us indoors. For gardeners, winter is generally a slow time, a time when we observe the shapes of the trees once the leaves have fallen, wonder what will come up in the perennial bed or muse over a new garden space for spring.
  
  In fact, planning a new garden is an excellent use of the winter gardening lull. Perhaps there is a patch that needs renovation or you are interested in trying a new type of garden, such as a habitat garden for birds and butterflies or a mixed ornamental and edible garden. With some care in planning, you can be ready to go when the season changes.
  
  There are several logical steps to take in planning a garden. First, of course, is choosing the site. You should consider the use of the space: Is it to provide a charming view from your kitchen window? Does it surround and beautify a patio where the family gathers outdoors? Will it provide delicious fresh vegetables for the coming year? A general overview of the site including its size, location, use and general topography is a good place to start. Is the area on a hillside, or is it level?
  
  You can draw a simple sketch showing the general layout and dimensions of the space. Note any buildings, areas that you may want to screen, or extant plants or features in the site.
  
  Once you have your sketch, determine the general climate in your area. Sunset garden books use a zone system based on weather patterns. Most of Marin falls into zones 15, 16 or 17. The USDA also has a system of plant hardiness zones, locally generally 10a or 10b. You can determine your zone number by going to the website and typing in your ZIP code. (planthardiness.ars.usda.gov/PHZMWeb/) Notate these numbers on your sketch for easy reference.
  
  Next, you need to determine the microclimates that occur in your garden site. Watch the pattern of sun and shade throughout the day. Winter is the season that provides the fewest hours of light coming in from a low southern sun.
  
  Note the pattern of sunlight and shade on your sketch so you will know whether to plant sun-loving or shade-loving plants in that area. Recognize other things that might affect your garden, such as a low-hanging eave that protects against frost or a deciduous tree that will be leafy and throwing shade in summer.
  
  It is a good idea to get an idea of the quality of your soil. A simple soil test kit from your local hardware or garden store will allow you to test the pH (acidity or alkalinity) in your garden soil. Check the texture by holding a clump of the soil and seeing if it is thick and claylike or loamy and breaks apart easily or if it is somewhere in between. Soil amendments such as compost can be added to improve the composition of your soil. It is a good idea to know at least generally what type of soil you are dealing with.
  
  Now comes the fun part: choosing the plants. One way to start is by choosing a color palette. You can apply basic principles of color theory to gardens just as you would to home design or other artistic projects.
  
  If you want the colors to pop, choose plants with flowers or leaves from the opposite side of the color wheel — complementary colors like blue and orange or violet and yellow. You also can create color harmony by choosing analogous colors — colors that are next to each other on the color wheel like yellow, orange and red.
  
  There are many plant books that list plants by color to assist you in finding plants with just the right shades. Draw up a preliminary plant list of plants you like, that are the right size when grown and that will fulfill your garden vision.
  
  In addition to color theory, you can apply basic design principles to gardens. Some considerations include scale (take care with how large the plant will be when fully grown), balance (creating a focal point and balancing visual weight on either side of it) and perspective (for instance, using bright materials at the front of a bed and grayer or more neutral colors toward the back can expand the space). Look at gardens you enjoy and see how the designers have used these principles to create the feeling that you like.
  
  The final consideration in plant placement is irrigation. If you group the plants within your garden by water needs — called hydrozoning — your irrigation will be more efficient and the plants will be better served.
  
  Planning your garden in winter is a lovely way to dream of spring.

Drought isn’t only problem impacting conifers

• Wendy Irving

• Do browning, dropping leaves mean your redwood is in trouble?

  The prolonged drought has us thinking about our precious trees. At a time when millions of California’s trees are dying because of drought and drought-related disease and pests, we need to pay close attention to those on our property.

  The UC Marin Master Gardener’s help desk has had many inquiries about conifers. These trees make up the majority of California’s forests, and are popular in our urban and suburban landscapes. Conifers are cone-bearing seed plants and include pine, fir, cypress, spruce, juniper, cedar, larch, hemlock and yew, not to mention our beloved redwood trees.

  Almost all conifers are evergreen, so is it the drought that is causing some to start browning and dropping leaves? Maybe. But all evergreen conifers go through a natural process when old leaves or needles fall as the tree’s energy moves towards producing new growth. Shedding old leaves is cyclical, and occasionally, leaves will brown and drop, mainly from the interior of your conifer, when no longer useful.

  But if your conifer is yellowing or browning from the top down, or the outside in, you may have a problem — a disease, insect or chemical contamination, perhaps drought-related. Some of our bay and oceanside conifers sensitive to salt suffer when rainfall is not plentiful enough to keep brackish water flushed away. If you think your conifer is in trouble, but don’t know what it is, call the help desk at 415-473-4204.

  Conifers are diverse in their cultural needs. Some are drought and salt tolerant, others, not so much, like Marin’s redwood trees. Redwood trees often get all the water they need if they are living where they like it most, the coastal fog belt, but if planted in sunny San Rafael or Novato, they may need some help. Since drought-stress symptoms take a few years to show themselves in sensitive conifers and a conifer is not as likely as a deciduous tree to recover. It might be a good idea to check the soil condition around your redwood tree. Check on your other conifers, too, and give us a call with questions about their particular water/soil preferences.

  Despite nice rainfall totals, experts say we’ll still be under restrictions this year. So decisions will still need to be made as to how to best use available water in our gardens. If you have mature evergreen trees on your property that need watering over the course of the summer, you might consider sacrificing something else, like a more easily-replaced lawn, in order to keep your valuable trees alive.

  Young conifers require watering more frequently so the roots do not dry out. But for a larger tree, it’s a little trickier. Check the soil for moisture now and make it a habit to do so throughout the summer. At the drip line of the tree (the outside edge of the canopy), take a spade and push it into the soil as deep as you can (try for 12 inches), pulling the soil apart. Slide in your hand and feel the soil. If it’s dry, it’s time to water. Surprisingly, the majority of a tree’s roots are within 12 to 18 inches of the surface and it is important to slowly soak to that depth. You can use a soaker hose or a drip system laid out just beyond the canopy’s edge. Some people use 5-gallon buckets with ¼-inch holes in the bottom placed evenly around the tree just beyond the drip line. Although the temptation may be great, avoid using graywater on your redwoods, although it may be OK to use on other more salt-tolerant conifers.

  How much water to use? A general guideline is approximately 10 gallons per inch of tree trunk width applied, perhaps just once a month, but don’t rely on that. Since soils and conditions may differ, your fingers are the most reliable judge. Make sure your tree is well-mulched away from the root flare. And leave those naturally-shedding brown leaves alone that may have had you worried — they keep the moisture in and provide valuable nutrients over the course of time.

Drought may bring wildlife closer to home

• Karen Gideon

• As we conserve precious water you may be wondering how the drought will impact the four-legged creatures that share the bounty of Marin County with us. Well, it’s a good news-bad news kind of story.

  To get the scoop on the repercussions of the drought and limited food supplies on animals such as deer, raccoons, rats, bobcat, mountain lions, and skunks I spoke with Roger Baldwin, wildlife specialist in the Department of Wildlife, Fish and Conservation Biology at the University of California, Davis.

  It’s difficult to make general statements regarding the impact of a statewide drought on these animals because access to water and food differs greatly from location to location. Marin has been blessed with more water this year than many other counties, so the impact of the drought will not be as severe for our wildlife. However, there may be some behavior changes in the animals as well as some precautions humans can take to reduce conflicts.

  Mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus), blacktailed deer (O. hemionus columbianus) and other herbivores follow the shift of their food supply as vegetation changes with our seasons. Typically, we see the deer coming down from the brown hills and into our backyards at the end of summer when naturally occurring food isn’t as readily available. The reduction in food supply because of drought conditions increases the pressure to browse in our gardens. Under conditions of extreme food shortage deer eat plants they usually don’t prefer. This year, the habitat shift will probably happen earlier and deer repellents won’t be as effective — the deer may feast on sprayed plants. Fencing, at least 7 to 8 feet high, is the best option to keep your garden deer-free.

  Mountain lions and bobcats will probably have enough rabbits and other prey to keep them happy in their habitat, Baldwin says. Likewise, animals such as striped skunks (Mephitis mephitis) and raccoons (Procyon lotor), called generalists for their highly adaptable omnivorous diet, have many resources available to them in suburban areas.

  “Generalists thrive in many different habitats and are plastic in their behaviors,” he says. “When you have animals with narrow habitats like fishers, martins and spotted owls, they can get into more trouble when primary food sources become scarce.”

  As for some of our more common vertebrates, Norway rats (Rattus norvegicus), roof rats (Rattus rattus), ground squirrels (Otospermophilus beecheyi) and tree squirrels (Sciurus), they might exhibit changes in behavior as they seek food sources that are more readily available. Between bird feeders and pet food, the suburban resident provides an ample food supply for these pests right in their backyard.

  We can help reduce the close proximity of these animals by being more vigilant about eliminating garbage and bringing pet food indoors, especially at night. Secure your trash cans with bungee cords — raccoons have been known to unlock latches with their hand-like front paws. Pick up fallen fruits and nuts so you’re not inadvertently attracting the animals. Bottom line, the most effective way to make your property less attractive to vertebrate pests is by limiting their access to food, water, and shelter.

  So the good news is that Marin’s wildlife won’t likely encounter severe health and welfare impacts because of the drought. The bad news is there may be an adjustment in habitat for these pests as they forage for food that brings them closer and closer to our homes and gardens. For more information on how to manage the presence of pests, go to the Statewide Integrated Pest Management website at ipm.ucdavis.edu and click on the link to home, garden and landscape pests or give the UC Marin Master Gardener help desk a call at 415-473-4204.

Drought prompts more people to consider using gray water in gardens.

• Wendy Irving

• We gardeners have been hearing lots of talk about graywater, but what is it exactly and how can we use it to optimize water efficiency in our gardens?

  Graywater is untreated wastewater from bathroom tubs, sinks and showers, and your washing machine. On the other hand, untreated water from sources such as kitchen sinks and dishwashers, which may have properties that encourage pathogens, is called dark graywater, and water from toilets and washing machines used to launder diapers or chemically contaminated clothing is called blackwater. Reclaimed water and rainwater are not considered graywater, but are fine resources for landscape irrigation. Reclaimed (sometimes just called “recycled”) water consists of all these water types carefully treated to be reused for both nonpotable and, surprisingly, some potable applications. Now available in Novato — a nonpotable reclaimed water filling station that will allow residents to fill containers with up to as much as 300 gallons. Contact the North Marin Water District for details.

  Ordinary graywater is what most Marin gardeners can easily take advantage of now. Do as little as simply siphoning your kid’s bathwater into a container, or collecting cold water in a bucket while you wait for your shower to get warm. Or create a “simple” system, discharging graywater through an irrigation line into the landscape − some basic plumbing skills required, but usually no permits are required. Marin law allows exemption of clothes washer and simple systems from permits. A permit is required for complicated systems.

  Simple graywater systems include the “laundry to landscape” type, as well as some systems that use other graywater sources and do not require things like pumps and filters. Check with your city’s building department before proceeding since rules and regulations change.

  Why would you want to bother with any of this? Well, recycling graywater to irrigate your garden obviously can reduce your community’s and your own water and energy costs, but it also reduces the amount of precious drinking water disappearing into the landscape. An estimated 30 percent to 50 percent of residential water usage produces graywater — that’s 90 gallons a day for a typical household (2.6 persons). This can go a long way in your garden!

  But there are limitations on how you might use graywater in your landscaping, and some of the information available on the do’s and don’ts is conflicting. Much depends on the quality and make-up of your graywater, so some discretion is required.

  Feel free to water your ornamentals with graywater, which is often rich in nutrients, but be aware that many acid-loving plants won’t tolerate the salts often found in high pH graywater. Evergreen trees are often more salt-sensitive than deciduous trees, and little is known about the impact of graywater on annual bedding plants. It is wise to alternate graywater irrigation with fresh water to minimize any salt build up. Better yet, use biodegradable, pH balanced and sodium-free, boron-free and chlorine-free products in your washing machine and for bathing.

  Apply graywater directly to the ground — don’t allow it to be sprayed on plant surfaces. Don’t use it on your lawn and don’t try to recycle it through your existing irrigation system, drip or otherwise. Avoid runoff. Use graywater within 24 hours after collecting to minimize bacterial growth, but avoid contact with skin regardless.

  Research is ongoing, but the UC Cooperative Extension is recommends that, to be safe, you avoid using graywater in your vegetable garden, and definitely do not use it on root vegetables like carrots and onions. The concern is using graywater that might have been contaminated with bacteria or viruses. But others believe that if you are confident of the quality of your graywater, you can use it on your non-root vegetables, being careful not to splash it on any edible parts of your plant.

  We have lots of information available to you at the UC Marin Master Gardener Help Desk, email HelpDesk@MarinMG.org, to help you with your decision-making regarding the use of graywater and the installation of graywater systems.

Earth friendly and easy fall garden tips

• James Campbell

• Drought and wildfires this year have put an exclamation point on how precious and precarious our natural resources are. Sustainable gardening practices are earth-friendly and an easy way for home gardeners to be in harmony with our natural surroundings. This fall, we can all implement some of these low maintenance sustainable gardening ideas.

  

  A good variety of plants will support pollinators and beneficial insects. Credit: Kathy Ikeda

  Nurture your soil with compost. Throughout the year, make it a habit to recycle organic material. Start a compost pile if you haven’t already done so. Add grass clippings, pruning materials and leaves that are not diseased, annuals that have run their course, and vegetable plants that are no longer producing. There are lots of methods for composting, but don’t worry, microorganisms do most of the work. Fall is an excellent time to add compost to your garden. It is a natural slow-release fertilizer and will improve soil structure.

  Take care of your soil with mulch. At this time of year, add a few inches of mulch to the garden. It will prevent evaporation and suppress weeds. Be sure the mulch is not touching the base of your trees. Mulch prevents soil compaction by absorbing pressure from foot traffic and hard rains. As it breaks down, it adds nutrients to the soil. Compaction is a problem with our Marin clay soils, so make sure not to walk on the wet ground once the rainy season begins. Mulch also helps prevent erosion and water runoff. Keeping water on your land is a tenet of earth-friendly gardening.

  Choose the right plant for your location and our Mediterranean climate but avoid plants that are invasive. Winter rains promote a healthy root system, so plant now. Choose low water plants to keep water bills down. Explore native plant choices that support local birds, bees, and insects. A good variety of plants will support pollinators and beneficial insects, which in turn will help control bad garden pests. A rule of thumb for attracting bees is to mass one kind of flowering plant in a three-foot, or larger, diameter. Avoid broad-spectrum insecticide use, which hurts both bad and good insects.

  Now is the time to divide the perennials in your garden. Think about planting shade trees on the southern and western side of your house to keep yourself cooler in the summer. Put cool-season vegetable starts in your garden if you are giving the garden a rest, plant cover crops like fava beans, vetch, or clover. Cover crops fix nitrogen in the soil, prevent erosion, and can enrich the soil as “green manure” in the early spring.

  Conserve water. Use permeable patio and path materials such as stepping-stones, pavers, decomposed granite, gravel, and path mulch so that rainwater is absorbed into the soil.  Reduce your irrigation times as the days get shorter; remember to turn irrigation off completely once the rains come. Consider installing a smart controller for your irrigation system so it can do all the work for you. Choose drip irrigation to help use water wisely. Water deeply and less frequently to help plants send roots deeper into the soil. Collect rainwater for irrigation where feasible and allow it to run off your roof and into the garden rather than down storm drains.

  There are hundreds of ways we can make our gardens more earth-friendly and sustainable throughout the year. For more suggestions, visit https://ucanr.edu/sites/gardenweb/General/_em_How_do_I_practice_sustainable_gardening__em_/

Easy Seeding Spring Annuals

• Jennifer Kinion
• by Jennifer Kinion

  Spring is fast approaching, and all of the gardeners I’ve talked to lately can’t wait to get outside to start landscaping projects. One easy and quick way to transform a bare, winter-weary area of your garden is to sow seeds for spring annuals. Nothing announces the arrival of spring like a meadow of blooming flowers. Choosing the right annuals to plant during the touchy early spring weather (which can cool down and heat up again at the drop of a hat) will increase your chances of success. Also, put some time and care into preparing, planting, and maintaining your seedbed to give your annuals what they need to put on a good spring show.

  1. Pull existing weeds or cut them off at surface level with a hoe. If it hasn’t rained recently, water the area thoroughly.

  2. A day or two after watering use a spading fork or shovel to break up the soil and turn it enough to create a loose, friable seedbed. Raid your compost bin for that supply of fine compost you’ve been saving up, or spread purchased compost over the soil and work it in with a rake.

  3. If you want to create distinct areas to group your annuals, use light-colored string or an amendment such as gypsum to outline the borders within which you will plant each group.

  4. Broadcast your seeds over the prepared bed. To aid even distribution of tiny seeds, mix them with fine sand in a container, then sprinkle over the soil surface.

  5. Gently rake seeds into the soil, taking care not to bury them too deeply. Sift a thin layer of fine compost over the bed just to cover seeds, then water with a fine mist.

  6. Keep soil evenly moist and watch for those rewarding little green specks to emerge from the soil. When a few leaves have developed on your seedlings, thin them according to the spacing directions on the seed packet.

  7. As your plants continue to develop, water and fertilize as appropriate for the type of flower you are growing. Pull weeds early and often.

  The following flowers are good choices for direct seeding in the garden, and are ideal for early spring planting because they don’t require very warm soil temperatures to germinate (all will sprout in soil temperatures as low as 55-60° F). With these easy seeders, you needn’t wait until spring is half gone to plant your flower patch and get started on your way to a pretty patch of annuals.

  Dwarf toadflax (Linaria maroccana)

  The small, dainty flowers of Linaria look like miniature snapdragons with contrasting colors on their “lips.” I’ve planted Linaria in an area that was plagued by oxalis, and it was one of the few plants that successfully competed with the weeds that season. This little charmer is best sown in full sun to light shade in quantity so that the kaleidoscope of yellow, purple, and pink blooms create visual impact. Linaria does double duty: As well as attracting the eye, it attracts beneficial insects and serves as a host larval plant for butterflies. The ‘Northern Lights’ strain of Linaria includes red/orange hues and grows 1 1/2 to 2 feet tall, but a smaller, pastel version, ‘Fairy Bouquet,’ tops out at about 9 inches.

  Corn cockle (Agrostemma githago)

  Agrostemma is a really easy plant for new gardeners, and the 2 to 3 foot tall stems bearing white, pink, mauve, and purple flowers add a lovely vertical element to a garden of annuals. Plant them in full sun and provide moderate water. One word of caution: This plant is poisonous if ingested.

  Love-in-a-mist (Nigella damascena)

  Love-in-a-mist seems to get it’s name from the fine, lace-like leaves that surround the blue, pink, and white flowers it bears, seeming to suspend the blossoms in a misty cloud of green. Left uncut, the blossoms transform into striped seed pods which readily self-sow. This favorite, old-fashioned flower is a Mediterranean native, and prefers full sun. It reaches heights of about 1-1 1/2 feet tall.

  ‘Lady Bird’ poppy (Papaver commutatum)

  Each ‘Lady Bird’ plant bears more than a dozen red, saucer-shaped blooms with distinctive black dots in the center of each petal. They look great paired with catmint (Nepeta), and other shrubby plants with blue or cream colored flowers. Sow ‘Lady Bird’ seeds in full sun and give them regular water.

Edible alliums can be delicious additions in yards

• Dot Zanotti Ingels

• Alliums are a genus of plants that have been providing flavorful seasoning to foods for thousands of years. They are pretty easy to grow and have ready to enjoy in meals.

  I cannot imagine cooking without onions, shallots, garlic and chives. Their often high cost at the grocery store makes it worth your while to give them some space in your garden. There are many other plants in the allium genus with colorful flowers to decorate your landscape, but they are inedible and not used in foods.

  Alliums are shallow-rooted and grow best in a fertile, well-drained, weed-free soil enriched generously with compost. They can be planted in the ground, raised beds or pots, and they provide maximum yield in full sun. Keep the soil moist but not soggy and allow it to dry out a bit between waterings. If you want to provide supplemental fertilizer, use a balanced, organic food such as fish emulsion. To prevent disease problems, rotate the location of your onion-family crops so they are not always planted in the same area.

  Black aphids can be problematic with alliums, and they can be washed off with a heavy stream of water or treated with insecticidal soap. Adequate plant spacing can decrease the risk of aphids and discourage mold growth. Starting with fresh seeds or certified disease-free cloves goes a long way to preventing onion root maggots or white rot.

  There are several varieties of common garden onions (Allium cepa). Choose varieties by color, size and sweetness. We like red-skinned onions for their sweetness. Some varieties store better than others. Yellow onions are good all-purpose onions. White onions are best used fresh. Shallots are a multiplier onion, which means that each shallot bulb you plant will produce a cluster of up to a dozen baby bulbs.

  In our area, the average length of summer daylight is a bit more than 14 hours so we have the best luck choosing varieties that have intermediate-daylight length requirements. The time to plant your onions depends upon where you live. In Marin, you can plant seeds for intermediate-daylight onions in mid- to late-fall or in late winter (January or February). The seeds take a while to germinate, so be patient. You can buy onion sets that are small purchased bulbs, or you can buy seedlings or bare-root plants from a nursery. However, you decide to start your onions, check the variety for day length, taste features and storage ability for best success.

  Here are four plants worth trying:

  • Scallions: These are bunching onions (Allium fistulosum) with a bit less biting flavor. Seeds can be planted spring, summer or fall. If you have summer heat, plant the onions in a spot that is less sunny. Keep planting all season long and you will always have fresh scallions.
  • Chives: The perennial Allium schoenoprasum can be easy to grow and have handy for your baked potatoes or cottage cheese. While easily grown from seed, they take a while to mature. You can get quicker gratification by purchasing clumps from the nursery. Plant them somewhere that they can live, weed-free for a long time. A pot of chives close to the kitchen is always a treat. They are harvested by clipping the leaves with scissors nearly at ground level to stimulate continued growth.
  • Leeks: Allium ampeloprasum can be easy to grow and their sweet, mild flavor and can be enjoyed fresh over several months. Summer leek seeds can be sown from January to March to provide the best fall harvest and they should overwinter well. You can pull up baby leeks at any time or savor mature leeks when they are about one inch in diameter.
  • Garlic: To me, all recipes are made better with garlic (Allium sativum). It takes little space to produce a large supply of garlic. It is best to start with garlic bulbs purchased from a nursery. Bulbs planted by mid-October will be ready to harvest and store in late June or July. Elephant garlic (Allium ampeloprasum) makes a bulb about the same size as an ordinary garlic bulb, but it has only three to seven cloves and the flavor is mild.

  Give the allium family a chance to grow in your garden. You will be rewarded in your kitchen. For more information about growing alliums, call the Master Gardener Help Desk at 473-4204 or check out the Master Gardener website at marinmg.org.

Edible native plants for the garden

• Barbara Robertson

• Many gardeners tout the advantages of selecting native plants.  These plants fit neatly into our microclimates, tend to be drought tolerant yet can handle our wet winters, and provide food for native bees, butterflies, and birds. But, what about food for us? Can a native plant garden also be an edible garden?

  Indigenous people munched and cooked native plants, of course – they had little choice. And today, some ingenious chefs forage for unique ingredients from native plant sources.

  But I wanted to grow edibles in a garden, not try to identify them in the wild. So, rather than foraging outside, I foraged through research libraries, literature, and cookbooks to find edible native plants I would want to eat. (Edible, I learned, doesn’t always mean tasty.) Then I searched online for California native plant nurseries to see if I could actually purchase my finds. I found more than I expected. Here’s a selection.

  If I had room, I’d plant a Blue Elderberry tree (Sambucus nigra ssp. Caerulea), a tough, easy to grow tree that produces yellow flowers in spring and clusters of small blue-black berries used in jam, syrups, wines, and liqueurs. It can grow from a one-gallon container to a 15-foot tree in three years if it’s happy, and happy doesn’t seem difficult. This native can handle year-round water or dry soil once established, and anything from part shade to full sun.

  Also, if I could find room, I’d want a Thimbleberry (Rubus parviflorus), which occupies the same genus as blackberries and raspberries, but has no thorns. Like raspberries, it produces a red hollow aggregate fruit with drupelets around a central core that looks like, yes, a thimble. The deciduous perennial grows to eight-feet tall in large clumps.

  Ribes are a better choice for my garden. Some produce currants (no spines, clusters of flowers), some produce gooseberries (thorns and many small flowers).  Gardeners often plant Ribes for the tassels of hummingbird-loving flowers that bloom in winter or early spring. The best variety for fruit in our area, though, seems to be “Golden currant” (Ribes aureum var. gracillimum), a medium-sized deciduous shrub with yellow spring flowers. It grows naturally in oak woodlands along coast ranges into a small thicket about six feet wide and three to six feet tall. You can tell the berries are ripe when birds show up.

  Another possible candidate for my garden is the Oregon Grape (Mahonia aquifolium). This evergreen native shrub is more often planted for flowers and red fall foliage than food, but its bright yellow flowers lead to blue, grape-like fruit that I’ve read makes good jelly. It grows upright to around six feet and creeps outward by rhizomes.

  Already growing in my part-shade garden are Woodland Strawberries (Fragaria vesca), which have spread as wildly. These Fragaria produce small white flowers and very tiny berries. Had I known better, I would have opted for Beach Strawberries (Fragaria chiloensis), a native known for larger berries.

  I said I wasn’t going to forage, but around the corner, in a gully leading to a creek I discovered a lovely stand of delicate Miner’s Lettuce (Montia perfoliata). I’ve included this delicious little plant because once I returned home I discovered to my delight that I can order the seeds.

  These are only a few of the many available edible native herbs and plants. So, if I’ve tempted you to discover one more reason to plant natives, check your favorite California native plant nursery or website, and create your own list. One warning about native edibles, though. Native animals and insects like them, too. Bon appétit.

Effective codling moth control requires timing and persistence

• Marty Nelson

• “Don’t let the worms spoil your apple”, warns the Wormy Apples children’s board game. The game is won by pulling all of the pesky worm pieces out of the plastic apple. If “worms” have been spoiling your homegrown apples, there are measures you can take to effectively control these pests and enjoy undamaged fruit.

  Most likely the “worms” in your apples are actually codling moth larvae. The codling moth is a common insect pest and apples are its preferred food, although pears and English walnuts can also be targets. Often the first indication of a codling moth infestation is the destruction you find inside a ripe apple. The larva may no longer be there but it has left an unappetizing brown mess behind. Preventing this invasion requires some knowledge of the life cycle and habits of the codling moth. 

  The adult codling moth emerges from its cocoon in mid-March to early April. It has spent the winter pupating in a protected site under tree bark or in debris around the tree base. The moth is small and easily camouflaged with mottled gray wings tipped by a coppery brown band. It rests during the day and becomes active for a few hours before and after sunset, mating when sunset temperatures are above 62 degrees. The female moth then lays around 70 tiny, disc-shaped eggs on leaves or developing fruit. Eggs hatch in a week or two, depending on the temperature, and the newly hatched larvae immediately begin to burrow into the fruit creating entry wounds known as “stings”. As a larva tunnels into an apple, it leaves behind the reddish brown excrement called “frass”. When the larva reaches the core, it feeds on the developing seeds and goes through its stages of maturation until it is fully-grown and ready to emerge and spin a cocoon. Larvae that surface in late spring and early summer can pupate within their cocoons during the same season and emerge as a second generation starting the sequence again.

  Awareness of the codling moth life cycle therefore is critical in the success of early and consistent control methods. In many cases, nonchemical management approaches can successfully limit codling moth damage without the need for pesticides. Sanitation is the first step. This starts with prompt removal of debris and fallen fruit that can provide cover for codling moth pupa and harbor larvae. Beginning about six to eight weeks after bloom, developing fruit should be inspected for stings and infested fruit picked and destroyed, especially in May and June. Thinning the fruit also helps since the larvae tend to invade where fruit is touching. Along with sanitation, bagging the thinned young fruit on the tree can effectively protect it from the codling moth. Use small brown paper bags to cover the fruit when it is ½ to 1 inch in diameter. Slip the fruit through a slit cut in the bottom fold of the bag and staple shut the open end. Remove the bags and allow the fruit to ripen about a week or two before harvest. 

  When it is not possible to keep codling moth levels down through nonchemical methods, insecticide spray applications may be necessary. Cyd-X and Spinosad are both safe biological agents that are available to home gardeners although Spinosad is more toxic to beneficial insects than Cyd-X. Timing is essential as sprays should be applied before or just as eggs are hatching and spraying needs to be repeated over the egg hatching period for each generation. Once the larvae have entered the fruit they are protected from insecticides. Home gardeners can detect the beginning of egg hatch by looking for the first stings or use pheromone traps and degree-day calculations to time sprays. You can find more about this method and codling moth control on the UC Integrated Pest Management website, ipm.ucanr.edu and click on the link Insects, Spiders & Others.

  Keeping those worms out of your apples is more challenging than a board game, but with careful timing and persistence you can savor those juicy ripe apples from your own tree.

Efforts to preserve Marin’s rare native plants

• James Campbell

• I love walking my dog in the open space above Tiburon. The views are incredible and distracting. But if you only watch the cargo ships enter and leave the Golden Gate, you can easily miss one of the coolest sights in the world right at your feet.

  The rare Tiburon black jewelflower, in bloom in May and June, is an odd member of the mustard family that is really a darkish maroon, almost black. This might explain its scientific name, Streptanthus glandulosus niger. I know: Streptanthus glandulosus sounds more like a disease than a flower. Believe it or not, that is not the only rare or endangered plant that lives in open spaces of Tiburon. You can also find Tiburon buckwheat, Tiburon paintbrush, Tiburon mariposa lily and Marin dwarf flax.

   

  Rarities aren’t limited to Tiburon. Turns out our county has about 129 rare, endangered or threatened native plant species. Rarity in the natural world it seems is not that, well, rare. Thirty-five percent of the native plants in the United States are considered rare and these are only the plants we have found. Imagine all the ones yet to be discovered.

  Marin is a treasure chest of rare plants, thanks to the California state rock, serpentinite. Marin County has major outcroppings on Mount Tamalpais and along the Tiburon Peninsula. Serpentinite is formed when the Earth’s mantle, lying under the sea, is forced upward where tectonic plates collide. The olivine and pyroxene in the upper mantle are squeezed under enormous pressure and changed into serpentinite, a metamorphic rock. Metamorphosis means change in Greek.

   

  Serpentinite is smooth and jade-colored, like a serpent’s skin; hence its name. When serpentinite weathers and erodes, serpentine soils are formed. Ten percent of California’s native plants are restricted to growing in these serpentine soils, even though these soils only cover 1 percent of our state.

  Serpentinite is pretty toxic as far as rock goes. There was a movement in 2010 to defrock the state rock because it can contain asbestos. It also contains toxic heavy metals such as chromium and nickel. Nickel is not great for plant growth. Serpentinite has high levels of magnesium, too, although this is an essential nutrient for plants, in high concentrations it interferes with the absorption of calcium, another essential nutrient for plants.

   

  Serpentine soils are also low in calcium, phosphorus and potassium. Phosphorus and potassium are two of the three main macronutrients in plant growth, the P and K in fertilizer ratios. What does all of this mean? You aren’t going to be growing your tomatoes, or much of anything else, in serpentine soils.

  Because serpentine soils are tough soils in which to grow plants you end up having little humus. Humus is the organic material in soil produced by the decomposition of leaves and plant material. No plants growing means no plants decomposing. Humus is an important source of nitrogen, the third important macronutrient in plant growth- the N in fertilizer ratios.

   

  Most plant species cannot grow in serpentine soils at all. Some species can grow in serpentine soils because they have adapted, but they are often dwarfed. Some species can only grow in serpentine soils; these plants are called serpentine endemics. Because serpentine endemics like the Tiburon black jewelflower only grow on these uncommon soils, they are especially susceptible to extinction. Remember, serpentine soils only cover 1 percent of our state and that percentage shrinks every year.

  Fortunately, the Tiburon black jewelflower is the focus of preservation efforts. In the 1990s, the town of Tiburon and the City of Belvedere purchased the area of its natural habitat to be preserved as open space. More recently, in a joint study by Mills College and the Marin County Open Space District, the Tiburon black jewelflower has been introduced to an area outside its normal range, a similar habitat area on Ring Mountain. The verdict is out on whether the relocation will be successful.

Encourage owls to keep your rodent problems in check

• Nanette Londeree

• Got problems with rats, mice or gophers? Interested in environmentally friendly methods to help reduce these pests? It’s easy — support your local owls and encourage them to hang around. These ethereal birds of the night that you’re more likely to hear than see, can be a boost to an overall approach at controlling unwanted rodents.

  With their large heads and forward-facing eyes, owls are easily recognizable. Exceptional vision coupled with acute hearing and the ability to fly silently, these raptors have feet equipped with piercing talons and hooked beaks for tearing flesh that make them formidable and efficient predators. According to the Marin-based Hungry Owl Project (HOP), a partnership with WildCare in San Rafael, a family of barn owls can consume 3,000 rodents in a four month breeding cycle and can often breed twice a year in Marin. That’s a lot of natural pest control.

  Owls common in Marin are the barn owl, the great horned owl and the western screech owl. The medium-sized barn owl has a pale heart-shaped face, white underbody and long legs. Their soft plumage helps muffle the sound of their feathers when flying, ensuring a silent approach when honing-in on their quarry. Their rather eerie vocalizations include screeching, hissing and sometimes a bloodcurdling scream.

  The great horned owl gets its name from the tufts of feathers on the head. This large, powerful bird is mostly nocturnal, usually beginning to hunt at dusk, seeking out a wide array of prey, some even larger than itself. In addition to rodents, it will consume rabbits, house cats, other small birds and skunks (it doesn’t have much of a sense of smell). Their call is a deep, stuttering series of four to five hoots.

  Small and fluffy, the western screech owl’s plumage serves as an effective camouflage when resting in a tree. The strictly nocturnal hunter starts to forage about 45 minutes after sundown and return to roosts 30 minutes before sunrise. Surprisingly, screech owls don’t screech at all; they have a soft, descending hoot similar to that of the great horned owl.

  Major risks to the owl population are poison baits that kill unwanted rodents (primarily rats and mice). They contain anticoagulants that can purportedly kill a rodent “after a single feeding,” though it may actually take four to seven days for the rodent to die. During that time, the rodent can consume more bait, increasing the level of toxin in their bodies that subsequently gets ingested by any predator that eats the tainted animal.

  In 2010 WildCare began a program to evaluate the impact of rodenticides on the animals brought into their care facility. Alarmingly, the most recent data available (2013 to 2014) indicated that 86 percent of all their patients tested positive for rodenticide in the blood.

  In addition to rodenticides, loss of habitat is another threat to owls. Nest boxes can provide homes for barn owls and screech owls to nest and multiply.

  “Encourage barn owls for rodent control due to their enormous appetites and superb hunting skills,” says HOP executive director Alex Godbe. “If the surrounding habitat is adequate for the owls to hunt, they can be easily attracted to a location, even small properties, by installing a barn owl nesting box.”

  In more wooded locations, screech owls boxes are a good alternative. For more information on nest boxes, go to the HOP website at www.hungryowl.org.

  So, how can you help the owl population in your environment? Don’t use poisons and provide habitat for these amazing allies for rodent control.

  “Rodent poisons are having a devastating effect on our predator population,” Godbe says. “The poisons move up the food chain and all predators are at risk and particularly the owls.”

  For rodent control, HOP recommends using an integrated pest management approach that includes exclusion, prevention and humane trapping along with encouraging owls and other beneficial predators.

Encouraging wildlife into your garden has many benefits

• Karen Gideon

• Biodiversity is a mainstay of sustainability and animals contribute to the palette of organisms in a healthy ecosystem. Encouraging the buzz of wildlife in your garden has many benefits. Birds, insects and small mammals form a community of pest patrollers and pollinators that can keep pest problems in check. But before you open your front gate and beckon Bambi into your garden, there are some principles that will help you enjoy both your garden and the company of birds, bats and bees.

  • Welcome insects. Attracting a variety of insects to your garden is an excellent way to control pests and keep your garden in balance. Ladybugs, parasitic wasps and praying mantises keep harmful pests at bay. As you move up the food chain, those same insects provide nourishment for songbirds, reptiles and spiders that also are pest patrollers. Spraying toxic pesticides not only poisons your soil but it also creates a ripple effect in insect populations — indiscriminately wiping out populations of insects that protect your garden.

  • Be selective. Thinking through nontoxic approaches and barriers, keeping pesky critters from moving in, will save you heartache. Deer can ravage shrubs and flowering plants. Voles enjoy nibbling the roots of plants, decimating your garden. Fencing, both above and below the ground, can protect your plants. On the Marin Master Gardener website (marinmg.ucanr.edu), review lists of plants that are deer-resistant and add them to your garden. If you have a particular pest problem, check out our integrated pest management link for help.

  • Think native. Native plants are an excellent choice both as a wildlife attractant and sustainable habitat for birds and bugs. Many native plants offer the food and shelter wildlife needs as they patrol your plants for pests. Select a variety of plant types — mix trees, shrubs and perennials with ground cover and plants offering blossoms, seeds, sap and cones during different seasons. Grasses offer food in the early spring while plants with nuts and berries are plentiful in the fall.

  • Let it be. The environment that supports wildlife is a bit messy. Leaves, deadfall, branches and twigs serve as an important part of their habitat. Those untidy corners of the garden are moist and dark, offering protection and sustenance for many insects. Many species of bees use our gardens to overwinter in decomposing logs or tree cavities. For birds, reptiles and spiders, those piles of refuse are a feeding delight. Blowing dead leaves and raking up debris destroys these habitats. By leaving some leaf litter for animals to burrow under in the winter gives them a head start eliminating pest problems in the early spring.

  • Control pets. Birds are one of the gardener’s best friends. Pest patrolling songbirds eat some of our most egregious pests — like slugs, aphids and thrips. And while housecats may be simply manifesting their natural propensity to hunt, they kill billions of birds every year. Minimally, a bell sounding from the collar of a kitty would save some bird-lives.

  • Offer water. If you’ve planted natives, conservation of water is a primary benefit. Irrigation systems that use untargeted overhead sprinklers are wasteful and can create run off, so converting to a targeted drip irrigation system is healthier for the plants and the soil. Wildlife needs sources of surface water to keep hydrated and their feet wet. Birds, mammals and insects are attracted to pools of water, whether it’s a saucer on the ground or a bubbling fountain. Consider creating such a source in your garden, regardless of how small it is.

  There’s nothing more enticing than a garden buzzing with life — the song of birds and the fresh scent of healthy soil. It attracts both humans and wildlife. Gardens come alive when gardeners welcome the wildlife around them and join forces to create a safe, nontoxic environment for people and animals.

Erosion control keeps rain from washing away topsoil

• Marty Nelson

• Winter is the season for holidays, football games, Dungeness crab and — rain! In Marin’s Mediterranean climate, 90 percent of the annual rainfall normally occurs between November and April. After our dry summers, we depend on the rainfall for the deep watering our native and garden plants need. Ideally our winter rains fall gently on rich and stable soil, nourishing our thirsty plants. But when the rain washes away topsoil and floods flowerbeds, it can become too much of a good thing.

  While we can’t control the rain itself we can employ some landscaping strategies to direct the path of the water and reduce garden damage. Since erosion is a common problem in our hilly residential areas, a first defense against the destructive effects of rain runoff is to stabilize slopes. The most effective techniques for erosion control are determined by the steepness of the terrain. In its “Homeowner’s Guide to Erosion Control,” the California Natural Resources Conservation Service provides guidelines for slope stabilization based on the extent of the grade. Moderate slopes, with less than a 33 percent grade, can be protected with plants and mulch. Plants selected for erosion control should have deep spreading root systems. A mix of ground covers, perennials, shrubs, and trees is ideal. Some native species that are good for slopes include eriogonum (California buckwheat), arctostaphylos (manzanita), rhamnus (coffeeberry), ceanothus (California lilac), and baccharis pilularis (coyote brush). Bare soil between the plants should be covered with a layer of organic mulch such as small bark or wood chips that are not likely to wash away easily. Avoid the finely shredded bark that is sometimes sold to cover slopes. It is a fire hazard.

  The steeper the slope the more likely additional structural support will be needed for stabilization, Slopes with grades between 33 and 50 percent can also be planted but erosion controls such as jute netting and straw wattles (long fiber-encased straw tubes) may be need to be installed to retain the slope until the plants can take over.

  Slopes over 50 percent will require retaining walls or terracing for stabilization. Terraces can be an attractive option and provide more usable garden space allowing for a greater variety of plant selection. Rocks, boulders, concrete blocks and railroad ties can be used to create simple low retaining walls for hillside terracing. Taller walls may require help from a professional contractor to insure the results are stable and properly reinforced. The Marin County Building and Safety Division requires a permit for retaining walls over 4 feet in height.

  If last year’s rainfall produced a mossy bog in your garden, then consider installing a drainage system to redirect the flow of water to areas where it will not collect and cause problems. Much of the soil in Marin is fine-textured clay that drains slowly and increases the potential for surface runoff. A dry creek bed is a popular type of surface drain. Constructed with boulders and river rock to appear as a natural stream, a dry creek bed can be designed to channel water down a slope or simply to provide a trough to capture the rainfall and allow it to soak into the ground.

  Where runoff is heavier, a French drain can help. A French drain is a subsurface drain consisting of a gravel-filled trench with a perforated pipe in the bottom. The perforated pipe directs the excess water collected in the trench to a disposal site. French drains can be used to divert rainwater around houses and patios and to provide additional drainage on terraced hillsides behind retaining walls.

  You can design your landscape to make rainwater a welcome asset and not a problem in your garden. Methods for controlling runoff and preventing erosion can also add interest and beauty to your site. It’s time to welcome the winter rains.

Escaped Exotics, Invasive Plants

• Katie Martin

• Some years ago, I was the “Escaped Exotics” chairperson for the Marin chapter of the California Native Plant Society.  What does that mean? One friend said it sounded like a bunch of plants in black-and-white striped pajamas running loose in the countryside! Other terms that are used to describe these plants include non-natives, naturalized aliens, pest plants and invasive plants.
  
  Why are they bad? Some of these plants do have pretty flowers. Consider the graceful plumes of pampas grass or the large pea-shaped flowers of Scotch broom.  These aggressive plants can crowd out our native plants, and decrease biodiversity. They are a threat to the rare and endangered plants of Marin County.
  
  Exotic plant species were brought by Father Junipero Serra to San Diego Bay as early as 1769. According to “California’s Changing Landscapes,” evidence of at least 16 exotic weed species (dated to 1824) was found in the string of missions along California’s coast. Other introduced species were brought in ship ballast, grain contaminants or for ornamental purposes. Many came from parts of Europe with a similar Mediterranean climate as ours.
  
  According to the “Marin Flora,” California has 5.867 plant species, 1,025 of which are introduced. Marin County has 1679 different plant species. This is a rich and diverse flora in a small area of 520 square miles. Of these, 583 are introduced species. You may be familiar with some of them: Pampas grass, Scotch or French broom and yellow star thistle.
  
  Pampas grass, Cortaderia jubata, is native to Bolivia, Peru and Ecuador. Each plume contains thousands of seeds. It was introduced into California for landscaping and erosion control. Cal Trans used it on Devil’s Slide, Highway 1 south of San Francisco. It was common in West Marin, but local people have worked hard to decrease the populations.
  
  There are several species of broom that have been introduced from Europe. French broom, Genista monspessulana, was brought in for landscaping 30-40 years ago. They are members of the pea family with bright yellow flowers, like sweet peas. On a warm summer day you can hear the pods explode and see the seeds scattered widely. A medium-sized shrub can produce 8000 seeds per year! The seed is long lived in the soil, making control difficult. In 1994 a prescribed burn was conducted by Mt. Tamalpais State Park along Panoramic Highway to control broom.
  
  Yellow star thistle, Centaurea solstitialis, has solitary, yellow, composite flowers and stout spines on the buds. It is native to dry open habitats of southern Europe. It now infests 12 million acres in California. It can survive on as little as 10 inches of rainfall per year. China Camp State Park has tried to control yellow star thistle on their lands.
  
  These plants have common characteristics that enable them to invade, establish and outcompete our native plants. First, we must remember that all plants compete for space to grow in, for light, water and soil nutrients. Exotics can outcompete and crowd out natives because they have:

  1. Large numbers of seeds
  2. Often seeds can be dispersed a long distance from the parent plant
  3. Seeds are long-lived in the soil, forming a seed bank for future generations
  4. Free from their native predators, they have a competitive advantage
  5. They may have fast growth rates
  6. They have wide tolerances for environmental factors, e.g., heat/cold, wet/dry, good soil/poor soil.

  The California Invasive Plant Council (Cal-IPC) is a non-profit organization committed to our native plants and natural landscapes. Cal-IPC's mission is to “protect California's lands and waters from ecologically-damaging invasive plants through science, education and policy.” The inventory of invasive plants that they have developed lists and categorizes non-native invasive plants that threaten the state's wildlands. The state of California, realizing the importance of the problem passed the noxious weed bill AB1108 in 1993. A brochure published by the Marin/Sonoma Weed Management Area  (MSWMA) describes other invasive species: cape ivy, gorse, distaff thistle, medusahead, oblong spurge, Italian thistle, giant reed, barbed goatgrass and purple star thistle.
  
  If you want to help remove invasive plants, you can volunteer with the MMWD watershed or Point Reyes National Seashore. The volunteer coordinator for MMWD is Suzanne Whelan (415 945-1128). Contact her about the broom pull every third Saturday, 9 a.m. - 12 noon. At Point Reyes National Seashore you can call Volunteer Program Manager Doug Hee (415 464-5145).
  
  Invasive non-natives are a serious and significant problem in Marin County, California, and the Pacific Northwest. But as the past chairperson for escaped exotics, I don’t want to leave you without hope. I believe that with a multi-faceted approach we can find solutions to this problem. Practical methods for removal and revegetation must be used. Public awareness through education efforts is also necessary. Further scientific research into the nature of these invasive plants will aid in their removal. And there must be cooperation between government agencies, the horticultural industry and concerned citizens.
  
  

Even the most observant gardener might miss the signs of root rot

• Karen Gideon

• I have oak trees on my property and if I'm checking my trees for root rot by looking for spongy, shredding wood, I'd be wrong. Many types of root rot form no structures and are invisible to the human eye. And if I don't associate root rot with dead tomato, eggplant and pepper plants, I would be wrong again.

  The pathogens causing root rot live in the soil and can affect shrubs, trees, citrus and vegetables. Root rot is caused by an adaptable pathogen.

  One of the most common root rots in Marin County is caused by organisms in the genus Phythopthora. These pathogens are called "water molds," but they behave like fungi. They spread via swimming spores typical of waterborne molds, but they have evolved to live on land plants. There are hundreds of Phythopthora species and they have more than 1,000 host plants aiding their proliferation.

  Phythopthora spores need water contact to infect a plant. Wet soil around the base of a plant or standing water can easily serve as this medium. Water can be delivered to the organism via irrigation systems that are watering directly on the root system and by overwatering, especially in warmer seasons. Also planting too deeply, landscaping with insufficient drainage or burying the crowns of trees can encourage root rot.

  Once a plant is infected, the pathogen kills the roots and moves up the plant's water and nutrient uptake system to the crown. All of this happens underground so it is invisible to even an observant gardener. And ironically, the symptoms of root rot look similar to drought stress. The plant begins to decline, with wilting leaves turning color.

  Other pathogens may be present in the infection, decaying the wood and making it spongy. If it is mainly Phythopthora, the bark may be discolored but the wood will be solid. The rate of decline and eventual death of the plant is determined by the size and age of the plant and how rapidly the pathogens can spread from the roots to the crown.

  So what can a homeowner do to deter this pest? The first line of defense is to adjust irrigation for plants so that there is sufficient opportunity for the soil to dry around the plant before watering again. If you've planted birch trees or alders, which like their feet wet, you will be challenged trying to reach a balance that keeps the trees healthy. If you suspect a Phythophthora infection, contact your arborist to evaluate whether a fungicide would give the plant some protection.

  The keys to minimizing the chances of getting root rot are good water management and sufficient drainage. Buy your plants from a reputable source so you're not importing the pathogen. Good sanitation practices can help you avoid spreading the pathogen from one area of your garden to another via water or soil.

  There is more information on the Master Gardener website at www.marinmg.org.  Click the link to "Pests and Other Problems" on the left hand column of the home page.

Every garden could use some homey charm

• D. F. Braun

• There is confusion about the definition, but biennials are not plants that bloom every other year. Individual plants in this category do have some peculiar flowering habits. Technically they are all plants that require two full seasons to mature, building up their reserves of leaves and roots for the first year and flowering the second. An annual plant will complete its life cycle in a single growing season. A perennial plant persists from year to year and produces flowers and fruit in two or more different years. There are many variations of this schedule. Let's look at a few examples.

  Biennials are some of the most treasured plants in our gardens; they are loved not for their rarity but for their homey, simple charm. They are considered "cottage garden flowers": foxglove, forget-me-not, hollyhocks and sweet William are among the most notable. Yet, despite of the tug at the heart of these cherished plants many gardeners avoid them because most require much more effort than any annual. The marigold can be expected to give two to three months of nonstop blooms. Usually lacking time and space, and desiring long-lasting color in our summer garden, we opt for impatiens or petunias. And why not? They are predictable in their profusion. Biennials, on the other hand, are far less dependable. Those magnificent foxgloves may look as though they have had a dreadful hangover in mid-summer when you expect your garden to look its best. But let me plead their case. Think of some of the advantages of these beauties.

  Forget-me-nots will colorize almost anywhere a reasonable amount of ground is kept clear by light cultivation. Even as infant plants they are appealing with their fuzzy green, mouse ears and thick clusters of limpid blue buds in early spring. In an acid soil they are pale blue and with a little more lime they are a deep cerulean. Either way there is nothing more winsome. Older gardeners consider forget-me-nots as instruments that can measure the health of their gardens.

  Among biennials the foxglove is probably the reigning queen, not just for the cunning shape of each flower, but for the vertical rods of bloom with their mystical interiors. The genus Digitalis, to which all foxgloves belong, has many wonderful plants, but the most beloved is Digitalis purpurea, which is native to much of northern and central Europe and most popular with English gardeners.

  Add to this list the old fashioned hollyhocks, perhaps 7 feet tall against a fence or wall (and pick your color). While many varieties may be subject to rust, Alcea ficifolia and Alcea pallida though not as varied in color or height are rust resistant. 'Dame's rocket' likes a partly shady spot and bears a candelabra of little, four-petaled flowers in beautiful shades of purple, pink and white. The fragrance is better than fresh laundry.

  Lack of space rather than patience may be one reason to resist growing biennials. An easy solution is to buy young plants in their second year of growth. Forget-me-nots, foxgloves and even hollyhocks transplant readily, if a generous amount of earth is provided for each plant. Ideal conditions for transplanting would be a cool, damp day.

  It is probably only fair to say that biennials will always grow in country gardens not given to too much tidying up. For they are far from the manicured, crisp-edged suburban gardens as one can possibly get. The values they carry of ease, abundance and a lightness of heart are comparable to old shade trees and the bulbs that surprise us each spring with their fresh bouquets. They all seem to say, "We have been here a long time, and we will be here a while more." In any garden that is a voice to be treasured.

  Biennials may be a sort of benchmark of the committed gardener whose motto might be: "Think how beautiful they will be ... next year.”

  The University of California Marin Master Gardeners are sponsored by UC Cooperative Extension. For questions about gardening, plant pests or diseases, call 499-4204 from 9 a.m. to noon, and 1 to 4 p.m. weekdays, or bring in samples or pictures to 1682 Novato Blvd., Suite 150B, Novato.

Ewww… rats are everywhere!

• Diane Lynch

• 

  This stand of Mexican fan palms that haven’t been pruned provides habitat for rats, but also many species of birds and other animals, which co-exist.

  
  
  
  Because I have a seasonal stream that trickles all year there’s some excellent rat habitat in my garden.  The Mexican fan palm is wonderful oriole habitat, but rats live up there, too.  We have raccoons and skunks in the garden all the time, with occasional visits from opossums and foxes—all of these animals eat rats.  It must be an infinite smorgasbord out there.
  
  
  

  

  This young Meyer lemon tree was completely denuded by rats. Note the blooms were the first thing the tree pushed out as it recovered.

  
  
  
  
  

  
  The past couple of winters I’ve had plants eaten that rats have never favored before: acanthus stalks, geranium maderense leaves, and diascia were consumed right down to the roots.  An entire young Meyer lemon tree was stripped of every single leaf.
  
  

  
  
  
  So, I turned to what is called Integrated Pest Management (IPM). IPM is an ecosystem-based strategy that focuses on long-term prevention of pests or their damage by managing the ecosystem through a combination of techniques such as biological control, habitat manipulation, modification of cultural practices, and use of resistant varieties. Practices like bringing bird feeders in at night, feeding pets indoors, keeping garbage cans covered, cleaning up fallen fruit--you know the drill—I did them all.  Still there was a rat problem. Unfortunately, I found out repellents aren’t very effective when I sprayed a couple of gallons of peppermint repellant to no avail.  This left me to focus on habitat.

  Rats have coexisted with us for centuries and it’s up to us to figure out how to keep them under control by maintaining our habitats. To help remove the rat habitat within plant material and make my garden less enticing, I started fall pruning of the hydrangeas, which had bountiful summer growth and many blooms.  The drought-tolerant fern that spread everywhere was thinned severely.  Every piece of ivy that  had grown through the fence was removed.  Along with ivy, one of the top rat habitats in the Bay area, pampas grass and bamboo provide enticing cover because rats can nest in the bases. 

  

  This messy potting bench has some great rat habitat underneath.

  Since I’m a packrat, no pun intended, I have no end to the stacks of pots and other things I might need someday. I have a 17’ potting bench littered with plants. Underneath, I keep potting soil, lava rock, mulch bags, all of which provide cover for rats.  I’ll be getting rid of some of those pots and keeping less inventory around that provides shelter for the critters. I will be getting the mulch out of the bags and into the garden for starters.

  Snap traps are the best way to deal with rodents that get into your house, but shouldn’t be used outside because they can catch a dog or cat paw along with animals that do good by eating rats.  Glue traps are just plain cruel and can catch good guys such as spiders, snakes, lizards and birds.

  Other methods like using poisons have long-term ramifications.  A few years ago, WildCare in San Rafael tested animals that came into their care for rodenticide residues.  The toxicology lab at UC Davis found that about 86% of those tested had rodenticides in their systems.  A similar study on dogs and cats was done through veterinarians and showed similar results.  

  By skipping the poisons, we help natural predators such as foxes, opossums, raccoons, skunks, coyotes, bobcats and raptors such as owls and hawks to do their essential jobs and stay healthy.  

  A decade or so ago I read a book called “Rats”, by Robert Sullivan, which chronicles a year he spent observing rat families in an alley in New York.  I came away with respect for their family structures and intelligence.  UC Marin Master Gardeners Nanette Londeree and Marie Narlock have written a great primer on rats in The Leaflet, the Master Gardener newsletter available  to the public: http://marinmg.ucanr.edu/Our_Projects/Leaflet/Getting_rid_of_rats_149/.

  YardSmartMarin and Marin/Sonoma Vector Control have lots of information about rodents on their websites too, and someone from Vector Control will even come to your house to walk you through what to do or come to a neighborhood meeting.  Guess what?  If you have rats, so do your neighbors!

  Photo credits: Diane Lynch

Examine wind patterns to avoid damage to landscape.

• Dot Zanotti Ingels

• While a mild breeze can cool us and keep our skies a bit cleaner, stronger winds can cause anything from mild to severe damage to our gardens. Our large range of microclimates in Marin means that wind impacts us differently depending upon where we live.

  The speed of the wind, its duration and the direction from which it comes determine the extent of wind damage. Winds above 30 mph are generally needed to break plants but damage can happen at much lesser wind speeds. In the inland areas of Marin the winds blow up and over the hills and gust through our lower valleys. We can feel like we are in a wind tunnel. At the coast and along the bay shores, wind is almost a constant and is accompanied by fog and salt spray. The tops of our lovely hills are also often windy. Tall or large buildings and even our homes can create their own wind tunnels.

  Wind damages in several ways:

  • Wind causes water to evaporate from the surface of a leaf about 30 percent faster than on a calm day. If the soil moisture is low (the condition of most soil during drought) so that water absorption by the plant does not match the water it is losing from transpiration off its leaves, water stress is the result. Leaves may appear smaller, look dry especially along the edges, or fall off. A dried-out plant is much less resistant to damage or disease than a well-hydrated plant.

  • Strong winds can damage or break branches, leaves and fruit. Young, less established trees could be uprooted. Dense tree canopies can act like sails that catch the wind causing limbs to break or the tree to blow over.

  • Along the coast, wind-blown sand can damage and bury root crowns of trees and shrubs.

  What can we do to mitigate wind damage in our gardens? Plenty.

  • Spend some time noting the wind patterns in your garden. Note the direction it comes from and how it may swirl around. This will help you decide how best to vegetate your space.

  • Studies published in the Journal of Arboriculture and Urban Forestry show that thinning a tree does almost nothing to reduce the wind load. If a tree really has to have its wind load reduced, then reducing the overall height and width of a tree is the best option, and height is most important. This makes sense if one looks at trees that grow in wind-blown places. They tend to grow low and wide.

  • Manage the water in your garden carefully (again, especially this year). Help your plants to maintain their hydration by keeping the soil evenly moist around them. You may need to give them an extra drink when wind is persistent. Add some extra mulch to cover any bare soil to help the soil retain moisture and the roots to remain more evenly moist. Loose mulches can be blown away with heavy winds and should be wet down before expected gusty winds. If you live with consistent heavier winds, select mulch that is heavier. Install an irrigation system that incorporates a water sensor to help with providing consistent, even watering.

  • Choose wind-resistant plants. These tend to bend instead of break with a snap. Plant lists that include trees can be found on the Marin Master Gardener website. If you live by the coast, you need to note whether a species is also able to tolerate the salt spray.

  • Use loose, flexible ties to stake young or newly planted trees. Your nursery professional can advise you how to best do this and how long you should provide staking before your tree can make it on its own. Tree canopies should be thinned to allow wind to pass through.

  • Provide your yard with windscreens. These can be done with structures, natural elements or plants. Your home provides a screen for a portion of your space. A fence that is at right angles to the wind direction changes the wind pattern. Pergola structures or tent-like awnings with one side closed can work, too. Make sure that they are not completely solid. They need to be porous enough to allow some wind to pass through or they, too, can be wind damaged. If you are planning a large structure, you may be wise to contact a landscape professional.

  • Leafy plants and hedges can also buffer a seating area or sensitive plant. Again, the plants need to be selected for wind tolerance in your microclimate.

Experiencing Euphorbia

• Barbara J. Euser

• In my friend’s Tiburon garden, Mediterranean spurge spreads across a shaded hillside. When I admired their chartreuse flower bracts, my friend suggested I dig up a few young plants and take them home. “I put in two small plants a few years ago, and now look at this,” she gestured widely with her arms.

  Also known as Euphorbia characias,withsubspecies wulfenii (from Turkey and the Balkans) and characias (from Portugal and Spain), Mediterranean spurge is native to the Mediterranean region and thrives in the Bay Area’s Mediterranean climate.

  The genus Euphorbia comprises over 2100 species: just over half are succulents, some resembling cacti with tall branches covered with spines. Succulent euphorbias are native to north and south Africa and the middle east. The remaining 45 percent are not true succulents and include such plants as popular Christmas poinsetttias. All euphorbias are characterized by their white, milky sap. The sap contains toxic terpene esters, which can irritate the skin and damage eyes, so take care when cutting or handling them. However, the plants also have medicinal properties: Euphorbia pekinensis is one of the fifty fundamental herbs in Chinese medicine. Carolus Linnaeus assigned the name Euphorbia to the genus in honor of the Greek physician Euphorbus. Over two thousand years ago, Euphorbus reportedly used one of the species, possibly Russian spurge, as an herbal remedy to cure King Juba II of Numidia of a swollen belly.

  With its slender, fleshy, blue-green leaves and chartreuse, cushion-shaped bracts, Mediterranean spurge grows from two to five feet tall, two to three feet wide, and makes an attractive addition to a garden border. A plentiful self-seeder, it can also be used as a ground cover. It blooms in spring and early summer, then tends to fade into the background by mid-summer. Its evergreen foliage remains attractive year round. The flowers are insignificant and have no petals. It is bracts, that is modified leaves, that add dimension and color to the flowers. The bracts contain nectar glands that attract pollinators.

  While driving along a country road in Greece, I was struck by the number of Mediterranean spurge I saw. They grow wild along the shoulder and on the rocky hillsides here. Only drought resistant plants survive in the hot, harsh environment. The main requirement of this hardy plant is well-drained soil. Heavy soil may cause its roots to rot. Although it has adapted to difficult conditions, in the friendlier conditions of a garden, it will thrive.

  The influential garden designer Gertrude Jekyll (1843-1932) referred to Mediterranean spurge as “one of the grandest and most pictorial of plants.” Popular among gardeners in the southern Mediterranean for generations, Euphorbia charcarias is adapted to a variety of conditions and can tolerate temperatures below zero degrees Fahrenheit, as long as the soil remains dry. To fill different niches in the garden, a number of cultivars have been developed, including ‘Ember Queen’ with variegated foliage, the compact ‘Humpty Dumpty,’ the strikingly blue ‘Jade Dragon,’ and the robust ‘John Tomlinson’ with spherical bracts 16 inches in diameter. The related species Euphorbia amygdaloides var. robbiae is well adapted to dry shade. Especially useful as a ground cover, its glossy dark green leaves form a spreading mound. In the spring, panicles of yellow flowers seem to float above the leaves. Topping the list of purple-leaved perennials is Euphorbia dulcis, a sun-loving chocolate-looking plant that contrasts spectacularly with spring’s bright greens.

  One caveat— Euphorbia esula, Euphorbia oblongata, and Euphorbia terracina are on the California Invasive Plant Inventory and should be avoided.

  If you would like to learn more about this extensive genus of plants, the International Euphorbia Society provides information on cultivation and propagation, as well as a photo gallery, on its internet site.

Fall in your Garden

• Dot Zanotti Ingels

• AUTUMN IS MY favorite season. The air smells so fresh. It is a great time to savor memories of summer and shift gears into new kinds of plans and dreams. Fall is also an important time in your garden. It is the time to put your garden to bed and to plan and plant for the future. Much of the health of your garden depends on doing your fall chores. It is important to do a thorough general cleanup. Clearing away diseased and damaged plant material at the end of the growing season is an essential fall chore. The fungi and bacteria, which cause so many garden problems, can proliferate over winter on contaminated leaves, stems and roots. Removing these havens for disease will reduce the chance of seeing blight, mildew, gray mold fungus, root rot, and wilt in next year's garden. The amount of plant material you should remove depends on conditions in your particular garden. Obviously, any diseased material has to be cleared away. If a particular kind of disease has been a problem, it's also a good idea to remove the remains of any plant that is ordinarily susceptible to that problem, even if it looked healthy all season. Roses, for example, are vulnerable to black spot, so it is a good idea to remove all the foliage even if it was healthy all summer. As a further precaution, some gardeners like to remove all plant material that has died after a frost. Pick up and discard any old fruit still hanging on the tree, or that has fallen to the ground. Herbaceous perennial plants are left in the ground all winter, so good care in the fall will improve your chances for healthy growth in the spring. Most gardeners cut back all their spent perennial plants in the fall to a height of 3 to 6 inches, but some prefer to leave the seed pods for the birds. When you cut back perennials, it is a good idea to mark their location with a stake so you will know where they are in the spring. This also is a good time to make a sketch or map of your garden, indicating which perennials you have and where each one is located. That will make garden planning more fun during the winter as well as remind you of plant locations in early spring. Fall is a good time to divide crowded spring perennials, such as dianthus and iris, if needed. Late-bloomers like geraniums, daylilies, hostas, coneflowers and yarrow also benefit from division. This controls their size and renews blooming. If your dahlia bulbs have not come back annually in the past, it is a good idea to dig them up to avoid having them rot in the wet ground or get eaten by rodents. Store them in a dry, cool, dark space. Removing all spent plant material -- roots, leaves and stems -- from the vegetable garden every fall is a good idea because vegetables are vulnerable to many diseases and pests. When the insects have no late fall food source, they are more likely to be killed by cold weather. Removing dead foliage also removes a warm, comfortable home for small animals such as mice. Make note of where you planted your vegetables in the garden this year so you can rotate crops next year. This is one of the best and easiest ways to keep diseases and pests under control. An annual garden can be treated like a vegetable garden. Remove all diseased material, and make mulch of the rest. Collecting seeds from your annual flowers before you pull them out can be a fun way to have your favorites in your garden next year for free. Autumn also is a good time to clean your garden tools. Disease microorganisms also overwinter on the surface of stakes, tomato cages, trellises and other garden equipment. Remove all soil from the tools, and clean them with a 10 percent bleach solution or other disinfectant to protect your tools from spreading diseases. Apply a light layer of oil to prevent rusting if you will not be using them for a while. Wash your garden gloves, too. Pulling weeds in the fall before they go to seed helps to reduce the number of seedlings you will need to pull in the spring. If there are seeds on the weeds, dispose of them in the green waste. Now is the best time to plant trees, shrubs, native plants and perennials. The fall and winter rains help establish thriving root systems that will support lush top growth in spring. It's also the time to plant spring bulbs. Check with the nursery when you buy your bulbs to learn how and where to plant them. It's an ideal time to plant peas, lettuces, onions, cabbages, kale, shallots and garlic, too. Soils can get depleted of nutrients during the summer. You can easily keep the garden alive and active in winter by sowing cover crops or applying organic mulches in the fall. One of the easiest and cheapest sources of organic matter is green manure in the form of a cover crop planted in the fall. Legumes such as fava beans and vetch planted in the fall add nitrogen to the soil. The bacteria that live in the roots of the legumes fix more nitrogen than the plant needs to support itself. Large amounts of nitrogen are released into the soil from the roots as the legume dies. Healthy autumn leaves add lots of organic matter and plant nutrients to garden soil. Shred them by running over them with a lawnmower and spread them on the garden. Most importantly, remember to enjoy one of nature's most beautiful seasons while performing your fall gardening chores. You will be rewarded now and later. The University of California Marin Master Gardeners are sponsored by UC Cooperative Extension. For questions about gardening, plant pests or diseases, call 499-4204 from 9 a.m. to noon, and 1 to 4 p.m. weekdays, or bring in samples or pictures

Fall is here; time to appreciate the season

• Marie Narlock

• She arrived without a lot of fanfare. The wind died down, the light lowered, the shadows lengthened, the clouds streaked the sky. When the first soft rain fell and washed away summer’s dust, I couldn’t help but look up and smile.

  Finally. Autumn.

  It’s not that I have it in for summer. I don’t. Summer is like an excitable child, filled to the brim with boisterous energy and enthusiasm. Autumn is her relaxed cousin, the one who prefers to curl up with a book instead. Summer gets all the attention; fall is quiet.

  Autumn hands the gardener a breather, a respite from heavy chores. Shorter days mean fewer hours to pull weeds. Less heat means less sweat. The grass demands less mowing. Flowers fizzle and fade, leaving behind a supply of dried seed heads that fatten hungry goldfinches. I flip off the irrigation timer and sit back as nature turns on her fall-colored lights.

  And oh, what a show. Those brilliant tones — scarlet maple leaves crunching underfoot, distinctive golden ginkgo leaves streaming down like a ticker tape parade, neon orange Chinese pistache leaves creating a brilliant backdrop for crimson berries, leathery purple oakleaf hydrangea leaves deepening overnight. The days may be cooler, but autumn’s colors are warm and inviting.

  I know intellectually that these leaves are morphing due to genetic and chemical reasons — chlorophyll and carotenoids in leaf cells step aside so the anthocyanins can take over — yet every year at this time I marvel at how magical it all feels. I also marvel at the efficiency of fallen leaves, which decompose and recharge the soil with nutrients. The entire forest floor relies on leaf drop; if the leaves stopped falling, the forests would disappear.

  Makes that leaf blower as obnoxious as it sounds, right?

  Blowing away fallen leaves with a power tool is like asking your hair stylist to cut your hair with a machete. What’s the point?

  Instead, opt for a rake and enjoy a gardening activity that’s as therapeutic as it is satisfying. Raking often conjures happy childhood memories of huge leaf piles built for leaping in with abandon. If you’re Type A, you can spread some leaves out on your lawn and mow them, which speeds the decomposition process.

  But autumn is not about speeding things up. It’s about taking a step back, planning your next move, taking in your garden in the stillest months, the calmest days, the crispest evenings. It’s about appreciating the last Sungold tomatoes clinging to the vine, and tree branches heavy with orange-green persimmons and juicy-red pomegranates, one or two blackberries hiding on the cane. It’s the World Series, not the Superbowl.

  Sure, you’ve got some items on your gardening to-do list, but with such a striking and comfortable backdrop, it feels less onerous. Tossing a handful of cover crop seeds into your tired edible beds is practically effortless, and assures enriched soil next season. A basket of daffodil bulbs can be planted within minutes, and never ceases to charm in springtime. Fall is also the time to sow native wildflower seeds — poppies, tidy tips, lupine, flax — a task so simple and pleasurable that even toddlers can help.

  This year, don’t wait till pumpkins appear to enjoy the season. Breathe in the beauty of autumn starting right now. Take a walk around Phoenix Lake and soak up the colors. Step out on the Sleepy Hollow Divide for breathtaking views. Trek deep into Madrone Canyon to witness the forest floor spongy with big leaf maple leaves.

  Before you know it, the colors will have faded into the earth and winter will be upon us.

Farmers markets are more than just a place to get your groceries

• Marybeth Kampman

• I AM A FARMERS MARKET AFICIONADO. I have been going to the Marin farmers market Thursdays for 20 years. Going to market is a pilgrimage because it feeds my body and soul.

  I love the sounds, colors, textures and energy of the market and of the people who work and shop at the market. I love being immersed in the rhythm of seasons. I have learned to appreciate that it is only possible to purchase things when they are in season. I love discovering new fruits and vegetables at the peak of their perfection. I welcome the challenge and enjoyment of cooking by the calendar.

  Over the years the farmers market has changed in scope and breadth. The Thursday morning farmers market at the Marin Civic Center opened in 1983 and the Sunday morning market was added soon after. It was the first certified farmers market in California. A certified farmers market  means that farmers bring to market what they directly grow and raise themselves.  It epitomizes the concept of buying locally and sustainably, in that there is a direct connection between the farmer and the consumer.

  The market is more than just a place to do your shopping; it's also an educational experience. In 2009 the Marin farmers market merged with the Marin Agricultural Institute to form the Agricultural Institute of Marin  (AIM). Its mission is to educate the public about the nutritional and economic benefits of buying locally grown food directly from farmers.

  This is done through market tours, and various outreach programs to the general public, local schools and organizations.  Marin Master Gardeners also play an active role in the education of the public. Each week you will find Master Gardeners at booths at the Civic Center and Novato markets ready to offer advice and information concerning gardening, pest management and water-wise gardening practices.

  There's a market every day of the week in Marin County, except for Monday; residents have no excuse not to do their shopping at one.

  Each market has its own "flavor."  Arrive at 8 a.m. when the Thursday market at the Civic Center opens and you'll find yourself rubbing shoulders with many of the finest chefs in the Bay Area.  The farmers know them and their preferences. T he market is also family-friendly  with activities for children, plenty of free samples, and an espresso cart for those of us who are still a bit groggy at that early hour. There is also an opportunity to purchase sweets and baked and prepared foods. Ice cream, gelato and fruit drinks are offered seasonally.

  The Friday market in Mill Valley is small but offers quite a variety of prepared foods, as well as fresh fruits and vegetables.

  If you visit the Thursday market in downtown San Rafael from April to September from 5 to 8 p.m., you will feel as though you have been transported to an international street festival. There is music, cuisine from around the world, and of course a plethora of fresh fruits, vegetables and flowers.

  Sunday at the Civic Center is large and bustling. It features an aisle dedicated to crafts people along with an abundance of fresh fish and meats. Take a break from your shopping to listen to the live music, and feast on crepes or tortillas, while you enjoy some of finest people-watching in Marin.

  Whatever market you visit, remember to come prepared with bags or baskets that can be recycled. Vendors do provide bags, but more and more people are adapting to the new habit of bringing their own. I have noticed a few organized shoppers who bring jars and containers from home and fill them directly with produce once it's been weighed. This eliminates the
  need for added bags and provides the added benefit of ease of putting the
  produce away when returning home.

  Farmers markets offer wonderful opportunities to learn, support local businesses, connect with nature, and make eating healthy easy and incredibly delicious.

  
  
  

  
  
  

  GROW YOUR KNOWLEDGE

  • Agricultural Institute of Marin — www.agricultural institute.org/index/aboutUs
  
  • For a listing of market locations and times as well as a harvest calendar, go
  to the "Grown in Marin" page of the University of California
  Agriculture and Natural Resources website —http://groups.ucanr.org/GIM/Farmers_Markets/Local_Farmers_Market_Schedule.htm
  
  • Marin Organic, a cooperative association of Marin County organic producers,
  many whom sell at local markets — www.marinorganic.org/about.php —
  marinorganic unty.

  
  
  

Feed your garden well

• Jane Scurich

• FERTILIZERS, AMENDMENTS, mulch, 6-10-10, 8-0-0, 20-20-20, — what does it all mean?  Confused over what to feed your garden? You're
  not alone. Unfortunately, there is no one easy answer to our plant's dietary
  needs.
  
  The best advice you have probably heard before, but it deserves repeating: feed your soil. We are encouraged to provide our bodies with a healthy, well-balanced diet. Your plants are also looking for a healthy, well-balanced diet, and that diet comes from the soil.

  Grow your soil by adding amendments such as compost or well-rotted manure. Your goal is to build a soil that is teeming with life: earthworms, decaying plant material, microbes and fungi, all working in harmony to aerate the soil and provide complex minerals to support healthy plant growth. This won't happen overnight and is an ongoing process in even the
  most vibrant garden.

  To supplement our human diets, we often take a multivitamin composed of the most essential vitamins for human health. This is not unlike using a "complete" general-purpose fertilizer that contains a balanced dose of the three macronutrients, nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P) and potassium (K). You will find these three numbers on fertilizer plant labels, always listed in this alphabetical order. Nitrogen promotes lush green growth and overall plant health. Phosphorous helps develop healthy roots, fruit and flowers. Potassium is essential for stem growth and plant vigor. The numbers, such as 10-10-10, indicate that there is an equal percentage of these
  three elements in the fertilizer. The remaining 70 percent will vary by
  manufacturer; some will contain micronutrients and others just filler
  materials.

  When we identify a deficiency in our bodies, we often take additional supplements. Similarly, we can examine our plants to determine their needs. Like our own bodies, plants do not benefit by a surplus of nutrition supplements. As advised for our own health care: read the label and follow the directions. Overfertilizing can burn tender roots, cause spurts of weak growth that attract pests, result in underperforming plants, plant death, and crispy "fried" leaves. Additionally, excessive fertilizer leaches into our groundwater.

  You might consider a professional soil analysis to determine the nutritional composition and the acidic or alkaline levels (pH) of your soil. There are home test kits, readily available at your local garden center, and more comprehensive testing available in commercial labs. A number of local labs can be found at  http://ucanr.org/sites/SoCo/files/27431.pdf.

  I prefer to use all organic fertilizers as they release their nutrients more gradually and help improve the structure of the soil. Synthetic fertilizers are fast-acting, but too rapid growth can attract pests, encourage a flush of bloom and result in a weaker plant.

  Nutrition needs vary from plant to plant, species to species, and season to season. Annuals — [hose plants that complete their life cycle in one season, such as marigolds, petunias, impatiens and most vegetables — are the heaviest feeders as they must grow their entire root and plant structure in a very short time frame. They will benefit from being planted in fast-draining soil containing plenty of organic matter, with regular feedings of a balanced fertilizer.

  Perennials — plants that come back each year, such as delphiniums, geraniums and chrysanthemums — also like regular feeding, but they have the advantage of starting each growth season with an already sturdy set of roots. They may benefit from a monthly feeding of a complete fertilizer during their growing season. Most established foliage trees and shrubs do not need to be fertilized after their first two or three years.

  Camellias, rhododendrons and azaleas not grown in rich, acid soils need an infusion of acidic fertilizer, specifically formulated for their needs.

  Notoriously "fussy and demanding" roses can be pampered with a recipe from Gail Trimble, Master Rosarian, on the Marin Rose Society website titled "Fertilizing for the fanatical rosarian (www.marinrose.org/fertilizing2.html).

  Cymbidium orchids appreciate year-round feeding with a bimonthly application of a readily available, commercial orchid fertilizer, specifically formulated for growth this time of year, switching to a bloom formula as the label directions indicate.

  Mediterranean herbs such as rosemary, lavender and sage are drought tolerant and vigorous growers. Twice yearly mulching seems to provide all the nutrients they need.

  Summer is a period of rapid plant growth. With few exceptions, your garden will benefit from a 2- to 4-inch application of organic mulch. Take care not to apply the mulch too close to tender stalks. Once you have established a regular program of feeding your soil with mulch and compost, your days (and dollars) of fertilizing may dramatically diminish.

  FERTILIZER REMINDERS
  Always water plants the day before you fertilize and the day after to prevent burning.
  Read the directions and follow them; more is not better

  Before you invest your time, energy and finances and in a struggling plant, ask yourself: is this the proper plant for this location? Re-examine your garden. Select plants that work in your microclimate and provide them with the nutrition they need. Learn to love what succeeds in your little corner of the world.

Feeding the garden that feeds you

• Marie Narlock

• If your vegetable garden could talk, it would probably yawn and tell you how tired it is. It takes significant energy and nutrients to crank out big buds of broccoli and 6-foot towers of tomatoes. To successfully grow edibles year after year, it’s imperative that you feed the depleted soil to replenish the nutrients that were gobbled up last season. Question is, how?

  For some the answer is to buy a box of fertilizer and sprinkle generously. This, however, is a short-term answer to a long-term problem. Synthetic fertilizers do nothing for the structure of your soil. Furthermore, you need to be careful when you use them. Improper use can pollute our waterways, and even lead to soil nutrient imbalances. It’s sort of like eating a lousy diet but loading up on vitamins. Definitely not your best strategy!

  You’ll know your garden is ready for planting when you can effortlessly sink a shovel into the soil, which is dark, crumbly, weed-free, and teeming with earthworms. If you pick up a damp clump and work it between your fingers, it neither falls apart nor turns into a rock-hard ball. If this is you, congratulations. Feel free to gloat.

  If you’re like the rest of us mortals, you have some work to do before you sow the first row of carrots. Here’s how to give your soil what it needs now so that it’s poised to crank out produce by the pound.

  The first order of business is to clear all weeds. Weeds suck up nutrients and water that your (future) vegetables want and need. Plus, let’s face it, they’re ugly. While you’re at it, be sure to clear out any remnants of last year’s veggie garden, even those last rogue underground potatoes.

  Once your beds are cleared, it’s time for the most critical step adding organic material. Compost is about the best thing you can add to your soil for two reasons: as it decomposes it releases nutrients, and it improves soil’s water- and nutrient-holding capacity. Layer it on top of your beds, turn it in, apply liberally and often, and let the rain (hopefully there is some) soak it in. Seriously, it’s hard to overdo it.

  Another effective way to add organic material is by growing a cover crop. Also called green manure, these legumes and grasses are grown for the specific purpose of enhancing soil, smothering weeds and warding off unwelcomed pests. Cover crops, including clover, rye, fava beans, and vetch, are often grown in the fall and winter and chopped up and turned into the soil before spring planting. They add a mighty boost of organic material.

  Once you’ve added organic material to your weed-free veggie beds, you are just about there. The only missing ingredients are a drip irrigation system and a blanket of mulch on top to keep your soil warm and happy. Get your hands on a good planting calendar and follow it. (You can find one on the Marin Master Gardener website at marinmg.org and click on the link growing edibles). Knowing when to plant (or not) makes all the difference. There’s a reason why corn doesn’t sprout in February and planting tomatoes before May usually leads to frustration. Don’t ask your garden to do the impossible, because you will be sorely disappointed.

  Now, here’s the key: you need to repeat this process every year, preferably starting in the fall when your warm season crops (tomatoes, squash, beans, eggplant, etc.) are petering out. There are many types of low maintenance gardens, but edibles are not among them. Vegetable gardens take work, but the rewards are delicious.

   

Feeling stressed? Go outside and get dirty

• Marie Narlock

• I met Eileen at a garden I managed for developmentally disabled adults. She was a client at that facility, prone to loud involuntary screams and groans as is sometimes the case with this population — unless she was in the garden. There, she sat quietly, face to the sun and hands in her lap, the surrounding greenery and flowers lulling her into complete silence.

  This seemed a miracle to me. Why did her behavior change so dramatically outdoors? How could her surroundings have such a profound effect? Was it a fluke? A coincidence?

  Turns out there’s a mountain of research that explains Eileen’s transformation — and the tremendous physical and mental benefits we all experience in the garden or deeper in the great outdoors. As those of us who like playing in the dirt can attest, tending a garden is the perfect antidote to the whirring and digitizing of everyday life. Getting in tune with the seasons, tending a plot, hiking in the woods on a sunny day; these activities feel good not just because they’re diversions. Rather, they ignite measurable physiological changes that occur in our brains and bodies.

  A Stanford University study showed that those who took a 90-minute walk in nature showed reduced activity in an area of the brain linked to risk of mental illness. A study in the Netherlands confirmed that gardening reduced the stress hormone cortisol. In Norway, a study of people suffering from depression or bipolar disorder confirmed that half the participants who spent six hours a week gardening had measurable improvement in their depression symptoms — and continued to feel better three months after the study ended.

  Even the simple act of touching dirt reduces stress and improves mood. That’s because a bacterium present in soil called mycobacterium vaccae stimulates areas of the brain that produce serotonin, the feel-good hormone. Researchers have found that eating trace amounts of soil on garden vegetables actually helps us manage stress and enhance brain function. In fact, the results are so compelling that new studies are underway to determine if soil bacteria could help treat post-traumatic stress disorder.

  This, of course, should come as no surprise. As humans, we’ve co-evolved with M. vaccae and a zillion other bugs. But we’ve turned our backs on many of these microscopic friends in favor of indoor activities and a penchant for hyper-cleanliness. This can throw our immune systems off kilter and result in numerous health issues.

  Is it any wonder, then, that some leading-edge doctors are writing “park prescriptions?” For instance, UCSF pediatrician Nooshin Razani helps her patients connect with nature to prevent and treat chronic illness, depression, anxiety, and isolation.

  “Nature prescriptions” are becoming the norm elsewhere as well. Doctors in parts of Scotland can now prescribe a walk outdoors to treat hypertension and anxiety. In Japan and South Korea, “shinrin-yoku,” or “forest bathing” provides hard evidence that walking among trees lowers blood pressure, pulse rate and cortisol levels.

  These studies confirm the sentiment of the late Oliver Sacks, who wrote, “I cannot say exactly how nature exerts its calming and organizing effects on our brains, but I have seen in my patients the restorative and healing powers of nature and gardens, even for those who are deeply disabled neurologically. In many cases, gardens and nature are more powerful than any medication.”

  Sacks and all the researchers confirm what we know intuitively: being in nature feels good. In the end, isn’t that enough to keep at it? And could there be a more inviting place than Marin to give in to a dose of eco-therapy?

  In essence, the studies measure what feels immeasurable — the earthy crumble of dirt under fingernails, the satisfaction of a bucket of weeds freshly plucked, a bountiful harvest, winter melting into spring, a long walk on a cool day, Eileen’s silence outdoors.

Fight against sudden death syndrome needs citizen scientists

• Barbara Robertson

• Our native plants face many dangers but few are as insidious as a deadly water mold known as Phytophthora ramorum. The disease created by the pathogen carries the ominous sobriquet “sudden oak death,” abbreviated as SOD.

  The name is accurate: The crown of oaks infected with the P. ramorum pathogen might look healthy for two years, and then in two to four weeks turn brown and die. SOD affects adult oaks, not saplings.

  SOD has killed more than 3 million trees in coastal California since its discovery in the mid-1990s. It remains a major threat to coast live oak, California black oak, Shreve’s oak, canyon live oak and tanoak trees from Monterey to Humboldt counties, and on into southern Oregon.

  The drought has tempered the water-loving pathogen’s spread, but rain this year will activate it in spring. To stop the spread, volunteers participating as citizen scientists will be crucial.

  P. ramorum thrives in cool, wet climates with tanoak and redwood forests a primary habitat. The greatest predictor of P. ramorum is the presence of California bay laurel trees (Umbellularia californica), which are hosts for the pathogen. More closely related to brown algae than a fungus, P. ramorum nevertheless spreads like a fungus, with spores moving in raindrops from plant to plant. The spores land on an oak’s trunk, work their way up into the xylem and phloem, colonize and cause vascular wilt. The trees starve. Once infected, tree trunks can also develop cankers that ooze, attract beetles, girdle the trunk and strangle the tree.

  “Marin County was one of the first places where SOD was seen,” says Janice Alexander, who is in charge of sudden oak death outreach for the UC Agriculture and Natural Resources Cooperative Extension in Marin County. “So you’d think we’d have a good idea about where exactly it is. But, people assumed it was everywhere. We didn’t know where it was really present.”

  Knowing exactly where SOD exists turns out to be critical. Researchers have determined the pathogen infects oaks only within 1 kilometer (0.6 miles) of known infected host trees.

  “Prevention is the best weapon we have against SOD,” states Matteo Garbelotto, who runs the forest pathology lab at UC Berkeley and spearheads efforts to combat the disease. “Early detection is essential for containment and possibly even detection of new outbreaks.”

  Unfortunately, many diseases have symptoms similar to SOD. The only way to positively identify the pathogen is by collecting samples and running lab tests.

  “There aren’t enough professionals working in agencies or universities to collect the samples we need,” Alexander says. “And, all the large-scale monitoring depends on seeing trees that have already died. We need people on the ground.”

  That’s why citizen scientists are crucial.

  “Really, citizen scientists are the cornerstone to maintaining a large-scale ongoing urban monitoring program,” Garbelotto says. “We simply couldn’t generate the necessary people power without them.”

  The solution has been the annual SOD Blitz, during which locals help detect the disease. Thus far, approximately 2,300 SOD Blitz citizen scientists have collected samples during seven years.

  SOD Blitz volunteers learn how to identify and collect symptomatic bay leaves in a one-hour training session during which they receive necessary supplies. The result is the SODMAP, a free app for mobile devices that shows the laboratory-confirmed positive and negative results.

  The SODMAP can help homeowners determine the risk of infection for their oaks and tanoaks. Workshops provided by the UC Berkeley forest pathology lab provide homeowners with treatment and prevention options.

  The next SOD Blitz training session will be in early spring.

  To join the next blitz, go to www.sodblitz.org. For more information, go to www.nature.berkeley.edu, and www.suddenoakdeath.org.

   

Fine tuning landscape’s ecology to keep out pests

• Dave Phelps

• Winter has traditionally been the time for garden cleaning. Early winter rains have germinated a multitude of weed seeds and a warm, wet fall has inspired the snails and slugs to increase their feeding. The best strategy is manage those pests and others is by fine-tuning the garden ecology.
  
  Gone are the days of garden hygiene to the point of sterility. Gone are the organophosphates and systemic chemical controls. The modern gardener understands that working with the natural systems and tweaking them to promote a balanced equilibrium of healthy populations is the key to success.
  
  This controlled homeostasis will minimize inputs of time and energy as well as toxics and collateral damage from the use of pesticides. By understanding historical pest activity in the garden, the good garden steward can strategize ways to avoid use of pesticides altogether.
  
  The ideal garden ecology that inhibits pest population spikes is one in which the soils, hydrology and biodiversity have been addressed in a holistic way. When all three are in excellent shape, plants are not stressed and pests rarely get out of hand. Addressing drainage problems is easier when you can see where the water flows and pools. Inundated and compacted soils can go anaerobic and cause plant stress and create shallow root zones. When soil has good structure — thanks to organic matter and a diverse ecology of microorganisms — erosion is minimized, soil aeration is increased, water is better able to infiltrate, and disease resistance is maximized through biological action.
  
  While it may be too wet to work some soils, it is never too wet to add compost, mulch or both to the surface of the soil. The micro-arthropods and earthworms will work their magic to chip, shred and move the organic matter down into the soil profile to feed a growing diversity of beneficial soil organisms. If the soil temperature is below 50 degrees, many of the organisms will hold off on making nutrients available to the plant roots, but they will be better poised and ready when the temperatures climb.
  
  While it may not make sense to think about irrigation during the winter, it is actually the best time to look at the garden and consider changes that would better group plants by plant community, by irrigation zone/valve or "hydrozone" — grouping plants with similar water needs in one watering zone.
  
  An overwatered plant is going to put on fast, succulent growth that has thinner cell walls and less-defensive compounds to deter pests and pathogens. A drought-stressed plant will appear as an easy target to boring insects. Moving thirstier plants out of a hydrozone of more drought-tolerant plants now can save water and reduce plant stress and pest issues next season. Adjusting emitters and sprays for plants that have outgrown the current system layout also will reduce crown rots and other plant stressors. Consider transitioning older sprays to a more-efficient drip system that also reduces the conditions that favor fungal diseases on leaves.
  
  Increasing the biodiversity of the garden allows for improved niche management. While any living system is dynamic in nature, a healthy, diverse system is one in which the available food is quickly assimilated, the habitats are continually occupied and there is adequate competition to provide for natural selection. In such a system, a pest or pathogenic organism will have its population numbers held in check.
  
  Let's say a fungal mildew spore lands on a leaf. If the leaf's surface is populated with a diverse array of organisms such as bacteria, beneficial fungi and other protozoa, the disease-causing spore will likely be quickly eaten or not find an available niche from which to infect the plant.
  
  Most modern garden ecologies are not diverse panaceas, however, and pest populations can get out of balance. That's when Integrated Pest Management comes in handy. The tenets of IPM lead the steward through a holistic process whereby the nature of the pest and its relation to the host plant including the pest's life cycle, overwintering sites and natural enemies are better understood. Through the synergistic and strategic use of physical and cultural control strategies, the pest population is brought back into balance, not eliminated.
  
  The use of less-toxic pesticides such as Organic Materials Review Institute listed products, is a last-resort strategy and understood to include collateral damage to beneficial populations within the ecology. Biological controls, including the introduction of beneficial organisms such as bacteria, nematodes and insect predators, are the preferred control strategies when physical and cultural controls miss the mark. Planting to encourage birds and predacious insects is one of the best pest management strategies.
  
  Finally, winter pruning that promotes quick wound closure and opens up canopies to greater sun exposure and air circulation the coming season can dramatically reduce pests and diseases. 

Fire season is still here; maintenance is key

• Diane Lynch

• As we approach fall and have had no rain since spring, it’s time to contemplate the most dangerous time of the year. Fire season is underway and may be worse this fall due to last winter’s rains generating much growth, which accumulates into fuel loads in our gardens and wildlands. Sudden oak death and the die-off of pines due to various ailments further complicate the problem.

  We need to think of plants as fuel and clean up dry leaves, pine needles and other flammable debris. Mulch is always recommended as a way to save water, but use wood chips and never highly flammable shredded redwood bark mulch known as “gorilla hair.” Look at the lay of your land and where prevailing winds come from. If you live on a hill and someone drops a cigarette at the bottom of your property, which is covered with dry leaves or grass, your house could be toast.

  Fire departments around Marin are keen on defensible space, particularly where houses abut wildland in what’s known as the wildland urban interface. If you live near open space you likely have a requirement to cut back dry annual grasses in the early summer months and create at least 100 feet of defensible space around your home, more if you live on a hillside.

  Of course, many in Marin live on small lots on hillsides that are vulnerable to fire and there’s only so much that can be done about neighbors unless they disregard the rules about cutting and removing fuel from hillsides.

  But the reality is that maintenance is more important than plant selection and it can be a dangerous illusion of safety to rely only on planting so-called fire-safe plants that show up on a list. For instance, coast live oak is on some fire-safe lists, but if a tree is on a hill that’s not irrigated and below is some dry grass and other dry shrubby plants, all it takes is a spark and a little wind to set off a potential wildfire.

  There are lists that purport to distinguish between plants that burn easily and those that don’t on Marin Municipal Water District and Firesafe Marin websites (firesafemarin.org), but heed the first sentence in this paragraph — maintenance and defensible space is the key to fire safety. You can also take a look at the UC article “Sustainable and Fire Safe Landscapes” at cemarin.ucanr.edu.

  One in three California homes is estimated to be at risk of being affected by wildfire. Think back to the 1995 Vision Fire at Point Reyes that burned 45 homes and over 12,000 acres of wildland. Or worse yet, the Oakland Fire of 1991, started by a grass fire that destroyed over 3,000 dwellings, killing 25 people.

  The urban corridor in Marin is vulnerable to such fires also, and after those terrible conflagrations our fire departments got together and formed Firesafe Marin as a way to educate the public. If you’re thinking about remodeling your home, look at roofing materials such as tile, stucco siding, enclosed undersides of decks, and small eave overhangs as ways to ensure your future safety. Calfire’s website has information on fire safe building materials at fire.ca.gov.

  In dry California, we’re always encouraged to economize on water. Remember, though, appropriately well-hydrated plants near open space resist fire much better than dry ones.

  Some local fire departments will come survey your property for fire safety. Remember, all plants are flammable and the more densely planted your garden is the more likely you have plants that either don’t get enough water or create a ladder effect during a wildfire and become fuel.

  Bottom line: don’t overplant, remove the most flammable plants, limb up trees 10 feet from the ground, and be fire safe!

Fire-safe landscaping can be beautiful

• Jill Fugaro

• Incorporating fire-safe concepts into your residential landscape is one of the most important ways you can help your home survive a wildfire.

  A house burns because of its interrelationship with everything in its immediate surroundings — called home ignition zones. To avoid a home catching on fire, homeowners must eliminate the wildfire's potential relationship with their house by eliminating the amount of flammable vegetation and materials surrounding the home, and increasing the moisture content of remaining vegetation.

  Changing a fire's path by clearing a home ignition zone is an easier task this time of year, when plant growth is slower and trees are dormant, and one that can prevent the loss of a home when fire season arrives.

  Creating defensible zones does not mean you have to have bare earth around your home. With proper planning and modification, you can have a beautiful landscape and a fire-safe home. In general, trees should be kept farthest from your home, shrubs can be closer and well-watered high-moisture content bedding plants and non-flammable landscape materials like rock, stone or cement may be nearest. Dead and dying plants should always be eliminated from your landscape through regular maintenance.

  A fire-safe landscape consists of two zones: the home-defense zone and the reduced-fuel zone. The home-defense zone encircles a home for at least 30 feet on all sides, much greater if your home is on a steep slope or in a windswept exposure. Within the home-defense zone, plants should be well maintained, well spaced, well pruned, and free of resins, oils or waxes that burn easily. All flammable vegetation and other combustible materials should be removed within 30 feet of the house.

  The reduced-fuel zone is from 30 to 100 feet or greater depending upon slope and wind conditions. In this zone, plants should be low growing, well-irrigated and less flammable. Clusters of two to three trees should have 30 feet between them. Plant mixes should contain both deciduous and coniferous trees. Create fuel breaks with hardscaping using gravel walkways, stone paths and lawns that interrupt potential fuel continuity.

  Spacing and vegetation arrangement is key in fuel management. Most fires start as surface fires, and spread on the ground from plant to plant and then to your home. Spacing plants, particularly on slopes, so plants don't touch will reduce the chance of fire spreading to your home from low-lying plants bunched together and then laddering a wild fire up to your structure. Make certain there is horizontal and vertical separation in your plants and trees. Trees should be limbed up between 6 to 10 feet from the ground and smaller trees by a third and kept 10 feet from your roof. It is important to reduce the chance that flames would reach the crown of your tree where heat intensity and flame length is increased.

  Other areas of consideration are eliminating flammable fabrics used in outdoor cushions and upholstery on deck seating areas near the house, and removing other flammable materials and firewood, propane tanks and plastics that can ignite from underneath overhangs and under decks. Even plastic plant pots should not be stored under a wooden deck; they can ignite with embers that are sucked into the air trap of a deck during a wildfire. Use 1/8-inch wire mesh behind any lattice underneath decks to help prevent embers from a wild fire from being sucked into those areas and igniting your home's wooden structures.

  Mill Valley's fire department has prepared a fire-prone plant list and recommends eliminating or not planting high-oil content plants such as bamboo, pampas grass, fountain grasses, rosemary, junipers, French and Spanish broom, cypress species, eucalyptus, Australian tea trees, and most pine and fir trees. Lawns should be mowed regularly and grasses kept low. A fire-free area should be created within the last 5 feet of your house with nonflammable landscape materials like stone, pavers and rock and high-moisture content annuals and perennials. Water the plants and trees in your home-defense zone regularly and mulch to retain their moisture. Avoid hairy or gorilla mulches that could ignite easily in your both your home defense and reduced fuel zones.

  Maintain your irrigation system regularly. Store firewood stacks more than 30 feet from your house. Groupings of succulents and drought-resistant potted plants help keep moisture content high near your home's structure.

  For more information on how to help your home survive a wildfire by fire-wise landscape practices, check firewise.org or anrcatalog.ucdavis.edu and use the link for lawn and garden to order brochures on fire safety in your landscape. Firefree.org offers a list of fire-resistant plants to consider for planting to increase your protection from wildfires.

Fire-smart seasonal tips

• Fay Mark

• With 64% of our average rain fall, Marin County is quickly entering the dry season.  Like a pandemic, the question about wildland fire is not ‘if’, it’s ‘when’.

  Consistently maintaining your property surrounding your home can help to withstand ember showers from nearby burning woodland and minimize the likelihood of flames or surface fire touching your home or any attachments or structures on your property.

  There is no time like spring when the weather invites you into the garden.  This is a great time to catch up on maintenance while the soil is still supple, and the air temperature is comfortable.

  Grab a rake, spade or weeding tool, and a tarp or green waste bin and start by simply walking around your property collecting dead or dying plant debris.  Bring your children with you and have fun talking about the shapes of the leaves they collect, or how the smaller dead branches could be used by Harry Potter.  Dead plant debris is often used as mulch on the soil to moderate temperature and provide nutrients.   However, unless it is kept moist, it can combust should an ember land on it.  Either eliminate it from your garden or turn it into compost to distribute around your plants. 

  Next, dig out weeds by going deep enough to get the root out of the soil.  Be diligent about pulling weeds before they dry out or set seed and spread.  Dry weeds are fuel for fire.  Weeds that go to seed spread and become more maintenance in the future.  We recommend that you toss weeds into your green waste bin where it will be composted in high heat conditions killing the seeds and roots.  For bigger jobs where hand weeding is not an option, please see the UC IPM website (ipm.ucanr.edu) for recommendations on safe weed removal. 

  Once some of the easier basics are done, it’s time to prune.  Pruning throughout the year will increase the spacing between plants and tree canopies and will help to reduce the chance of fire jumping from one plant to the next and spreading to your home.  When you prune a plant depends on the plant type.   For example, May is a great month to prune spring-blooming shrubs after they have finished flowering.  Prune azaleas, camellias and rhododendrons after they have finished blooming and gently pull apart the bush towards the interior to find and eliminate dead branches.  Removing dead wood does not weaken the plant and can be done at any time of the year.  If you do not know what type of plant you have, The Marin Master Gardener Help Desk can help you to identify your plant. 

  We commonly talk about keeping your plants irrigated but what we really mean is keep them well-hydrated.  But again, how much water depends on the plant type.  Give plants the water they need, when they need it, to thrive – no more, no less.  This is especially true in the spring, when the soil continues to be moist.  If you are unsure about the moisture level in the soil, take a weed tool, drive it into the ground and placing your finger in the soil 6 inches or so. 

  And please, do not wet down your property on Red Flag warning days.  Overwatering on Red Flag days depletes the water tanks that the fire departments rely on should a fire occur. 

  Seasonal check lists are available on the UC Marin Master Gardener website and will help to guide your maintenance and fire-prevention tasks throughout the year.  Happy gardening!

Flower power — edibles are full of antioxidants

• Barbara Robertson

• With Summer of Love celebrations winding down, a phrase from the ’60s popped into my head: “You are what you eat.”

  It’s harvest time. I thought, “I should eat something beautiful.”

  I’ve often tossed bright orange nasturtium flowers into salads for bites of bling. What else might I try?

  Lots, I discovered.

  After attending a UC Marin Master Gardeners workshop on edible flowers by Jenine Stilson and Keri Pon, I left with a list of 77 edibles — ornamental flowers, herb flowers, and fruit and vegetable flowers — drawn from research by Linda Stradley and the organization What’s Cooking America.

  They, and others interested in blending flower gardening with cookery, always offer cautions: before munching a flower, do your research. If a flower is from a plant with any parts listed as poisonous, don’t eat it. Some common flowers are toxic. For example, anemone (anemone tuberosa and other spp.), azalea and rhododendron (rhododendron), buckeye (horse chestnut), clematis (clematis), hydrangea (hydrangea), lantana (lantana), larkspur (delphinium), oleander (nerium oleander), sweet pea (lathyrus), and wisteria (wisteria floribunda and w. sinensis), and this is but a partial list. Vegetable flowers in the solanum family, which includes deadly nightshade, are also poisonous to humans: tomato, eggplant, chili peppers and potato.

  So, unless you see a flower on a list of edibles, don’t pop it in your mouth or garnish food with it.

  Know that “edible” doesn’t necessarily mean tasty. And be aware that flowers from unknown sources might have been treated with pesticides.

  That said, you can choose from an orgy of tasty ornamentals to brighten your garden and tease your palate, from lemony tasting begonia (begonia x tuberosa and cucullata) to sweet violets (viola odorata). Most herb flowers are edible, with the same, but subtler flavor as the leaves. And you might already be eating vegetable flowers: cauliflowers and artichokes. 

  Is your broccoli bolting? Savor the flowers rather than buds. Similarly, if you’re willing to sacrifice potential fruit or know that a fruit tree will become overloaded, eat the flowers. Stilson’s most surprising “edible” discovery was a blueberry blossom.

  “You get a tiny, delicate blueberry flavor,” she says. “And citrus blossoms are loaded with flavor.”

  For additional inspiration, gardeners might turn to Rosalind Creasy, author of the seminal “The Complete Book of Edible Landscaping.” In her book “The Edible Flower Garden,” Creasy provides an encyclopedia of more than 40 varieties of taste-tested edible flowers, growing advice, and some mouth-watering recipes, including, tulip and endive appetizers, wild-violet salad, stir-fried beef with anise hyssop, rose petal butter and lavender ice cream.

  Stilson’s favorite recipes include lemonade with blue borage blossoms frozen in ice cubes, and herb-seasoned cream cheese piped into squash blossoms.

  Creasy advises refrigerating picked flowers between layers of damp paper towels or in a plastic bag. Only the petals on most flowers are edible, and the bitter white parts should be removed along with stamens, styles, and sepals of large flowers, but Johnny-jump-ups, violets, pea and runner bean blossoms can be eaten whole. Wash, dry and taste before using. 

  In our Mediterranean climate, we can grow edible flowers nearly year around. But would that mean sacrificing food space for flowers?

  Turns out that flowers are nutritious. Researchers in the Czech Republic determined that chrysanthemums and violas are a promising source of potassium. Chive flowers provide vitamins C and E, dietary fiber, potassium, calcium and folic acid, according to Polish scientists. Italian researchers discovered that antioxidant activity in flowers is higher than in common fruits and leafy vegetables, and singled out the most palatable: Viola × wittrockiana and nasturtium (tropaeolum majus). Similarly, scientists working together from Italy, Germany and China report findings in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry that “support the consumption of edible flowers as functional food and their use as sources of natural antioxidants by the food industry.” 

  So, go ahead. Gobble up a flower garden and plant a new meaning for “flower power.” It’s a sensible act of beauty.

Flower power at this year’s fair

• Dot Zanotti Ingels

• The theme of the 2017 Marin County Fair is “Let the Funshine In.” Who is better at digging it and flower power than a UC Marin Master Gardener?

  We look for every opportunity to share our passion with everyone in Marin and the fair is one of our favorite places to meet many like-minded folks who want to make a beautiful difference in their gardens. This year we have five groovy days to celebrate all things pollinator. Come by and see how pollination works, why we would not be here without it, how and why our pollinators are endangered and what we can do to welcome and support them in their essential chores.

  We are excited to take flower power up a notch by showing you the power that is the flower. Our super-charged, garden-themed tent will be full of pollinator-attracting plants that focus on attracting (and keeping) hummingbirds, butterflies, honey and native bees, beneficial insects (like lady beetles) and surprise pollinators (like bats and flies) to the garden. The work of our pollinators is essential and strikingly beautiful. It is also inspiring and they have so much to teach us about evolving and working together.

  We will showcase flowering plants that demonstrate how flowers have learned to attract their pollinators with their shape, fragrance, color patterns and more. We will show you how home gardeners can support our pollinators by providing them the forage plants they need to thrive, safe nesting opportunities, protective cover and a water source. We will provide you with resources like plant lists and plant tags with cultivation requirements.

  You can find us in the agriculture area of the fairgrounds. The Marin Master Gardeners will staff the tent every day from 10:45 a.m. until 7:15 p.m. We are eager to answer your questions about attracting pollinators to your garden and to show you first-hand how beautifully it can be done. Short presentations will be given each day at 2 and 4 p.m. The presenters will stay afterwards to welcome questions.

  • On June 30, Bob Mauceli’s “Habitat Gardening” talk will illustrate how and why using native plants in your landscape is a way to help make up for habitat lost to development. Because native plants have co-evolved with native birds, butterflies, bees, other insects and mammals, planting them in your gardens helps maintain these populations.

  • On July 1, Connie Pelissero and Jeanne Ballestero will demonstrate how to “Create a Bee-Friendly Garden” that will provide a year-round habitat to attract and keep the many bee species living in Marin County.

  • On July 2, Diane Lynch will show how to get to know both well-known and unusual pollinators in her “Pollinators Make the World Go Round” presentation.

  • Join Jenine Stilson and Keri Pon on July 3 for “Edible Flowers: Beyond the Beauty” as they discuss which flowers or parts of flowers are safe to eat and offer creative ideas on how to use them.

  • July 4 brings “What about the Other Pollinators?” with Betsy McGee. We all know the importance of bees as pollinators, but there are other pollinators that contribute to the reproductive success of the plants in our gardens.

Flower preserving is a time-honored art

• Dot Zanotti Ingels

• We lovingly plant and nurture our beautiful flower gardens in spring and summer. We cherish our handpicked bouquets and do not want to let them go. Well, with a little effort we can keep many of them almost forever and continue to enjoy them in fun new ways.

  Flower preserving is a time-honored art. Since Victorian times flowers have been planted to be enjoyed fresh and preserved. We can find the elements that encourage us to preserve our memories anywhere in our natural surroundings. Our gardens, the woods or a vacation spot are all good sources for inspiration. Many favorite cutting flowers, bedding flowers and landscape shrub flowers are as appealing dried as they are fresh.

  You do not have to grow the traditional everlastings, such as statice, to preserve flowers. Part of the fun is experimenting. Try the unexpected. Try whatever you have handy. The process is fun and easy.

  There are several easy ways to keep our flowers with us. The most common methods are air drying, pressing, or drying in a desiccating agent, but preserving in waxed paper, microwaving or watering work best for some things.

  The best time to harvest your flowers is in the mid- to late morning after the dew has evaporated from the leaves. Most flowers do best when cut slightly immature, with the bud not fully open and their color at its peak, since the flower will probably continue to open after it is cut.

  Many times fully open flowers drop their petals as they dry. Choose the best flowers, since drying will emphasize imperfections.

  Dried hydrangeas are fun to use and especially easy to dry by the watering method. Harvest the flowers when the tiny true flowers at the center of the showy heads are fully open and the color is beginning to fade. If the flowers are too fresh when cut, they will wilt. Cut the stems as long as possible and at an angle. Place the stems in a vase with 2 to 3 inches of water. Be sure that all the stems reach the bottom of the container. Place the vase out of the sun in a well-ventilated space and let the flowers dry slowly as the water evaporates.

  Air drying allows plant material to dehydrate naturally. The foliage on the stems of most flowers does not air dry well, so remove the leaves first. Place the harvested flowers, grasses or plants in a warm, dry environment with good air circulation. The drying location should be dark for maximum color retention. The time needed for air drying depends on the plant and the temperature and humidity of the drying area.

  To hang dry your flowers, gather your stems into bunches about inch in diameter and wrap them tightly with a rubber band. Hang them upside down (so that the stem won't bend from being top heavy) from the ceiling, a hanger or beam. You will know they are dry when they feel stiff and the stems snap easily.

  Dried flowers, especially open-faced and multipetaled flowers, look most like their original selves when the fresh flowers are preserved with silica gel. The silica can be purchased at craft stores. Becaf the fine particles, it is a good idea to wear a dust mask when working with silica.

  Use an airtight glass or plastic container. Cut the flower stems to about a half-inch. Place the flowers upright and drizzle the silica gel gently over them until they are just barely covered. Cover them tightly. Check the drying progress daily. When the petals feel dry, but are still supple to the touch, gently lift the flowers and place them on the surface of the silica. Cover tightly with the lid again and leave for another day. Once they are dried, carefully dust away the powdery residue with a fine, small paintbrush.

  If you would like to speed the process further, you can microwave the container with the flowers and gel for about three minutes. Let the container cool for 20 minutes before opening and check that the flowers are fully dry before removing.

  Flowers and leaves can be pressed for use in a number of decorative ways. The thinner a flower or plant, the easier it is to press. Basically, a plant is put between sheets of an absorbent paper, flattened under pressure, and kept in a warm, dry location so the moisture can be absorbed by the paper.

  Many of us have lovingly placed a flower or bouquet between the pages of a book to dry, but the best way is to use a press because it distributes the pressure evenly across the surface. Presses that come in all sizes and price ranges, and with paper that is easy to work with, can be found in craft stores and nature shops.

  To keep your dried flowers looking their best, give them minimal sun exposure to help retain their color. To strengthen your dried flowers, spray them with hair spray or a clear craft spray from the floral supply or craft store. If you are going to be storing your dried flowers for future use, wrap them in newspaper to prevent them from drawing in moisture from the air. Place the wrapped flowers in a box with plenty of room so they do not get accidentally crushed. Keep them out of damp or overly dry places.

  Good flowers to start with are marigolds, cornflowers, larkspur, lavender, love-in-a-mist (Nigella damascene) seed heads, dahlias, poppy seed heads, roses, statice and yarrow. But try anything you want. The fun is in the experimentation. It takes so little time and brings so much reward.

  There are several fun books on the subject, but two of my favorites are "Flower Keeping" by Georgeanne Brennan and Kathryn KIeinman and "The Encyclopedia of Everlastings" by Barbara Radcliffe Rogers.

  The University of California Marin Master Gardeners are sponsored by UC Cooperative Extension. For questions about gardening, plant pests or diseases, call 499-4204 from 9 a.m. to noon, and 1 to 4 p.m. weekdays, or bring in samples or pictures to 1682 Novato Blvd., Suite 150B, Novato.

Flowering trees, plants add color in bleak winter gardens

• Martha Proctor

•  

   

  As I gazed upon my bleak winter garden, I decided to look into which winter-flowering trees and shrubs I might plant for a four-season garden.

  The only bright spots I see are provided by two Tibouchina urvilleana (princess flower), 15-foot trees that brighten the garden with eye-catching, vase-shaped, brilliantly royal purple blossoms. These deeply colored blossoms held on terminal panicles above the foliage create a spectacular sight. Flowers open throughout the year, but are especially plentiful from May to January. Tibouchina urvilleana prefer well-drained soil until they are established but, as they are drought tolerant, will adapt to very dry soil. Flowering is best, however, if the tree receives full sun and is watered regularly.

  My research for other winter-blooming trees hardy in our Mediterranean climate led me to Azara microphylla (boxleaf azara), an evergreen, shrubby tree that matures at about 15 feet. In late winter into early spring, it produces little fluffy yellow pompom flowers at the leaf axils that smell like chocolate to some people, vanilla to others. The dark green foliage is glossy and held tightly on spray-like branches for an airy effect. Its open habit and fine texture are very attractive in the shade garden. Azara microphylla is a narrow-growing tree, which grows best in part shade in well-drained soil.

  For a significant addition of color, consider a Calliandra haematocephala (Calliandra inaequilaterai) or powderpuff, a native of Bolivia that grows to a height of 10 to 15 feet. The tree produces large, rounded, vase-shaped powderpuffs composed of watermelon red stamens from fall to early spring. Pinching the new growth increases the number of branches, which, in turn, produces more flowers on a more-compact, more-dense plant. The long, unbranched stems on this evergreen tree form a vase-shaped canopy suitable for creating some shade for a small patio. The tree tolerates drought and will grow in very dry soil, but prefers well-drained loamy, sandy or clay soil. A partially to fully sunny site produces a fast-growing tree, especially if supplied with regular watering while young. The tree serves as a host for statira sulfur (Phoebis statira) butterfly larvae.

  A tree that gets attention through all seasons because of its thorny trunk is the Chorisia insignis (floss silk tree). Chorisia insignis is a deciduous tree in the Bombacaceae family, which reaches a height of 25 to 50 feet. Grafted trees are preferred as they bloom earlier and at a smaller size. Although most seedlings in California have thorny trunks studded with thick spines, some seedlings may be nearly thornless. The tree produces large showy blossoms that resemble narrow-petaled hibiscus blooms throughout the fall and winter, especially if the tree benefits from full sun. Flower color ranges from magenta to light pink, dark burgundy, creamy yellow or white with a yellow throat. Silk trees will thrive in any reasonably fertile soil with good drainage. Trees cast light shade under the canopy making it easier to grow turf under the tree than under other trees with a denser canopy. Chorisia insignis is known for its large seedpods, which contain notable amounts of a cottony fiber that has been used as stuffing in pillows and as insulation in parkas and other cold-weather clothing. The pollen from this tree may cause some people to have allergic symptoms.

  Another beautiful tree that is valued for its flowers, fruit and foliage and provides all-year interest is Cercis occidentalis (Western redbud). The Western redbud is a relatively small, multitrunked tree with spreading branches and is native to California. The tree is one of the earliest flowering trees and is often used to add color to gardens. Clusters of small, sweet pea-shaped, rosy to purplish-pink blossoms appear in early spring along the outward-reaching stems, ultimately covering the branches in an explosion of color. In early summer, the branches are adorned with magenta seedpods. In the fall, the foliage turns bright yellow or red; bare branches holding reddish brown seedpods provide interest in winter. If you add the dangling heart-shaped leaves to this beautifully changing picture, you can understand why redbud trees are so popular as ornamental trees.

  Other wonderful additions to the winter garden include Camellia sasanqua (Sasanqua camellia), which produces a plethora of lightly fragrant, white or pink flowers in autumn and early winter, or Mahonia lomariifolia with its clusters of yellow flowers in midwinter. Plants with colored stems - Cornus (dogwood) and Salix (willow) - provide bold splashes of color from November through early March.

  The winter garden brings together colored stems, colored leaves and winter flowers with variations in texture and form. Together these specimens brighten the winter landscape and enchant the viewer, especially when the garden is flooded with the light of the winter sun.

  The University of California Marin Master Gardeners are sponsored by UC Cooperative Extension.ÊFor questions about gardening, plant pests or diseases, call 499-4204 from 9 a.m. to noon, and 1 to 4 p.m. weekdays, or bring in samples or pictures to 1682 Novato Blvd., Suite 150B, Novato

Foamy bark canker disease poses threat for Marin’s live oaks

• Martha Proctor

• There is a new cause for concern regarding coast live oaks (Quercus agrifolia) in Marin County and elsewhere in drought-stricken California — a foamy bark canker disease caused by a fungus, Geosmithia pallida.

  This disease was first identified in Europe as early as 2005, but was not found in Southern California until 2012 and showed up in Napa, Sonoma and Marin counties last year. The spores of the fungus hitch a ride into the tree’s vascular system on the Western oak bark beetle.

  This offending small brown beetle is native to California. It burrows through bark in drought-stressed or recently wounded coast live oak trees, excavating shallow tunnels under the bark across the grain of the wood. Female beetles lay their eggs in the tunnels; the developing larvae mine galleries that branch out from the egg-laying gallery within the phloem (inner bark) close to the surface.

  Symptoms of foamy bark canker disease include wet discoloration on the trunk and main branches of the infected coast live oak tree. This discoloration surrounds the entry holes that the beetle makes to burrow into the tree. Multiple perfectly round holes, approximately 30 to 40, can be seen in an infected tree. If the outer bark of an infected tree is peeled back, bark necrosis surrounding the entry hole is visible. As the disease advances, a reddish sap may be seen oozing from the entry hole, followed by a prolific foamy liquid. This foamy liquid, the cause of which remains unknown, attracts butterflies and ants and may run as far as 2 feet down the trunk. Oaks with infected branches can sometimes be saved, while oaks with infected trunks die.

  No known methods are in place to control the fungus or the beetle. However, there are two preventive measures that can protect at-risk trees. First, because the beetle is only attracted to drought-stressed, mostly urban trees, it is critical to irrigate trees in years affected by drought. The amount of water depends on the size of the tree and the composition and drainage capacity of the soil.

  Native California oaks have evolved in a Mediterranean-type climate where there is little rainfall between late spring and early autumn. As such, they generally do not require irrigation during this dry period and, in fact, may be adversely affected by supplemental watering since warm-moist conditions can favor harmful diseases.

  Oaks should be watered only within the root protection zone, defined as the area just inside the drip line (the outermost edge of the tree’s foliage). It is critical that the trunks remain dry. If the winter season is unusually dry, then supplemental irrigation in the early spring can complement natural rainfall. Water deeply, to 1 to 2 feet, in the outer two-thirds of the root zone.

  Although oaks are prone to crown and root rot with overwatering, it is now thought advisable to water drought-stressed oaks once a month in July and August with deep, slow waterings to wet the soil to 8 inches down, letting the soil dry between waterings. Frequent shallow watering not only encourages crown and root rot, but it also promotes the growth of ineffective shallow roots near the surface.

  A second method involves spraying high-value trees with an insecticide such as Astro or Onyx.

  Homeowners should assess their coast live oaks for health and indicators of drought stress. Even applying a minimal amount of water can help reduce a tree’s attractiveness to beetles and increase its natural resistance. Be aware that pruning drought-stressed coast live oaks when the beetles are active could attract them.

  Freshly cut live oak firewood should be tightly covered with clear poly sheeting for about three months to seal in and kill bark beetles. Do not move the firewood to another location as the bark beetles could infect healthy trees.

  Although the beetles are not known to burrow into trees of other species or other varieties of oak, it may be too early to be sure.

   

For a bounty of roses, prune now

• Nanette Londeree

• 

  Prune roses now for a bountiful bloom in the spring. Photo Credit: Nanette Londeree

  I love roses.  There’s nothing quite like walking through the garden in May and feasting on a bonanza of beauty, color, form, and fragrance. To get a bounty of flowers, besides sun, water and good soil, roses need to be pruned. And now is prime pruning season.

  Even as an avid gardener, this is not my favorite task, especially with more than 500 rose bushes to prune. Over decades of doing this annual chore, I’ve honed the process to make the job as easy as possible, doing most of the work between the year-end holidays and Valentine’s Day, when the plants are dormant.

  Why prune roses? Mostly to keep them healthy and productive and to give them an overall attractive shape. Removing the three D’s – dead, damaged, or diseased wood, crossing canes, anything thinner than a pencil, and reducing the plant volume by one-third to one-half are the goals of pruning.  Roses will survive without it, but are likely to be weak, poorly shaped plants with smaller blooms, and more prone to pests and diseases. 

  You can get a terrific introduction to rose pruning basics in our new 12-minute video, “How to Prune Roses in Winter” available on the Marin Master Gardener website (marinmg.ucanr.edu/) and on our YouTube channel.  UC Marin Master Gardener Don Chapman, also an American Rose Society Consulting Rosarian, walks through the basics of rose pruning for this time of year including tools to use, how to make cuts, and even how to prune a climbing rose. 

  

  Winter pruning involves removing one-third to one-half of the rose. Photo Credit: Lenore Ruckman

  Here are some things to simplify your pruning process:

  Know your rose:  When and how to prune depends on what type of rose you’re working with. Species roses and many old garden varieties that bloom once a year should NOT be pruned now, or you’ll lose all the spring flowers.  Repeat bloomers, those that have several flushes of flowers spring to fall, are the plants to prune now.  

  Start with the end in mind: After pruning your plant, you’ll want three to seven well-spaced sturdy, healthy canes about 18 inches tall, in a vase-shaped configuration with an open interior. Keep this visual in mind as you begin your work. 

  Be bold: Winter pruning involves removing one-third to one-half of the rose, so look at ways to reduce large portions at a time, rather than a series of cuts. Work from the ground up instead of nibbling away from the top down. If an old cane is no longer producing much new growth or flowers, consider removing it at its origin using loppers or a pruning saw.  Don’t let the "decisions" about what to cut make you tense or slow you down.

  Do it in stages: Take on the 80/20 approach; get the first 80 percent of the rose done, then a week or two later, come back and make your final cuts. This method allows you to remove a lot of bulk in and around the rose and gives you a clearer picture of the rose for the final, what I call, “fine tuning” pruning.  

  

  Keep your pruners sharp for cleaner cuts and less work for your hands. Photo Credit: UC Marin Master Gardeners

  Make it easy on yourself: Use the best tools you can afford and keep them sharp! Good sized canes can be cut like butter with very sharp bypass pruners. Cuts are cleaner, and it’s a lot less tiring for your hands.  Use a garden stool or seat to get up close to the plant, reducing the amount of bending and stretching. Try hedge shears for miniature and some landscape roses that have lots of very thin canes. And have your recycling can right next to you when pruning; cuttings go directly into the can and save you time and effort. 

  Don’t be overly concerned about getting cuts “just right”. Once you realize that there is not too much you can do wrong, it makes the whole job much easier. Kind of like getting your hair cut too short – it will grow back!

For busy green thumbs, raised beds require less maintenance, extend growing season

• Dave Phelps

• There are many reasons for building raised beds in the garden. Raised beds give the garden a framework, they reduce soil compaction and they extend the growing season. Raised beds can also allow for less maintenance and easier access. All these benefits help today's busy gardener spend more quality time in the garden and see better results with less effort.

  Marin's climate allows for a long, vegetable-growing season, arguably year-round for some crops, but the typical Marin gardener is short on space and time and can benefit from all the advantages that raised beds can offer. Making the investment of installing raised beds is well worth the expense.

  Raised beds help organize the garden to allow for easier crop rotation programs, crop spacing, intercropping and companion planting. There are some easy rules of thumb for bed construction.

  The bottom line is that they can be made in any shape or height, from a huge array of materials and in a multitude of arrangements. Using the tenets of bay-friendly gardening, one can choose first to use recycled and/or locally produced materials.

  While materials on site may be the best option, consideration should be taken in terms of permanence and the effort necessary to rebuild the beds over time.

  For this reason, pine and Douglas fir may not be the best option. Plywood falls apart quickly when exposed to moisture and soil. Materials less than 1-inch wide require more posts and deteriorate quicker. Treated wood contains arsenic and other poisons that should be avoided near food crops. Old lead paint is also a concern. The two options I've favored are either 2-inch rough redwood or rot-resistant composites that have become popular for decking.
  
  Bed spacing and layout is determined by function. Sun orientation, as well as hose and wheelbarrow access, are the prime concerns. Eliminating soil compaction within a bed is achieved by designing them in such a way that there is never a reason to step into them. If they are up against a wall or fence, they should not be more than 3 feet wide. If they are out in the open, 4 feet is generally the best width. Major pathways should be 3 to 4 feet wide and should have a hose bib at one end and be on the path to a composting system.

  Minor access paths should be at least 2 feet wide (30 inches). Unless beds are against a wall or fence, they should never exceed 12 feet long. If they are longer, the impatient gardener (we all have our moments!) will step through. Ideally, the beds would be arranged lengthwise east-west to take advantage of the sun.

  Beds can be 6 inches to 2 feet tall. Beds 12 inches high are easy to build out of 2-by-12s and work really well. Beds 18 inches are best if you want to add a cap and use it as a seat. Two-foot-tall beds work well for wheelchair access or for those who have trouble bending over.

  Avoid mitered joints as these rarely hold up over time. Posts 4-by-4 inches, extending a foot below the beds and spaced every 4 feet, will keep the beds strong for many years. Concrete is usually not necessary. Beds can also be stepped up a hillside, making great use of a slope.

  Extension of the growing season is achieved with raised beds, because by their nature they raise the plants and soil up above the cold ground. This can be enhanced by the use of floating row covers, fitting the tops of the beds with cold frame lights, mulching them with black plastic or even making little temporary greenhouses with hoops and visqueen or polycarbonate greenhouse panels. Trellis components can also be added for vertical gardening to get more out of less space.

  The material to use between the beds should be inexpensive, available locally and all right if it finds its way into the compost. Weed-free wood chips or rice straw works best. Filling the beds with high-quality, loamy, organic topsoil is worth the investment and will minimize weeds and other pathogens, as well as ensure high yields. Plan on regular additions of compost, meals, manures and guanos as well as regular layers of organic mulch for best results.

  The best irrigation systems are automatic, incorporate 1/2-inch in-line, pressure-compensating, drip tubing and adjustable micro sprays. Even the best systems need occasional garden hose use.

  By building strong, well-designed raised beds in a layout that makes functional sense, filling them with a rich loamy top soil and utilizing an automatic irrigation system, busy gardeners are freed from many routine tasks and allowed to concentrate on planting and harvesting nutritious vegetables for their friends and family for years to come.

  IF YOU GO

  What: "Winter Vegetable Gardens - Now is the Time"

  When: 7 p.m. Sept. 2

  Where: Livermore Pavilion, Marin Art & Garden Center, 30 Sir Francis Drake Blvd., Ross

  Admission: $5

  Information: James Campbell, jamesqcambellsf@gmail.com; Gail Mason, agmbean@comcast.net

  The University of California Marin Master Gardeners are sponsored by UC Cooperative Extension. For questions about gardening, plant pests or diseases, call 499-4204 from 9 a.m. to noon, and 1 to 4 p.m. weekdays, or bring in samples or pictures to 1682 Novato Blvd., Suite 150B, Novato.

Form and function of trees

• Nanette Londeree

• "The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The next best time is now," or so goes the Chinese proverb.

  If you've ever basked under the cathedral-like canopy of a magnificent old shade tree on a warm summer day and reveled in the serenity and tranquility it creates, you're enjoying just one of the myriad benefits of a stately, mature tree. And while you may not have the space for such a tree in your garden, it's easy to find a tree that can add stunning dimensions to your landscape.

  They're so much more than just a big, pretty plant.

  "The best friend of earth and of man is the tree," reflected renowned architect Frank Lloyd Wright. "When we use the tree respectfully and economically, we have one of the greatest resources on the earth."

  Trees are vital to the health of our environment - they purify the air by intercepting airborne particles, act as carbon sinks by absorbing and locking away carbon dioxide in their wood, roots and leaves, and they produce valuable oxygen for all of us to breathe. Their roots bind the soil, reducing erosion and slowing storm water runoff, and trees create a habitat for birds and other wildlife.

  Some of their economic benefits include: beautiful trees can increase the value of your property, while shade trees can decrease the need for air conditioning in summer and lower winter's heating costs by breaking the force of winds.

  Considering that most trees have the potential to outlive the people who plant them, selecting the right tree for the right location can influence a lifetime. The function of the tree, its form and size at maturity, its growth rate and longevity, the planting site conditions and the desired plant characteristics are key things to evaluate before choosing a tree.

  Beginning with function, decide what do you want the tree to do - will it serve as an ornamental focal point in your landscape, act as a windbreak or privacy screen, provide fruit for the owner and attract birds and wildlife? Reduce summer heat around the perimeter of the house, or be the subject of climbing fun for children?

  Next you'll want to look at form and size.

  There are oodles of tree shapes - rounded domes, upright columns, broad conical forms, umbrella-shaped canopies, weeping and more. Choosing a tree that is cloaked in foliage year round (evergreen) or drops its full load of leaves at one time (deciduous) will narrow your range of choices. Size matters - find out the size and shape of the tree at its maturity. What might be a demure looking tree in 10 years may be an outsized behemoth in twenty or more.

  How fast a tree grows can impact its stability and longevity. Some types of eucalyptus grow at a rampant rate, though are reputed to be "widow makers" as they can drop enormous branches for no apparent reason. Many common landscape trees have a relatively short lifespan - 20 to 30 years. Slow growing trees may not give you that optimum shade in a few short years, but they're likely to have a long lifetime.

  When assessing your planting site, evaluate the exposure to sun and wind over multiple seasons (if possible). What might seem to be the perfect spot for that evergreen in summer may result in unwanted shade during the remainder of year. Winter frosts can damage tender trees if planted in exposed areas.

  When choosing your planting location, look up and down. If there are power lines overhead, assess whether they could be impacted by a full-sized tree. Similarly, if there are underground utility lines in the vicinity, trees with aggressive root systems may interfere and cause significant damage. The site should have adequate drainage and space around the perimeter of the tree to avoid soil compaction by pavement, vehicles, active people and pets.

  Individual plant characteristics include visual and aesthetic as well as physical ones. In addition to flowering and fruiting, you can extend seasonal interest by using varieties with vivid foliage like the brilliant lemon-lime locust, Robinia pseudoacacia Frisia. Unusual seed pods are characteristic of the castor-bean, catalpa and golden rain tree, Koelreuteria paniculata.

  Other features to look for are blazing fall color, uniquely colored or textured bark (many in the myrtle family), and striking tree form. Plant hardiness (their tolerance to hot and cold temperatures), water consumption, resistance to pests and diseases, and even health concerns like allergy and toxicity, are all important considerations.

  Depending on your microclimate, you may need a variety of tree that can handle long summer heat and winter frost, or lots of fog. If water is either costly or scarce, don't go for a water hog - some varieties can easily absorb hundreds of gallon of the precious liquid in a single day. Pests or disease can decimate your investment; avoid varieties known to be susceptible to killer pests.

  One attribute often overlooked is the season, duration and amount of litter from a tree. The fernlike foliage of the silk oak (Grevillea robusta) looks great much of the year except in spring when the landscape around the base of tree is ankle-deep in leaf litter. Evergreen conifers can produce a long season of leaf drop early summer through fall. Trees with small berries for the birds may result in your patio being pelted with fruit-laden bird droppings.

  Fall is a great time to plant a tree. You'll give the tree a chance to settle in while the soil is warm, and be ready for active growth come spring. You may not be able to hang up your hammock in it for a few years, but if you make some careful choices and plant one now, you'll have a tree to cherish for your lifetime and for those that follow.

  TREE RESOURCES

  SelecTree: An interactive program to help match tree species to desired characteristics, http://selectree.calpoly.edu

  Trees Are Good: A website that contains a wealth of information on selecting, planting and caring for trees,www.treesaregood.org

  The National Arbor Day Foundation: A website that includes a tree selector tool as well as care information,www.arborday.org/index.cfm

  The University of California Marin Master Gardeners are sponsored by UC Cooperative Extension. For questions about gardening, plant pests or diseases, call 499-4204 from 9 a.m. to noon, and 1 to 4 p.m. weekdays, or bring in samples or pictures to 1682 Novato Blvd., Suite 150B, Novato.

Four English Garden Designers

• D.F. Braun

• By D.F. Braun

  The word Hidcote means only one thing to serious gardeners; it means one of the most beautiful, interesting, haunting gardens in existence. Created in the early 20^th century by American born Lawrence Johnston, it remains as lovely as ever, thanks to the National Trust of England. Situated in a remote farming area of the Cotswolds, it seems an unlikely choice for a serious gardening site, yet Johnston with his great knowledge of plants and imagination turned rough pastures into acres of botanical marvels. Entirely original, it was the opposite of the conventional herbaceous border setting. Not only unusual plantings, but “rooms” were a novel surprise. So popular did his Hidcote become among gardening friends that plants were sent from far and wide and as his knowledge grew so did his collection. He traveled himself to find rare plants; the slopes of Kilimanjaro weren’t too distant. Johnston believed gardens were to be enjoyed and lived in and he created gazebos, benches, ponds, surprises around every corner, quiet spots for contemplation.

  Unfortunately, Johnston kept few records, but Vita Sackville-West wrote often of Hidcote. “Who can ever forget the quincunx of pleached hornbeams!” (Translation: “Who can ever forget the geometrically perfect arrangement of five trees”!)

  Which leads us to V. Sackville-West and her husband Harold Nicholson, life long gardeners who inherited a derelict Jacobean estate in Kent, Sissinghurst. It is believed that because Sackville-West admired Hidcote so much, she adopted many of Johnston’s designs. Again “rooms” were also established which worked well with the number of strange buildings on the property.

  As a serious horticulturist Sackville-West wrote a regular column for years in “The Observer.” Perhaps because of these articles she was voracious in her pursuit of new plants.

  As Californians we take our global artichoke for granted, but in 1949 V. Sackville-West wrote, “I really want to plead for this tall and extremely handsome plant” and continued for 600 more words ending with the suggestion that after eating it “one should drink of cold water to bring out the flavor.”

  The white garden at Sissinghust with vines of clematis, honeysuckle and white roses started a cult of gardening taste that is still popular in gardens around the world. She wrote of the allure of white flowers at night.

  A few years ago, I had an opportunity to visit Sissinghurst on a spring day.   As I entered a “room” called the Nuttery, a dilapidated bus appeared and disgorged a large group of elderly gardeners all equipped with gloves, trowels, bagged lunches and old straw hats and set about covering the floor of this room with a carpet of primroses—the National Trust at its best!

  Always pictured as an eccentric in heavy brown boots Gertrude Jekyll’s first career was spent in Paris as an artist painting among the Impressionists, but when her eyesight began to fail she dedicated herself to an earlier love—gardening. Jekyll moved to Munstead Wood, a Manor house designed by Sir Edward Lutyens. The 15 acres of garden became a laboratory in which she experimented and honed her skills of using her painterly color theory in the garden. Jekyll literally used plants as paints and made garden pictures with her borders. Hers was a completely innovative approach to planting. She wrote over 16 books on every facet of home gardening. And yet Jekyll was practical; she wrote, “I think that a garden should never be tiring, that if a large space has to be dealt with a great part should be laid out to woods.” Her woodland gardens are her signature. She also wrote, “The purpose of a garden is to give happiness and repose of mind.”

  Sir Peter Smithers, whose name may not be familiar to you, was a lawyer, politician, diplomat, scholar, photographer and spy as well as a passionate grower of glorious gardens. As a spy in World War II he worked for Ian Fleming and has been rumored to be the model for James Bond. However, Sir Peter was to gardening what Bond was to martinis. The Royal Horticulture Society gave him one of its highest awards, the gold Veitch Memorial Medal. His garden in Switzerland overlooking Lake Lugano with 10,000 plants, none a duplicate, was named by the Financial Times as one of the 500 greatest gardens since Roman times.

  His lush photographic images of flowers won 8 gold medals from the horticultural society. They have been called “floral pornography.” His response in 1987, “This is Playboy in flowers. What are flowers but sex in action? The bee performs the wedding…”

  In retirement he moved to his garden in Switzerland and developed an ecosystem of exotic plants, including hybrids he developed himself. In his later years he began giving away his plants. He said the pleasure of owning a fine plant was not complete until it had been given to a friend.

  Just what did these four have in common besides their passion for their gardens? They all started gardening as children. Their curiosities about plants led them to seek and collect new species around the world. (As a young boy Sir Peter began an index of every plant and seed he acquired; it grew to 32,000 entries by his death.) Their creativity and commitment to their land has left us with a magnificent heritage and gardens which we may still visit today.

Foxglove offers a spectacular display

• Julie Monson

•  

  I know summer is around the corner when the flowering stalks of foxglove pop up around the garden, providing vertical accents of purple, pink and white amid shrubs and perennials. I've never deliberately planted foxglove, and when we first moved to West Marin I thought it was a native that had decided to invade my garden. It's certainly not a native to California, but has naturalized among rural gardens and roads in West Marin.

   

  Traced to the Mediterranean parts of Europe, foxglove has been blooming in English cottage gardens since the 1400s and was once considered an English native. It's a stunning plant in the right place, generally at the back of a perennial bed or among flowering shrubs. When it volunteers in the wrong place, I find it is easy to transplant to a shady garden area devoted to foxglove, ferns and bleeding heart.

  The largest, most common and available variety of foxglove is Digitalis purpurea, a biennial or short-lived perennial. Its stalks rise from the center of a large-leaved, pale green rosette at the base, growing rapidly to 4 to 8 feet. The flowering segment of abundant bell-shaped individual blossoms can be 15 inches or longer with new blossoms opening at the top. Few flowering perennials provide such a spectacular display in shady gardens. It attracts hummingbirds and butterflies, comes in purple, yellow, white and pastels, especially pink, and is excellent as a cut flower.

  It's not a particularly tidy plant, and can be unpredictable. I've noticed that not all new plants bloom after they have been transplanted. They will the next year. Individual plants of the common foxglove tend to bloom two years only. On the other hand, if you cut the main stem after it has finished blooming, the plant will produce additional flowering stalks or branches, shorter than the original but still a glow of color in the garden.

  Because it self-sows easily, gardeners wishing to control its spread can remove the spent stalks before the small seeds proliferate on the ground. I let mine go, since ours is an informal garden and it's so easy to transplant the seedling foxgloves in spring. Seeds planted in the fall should produce flowering plants by late spring. Some nurseries carry foxglove as a bedding plant.

  The explanation for the name, foxglove, is traced to the legend of the hungry fox who slips the blossoms on his feet to disguise his raid on the henhouse. As likely, the name has evolved from "folks glove," the gloves of fairies. This connection to the netherworld may relate to the "magical" properties of foxglove. While all parts of the plant are toxic, Digitalis, made from the plant's leaves, is a common pharmaceutical used as a heart stimulant. Be cautious when handling foxglove; it may cause dermatitis. Certainly children should not handle it.

  Foxglove thrives in shade in warm, inland climates and prefers some sun along the coast. Very hardy and pest resistant, avoided by deer and rabbits, it is undemanding in the garden, only requiring moderate watering to thrive. It will even tolerate dry soils, but will not grow as large as irrigated plants, nor flower so copiously. Its late spring bloom coincides with flowering ceanothus, salvias and fremontia, and its flowering stalks are attractive mixed with roses and other blooming shrubs. In addition to the common species, Digitalis purpurea (common foxglove), numerous shorter, perennial cultivars in different colors are available, in particular yellow. Digitalis x mertonesis, with spikes to 2 to 3 feet, has attractive coppery rose blooms.

  Foxglove is one of those everyday garden flowers that reminds me of the classic English garden, for it adds color and a dramatic vertical spire that compliments a mix of blooming perennials and annuals. In shady places, few late spring bloomers are as easy to grow and as colorful as common foxglove.

Fremontodendron californica, Flannelbush Fremontia: a spectacular late=spring and summer bloomer

• Julie Monson

•  

  While Fremontodendron californica is its proper botanic name, this plant is also known as flannelbush and is still referred to as fremontia, the name given to the quarterly journal of the California Native Plant Society. Choose which you like. My choice is fremontia, the name used in California Native Plants for the Garden (Bornstein, Fross, O’Brien, 2005). Incidentally, this plant is named for John C. Fremont, a celebrated 19^th century California explorer, politician, and entrepreneur.

   

  Fremontia, one of the more spectacular California natives, grows quickly to a tall, slender shrub covered with 3-inch yellow blossoms in late spring through early summer. Evergreen, it is a show-stopper when in bloom, and a useful background shrub the rest of the year. About 5 years ago, we planted three Fremontodendron californica in a sunny garden area planted mostly with natives, and were astonished to see them grow to 10 -12 feet within 3 years, filling the center of our mound with foliage and yellow spring blossoms. Suddenly, after a wet spring, two died. That is when I learned that fremontia cannot tolerate damp soil and requires dry soil during the summer. In Marin County, fremontia will likely thrive without any irrigation. After we disconnected summer irrigation, our remaining fremontia flourished nicely. My reading, observations and experience indicate that this colorful shrub can be very useful in some garden settings, especially if the gardener knows its benefits and limitations.

  Fremontia is something of a relic among California’s native species. It is a survivor from a period 60 million years ago when California was less mountainous and more tropical. Two other survivors from this same period include fan palms and ironwood trees, still found in desert climates.   Although its natural habitat is on rocky slopes of open chaparral or woodland between 1200 and 6500 feet of the coast ranges and Sierra Nevada, fremontia does well in sunny, dry gardens in Marin.

  Fast growing but typically short lived, fremontia seldom reaches its potential of 30 feet with 20 foot spread.   It can be pruned successfully to keep it in scale with urban gardens. It is ideal when planted with other drought resistant California natives, particularly understory species like prostrate forms of ceanothus, coffee berry, or western sword ferns. In a newer garden, where slow-growing natives take years to fill in, a few fremontia provide quick results (spectacular when blooming) and can be pruned, replaced or even removed later when other shrubs and trees have matured.

  Several successful cultivars of fremontia are available and these promise even greater rewards to the gardener. ‘California Glory’ is one of the best and has bright yellow flowers, three-lobed dark green leaves, with initial upright growth, tending to arch with age to 20 feet.   ‘El Dorado Gold,’ another hybrid, is lower growing from 4 to 6 feet, spreading to form a mound up to 12 feet, ideal as a sunny, drought tolerant ground cover. Other successful cultivars include ‘Pacific Sunset’ and ‘San Gabriel,’ both tall, and ‘Ken Taylor,’ which has showy, large orange-yellow blossoms, effective when used on a slope or retaining wall.

  Fremontia has spreading, shallow roots so it’s advisable to stake young plants. Because it is susceptible to root rot, Judith Lowry recommends planting it on mounds or slopes mulched with as much as 8 inches of mulch. Good drainage and loose soil are critical. While it might survive damp, clay soils for a while, it’s not a good choice in these conditions.

  Leaves and the small, bristly seed capsules of fremontia are covered with tiny, skin-irritating brownish stellate hairs. After pruning fremontia, or working near it, the gardener is advised to shower and wash clothing. For this reason, one should not plant it adjacent to a patio or well-trod walkway. To my mind, this primary disadvantage is overcome by the plants many advantages, another of which is that deer leave it alone, perhaps because of its irritating “fuzz.”

Fresh, local and sustainable advice