Monthly Archives: July 2025

Design trends

Plant Facts

All trees, including redwoods, communicate with each other.

My friend, Evan, often shares with me interesting studies about plants. Did you know that older trees share intelligence with young trees? Scientists have recorded how birch trees use electrical signals to communicate. How do they do this?

All living organisms have an electrical system. This study showed that the older trees, who had prior knowledge of an event like a solar eclipse, shared this knowledge hours ahead of time with younger trees. Because a tree relies on normal day-night cycles to transport nutrients and regulate water and reproduction, upsetting their internal clock, even briefly, can divert energy from defense chemical production which keeps pathogens and predators at bay. Sharing this information by the elders in the forest protects the young who may not have experienced such an event before.

What other fascinating things do plants do? I was very intrigued reading an article in Audubon magazine by Nathan Ehrlich. Scientists have discovered that plants give off electrical impulses in response to threats. Polygraph expert and former CIA interrogation specialist Cleve Backster confirmed this when, on an impulse, he hooked up a tropical dracaena to a polygraph and threatened the plant with a flame. The dracaena displayed the same electrical signals that people do when they lie. From lettuce to bananas, the results were similar.

Biologists Baldwin and Schultz published work suggesting that some plants can communicate through the air. When the researchers threatened poplars and maples they found that nearby trees, with no physical contact, released defensive chemicals that inhibit digestion, thus hindering predators’ ability to consume the trees leaves or bark.

Plants have many ways to defend themselves. One common way is by being poisonous or irritating. You can get severe eye burn if you get the toxic sap from a euphorbia in them. You just have to accidentally rub some sap near your eyes to trigger a reaction that will require a trip to Urgent Care. The pain can last for days and has been described as a very painful experience. Euphorbias are very deer resistant and drought tolerant and are being used more and more in gardens. Great plant that requires respect.

Many of us are growing milkweed (Asclepias) to attract monarch butterflies. The milky sap from this plant protects the monarch from being eaten and can cause the same painful burning of the eye. I read of a case where a gardener’s clothes brushed some stems while she was tending the garden. Later she wiped the sweat out of her eyes and didn’t realize she had also touched her pants. She ended up with cornea burn causing temporary blindness and had to take strong pain relievers and steroids to elevate the pain. Yikes.

Design trends

Good Groundcovers for a Changing World

Arctostaphylos uva-ursi ‘Radiant’ grows well in partial shade- even beneath trees.

Faced with what to use to keep down weeds when wood chips aren’t allowed? Well, you’re not alone. Although wood chip mulch is good for the health of your soil and your plants, it’s not recommended per new Cal Fire regulations within 30 feet of a structure. Recently I had a request from a client faced with just this dilemma. Here are some of the ground covers I recommended for her garden and for others in the past.

Living ground covers add beauty to the garden while holding the soil in place and preventing erosion. They contribute to soil health by encouraging microorganisms. A garden wouldn’t thrive as well without groundcovers.

Groundcovers are like a fancy carpet in the garden.They add richness and beauty under trees and become the stars of the show in sunny spots. Groundcovers reduce maintenance by preventing weeds and reduce watering by acting as a living mulch.

When choosing ground covers, assess the conditions of the area you want to plant.

  • Is it in the sun or shade?
  • Is it a naturally moist area or dry?
  • Do you intend to water it or go with our natural cycle of wet in the winter and dry in the summer?

Matching the plant to the site conditions will ensure success.

When designing a plant layout consider whether you want a sweep of the same plant or a tapestry effect with a variety of plants. Using more than one type of plant allows you to work with foliage contrast adding pattern to the composition.

Common Snowberry or Creeping Snowberry (Symphoricarpos) will hold the soil on steep banks. This native tolerates poor soil, lower light and general neglect. Evergreen Currant (ribes viburnifolium) and creeping mahonia also tolerate shady conditions. All the low growing ceanothus are great choices for sunnier spots as are the manzanita groundcovers. Smaller natives that put down deep roots are yarrow, coast aster, California fuchsia, wild grape, mimulus, buckwheat, wild rose and salvia including ‘Bees Bliss’.

Rubus pantalobus

Low water-use non-native groundcovers like cistus salviifolius, grevillea lanigera, rosemany prostratus, rubus pentalabous, correa and sarcococca are also good low-water choices.

Remember when setting plants on a steep slope to arrange them in staggered rows. Make an individual terrace for each plant and create a basin or low spot behind each one – not around the stem – to catch water. Set the crown of the plant high so it won’t become saturated and rot after watering or rain and make sure mulch does not build up around the stem.

To create stunning combinations of ground cover plants. choose 5 or 6 styles and repeat them in small drifts to carry the eye through the composition. Add grasses for linear texture. Good candidates are Blue Oat grass, a non-spreading clumping grass with silver leaves. Carex elate ‘Bowles Golden’ is a spectacular evergreen ornamental grass and Carex tumulicola (Foothill sedge) is another good choice for a grass-like plant.

There are many more choices for groundcovers that grow in the shade. Stay tuned.
Take the opportunity to survey your garden for bare spaces that can come alive with added texture and color.

Design trends

Gardening with Dogs

Winston can’t help but get into mischief.

I don’t have a dog of my own now. But I do get to pet sit for Winston, a French Bulldog who is always into mischief. Since I have a lot of plants, I have to be aware if any are toxic to dogs.

Gardens are for people and the pets they love. When you come home they are always happy to see you. Doesn’t matter what kind of day it’s been, they are there for you. So it stands to reason that we would want to make their little corner of the world as interesting and comfortable as we can.

I’m working with several homeowners right now that have dogs in the family. Their goal is to provide a dog-friendly landscape that is beautiful, safe and has enough mental stimulation to keep them occupied during the day. If you have a dog, here are some tips to remember.

Each dog is different. Koni, owned by a friend, loves to play the fetching game with his favorite toy. He needs lots of exercise and objects to chew on. His yard has room to play and a box of toys that he can carry around in his mouth.

Creating a garden to meet your dog’s needs is the best way to avoid future problems. Most dogs prowl the perimeter of their fence to investigate noises so instead of a plant border consider paving stones, gravel or mulched paths along the fence line.

If your dog is a digger create a special area in a shady spot where they can dig to their heart’s content. The spot can be a sand pit or earth. Entice them to this area by burying a favorite toy or bone. They will return again and again to this one spot and not dig up your flower beds.

Picking plants is important in backyard landscaping with dogs especially if your dog naturally nibbles on greenery or berries. Some plants are lethal while others can cause illness or vomiting. I was surprised to see so many common plants on the ASPCA website that could cause problems. From carnations to primroses to geraniums, I’ll be checking the list to make sure all my dog friends are safe.
http://www.aspca.org/Pet-care/poison-control/Plants?plant_toxicity=toxic-to-dogs

Plants near paths should have soft foliage without thorns and spines which can cause eye injury. Brittle plants like salvias should be in the center where they’ll be protected. Densely planted areas are usually avoided by dogs but planting in raised beds or mounds help, too. Pieces of driftwood placed at the front of a border will also discourage them. Start with one gallon or larger plants that can stand up to a little roughhousing .

If your dogs have already created their own path through the garden, don’t try to redirect them. Instead turn their well-worn routes into pathways covered with a mulch of small wood chips which are easy on paws yet large enough so they won’t cling to fur coats.

Provide your dog with an area to relieve himself. Since you only have about 8 hours to water a spot after your dog goes on the lawn it’s better to set aside a corner covered with pea gravel, cedar chips or flagstone and train your dog to go there. It’s also a good idea to install marking posts like a piece of wood or log along a path.

Dogs can get bored in a space. Dog-friendly gardeners incorporate barriers, arbors, pathways and raised beds to channel dog’s energies to things they enjoy, like running, and away from delicate plants and veggies.They also need places that provide shade like trees, arbors and pergolas. Eliminate weeds, especially foxtails, which can get in your dog’s ears or be inhaled.

Keep these tips in mind and both you and your dog will be happier for it.