Category Archives: berries

berries, birds, California Native Plants, dogwoods, Flowering trees, plant diseases

Dogwood in the Santa Cruz Mountains

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dogwood_RoblesEarlier this year the flowering plums were the first trees to welcome the beginning of spring. Then came the flowering cherries, crabapples, pears, redbuds and lilacs. But now the flowering dogwoods take over as the stars of the show. They are blooming everywhere I go. Whole neighborhoods, lined with dogwood trees, are coming to life.? I? know of several beautiful specimens along Hwy 9 that bursts into bloom this time of year covered in snowy white, pink or rosy blossoms. There are many types of dogwoods and every garden has the perfect spot for at least one. What better way to honor Earth Day 2014 than to plant a tree?

When thinking about where to plant your dogwood tree consider what role you want cornus_florida_closeupthe tree to play in your garden. You might place it where it becomes the main focal point especially during the spring flowering season but also where you can enjoy the brilliant fall foliage. Maybe one located at the back of the garden would be nice drawing the eye along a path and the flowering shrubs growing along the edges.

Dogwoods need good drainage. If your garden has heavy clay soil plant your tree in a raised bed. They make excellent understory trees in high filtered shade if the air circulation and drainage are good. With 2-3″ of mulch dogwoods thrive in full sun, too. The fungal disease anthracnose is not usually a problem here in our summer dry area if drainage is good. Hybridizers have successfully crossed the Japanese dogwood, cornus kousa, with the eastern dogwood, cornus florida, to create the wonderful disease resistant Stellar series. Also the native Pacific dogwood, cornus nutalli, has been crossed with the eastern variety to produce Eddie’s White Wonder. Both are good choices.

cornus_florida_closeup2The beautiful flowers of the dogwood are actually bracts, a leaf-like structure surrounding a flower. The colorful bracts of poinsettias, the magenta bracts of bougainvilleas and the bracts of the dogwood are often mistaken for flower petals. No matter what you call them, the blossoms are spectacular.

Dogwoods attract a variety of wildlife. All sorts of critters use this tree for food and shelter. The giant silk moth and several species of butterflies favor dogwoods as host plants. The spring flowers provide nectar to bees and other pollinating insects. Robins and sparrow are just two of the bird species than build nests on the horizontal branches and many others seek shelter in the leaves. The high calcium, high fat, fleshy red fruits are eaten by 35 species of birds including titmice, juncos and waxwings.

The fruit of flowering dogwood is poisonous to humans but the root bark was used by Native Americans as a fever reducer, skin astringent, an anti diarrhea agent and as a pain reliever for headache and backache relief. It was also use to counteract the effects of many poisons and as a general tonic. The flowers were infused to reduce fever and relieve colic and several plant parts were used as medicine for blood diseases like malaria.

Because dogwood leaf litter decomposes more rapidly than most other species it has been planted on abandoned strip mines and used for urban forestry projects. The wood is hard, strong and shock resistant, making it suitable for wood products that need to withstand rough use like tool handles, roller skate wheels, golf club heads and knitting needles and spools.

Dogwoods look so great in our area because we get some winter chill.? Some of cornus_capitata_closeupmy favorite varieties include cornus capitata also known as Evergreen or Himalayan Dogwood. It’s a slow growing tree which will reach 20 ft tall after about 25 years and has large white blossoms.

Other common favorites with rosy flowers are Eastern dogwood, Cherokee Chief and Cherokee Brave. Their leaves turn glowing red in fall with fruit lasting well into winter. There are lots of white blooming varieties also and this tree is the parent of the exceptional hybrid Eddie’s White Wonder and the anthacnose-resistant Stellar Pink.

The Japanese dogwood, cornus kousa, starts blooming several weeks later than the Eastern varieties and continues for 5-6 wks. The flowers open along with the leaves which is different than its relatives. This dense multi-stemmed tree grows to 20 ft tall.? With raspberry-like fruits that persist into winter and leaves that turn yellow or scarlet in autumn it’s a beautiful addition to the garden.

Remember a mature leafy tree produces as much oxygen in a season as 10 people inhale in a year. Trees clean the soil and air of pollutants, act as windbreaks and can muffle noises.

berries, edibles, February gardening tips, flowering shrubs, Flowering trees, Freeze damage, fruit trees, pruning tips

What to do in the Garden in February

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flowering_plum.1024The unusually warm January weather has made the early flowering trees and shrubs bloom even earlier this year. Actually it’s not so unusual for us to have a warm streak around here in January. What is unusual is the prolonged dry and stable conditions we have encountered. The high pressure system that blocks our usual winter rains does not usually last more than 2-3 weeks even in the heart of the rainy season. The persistent ridge has not behaved in a typical manner. We can only hope the ridge breaks down in the next few months and brings us more than a smattering of rain here and there.? What should a gardener be doing in February?

Prune fruit trees. Smother overwintering eggs and insects by spraying with horticultural oil. quince_red.1280Combine your spray with lime-sulfur ( except on apricot trees ) or copper soap to kill fungal disease spores like the ones that cause peach-leaf curl. Spinosad has also been shown to supress fungal diseases. Do this when the buds swell but before they open. Do not spray 36 hours before rain in predicted. Be sure to spray the ground around each tree.

I recommend keeping winter pruning to a minimum and prune again in the summer time. Winter pruning is invigorating to fruit trees and there will be excessive vertical rebound growth, the witch’s broom-like riot of growth that emerges after a tree is given a haircut. Such growth is often dense and doesn’t bear much. A lot of the tree’s stored energy issued to produce all these unwanted branches, leaving much less for the production of fruit.

quince_red-closeup.1280Due to our unusual weather some low-chill fruit tree varieties like Fuji apples, many apricots, peaches, nectarines and pears such as Comice and Seckel, might break bud and flower earlier because of the winter freeze and then warm weather. Plants that flower prematurely risk losing those flowers if night temps plunge but the long-term health of the plant probably won’t be affected.

Strawberries are oblivious to the weather. Blackberries and some raspberries are another story. Like some fruit trees, their chilling requirements may have already been met, their buds are swelling and they’re ready to take off. A rapid chill could freeze the buds and the canes might begin to die from the top down. But even if the entire cane dies, healthy new canes will emerge in spring. The early summer berry crop could be lost but fall berries will be fine.

Prune woody shrubs? To stimulate lush new growth on plants like Mexican bush sage and artemisia cut them down to within a few inches of the ground. Don’t use this approach on lavender or ceanothus, though. Lightly prune them after blooming and don’t cut back to bare wood inside the plant.? Prune fuchsias back by a third and remove dead, crossing branches and interior twiggy growth. Container fuchsias can be cut back to the pot rim. You won’t be able to know for sure, until perhaps early summer, if the freeze killed plants like Coprosma, Echium, Tibouchina or lantana so be patient.

Cut back hydrangeas stems that bloomed last year if you haven’t already done so and apply a soil acidifier if you want the flowers blue. Coffee grounds, pine needles, peat moss and cottonseed meal are kind to your soil and the beneficial soil microorganisms.

Don’t prune spring flowering shrubs and trees like lilacs, flowering cherries, plums and crabapples,? rhododendrons, azaleas, camellias, weigela or spirea until after they flower.? Cut some branches during flowering to bring in for bouquets.

Prune roses and rake up any debris beneath the plant to eliminate overwintering fungal spores. Remove any old leaves that still cling to the plant. Spray the stems and bare ground with a combination organic horticultural oil and a dormant spray.

Prune established perennials later in the month if you might get frost that could damage new foliage. Giving your maiden hair ferns a haircut now allows the new growth to come out fresh. Prune winter damaged fronds from your other ferns.

Divide perennials before new growth starts. Agapanthus, asters, coreopsis, daylilies, shasta daisy and liriope are plants that tend to become overcrowded and benefit from dividing.

Mother Nature knows how to adjust to changes in the weather- slowing down when it’s really cold and catching up when it’s mild.

beneficial insects, berries, California Native Plants, landscape design, perennials, wildlife gardening

The Sloughs of Watsonville

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sambucus_nigra_berriesEach year I wait for them in my garden and so do the robins, varied thrush, jays, spotted towhees, grosbeaks and band-tailed pigeons. The fruit of sambucus mexicana, a California native plant, is relished by an incredible number of songbirds.  The creamy flower clusters in the spring are a favorite of bees and other beneficial insects. My Western Elderberry grows tall and gangly in the shade of a California bay tree, shorter and more compact in the sun. Their exuberance for life makes me happy just to watch them provide for so many other species.

We've all driven down Hwy 1 past the strawberry fields and seen the wetlands at high tide as their many fingers reach far up into the Watsonville area. At low tide the Harkins Slough is visible off to the west, grasses blowing gently in the wind. Struve Slough passes under Hwy 1 also but most of it is hidden. The Watsonville sloughs wind around farms, fields and low hills not visible from the highway.

California has lost over 90 percent of its wetlands and the Watsonville Sloughs are one of the largest remaining freshwater marshlands in the state's coastal zone. It provides a crucial resting place for many specie of migrating birds. This area covers about 800 acres adjacent to the city of Watsonville. The slough system has 6 interlinked freshwater sloughs fed by the waters of the Pajaro Valley watershed.

Many of the plants native to the wetlands will be available at a sale to fund educational programs put on by the organization Watsonville Wetlands Watch who's mission is to protect and restore the wetlands while educating the community.

The Native Plant and Backyard Festival will take place Saturday, September 28th from 10-2pm at the Fitzeriogonum_rubescens Wetlands Educational Resource Center building behind Pajaro Valley High School. It will be their second annual plant sale. Plants beneficial for backyard habitat gardens will be featured many which were grown in their own greenhouses. Natives like buckwheat or eriogonum as they are called are a mainstay of the slough ecosystem as well as our chaparral areas and several varieties will be offered for sale.

One of my favorite eriogonums is the Red Buckwheat for several reasons. In addition to attracting beneficial insects the flowers can be dried and used in arrangements. The roots are deep and will hold the soil and bring up subsoil nutrients to the surface. They are very drought tolerant. In the weeks to come the buckwheat's long nodding flower heads will produce a huge bounty of seed favored by migrating songbirds and water birds, some of which will spend the winter here.

Coast asters will also be available for sale and make a nice addition to any garden. They provide flower color in the fall and combine well with other perennials and grasses such as yarrow and Idaho fescue. They colonize easily and help stabilize slopes and banks and can also be used as an understory plant. They are very drought aster_chilensis2tolerant. Native grasses will also be for sale as well as plants of the coastal prairie and wildflowers.

Besides the native plant sale,  Watsonville Wetlands Watch will have workshops with expert speakers, an Eco Kid Zone, food, a marimba band, a raffle, live animals and local wildlife displays. Free habitat consultations for your own backyard, demonstration habitats, a wetlands wildlife photography exhibit and a tour or their new greenhouse.

For more information about the sale and this wonderful organization visit www.watsonvillewetlandswatch.org

Your own backyard can make a difference for wildlife. Even a small plot of plants rich in nectar and pollen along with some water, rocks, stones and mulch can make your backyard come alive. Create your own backyard habitat by choosing the right native plants to attract butterflies, birds and other fauna and at the same time conserve water and help maintain the diversity of our animal population.