Category Archives: drought tolerant plants

drought tolerant plants, grass-like plants, grasses

Ornamental Grasses & Grass-like Plants

Lomandra ‘Platinum Beauty’ with convolvulus trailing over side.

Looking for plants that require minimal care, only occasional grooming, just enough water to meet their needs and are deer resistant? Plants that add beauty, movement and sound to your garden? You may already have some ornamental grasses and grass-like plants but this is a good time to add a little more pizazz and beauty to your landscape.

Diseases and insect pests are rarely found on grasses They have succeeded because of their adaptability and have evolved to suit almost every environment and climate on earth. True grasses generally have extensive root systems which help control erosion. Grass-like plants such as lomandra, dianella, cordyline, carex, restio, phormium, Japanese Forest grasss and liriope are some of the best companions for interplanting with grasses. A garden just isn?t complete without the architectural qualities they provide.

Pheasant Tail Grass

There?s a reason old favorites like Karl Foerster feather reed grass is so popular in landscapes. It doesn?t get too tall or overpowering in the smaller garden and its upright habit is neat and tidy. Pheasant Tail grass is another popular grass that is carefree and long-lived. It grows to only 3 by 3 feet, is not fussy about soil and looks good anywhere you plant it. It combines beautifully with the sky blue flowers of Russian sage and is extremely drought tolerant once established.

I like variegated plants and two-tone grasses combine well with many other garden plants. Miscanthus sinensis ?Morning Light? is an especially refined and elegant ornamental grass. Fine leaf blades are green with clean, paper-thin, white margins that give the plant a silvery cast when viewed from a distance. It is luminous when backlit by the early morning or late afternoon sun. Morning Light tends to keep its upright shape better than some other cultivars and rarely flops. The reddish bronze plumes that appear in late fall are spectacular.

Libertia – a grass-like plant

A grass-like plant that I think should be used more often in gardens in libertia. Narrow, rigidly straight leaves form compact clumps that are especially useful i poolside, accent planting and thrive as well in containers. They require only moderate watering and can add a warm punch of color,

Dianella combined with loropetalum, pieris and primula
Dianella with loropetalum, pieris and primula

Another plant that is finding a place in the low maintenance garden is dianella. With 18 inch clumps of soft blue leaves, light blue flowers with lavender-purple fruits dianella cerulean ?Cassa Blue? is just one of this group of perennial flax lily that makes a great addition to the garden. Dianella intermedia grows fast with whitish blossoms during the summer months. The berries which follow are deep purple-blue and highly ornamental They can be especially attractive filling a shady nook though this plant can thrive in either su or shade.

Caring for grasses is easy. As a rule of thumb, if it browns in winter then cut it back before new growth starts. If it’s evergreen by nature just clean up outside leaves. Most like well drained soil and are tolerant of a wide range of garden conditions. You shouldn’t fertilize heavily because an excess of nitrogen can lead to lush, soft growth that tends to flop. Mulching with 2 inches of compost yearly will keep the soil and your plants in good shape. Water grasses regularly during their first year to help get a good root system established. Even grasses that are normally touted as drought-tolerant require a season or two to become fully established.

California native fragrant plants, drought tolerant groundcovers, drought tolerant plants, groundcovers

Autumnal Equinox in the Garden

The autumnal equinox happens on Saturday, September 22nd this year. It’s the official start of fall when the sun crosses the celestial equator and moves southward. The earth’s axis of rotation is perpendicular to the line connecting the centers of the earth and the sun on this day. Many people believe that the earth experiences 12 hours each of day and night on the equinox. However, this is not exactly the case.

During the equinox, the length is nearly equal but not entirely because the day is slightly longer in places that are further away from the equator ( like where we live ). Also the sun takes longer to rise and set in these locations as it does not set straight down but in a horizontal direction.

ceanothus ‘Heart’s Desire’

With the changing of the season, take advantage of fall planting weather by looking at what’s covering your ground. Be it the small lawn for the kids to play on, ground cover to keep the weeds at bay or erosion control to keep the hillside intact, this is an excellent time to plan for winter.

Let’s start with the lawn. If you still need a space for recreation, this is a good time to reseed those bare spots. Also to keep the lawn healthy by removing underlying thatch with a thatching rake. Then aerate the lawn by poking holes in the sod and fertilize with a complete lawn fertilizer like an organic all-purpose. Your lawn needs the phosphorus in the fall to encourage deep, strong roots for the winter.

If the kids are grown and no one is using that lawn, why not rip out the water guzzling grass and replace it with a walk-on groundcover? There are many to choose from like dymondia, lippia, potentilla, duchesnea strawberry or any of the kinds of thyme.

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.

One of my favorites is Elfin thyme. It doesn’t need mowing, edging or fertilizing or much irrigation. You can walk on it and it stays green all winter, shading into bronze tones when the weather cools. It even blooms in midsummer for several weeks. Note that bees are attracted to it as with all of the ground covers in the thyme family at this time.

kurapia

Another favorite that I have in my own garden is kurapia. It?s deep rooted, doesn?t require much water, is compact and low maintenance. It?s been bred to have sterile seeds. This is a good groundcover if pollination of nearby fruit trees is needed or you want to encourage bees to your garden for pollination. If bees are an issue kurapia can be mowed to cut off the blooms.

There are also Ca. native and prairie meadow grasses that you can walk on. They need little irrigation and even less mowing. Some can be planted from seed, others from plugs or sod. Good choices include Idaho, California and red fescue, carex pansa, June grass and Hall’s bentgrass.

grevillea lanigera ‘Mt Tamboritha’

If you don’t need to walk on your groundcover, low-growing native shrubs that are good groundcovers are baccharis, ceanothus maritimus, ?Anchor Bay or ?Heart?s Desire?, manzanita, creeping snowberry, creeping mahonia, salvia ?Bee?s Bliss? and ribes viburnifolium. Mediterranean ground covers like cistus salviifolius, grevillea lanigera, rosemany prostratus, rubus pentalabous are also good low-water choices.

It’s time to enjoy fall weather and cover that ground before winter.

California Native Plants, drought tolerant plants, erosion control, fall planting tips

Fall Planting California Natives

The chill is in the air. At least as I write this. Next week it could return to summer-like weather but for now I?m thinking of what plants I want to add to my garden this fall planting season. California native plants are well suited to planting at this time of year and acclimating to their new homes without much stress. Here are some ideas to get you started.

matilija poppy

By planting from mid-September through mid-November, roots of all plants have a chance to grow during autumn and most of the winter as well without having to supply nourishment to the leafy portion of the plant. Roots of deciduous plants still grow even after plants drop their foliage as long as the ground temperature is above 50 degrees. Cooler day and night temperatures slowly harden off the top of the plant to prepare for the cold days of winter.

Another reason that fall is the no-fail planting season is because plants put in the ground in fall need less water to establish. The plants themselves use less water since photosynthesis is slowed by shorter days even if it’s occasionally hot. Evaporation rates slow down also during fall so moisture in the soil lasts longer as well. Sometimes we get lucky with fall and winter rains perfectly spaced so the ground never completely dries out. I?ve heard rumblings about an El Nino winter but you know how that sometimes goes here in our coastal area.

ribes sanguineum ‘King Edward VII’

Plants that thrive in dry, shady spots benefit especially from fall planting as they need established root systems before next years dry season. Dry shade sometimes occurs in places beyond the reach of the hose but also under native oaks. To protect their health, it’s a requirement that plants underneath thrive with little or no summer irrigation.

Plants of proven success under these conditions include native currants and gooseberry. Ribes sanguinem (red flowering currant) is a show stopper capable of controlling erosion. In the spring the long, flower clusters of this deciduous shrub will dominate your garden. There are many selections of this plant to choose from so if the huge white flowers appeal to you ‘White Icicle’ will be beautiful in your landscape. ?Barrie Coate? and ‘King Edward VII’ have spectacular deep red flower clusters and ??Spring Showers?? has 8″ long pink ones. Grow in full sun to partial shade. This California native requires little water once established and is a valuable nectar source for hummingbirds.

Some other good California native shrubs for erosion control are western redbud, mountain mahogany, western mock orange, lemonade berry, toyon, snowberry, matilija poppy and western elderberry. ribes viburnifolium, creeping mahonia and snowberry, baccharis, ceanothus maritimus and Anchor Bay are good groundcover selections.

Smaller natives that put down deep roots are yarrow, coast aster, California fuchsia, wild grape, mimulus, buckwheat, wild rose, sage and salvia.

Bush poppy (dendromecon rigida) is another native found right here in our area and needs no irrigation at all once established. Beautiful bright yellow, poppy-like flowers cover the plant in spring. They can be propagated from cuttings taken in summer and are pest and disease free.

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 crowns of the plants high so they won’t become saturated and rot after watering and make sure mulch does not build up around the stem.