Category Archives: drought tolerant plants

drought tolerant plants

Drought Tolerant Olives

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Summer has finally arrived. Took a while- a long while this year- but now we can enjoy nice weather and our beautiful gardens. The extra rainfall has allowed many trees, shrubs and perennials to grow lush and full like never before. As summer heats up think about adding drought tolerant plants especially in areas that are hard to water.

Plant an olive tree. They take the heat and are drought tolerant once established. Olives are easy to care for. They require little pruning and have few serious pests. Their grayish foliage and graceful, billowing appearance are a welcome accent to an all-green garden. The attractive gnarled branching pattern is also quite distinctive and they can live for 500 years.

For ornamental purposes or next to paving, choose a fruitless variety like are old favorites. Olives can be traced originally to southern Turkey in about 3150 BCE. The spread of the olive tree to the Mediterranean areas of Italy, France, Spain and Portugal probably coincided with the trade of wine, date palms and figs. They were introduced to California mission gardens in the 1700’s for the oil their fruit produces. Many of the missions still have the original olive trees. Underplanted with drought tolerant perennials like sedum ‘Autumn Joy’, yarrow, lamb’s ears, mimulus, Santa Barbara daisy or agastache they can be a focal point in any garden.

drought tolerant plants, water saving techniques

May is Water Awareness Month

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We know that water is a precious and vital resource.  Even our bodies are about 60 % water and the brain is 70%. Less than 1% of the water on the Earth, however, is suitable for human consumption. With the population increasing and the water supply staying the same, water conservation indoors and out is important. A well planned landscape makes water conservation outside the home even easier. Since May is Water Awareness month here are some tips to consider.

Start with simple things. Rock, stone, and permeable paths and driveways add visual interest to the landscape and don’t require irrigation. Improving your property’s soil quality aids in saving water regardless of the plants grown there. Organic materials added to the soil help establish a strong root system for plants. Nutrients in the soil allow the plants to become stronger, too. Adding a layer of mulch increases the plant’s efficiency by retaining moisture and keeping the soil temperature stable.

Choose the right plants for your location. California natives or plants from similar climates in the world are low maintenance, low irrigation plants and usually need less tending, fertilizer and pruning. Your choice of groundcover can make a big difference, too, in how much water the landscape saves. Keeping grass areas to a minimum generally reduces the amount of water needed to keep the landscape looking green and fire safe.

Your method or irrigation helps conserve water. Hand watering where possible, especially new plantings, directs the water exactly where it needs to go and you can shut off the hose as soon as the plants receive enough water. A soaker hose is another efficient option that reduces evaporation during the watering process. An automatic irrigation system with a rain sensor, weather based controller or soil moisture sensors is the newest way to save water.

Both San Lorenzo Valley Water ( http://www.slvwd.com ) and Scotts Valley Water Districts ( http://www.svwd.org ) offer many tips and incentives to conserve water. Scotts Valley Water Conservation intern, Amanda Robinson, explained they are very interested in getting out the word about using less water-intensive plants – there are lists on the website of drought-tolerant plants and water smart grasses-  as well as customers replacing lawns and old pop-up sprinkler systems. Their rebate programs offers several landscaping credits including  drip irrigation conversion credit, weather-based irrigation controller credit, replacement credit for converting an existing lawn to water-wise grasses, and lawn replacement to synthetic grass. Both districts have guidelines and procedures to apply for the rebates on their websites.

Scotts Valley gave 13 lawn replacement rebates in 2010 and 5 so far this year. Weather-based irrigation controller credits numbered 5 in 2010. Cistern credits for catching and storing rainwater totaled 3 in 2010 and 1 Low volume irrigation system conversion credit was given. Visit the web site for your water supplier to get more info. Don’t miss out on this important information and possible rebate.

There is even a workshop this Saturday, May 14th at the Scotts Valley Water District office from 10am – 1pm. Sponsored by the Ecological Landscaping Ass.and presented by Joy Albright-Souza, attendees can bring dimensions of their yard or project area and take home a class-created landscape plan. The cost is $45 and can be paid by check at the door. Call 831-419-5994 for more information.

Let’s make every month Water Awareness Month.
 

California Native Plants, drought tolerant plants, erosion control, groundcovers

Groundcover Tips for Fall

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The autumnal equinox happened this week. 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.

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, remove 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 and several kinds of thyme.

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. Bees will be attracted to it at this time. Thyme prefers sun and poor, sandy soil. Autumn is the best time to install from flats cut into 4" plugs planted about a foot apart. It will fill in within 3 years. Plant them closer together if you’re impatient. You’ll love your new lavender-blooming "lawn".

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, Calif. and red fescue, carex pansa, June grass and Hall’s bentgrass.

If you don’t need to walk on your groundcover, low-growing shrubs that are good groundcovers are baccharis, ceanothus maritimus, cistus salviifolius, grevillea lanigera, creeping mahonia, rosemany prostratus, rubus, manzanita, creeping snowberry and ribes viburnifolium to name just a few.

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