Visited a site yesterday under dozens of huge native oaks. The clients wants to plant a little landscaping here and there to enhance her property but not endanger her oaks. Naturally both deer and gophers abound. The deer trail goes right below her deck. I was able to give her some information about planting near oaks and will develop a plan for her installer to follow. There are several plants like mahonia ( now berberis ) that would require little water after becoming established and also I am considering ceanothus ‘Centennial’ for an area below the flagstone landing. I’ll add more to this post as I develop the planting plan for this beautiful property.
Hedges
In writing one of my weekly columns for www.pressbanner.com/, I researched problems that occur with hedges and thought it would be interesting to share this info here:
To care for your hedge. Hedge plants should be pruned back by about a third when they are first set out. The second year, trim the hedge lightly to keep it dense as it grows. Don’t try to achieve the hedge height you want too quickly. Keep shearing lightly to keep the hedge thick without gaps as it grows to the desired height.
Once the hedge is as tall as you want it, your pruning technique should change.
Small leafed hedges should be sheared lightly whenever they look ragged. You can, if you want, simply allow the shrub to retain its natural shape. If you do shear, cut out farther than you cut last time to avoid bare spots and clusters of cut branches.
Large leafed hedges should be pruned one branch at a time with hand shears. Make your cuts inside the layer of foliage so that they will be hidden, leaving only fresh, uncut leaves on the surface. To avoid hedges with bare leafless bottoms shape your hedge so that the top is narrower than the bottom, letting light to the whole side. Leaves that do not get enough light will drop. Lack of water and nutrients can also cause this. This is especially important on the northern side or on any portion of the hedge that is in the shade of a tree. If your hedge has become bare at the bottom you can cut it back heavily in the spring to stimulate new growth at the bottom, then shape it properly as it regrows. Some shrubs,. however can be killed buy cutting them back too far. If you don’t know how a shrub will respond to a radical pruning, head one branch back to a leafless stub to see how it responds. If the stub sprouts new growth, the shrub can probably be safely cut back.
Hedges that have grown too tall and floppy have usually been allowed to grow too fast. Regular pruning encourages a sturdy structure and will strengthen a mass of wispy stems. Bare spots in a hedge are caused by old age and repeated shearing without allowing the hedge to grow. The problem can be alleviated by cutting away dead twigs, branch by branch and then shearing outside the last cut next time you prune.
Drought tolerant open space project
I’m designing an open space for a HOA for their housing tract. I’m planning on a central sitting area connected by a series of paths and surrounded by large flat Sonoma fieldstone rocks for sitting. This will be a challenging project as the plants used will not only have to be drought tolerant but will receive no irrigation at all after they are established. The site is browsed by deer so the plants will also need to be deer resistant and gopher resistant. . I think the concept I’ve developed will work and be useful for the residents.