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Take a Virtual Tour of 5 Enchanting Scotts Valley Gardens

The Vineyard Garden

I never miss the annual garden tour sponsored by Valley Churches United. Who wouldn?t be mesmerized by strolling through a beautiful local garden? Plus the proceeds from this fund raiser stay here to provide food and other services to our neighbors in need. This year?s tour is being presented as a virtual video tour and I can assure you it?ll be the best 30 minutes of your day. Enjoy these gardens online at VCUM.org or Valley Churches United Missions Facebook page and please donate to help this worthy cause.

I?ve watched this year?s virtual garden tour several times already. Each time I come away with another great landscaping idea, new tree variety, gardening tip and fresh inspiration. I?ve visited two of the gardens before so I have first hand knowledge of how special they are but the other three were new to me and are fabulous, too. The photography is excellent in the video and I especially enjoyed the aerial photography.

The Vineyard Garden

The first garden on the tour is Corbett and Sheri?s Vineyard Garden. This couple, over the past 25 years, have transformed their property into a plant lovers dream. They are truly plant connoisseurs including trees in their garden such as Shishigashira and Full Moon Japanese maples which are trained to show off their exquisite foliage and shape. Among the other beautiful trees that are featured among the different garden rooms are Chinese Fringe tree and the unusual Dove tree which is also called the Hankerchief tree. You?ll see why this tree is so named when you watch the video. This garden is filled with color from exbury azaleas, smoke bush, roses and Plum Delight loropetaum as well as a generous serving of white flowering shrubs like doublefile viburnum. Sitting areas, patios and water features abound amidst the veggie garden and the vineyard. This garden and the others will be featured on next year?s actual garden tour in May so don?t miss it.

Barry?s Garden is called the Forest Garden although the redwoods are just a part of this lovely garden. Barry bought the Tudor house in 2000 and has transformed it into a wonderland filled with beautiful paths, a formal garden in the front, a pond, 71 tree orchard, potting shed, green house, vegetable garden, shade pergola, gazebo and many other features that make this garden user and loved by his two dogs.

Bearded iris among the antiques.

Jim and Irene Cummins Iris Farm is one of those places you could spend all day and never see everything. I?ve spent a bit of time painting in this garden. Beside the stunning bearded iris the Cummins grow and propagate, this couple have collected an impressive collection of farm implements and tools. The property was originally a turkey farm owned by Irene?s family back in 1949 but the old barn dates back to the late 1800?s when it was a stop for the stagecoaches to change horses. This property is filled with hundreds of bird houses which Irene collects and everywhere you turn there are blooming irises among vintage collectibles.

Just one of the beautiful vignette’s in Robby’s garden.

Robby?s Zen Garden is another garden I?ve had the pleasure to visit often. This talented gardener is eager to share his vision and techniques to keep it mole and gopher free. As a deer resistant, low maintenance gardener Robby has created a soothing space complete with a hand made Japanese garden arch called a Tori. His shade garden is filled with tree ferns and the sitting area under the oaks beckons you to stop and enjoy the birds. There is a fire pit area plus a tree swing to enjoy before you head up to the rock garden and the cactus garden. This year round garden features tough but beautiful plants and there is something to admire everywhere you turn.

The last garden on the virtual tour is the Pool Garden of Robert and Monica. Some interesting facts about this garden include how the existing rock was jack hammered out for the pool and patio area. Heavy equipment scarred the rock and the rock that remains, which serves as a retaining wall, looks like it came straight from the Sierra. Filled with lavender, lantana, red hot poker, Monica?s grandmother?s bearded iris and other hummingbird attractors this garden beckons you to stop by the pool under the vine covered pergola and enjoy a cold beverage.

This is just a snippet of inspiration and ideas you?ll glean from these gardens on the virtual tour. Please donate what you can to help the food pantry of Valley Churches United.

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The Magic of Butterflies

Western Tiger swallowtails are attracted to nectar-rich flowers like those of butterfly bush.

I was watering on the patio the other morning watching a pair of Western Tiger Swallowtails as they fluttered together in a dance among my plants. Although a Goldflame honeysuckle, filled with nectar, was in their path they were more interested in each other. This was their one flight as adults before the female lays her eggs and I was lucky to see it. You can get swallowtails and other local butterfly species to come to you by creating a ?butterfly garden?. It?s a simple and rewarding way for anyone to create vital wildlife habitat in their own backyard.

We have about 90 species of butterflies in the Monterey Bay area. Many of these occur only in our mountains, forests and chaparral environments. Butterflies are less efficient than bees as pollinators but have their place in the ecosystem. They do not pick up much pollen on their bodies. Still they visit a variety of wildflowers and other plants to probe for nectar adding beauty and color to the garden. Did you know that butterflies taste with their feet?

Swallowtail drinking nectar from lemon blossom.

To attract the species of butterfly most common in your area, a butterfly garden should include plants that accommodate all stages of the life cycle – egg, larvae, pupa and adult . When both adult nectar and larval host plants are available, they will attract and support a butterfly population. In addition to the right plants, your garden should also have sun, a water source, protection from wind and plants in clusters. When maintaining your garden avoid the use of insecticides, including BT.

As adults, most butterflies feed on the nectar of flowers. Some local butterflies, like the Mourning Cloak and Red Admiral, feed primarily on rotting fruit or tree sap for moisture and nutrients while the California Sister feeds on aphid honeydew.

In the larval stage, most butterfly species are limited to a single plant family and occasionally a single genus. To attract more Western Tiger Swallowtails, for instance, provide larval host plants such as willow, sycamore, alder, Big Leaf maple, sycamore, plum and ash. Common Buckeye lay their eggs on mimulus and verbena while California Sister use the coast and canyon live oak. Planting a variety of grasses and shrubs like ceanothus, buckwheat, coffeeberry, bush lupine and manzanita and perennials like redwood violet, California aster and wallflower will attract a variety of local butterflies. If your garden is near a wild area that naturally supports the caterpillar stage, you can plant just the nectar plants to attract butterflies to your garden.

This swallowtail butterfly won?t find any nectar in a mophead hydrangea but that doesn?t keep it from checking it out.

Filling your garden with nectar producing flowers is the fun part. Adult butterflies rely on sugar-rich nectar for their daily fuel. Different species have different flower color and shape preferences. Many butterflies produce scents that attract the opposite sex and many of these scents smell like the flowers that they are attracted to and visit. The scent of these butterfly pollinated flowers may have evolved as an adaptation to ensure their survival.

Butterflies typically favor flat, clustered flowers that provide a landing pad although larger butterflies can feed on penstemon and salvias while hovering. Butterflies have good vision but a weak sense of smell. Unlike bees, butterflies can see red and are attracted to brightly colored flowers. Pink, red, orange, yellow and purple are the most attractive nectar source flower colors but they also use blue and white.

Consider the blooming time of each plant. Having plants blooming in the sun for many hours in the day will lengthen your viewing time. Nectar rich flowers include yarrow, aster, verbena, scabiosa, buckwheat, toyon, salvia, erysimum, zinnia, lantana and coneflower.

In addition to nectar, butterflies need a source of water and salts. A patch of mud kept wet year round or a shallow depression lined with pebbles and kept moist will work fine. Also provide some flat rocks for them to bask in the sun in an area protected from the wind by shrubs.

Having your own butterfly garden will enable you to witness close-up the wonder of butterflies and the flowers on which they feed.

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Trouble in Paradise

Aphids on butterfly weed.

Spring around here doesn?t bring a late snow or severe tropical storm that can wreak havoc in a garden. Still we have our own problems that can dash the hopes of even the most optimistic gardener. Is your veggie garden getting attacked by every type of insect and fungal disease lately? Are your beautiful roses looking a bit bedraggle? If your piece of paradise is being devoured or disfigured by insect pests or fungal diseases here?s what can you do about it.

Insects are having a field day at this time of year, too. Put out wet rolled newspaper at night to collect earwigs in the morning. If you see notches on your rose leaves, it’s the work of leaf cutter bees. These guys are beneficial and will go away shortly.

If your rose leaves look like lace then you have the dreaded rose slug. I have a friend whose rose shrubs were really hit by these. It’s discouraging when you had visions of huge fragrant bouquets on every table. What to do?

Rose slugs can skeletonize your leaves in a short time. Treat right away so your roses will look like this.

The rose slug is actually the larvae of a wasp called a sawfly. Because they may have up to 6 generations per year they can do a lot of damage to your roses. Early detection is key. Start scouting for sawfly larvae in early May when they can be hand picked or washed from the leaves with a strong spray. If needed, spray the leaves with neem oil while the larvae are still small. Conventional insecticides are toxic to bees and kill the good bugs too. During the winter rose slugs pupate in the soil and removing a couple of inches will help with controlling their numbers. Even cultivating the soil any time will break up the cocoons.

Keep checking for aphids. They can suck the plant juices from tender new leaves in a short time. They are incredibly prolific. Female aphids can produce 50 to 100 offspring. A newly born aphid becomes a producing adult without about a week and then can produce up to 5 offspring per day for up to 30 days. Yikes, that?s a lot of aphids if you don?t keep up with control. You may be able to dislodge them with a strong spray from the hose. If they persist, spray with organics like insecticidal soap, Neem or horticultural oil. As with all pesticide sprays, do this early in the morning or later then the plant is not in the sun. Be sure to test first to make sure the spray doesn?t burn new growth.

Ants can also bring aphids up into trees and shrubs such as camellias, citrus and roses. The ants feed off the honeydew secreted by aphids, scale and other plant-juice sucking insects. Ants also protect these pests from natural predators. To keep them off, wrap trunks with a 1-2 inch wide strip of masking tape and coast with a sticky barrier like Tanglefoot. Keep the barriers free of dirt and replace when necessary.

A client of mine has a photinia hedge that is not doing well. At first I suspected fireblight as this species is prone to this infections but on closer inspection I found the problem to be leaf spot. The majority of leaf spots are caused by fungi but some are caused by bacteria. Either should be treated with an organic fungicide like Serenade which is non-toxic to bees and beneficial insects, Neem oil, copper or sulfur spray to prevent and control spreading. Affected leaves should be discarded. Many plants get various leaf spots and late spring showers are perfect for them to take hold.

There are so many things that can grow wrong in the vegetable garden, too. Between fungal and bacterial problems, insects, slugs, deer, birds, rodents, rabbits- the list is endless. Keep your eyes open and don?t let a problem become a bigger one with time.

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