Wild Suburbia

Wilding Your Garden

noreply@blogger.com (Barbara E) — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 05:29:00 +0000

I recently gave a talk on habitat gardening titled, Wilding Your Garden. Yes I know that the very title is controversial since the word wilding has a rather unpleasant meaning in the urban context, but I kept it because it comes closest to conveying the message of the talk.

This fierce-looking insect, a robber fly, is an amazing predator that as an adult catches its prey "on the fly." It lays in wait on the leaf of a toyon in my garden.

I knew that the gardeners attending this session were interested in learning about native plants that would be most effective in attracting birds, butterflies and hummingbirds to their gardens. My goal for the group, though, was to convince them that to attract these little pretties, they would need to change not only the plants they were growing but more importantly their approach to gardening. Although plants provide food for many critters, especially at certain times during their life cycle, most birds and many other animals need insect protein and fat for reproduction and to feed their young.

During the summer phoebe's swoop near the ground under the oak tree, catching insects in mid air.

If we are serious about attracting and protecting birds, butterflies and hummingbirds, we need to get serious about both native plants and insects. Furthermore, we must not only include specific plants in our gardens, but we must mimic our local natural environment. That means allowing some dead branches to remain on trees and shrubs, and letting twigs, leaf litter and other organic debris accumulate on the ground. It means allowing organic matter to decompose to be recycled back into the environment. It means banishing mowers, blowers, and chainsaws from the land.

The case for habitat gardening is most thoroughly and eloquently made by Douglas Tallamy in his watershed book, Bringing Nature Home. He points out that although many birds feed on berries and seeds, requiring high-energy food for migration or to make it through the winter season, most birds need fat and protein that comes from insects for reproduction and rearing their young.

We spent several months from spring through summer watching a hummingbird tend her nest and then feed her young. Even these birds need protein and fat for their young.

Similarly, although butterflies are attracted to a broad range of plants whose flowers provide high-energy nectar, caterpillars – the larval phase of the butterfly – often require a very specific host plant. The loss of butterfly species may not be due to a lack of appropriate nectar plants, but rather to the loss of specific larval host plants. In short, although plants with pretty berries, nutritious seeds and nectar-bearing flowers may feed birds and butterflies during a portion of their lives, many cannot survive without more specific host plants and an abundance of insects.

There was quite a ruckus beneath a shrub as this lizard did battle with a large beetle. The lizard whipped its head around beating the insect senseless and finally finishing it off. I did not get to see her dine, though. Can't imagine how she could consume something so large!

One can study individual birds and butterflies to determine specific needs, as good restoration ecologists must, but for the home gardener creating gardens using locally native plants that typically grow in association with each other is a most effective approach. Furthermore, removing or reducing lawn, and allowing our gardens to be a bit messy creates good habitat for a diversity of insects, lizards, and other critters necessary for the health of the birds and butterflies we so enjoy. Finally, this more naturalistic and holistic approach not only gives you a good excuse when your neighbor points out that your grass is not the greenist on the block, but it can increase your awareness and appreciation of the wild drama that plays out in the natural world of your garden.

For more resources, check out the last three slides of the Wilding Your Garden presentation and the list of links to lists of plants that attract birds (a mouthful!).

One day on my way out - and in a rush as well - I heard a sound right by the back gate. There I found this rather small spider wrapping up its prey. It took about five minutes for it to delicately wrap up its meal while swinging from its web. I stayed to watch, figuring that it was worth being a bit late. I can't remember now what I was in such a rush about but I will never forget watching this spider going about its important business.

Selecting and Planting Trees for Long Term Success

noreply@blogger.com (Barbara E) — Sat, 07 Jan 2012 02:08:00 +0000

Children and adults are amazed by the upturned root of a large pine tree that blew over at Garfield Park during the storm.
The root seems quite shallow for such a large tree, possibly due to the frequent, shallow watering practices used in the park to maintain the grass.

Trees have been on everyone’s mind. Hundreds, maybe thousands, fell during the big windstorm on November 30th. People wondered whether the high failure rate was due, at least in part, to horticultural practices. Trees growing in parkways, receiving frequent, shallow irrigation, toppled over in the strong winds. Many of these trees had been subjected to root pruning during road and sidewalk repair. Surely these conditions resulted in much of the damage. Trees located next to houses and other buildings were watered on schedules better suited to the turf grass growing beneath them. In compliance with city regulations, many of these specimens received water several times each week for fifteen minute periods. The grass was green, but the trees grew shallow roots unable to withstand the nearly one hundred mile per hour winds.

It is possible, even likely, that under better conditions, fewer trees would have failed. In the next few posts, I will describe the ideal conditions for growing a beautiful, strong, long-lived tree beginning with selecting and planting new trees, moving on to caring for and training young trees, and finally, proper care for mature trees. I will try to include photographs of common, less-than-ideal practices, featuring both my own mistakes and others that can be seen in nearly any neighborhood.

Good, strong landscape trees start from the very beginning, with proper selection and care. Selecting a young plant that will eventually turn into a healthy mature tree requires the following conditions.

The lower branches should be left on young
trees to feed the caliper of the trunk. After a few
years remove them using good pruning cuts.
Remove them before they are an inch in diameter
or if they pose a hazard. Clear the grass sur-
rounding tree, leaving at least a foot of clearance.
Check the gray plastic protector to make sure that
the crown is still protected and that it is not
moist or infested with insects. Once the grass
is cleared there should be less danger of damage
to the crown from weed wackers and mowers.

Only trees with excellent form, both above ground and below, will be planted.
These young specimens will started in the landscape either from seed (acorn, etc.), or at least transplanted when young, say no bigger than 15 gallon containers, with 5 gallon being a preferred size. The longer a tree is in a pot, the more time there is for root damage or stress to occur. Smaller trees often experience less transplant shock and usually catch up quickly with large, older specimens.
The roots will be well formed, spreading out symmetrically, with no roots circling within the pot. If there is a young tap root, it will not have been cut or damaged. Trees often fail years after planting because they developed circling roots while still in relatively small nursery pots. These roots continue to grow in tight balls that never adequately anchor the trees, and eventually choke off water. They may fall in windstorms, or decline due to inadequate uptake of water and soil nutrients.
The young “nurse branches” will have been left intact to feed the main stem resulting in a well-developed trunk with a nice flare at the base, as the tree matures.
The new plant will show no sign of stress or disease.
Only trees adapted to the local conditions – climate, soil type, water, exposure – will be selected.

In our ideal world, this perfect specimen will be planted in an ideal location.

These sweetgum trees were planted beneath power lines and need frequent pruning by So Cal Edison resulting in unappealing trees with weakly attached branches.

It will be the right sized plant for its location so it will never be topped because there are power lines above, because it is “too big for the house,” or for any other reason.
Its roots will have room to grow and spread.
If irrigation is required, the tree will be watered according to its needs rather than the needs of nearby turf grass or tropical flowers. In general, it will be watered infrequently, usually once or twice a month when there is no rain, and deeply, soaking the soil to a depth of two feet or more for mature trees (p.84, CA Master Gardener Handbook).

Not only will our trees be perfect specimens when starting out, not only will they be placed in the ideal location, but also they will be planted in the way that gives them the best possible start.

Crown of tree (place where stem starts
to flare out to roots) is buried - this
tree does not have a chance unless
this is corrected.

The plant will be placed in a hole no deeper than the distance from the pot bottom to the crown of the plant. Ideally, the crown of the plant will be slightly above ground level when planted so the crown remains above the surface even if the soil compresses slightly. A very common cause of failure for newly installed trees is buried crowns. The trees may be planted too deeply, the soil on which they stand may compress, or soil may be piled up around the tree much later. When I see a dead tree, I always dig down to determine where the base of the tree is – that is, where the trunk flares out to form roots. This area, the crown, must never be covered with soil.
The hole should be wider than the container that the tree was taken from. The walls of the hole may be roughened to make it easier for roots to penetrate the surrounding soil.
No amendments will be added to the soil. The native soil will be placed back into the hole.
The soil will be tamped down firmly so there is good contact between soil and roots, but not packed down so hard that the roots are deprived of water and air.
A water basin may be created around the plant to direct water to the root area. This basin will be checked periodically and removed if rains or irrigation leave the tree standing in a puddle. If this occurs, either irrigation will be modified so that water can penetrate the soil, or in the case of heavy rains, the berm will be removed.
Since a perfect specimen was selected, the young tree is unlikely to need staking. If there is a nursery stake, this will be removed during planting and the hole filled in. If staking is required due to other conditions, such as high winds or heavy public use, two stakes at the correct height, with flexible webbing will be used. The stakes will allow the plant to move so it can develop a strong root system, and an adequate trunk caliper and taper, with a good flare at the crown. Stakes will be checked frequently to ensure that there is no damage to the trunk and to confirm that they are still supporting the tree properly. They will be removed as soon as possible, preferably during the first or second year of growth.
The new specimen will be watered in carefully so that the soil is wet but not sodden. The water should soak into the root ball and the surrounding soil. Water will be applied again after the first application soaks in.
Organic mulch can be used to moderate soil temperature and reduce water loss, though the crown area will be kept clean of soil and mulch.

Trees selected and planted this way are given an excellent start. In the next few years they require careful attention to make sure their roots leave the planting hole, penetrating the surrounding soil. The following tips will help the new plant during this period of establishment.

Before the first hot spell, feel around the root ball to check for large air pockets. These can form if the nursery soil had a lot of organic material that decomposed after planting. Gently, but firmly, press the soil to fill these holes. If you need to add soil, use the nearby garden soil.
Again, mulch can help these tender plants through hot weather, though it is critical that the crown remains clean.
The young trees should be watered regularly so that they do not dry out, but make sure that the soil in and around the root ball is not sodden. When soil is completely saturated there is no air available for the roots, and the soil can become compacted. Furthermore, disease-forming organisms thrive in hot, wet conditions, especially when there is little air present (anaerobic), resulting in root rot or other plant diseases. Water well, water thoroughly, and then do not water again until the soil begins to dry out. It is best to water before a young plant shows signs of drought stress.

Young trees often require pruning to develop into well-structured mature specimens. In the next post, I will describe pruning practices that can prevent future problems. These include removing suckers and crossed branches, selecting scaffolding limbs, and protecting and encouraging the growth of a strong and straight lead branch.

Resources:
Iowa State University, Forestry Extension

Tips for Proper Planting of Containerized Trees
To Stake or Not to Stake

International Society of Arboriculture (Trees are Good website)

Tree Selection
High Quality Trees

USDA Forest Service

Tree Owner's Manual

University of California

ANR (Agriculture and Natural Resource), Lawn and Garden Catalog

Cooperative Extension, Center for Landscape and Urban Horticulture, Planting

Cooperative Extension, Master Gardener Program, The California Garden Web, Landscape Trees

California Master Gardener Handbook, Dennis R. Pittenger, Ed. 2002. Berkeley, UC California.

Planting and Care of Landscape Trees, Part 1, Pam Bone (90 min. video)

Planting and Care of Landscape Trees, Part 2, Pam Bone (90 min. video)

Urban Forest Ecosystems Institute

Resources

Wildsuburbia

Trees or Grass

Cleaning Up After the Storm

The Wind Event

Save Our Trees

What I Learned About Oaks

I'm Not an Arborist...

Cleaning up after the storm

noreply@blogger.com (Barbara E) — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 02:36:00 +0000

For the past three weeks, ever since The Big Blow (windstorm on night of November 30/December 1), I have received a multitude of offers to haul away the broken tree limbs from the front yard "for a very reasonable price." I declined them all, waiting for Jim Walker, his son Todd, and the hard working crew of Western Arborists to come to remove the dead limbs dangling in the avocado and deodar in the front yard. The debris was to be chipped, and the limbs cut into 18-24 inch segments. All material was to be left on site.

Two men climbed the deodar early in the morning, while one assisted from the ground. Although they took proper safety precautions I watched nervously as they used chain saws to cut large limbs tangled through out the tall, old tree.

Each limb was roped before being cut. After the chainsaw made its way through the limbs, they swung on the ropes and were lowered safely. It was amazing to watch.

Arrows point out two men working in tree.

For scale, notice yellow hard hat of workman on ground. Those guys were very, very high up.

After the men finished working on the deodar, they started on the avocado. This old tree had a lot of rot in it. When I saw the damage after the storm I thought it might have to be removed. We are going to see how it does and as it starts to grow new branches and fill in a bit, I will have some of the very tall limbs shortened. Avocados are not like many other trees, their structure can get quite messy since they are so brittle and large limbs frequently crack. Although the deodar is taller, the avocado is probably more dangerous to work in due to the instability of the limbs.

Arrows point out two men in the avocado tree.

You can see how extensive the damage to the avocado is.

The limbs that had fallen and those removed from the trees were then cut up and stacked beneath the trees. Branches and other debris were chipped and deposited beneath the avocado.

Chips being deposited beneath the avocado.

Chips being piled against the trunk of the avocado.

Clean up is mostly done.

My work began once the crew from Western Arborist was finished. A pile of mulch sitting on the root system and against the crown of a tree can spell trouble. In fact, I saw a young oak, about fifteen years old, die from just this cause. A pile of woodchips was left near the base of the tree. In a very short period of time the chips started to decompose and the pile got very hot. The roots were probably killed by the heat and the lack of oxygen.

This lovely oak died abruptly after it was heavily pruned and the chips were left in a pile against the trunk of the tree. I did not have the heart to photograph it afterwards. (June 2004)

Notice the knot right above the chips.

I removed most of the mulch the very next day and continued spreading it - directly on top of the lawn - so that it is no thicker than about 6 inches anywhere on the roots.

The excess mulch was piled on the walk next to the house. Now that it is off the tree, moving it to a better location is less urgent.

I have spent a few hours each day since last week spreading mulch and figuring out how to use the logs and branches that were too large to chip. Yet another section of the lawn, approximately 400 square feet, is history. More pictures to come!

Avocado, avocado, avocado, avocado....

noreply@blogger.com (Barbara E) — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 01:02:00 +0000

I sit here sipping, or rather sucking, on a thick green drink, an avocado smoothie. Earlier today I indulged in avocado pudding – a smoothie so thick it had to be eaten with a spoon. The large avocado trees – a fuerte and an undetermined, but delicious, variety – in our backyard are in heavy production. My husband has told me that we do not have to consume them all, but I just cannot let good food go to waste.

Avocado "pudding," actually avocado smoothie too thick to suck.

I have given many bags to friends. The first bag went to someone who used them for appetizers in an informal, pocket restaurant in LA.

Forager collecting avocados.

The second bag was delivered to a group of LA County Master Gardeners from low income areas. A third bag went to the main office where my husband works. The fourth and fifth bags went to a couple of friends with whom I have been exchanging home garden produce for some years. Grapefruit will be coming my way soon! Each time my son and daughter-in-law stop by I drop a couple of avocados in their baby’s diaper bag. I carry extras in my purse to deliver to any willing taker. And anyone who enters my house is not allowed to leave without taking a few off our hands. Even my dog, Milo, is doing his part to reduce the avocado surplus by eating some pretty nasty looking ones that the squirrels nibbled on before dropping them from the tree.

Avocado stash after the windstorm. Green ones are fuerte, do not know what variety the black ones are but they have a delicious nutty flavor.

In addition to giving away our bounty, I peeled, chopped, and drizzled with lemon juice some of the “damaged” avocados, those that taste great but do not look so good on the outside. These now reside in the freezer where they will stay until the day comes that I once again crave this wonderful fruit.

Pureed avocado and orange piece. This morning I juiced the orange so the smoothie was smoother.

I have made grapefruit and avocado salad, a delectable combination especially with the addition of cilantro, salt and pepper, and a touch of oil and balsamic vinegar. Of course, a bowl of guacamole sits in the refrigerator. I like it coarsely chopped with tomatoes, finely minced onions and red, hot chili peppers (also in abundance in my garden), and a generous amount of lime juice. And each night our green salad is adorned with chunks of avocado.

I do not just eat these green-skinned wonders. I also rub them on my hands instead of using lotion. Once I tried to wash my hair with them but I had trouble removing all of the clumps of green - not a good look or feel. Maybe I will try again, scrubbing a bit harder. A friend suggested an avocado facial. I don’t have cucumbers, but I think this is a must-do! Next week, in preparation for the holidays, I will indulge in a rejuvenating and youthifying facial.

Other suggestions in response to my pleas for help include recipes for avocado chocolate pudding, avocado ice pops, and avocado ice cream. Hard for me to believe that this rich food is improved with the addition of butter or cream, but I am definitely going to give them a try. Come to think of it, what isn't improved with the addition of butter and cream? I have also come across recipes for avocado soup, especially with seafood, but they are all cold, and it is just too chilly outside to enjoy cold soup. Maybe I will use the frozen avocados for this in the summer.

Facebook has an avocado page. There's a picture of grilled avocado... hmmmm. Another picture of avocado pie. I gotta tell you, that color is a turnoff in the pie crust. There is also a link to "54 Ways to Eat an Avocado."

Though a fancy glass and a silver spoon make this seem classy, it is still getting increasingly difficult to swallow.

Give me a call, or shoot me an email if you want some avocados and live close enough to pick them up. And if you have any other great avocado recipes to share, please post them!

Trees or Grass

noreply@blogger.com (Barbara E) — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 23:49:00 +0000

There has been talk suggesting that the widespread loss of massive trees was due in part to us: wrong tree, wrong place, wrong care. This kind of bothered me because I wanted to hear it from experts, from arborists. So I did a google search and found an excellent article by LA Times reporter and blogger Emily Green called, How to prevent your trees from looking like this. Only thing is, the article was written a year and a half ago.

Although the loss of trees during this unusually violent Santa Ana windstorm may have been inevitable, we know that many of our trees were at high risk because of how we select, plant, and care for them. Trees fail because we baby them. We over water them so they don't have to develop deep, broad, supporting roots to get water. We water frequently and for short periods so the roots grow near the surface, where the water is. Furthermore, when the winds came trees standing in soggy soil may have been an easy push-over.

We stake trees when they are young under the misconception that this will result in stronger, straighter trees. Not so! They cannot sway and move, and this is what is needed for the development of a strong root system.

We prune trees badly so the growth above ground is not in balance with the roots below. After severely pruning a tree, there is not enough energy generated through photosynthesis to feed the root system. The tree may respond with a flush of growth above, even though the roots are diminished. It takes time for balance between the top and bottom to be restored, but we just keep hacking away at the branches, year after year.

And of course, we plant fast growing trees because we can not wait for a steady oak to grow. Though this may provide quick gratification, especially when water and fertilizer further accelerate growth, the results are brittle, unstable, shallow-rooted trees that stand hazardously next to our homes.

Kids and adults stand around shallow, broad roots of uprooted pine.

Which brings me to Garfield Park in South Pasadena. As mentioned by Drew Ready of the Council for Watershed Health, the park was hard hit. Pines trees fell, acacias toppled, sycamores snapped, and three wonderful, massive coast live oaks were uprooted. I jog daily at Garfield Park and I can say with certainty the park is maintained to protect the grass, not the trees. The grass extends right under these beautiful oaks and is watered year around. The soil is usually soggy. The trees look okay ... except when they don't. Over the years the oaks have been disappearing. Some fall, some die standing. Looking at the roots of the newly fallen, one is struck by how small they seem. Yes, they were ripped apart in the storm, but the question remains, if we did not have grass growing beneath them, and if we did not water them constantly, would more have survived. No one knows the answer for sure, but it seems logical.

Broken roots of oak

It is time to turn off the water in Garfield Park. Under the supervision of expert arborists, the city should begin to wean these heritage trees from the artificial and damaging conditions that are killing them. Maybe it would be a good idea to spread wood chips made from the glorious specimens that fell, around the survivors to increase the chances that they will stand for another hundred years.

Workers remove debris. It would be nice if the material was chipped and recycled right here in Garfield Park, the place it grew.

Children say good bye to trees.

Links:
Emily Green, Why did santa ana winds fell so many trees?
Emily Green, Now that the winds have departed.
KPCC, Santa Ana winds blow through Southland toppling trees, power lines
LA Times Photography

Bernoulli did not come down the chimney

noreply@blogger.com (Barbara E) — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 03:22:00 +0000

As promised, I am here to make amends for an incorrect paragraph on the Bernoulli Effect. So here goes with another try. If the wind blows past a door - parallel to it - the air pressure on that side of the door is lower than on the other side and so the door would swing out, not in. If, on the other hand, the wind blows straight into the door, obviously the door would swing in, as was the case during the storm. So far so good.

Now why did the wind blow down the chimney? If the wind was blowing across the top of the chimney and not down into it, the air pressure at the top would be lower than the still air within and air would push up the chimney, not rush into the house. Sometime during the storm, in my house, the air pressure at the top of the chimney was higher than within and woosh, the air rushed in, dust and all. If anyone out there has a better explanation of why this happened, please inform.

The wind event

noreply@blogger.com (Barbara E) — Sun, 04 Dec 2011 05:13:00 +0000

Tree limbs and debris in the front yard.

Power was restored in my house last night at around 10 PM, about 48 hours after it went out. My neighbor is still mostly in the dark. A heavy duty extension cord hanging out my kitchen window is providing a bit of comfort to her in the meanwhile. Storms do seem to draw people together.

The other interesting thing that power outages do is they pull people away from their everyday lifes of school, work, and electronics. When I took a walk around the neighborhood I saw kids, home from school, playing ball in the street and walking on downed trees, while their parents stood around talking. Kind of nice. It certainly makes one think about why we only do this as a last resort.

The tree damage is truly staggering. There have been comments made about why so many trees went down. It would be interesting if scientists studied what happened to determine whether it was just a freakish storm or whether some of our urban horticulture practices - plant choice, irrigation regime, pruning - could be improved. (Lizzie, this is truly a case of Urban Horticulture in Crisis. )

One of the many fallen large coast live oaks.

As the wind roared through the night on Wednesday, I shone a flashlight out the front window and couldn't believe what I was seeing. There was debris everywhere. The dog was whining, the cat wandering, both would normally have been fast asleep. Several times casement windows and French doors in our century old house flew open, as I rushed around looking for chairs or other heavy objects to hold them in place. For once I was glad that we didn't dispose of those heavy old stereo amplifiers, they make good door stops.

Correction: The following paragraph is all wrong and my husband never said anything about Bernoulli. I think I must have been dreaming this! Anyway, correction to come in next post.

My physicist husband later informed me that this happens because when the wind blows past the windows the air pressure is lower outside than inside where the air is still, think paper airplanes and the Bernoulli Effect, (you really have to check out this link which brings back memories of science club and birthday parties where we impressed our children and their friends with how cool science is). Well, I found other evidence that the Bernoulli Effect was at work because not only did the windows and doors fly open, the wind rushed down the chimney, blowing dust throughout the house.No biggy, except that I cleaned house for Thanksgiving and had hoped to let the vacuum cleaner sleep until right before Chanukah (say or think what you will about my housekeeping skills!).

Please, no comments on either the African mask in the fireplace or the little statues on the sides. Their presence can be explained by a rather complicated story related to the passing of a generation and post-it notes. What kind of surprises me, though, is that the mask didn't fall over, it is not very steady on the log rack.

The front yard had some pretty serious tree damage. A large avocado tree has lost a lot of mass. It does not produce edible avocados but it does provide shade.The deodar did better, though it too shed some large limbs.

There are still many large broken limbs hanging in the tree.

Looking at all of the debris and hearing people talk about how to dispose of it, I'm thinking, this is it, I just had a ton of mulch delivered to my front yard, time for the lawn to go. My husband is out of town, but when we spoke on the phone tonight he cautiously asked whether I was planning to get rid of it all. Well... yes... sigh ... Let's see, over 38 years of marriage versus a front lawn of St. Augustine grass... Hmmm.

The backyard did better - for whatever reason. Though some limbs did fall, mostly the storm dislodged a whole lot of avocados.

Please let me know if you want some. I will also be bringing them to food kitchens, etc.

The cleanup has just begun. Hopefully power will be restored to the rest of the area, but it would be lovely if we did not forget how nice it is to walk around the neighborhood with no agenda, no activities, just a bit of time.

Front Parkway (Part 3)

noreply@blogger.com (Barbara E) — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 04:03:00 +0000

Looking back at the October posts I wrote on the front parkway project, I am feeling good about how things are progressing. On October 19th , the weedy grass in the parkway was dug out by men younger and stronger than me. It was a pleasure to watch this part of the project proceed so quickly and painlessly (at least for me). On October 30th, I kicked around ideas on what to do with the now bare 76 foot long by 6 foot wide strip. After a bit of soul searching I decided that I would plant bunchgrasses in and around drifts of cobbles. Both the rocks and the plants would come from other garden beds in my yard. This plan required the least money spent (other than the labor cost, which was well worth it!!), the least new materials brought in to the garden, and hopefully the least about of maintenance during and after the plants get established.

Between a couple of rainy days, I was out there digging out needlegrasses (Nassella species) from the side parkway, and planting them and some new purchases in the front. All was going oh so well.


Needlegrass placed near rock piles and elsewhere. These grasses will spread by reseeding throughout the parkway.

Even though deergrass (Muhlenbergia rigens) gets large and I was set on using smaller grasses, I couldn't resist planting just one in the parkway. I will plant more across the sidewalk in the front yard. I bought this plant and the one below at the CNPS - San Gabriel Mts. Chapter plant sale. It came from El Nativo Growers and was beautifully rooted, neither pot bound, nor too small, just perfect.

California fuchsia (Epilobium canum) shows off its bright red flowers in late summer and fall.

Looking pretty bare but it is a start.

While watching from my office window as a neighbor allowed her dog to walk through the itty-bitty new plants, my daughter suggested that it might be a good idea to add a sign to let people know that there are new plants, including wildflower seedlings.

So far so good... but not perfect. Although there is very little bermuda grass resprouting there is a whole lot of weedy grass seedlings and clover coming up. Of course I spread some wildflower seed so I am reluctant to hoe the surface.

I don't mind the fallen leaves but the sprouting grasses and clover could overwhelm the wildflower seeds.

Yes, Brent (blog: Breathing Treatment), I should have waited with the wildflower seeds and not because they will overgrow the new grasses, but because I have not dealt with the weeds yet. Now, on my way back from jogging, I bend down to pick out a few weed seedlings - kind of overwhelming but it may work out anyway.

The rest of the garden is anything but bare. Roger's Red grape (Vitis 'Roger's Red') is in full autumnal brilliance, right next to large clusters of bright red toyon (Heteromeles arbutifolia) berries. Non-native Chinese fringe trees are alight with yellow foliage. Seed heads from California goldenrod sway in the breeze, and baby green seedlings of globe gilia spread through the side parkway. I miss the east coast autumn but love the fall colors of southern California just as much.

Milo standing in the purple three-awn (Aristida purpurea). The awns do not seem to bother Milo but some dogs have problems with them getting stuck in their fur, their paws and even their eyes, so exercise caution with dogs and needly grasses.

Hope everyone had a Happy Thanksgiving!

Dividing Irises - Part 2

noreply@blogger.com (Barbara E) — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 19:43:00 +0000

A little more than a month ago (October 14) I dug up a few Pacific Coast irises from the woodland garden to transplant to a new location - one that won't make such an appealing doggie bed for Milo. I started in October because I could see the irises were coming out of dormancy. After all, this fall has been anomalously cool and wet. It seemed a bit early, but I went ahead with it. Well maybe it was a bit early. As you can see below, the blades have died back and I cut them off. The rhizomes may be fine and ready to re-leaf, I am waiting to see. I thought that it was important to transplant when the white nubbins growing from the rhizomes were about 1/2 inch long. That is not what I have been reading so it will be interesting to see whether the ones I transplanted on Sunday do better.

One month after planting, and yes I did keep them moist, they have died back. I still think they will be fine and will keep checking for new growth from the rhizomes.

There has been much discussion on the web about dividing irises. If you are on Facebook, check out the photos uploaded by Bob Sussman of Matilija Nursery (and be sure to "Like" this great page). Bob has graciously allowed me to copy the pictures for posting here for those not on Facebook. There is also a nice article on dividing irises on the Matilija Nursery website. Another excellent resource on irises is the Society for Pacific Coast Native Iris (and guess who is president... yes, the same Bob Sussman of Matilija Nursery).

Pacific coast irises in fall-big and ready to divided. (Matilija Nursery)

Pacific coast iris divisions-you can see the natural "breaks". (Matilija Nursery)

Pacific coast irises planted to containers to "root out". They can also be planted to your garden. (Matilija Nursery)

One of the things I noticed when comparing these pictures with mine is that the roots of Matilija Nursery's irises are thicker and whiter than the roots of the ones I transplanted in October. Probably, this is partly due to the fact Bob recommends washing the roots and dipping them into a dilute bleach solution, but I also think it is another indication of the fact that I jumped the gun on these irises - took them too early, before the feeder roots had started to grow. But who knows, I'm not giving up, just yet, on my early transplants.

On Sunday, plant sales over, I turned my attention to my own garden and the remaining irises that I wanted to transplant. Dug them out, divided and planted them. One of the tips everyone seems to agree upon is the need to plant them immediately. Pacific Coast irises (beardless irises) are more sensitive to transplanting than bearded irises and really do not do well if their roots, exposed to air, dry out. Luckily the weather was cool and moist.

Gently lifting out the irises.

Set in a wheel barrel, ready for the trip to other garden beds, awaiting their arrival. (Notice Milo in the background wondering what I am doing to his bed.)

Irises are gone. I think I will extend the flagstones so there is more walkable space.

One of the many new divided irises planted in an area that used to be filled with a white fly infested xylosma (glad to be rid of that!).

New planting of irises on the side of the house. Not the neatest look, but we'll see how they do!

To put this whole project into perspective, here are some pictures of these irises from their beginnings in my garden.

Woodland garden in 2002 before the lawn is removed (left), and the first small planting of Iris douglasiana 'Canyon Snow' and a Pacific Coast Hybrid, 4/11/2004, (right). The orange flower on the far right is a clivia left over from the previous owners.

Irises in front center in July 2005.

Closeup of Iris douglasiana 'Canyon Snow'. No wonder we plant these!

Irises in late April 2006. Very pretty!

February 2009, irises emerging from dormant period with upright blades.

Milo, at age 13 1/2, is looking for a cool place to lie down on a hot summer day, July 12, 2011. Next summer he will have to use the carex instead.

When I started this post I was going to discuss my insecurity about being messy (which I hint at above, in the description of the picture of the new iris bed). Yes, I am a bit of a mess and after seeing how my friend Nancy planted the irises that I shared with her, I was all set to fess up, looking for kind words like, "Oh, you are not a mess. Your garden is beautiful.." Well, you can keep your kind words (if you have any), but enjoy these pictures of Nancy's new transplants.

Isn't this amazing? Look at how neat this garden is!

I love the rocks, the trunk of the Ceanothus, and the irises, dressed with a mulch of light pebbles.

And if all of that is not enough, add a gorgeous cat posing in this garden of Eden. Well done, Nancy!

Time to wrap it up with a picture of the irises naturalized in the riparian mesa area at Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden in Claremont. People often ask me when is the best time to visit Rancho. It is always beautiful, and my favorite part of the garden is the wild community area in the back 50 acres. Still, if you could only visit once (and that would be a shame!) then I would recommend coming in mid-April for the irises on the mesa, it is magical!

Irises with wildflowers at Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden on April 17, 2006.

Be Heard - Vote

noreply@blogger.com (Barbara E) — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 00:16:00 +0000

Polls are open until 8 PM.

Be heard - VOTE

Front Parkway (continued)

noreply@blogger.com (Barbara E) — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 04:28:00 +0000

The front parkway project continues, while I try to figure out exactly what I want. I have tossed around lots of ideas, such as:

Striking, architectural succulents. A kind of modern look. Too modern?
Dudleyas and juncus - odd combination, succulent and wiry, powdery gray and shiny dark green - flowing from the front yard across the sidewalk and spilling into the parkway.
Decomposed granite and almost no plants at all.
Collection of boulders.
Sagescrub plants like the parkway on Milan, only smaller.

Parkway view from my office window.

None has grabbed me, so I have decided to write down some of the properties/conditions I want for the parkway. Here's what I came up with:

Locally native species for better habitat.
Little to no supplemental water needed.
No new materials purchased and carted into the garden. That includes buying rocks, boulders, decomposed granite, or lots of new plants (a few new plants and seeds are fine).
Very low maintenance, even during establishment.
Lower-growing, neater, less wild looking than the planting along Milan, but similar in feel.
Capture runoff from the sidewalk and street if possible.

All of this leads me to clumps of bunchgrasses interspersed with wildflowers, especially when the garden is young. I have lots of small cobbles throughout the yard that can be grouped to form mounds that drift across the parkway.

Medium-sized rocks from other garden beds are being placed in the parkway, massed for more impact. Also the soil is being graded so that water does not runoff into the street or sidewalk.

Soil level is slightly higher under the rock piles where the water will have an easier time soaking in.

Many of the grasses will come from the sidewalk garden on Milan. The needlegrasses (Nassella species) and purple three awn (Aristida purpurea) have reseeded, mostly along the sidewalk. These will be dug out and replanted in the front. I will try some other locally native grasses to see how they do, such as: squirreltail (Elymus elymoides), Junegrass (Koeleria macrantha), melic grass (Melica imperfecta), littleseed muhly (Muhlenbergia microsperma), California brome (Bromus carinatus), and Diego bent grass (Agrostis pallens).

Needlegrass (Nassella species) growing along sidewalk on Milan will be transplanted into the new parkway garden on Monterey. (I do not know exactly which needlegrass these are because over the years I have planted N. cernua, N. lepida, and N. pulchra. These are probably hybrids. Maybe I'll try to key them out when they go to seed.)

Squirreltail (Elymus elymoides) that I bought at the Grow Native Nursery-Westwood plant sale last weekend.

The springtime will be a riot of color from phacelias, tidytips, poppies, madias (tarweed), chia and gilias. Although these do take some work, cleaning up the beds after the wildflowers are done blooming, I cannot miss out on the great, colorful wildflower display in the first spring after lawn is removed.

Busy Garden

noreply@blogger.com (Barbara E) — Wed, 19 Oct 2011 22:43:00 +0000

I am so excited about what is going on in my garden. Up until this very moment most of the work done in the garden has been done by me - with help from my husband. And it has been both painfully slow and slowly painful. As I approach the ripe age of 60 (got a couple of years, but I'm getting close), it is time to get some stronger backs involved.Sitting in my little office typing away, I watch as the garden, miraculously, is being transformed.

From my office window I watch as stronger backs than mine are quickly making the weedy bermuda grass in the parkway a thing of the past (October 18, 2011).


August 29, 2011: Grass hasn't been watered since last year. Strip is roughly 76 ft. long and 6 ft. wide.

Looks cute but I need to get real. Here I am digging the first bit of grass out, progress is slow.

Dug, raked, and picked clean, the parkway is ready to plant, Oct. 19, 2011.

The front parkway is clear of Bermuda! Yes, I know it will be popping up for years to come, but it has been dug, raked and picked clean, so we are set to go with the new garden, just in time for the plant sales.

Next, a new patio of flagstone is being laid on a bed of sand in the back yard.

Picture of backyard with flagstones placed on leaf mulch to see what a patio might look like (Oct. 18, 2011)

And here it comes to life. It is bordered by herringbone pattern of old bricks that were in the yard when we moved here. Layer of course sand or decomposed granite is ready to receive the flagstones. (Oct. 19, 2011)

More to come!

Golf Course Driving Range Expansion

noreply@blogger.com (Barbara E) — Mon, 17 Oct 2011 21:55:00 +0000

The golf course driving range extension debacle exemplifies the way our city conducts business, and why residents of this city are so frustrated with governance. As a reminder, Donovan Brothers, the new manager of the golf course, refused to sign the long term lease agreement with the city unless it included a clause allowing them to extend the driving range. This issue should never have come up since the city council directed city staff to leave the possibility of extending the driving range out of the negotiations from the very start (February 17, 2010), but nevertheless, it has become a big sticking point.

The driving range extension would be developed at the city’s expense. Donovan Brothers, in the agreement presented last spring, would front the money for the work, and the city would repay them by reducing their rent until all of the outlay is repaid. This was agreed to with no business plan or model laying out projected costs or increases in revenue from the expansion. The financial risk was placed squarely on the shoulders of the residents of South Pasadena.

When the issue came up in city council, first during closed session (March 2, 2011) and later during several regular city council meetings there was a great deal of community contention. (See October 19, 2011 Agenda Packet, item 12 for notes on these meetings, be sure to download this pdf since the city removes it from their web page, though you can always get a copy in City Hall.) Residents objected on environmental, financial, and general land use considerations. Needless to say, the issue has not disappeared, but continues in a way that once again can only lead us to believe that the city prefers operating behind closed doors with no responsibility to those they serve.

Why else would the Initial Study and Mitigated Negative Declaration (IS/MND) be carried out without reporting to city council. Yes, the initial contract with Rincon Consultants for this work ($24,799) was below the $25,000 cutoff that would have required city council approval and public discussion. Still knowing how contentious the issue is, it seems to me that before proceeding it would have been wise for city staff to have presented the contract and their plans to city council and the public. But once again, it was done behind closed doors by staff who may no longer be working at the city, and therefore blame, if there is any, for the costs and the ultimate outcome will reside elsewhere. (Unfortunately, there is a familiar ring to this story. The Fair Oaks project was started by others, mistakes made by others, while the residents and business owners of our city remain to carry the burden of poor judgment and mismanagement.)

Item 12 in the Agenda Packet for the upcoming (10/19/11) city council meeting asks city council to approve an increase of $9,584 in the contract for the initial environmental work required for the driving range extension. This 38% increase brings the number to $34,383 requiring the city manager to present it to city council, hence allowing the public to know what is going on. It should be noted that the increase in cost results from the need to modify the wastewater treatment for the golf course restaurant and bathrooms, seemingly unrelated to the driving range extension. However, it was this change that brought the current expenditures for the driving range extension out into the open. This is just the beginning of a process that makes no sense whatsoever. Would you pay for city permits for a job in your home for which you have no idea of cost or benefit? Would you as a business owner start getting permits and doing environmental review for a project for which you had not done a proper business plan, setting out expected costs and revenues? Yet the city is doing just that.

My objection is simple. Before spending city funds for required environmental review, present a business plan for this endeavor. Show us it is a fiscally responsible move. Then open the issue to the community for a full and complete discussion of land use considerations. Allow the appropriate commissions, Natural Resources and Environmental Commission, and Parks and Recreation Commission, to advise the public and the city. Is a 27-yard extension of the existing driving range a better use of this one-acre piece of property, or might its preservation as usable habitat and peaceful recreational space by the public serve our residents better? After we have a detailed business plan showing that this makes financial sense, and residents of the city support the use of this land for the golf course, then and only then should the next step of environmental review be embarked upon.

To Candidates Running for City Council
During this city council campaign period, I ask each of the candidates to make clear to the public where you stand on this issue. We already know from the vote held on May 4, 2011 that Councilman Schneider does not support the expansion of the driving range, while Councilman Ten does. There is a lot of information available to the public on the driving range expansion. It is not a hypothetical. Your answer to what you would do if you were elected to city council does not require additional information; it is all out there in the public record for your review. Your answer will tell us more about what transparency means to you than just the simple statement that city government needs more of it. Should the city proceed with the environmental review of the golf course extension project without a clear cost/benefit analysis, input from commissions on environment considerations, and a public debate on land use consequences?

Plant Sales and the like

noreply@blogger.com (Barbara E) — Sun, 16 Oct 2011 18:25:00 +0000

So much native plant stuff going on in the fall that it makes my head spin. Native plant nurseries, botanic gardens and local chapters of the California Native Plant Society (CNPS) all beef up their speaker programs and plant selection to encourage people to buy and plant now. I would like to call out the upcoming events at the two organizations that I am most involved in, CNPS - San Gabriel Mts. Chapter and Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden.

October 22 and 23
At Rancho's westside nursery (Grow Native Nursery Westwood) there is going to be a delightful Garden Party on October 22 and 23 from 10 AM to 4 M. Speakers on Saturday include John Greenlee and Bart O'Brien. Emily Green and Lili Singer will speak on Sunday. Of course, there will be many great plants to purchase for your own garden as well. An event not to be missed!

November 5 and 6
Next is the big fall plant sale at Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden in Claremont. This is the biggest native plant sale around. This is the place to go to get really unusual stuff! In addition to the favorite garden natives, like Ray Hartman ceanothus and Howard McMinn manzanita, there are really bizarre things that you will not find elsewhere. The sale will be held on November 5 and 6. It runs from 11 am - 4 pm (members-only from 8 - 11 am) on Saturday, and 9 am - 2 pm on Sunday. The plant sale list is online, though you must register to access it... and, of course I lost my password so I haven't seen it yet. :-(

Happy news! I registered! The plant sale list is preliminary. Having worked for years on this list, I know it will end up being about 24 pages or more, though there are only 9 pages showing now. Still there are some pretty neat looking plants, like Smilacina racemosa var. amplexicaulis (MAIANTHEMUM) false Solomon’s seal. I remember seeing a whole lot of beautiful Winifred Gilman salvias while volunteering in the nursery last month. And a really special plant that you will have a hard time finding any other place... this is so good....Rosa "Schoener's Nutkana'. But only 5 (five) one gallons!!

Growing in RSABG Cultivar Garden - this is a stunning plant.

Rosa 'Schoener's Nutkana' ... sigh.

November 12
And finally, the San Gabriel Mountains Chapter of the California Native Plant Society (CNPS) is having its plant sale on Saturday, November 12 from 9 am to 2 pm at the Eaton Canyon Nature Center. This is more low-key than the Rancho sale but lots of fun. There will be members milling around just dying to tell you about their favorite native plants. Priced at $8 for a one gallon, this is an excellent place to get lots of the tried and true garden natives.

Of course I will be at all of the events. Hope to make the Grow Native Nursery Westwood event on Sunday (Oct. 23), the Rancho Fall Plant Sale on Saturday (Nov. 5), and the CNPS-SGM sale (Nov 12). Will I see any of you there?

Dividing Irises

noreply@blogger.com (Barbara E) — Sat, 15 Oct 2011 00:57:00 +0000

After the recent rain I checked my irises and noticed that they were coming out of dormancy. The rhizomes had little nubbins on them. I had heard that this was the time to divide and transplant them, though it seems a bit early. Well today I dug in and divided a few. I think it is a bit early, so I will wait with the rest. Here's how it went.

Irises in spring look very pretty in this location.

Not so nice the rest of the year because....

Milo likes to use them as a bed.

After the rain I noticed the little nubbins growing from the rhizomes, about 1/4 - 1/2 inch.

I know that Pacific Coast Hybrid irises like these are not as easy to transplant as bearded irises. You have to get the timing right. It seems early but thought I dig a few out.

Here they are ready to be cleaned up and transplanted.

Bearded irises are really easy to divide and transplant. Our native ones are a bit more sensitive and must be put in the ground immediately.

It really is stupid to set up the camera on timer for shots like these. Don't know why I do it - didn't think I was that egocentric.

Watering them in well. Notice that I do not bury these deep. The rhizomes and must be right at the surface - a lesson my mother taught me. Her bearded irises were amazing!

Here they are, planted, watered, and mulch replaced. Hope they make it!

It's planting time and I'm not ready

noreply@blogger.com (Barbara E) — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 01:43:00 +0000

The only thing that I have been avoiding and neglecting more than my blog is my garden. In the last few days, I have cleaned house, watched one whole season of Breaking Bad on DVD, and more productively, spoken to five high school environmental science classes about the importance of creating habitat in urban areas. But the front parkway remains brown and tan. This is not a good thing. Planting season is just about upon us.

Wheelbarrow ready to receive some brown weedy lawn. Unfortunately I was tempted by my daughter-in-law and new grand daughter to go sit in the backyard with a cold beer. Time well spent.

Okay, so here's where it stands. I have a new appreciation for people who want to go down this road of creating a sustainable garden where lawn currently exists. I am starting to freak out. What am I going to do with the front parkway? Best start with a list of what matters most to me.

Create habitat.
No additional irrigation - well, very little anyway.
Lower in height than the side parkway garden and not as wild.
Very low maintenance by the first year after it is planted.

Notice that I do not care whether it is colorful all year long. I'd like wildflowers next spring, but after that, neutral colors - brown, tawny, green, gray - will suffice.

Native deergrass (Muhlenbergia rigens) in front of sagebrush (Artemisia californica) going dormant, with green leaves of California lilac (Ceanothus 'Frosty Blue') in back - my idea of beauty.

To satisfy my number one concern I will have to select not just native plants, but locally native. I know I cannot get ones that were propagated from plants growing naturally in my watershed, but I will try to select local species and attempt to shun cultivars. Extreme? Yes! I'm told this is a function of age - as we get older we get crazier, but our craziness was always there, hidden away. With age, we just let it show more... and we ramble on.

Little additional irrigation means no riparian plants, those that grow along a stream, creek or other body of water. Lower in height eliminates my beloved deergrass (Muhlenbergia rigens). Well maybe I'll slip in a few. And finally, very low maintenance by the first year after it is planted means nothing that needs careful attention when young and tender.

Impossible? No. Grasses to the rescue. After consulting the 1904 Flora of Los Angeles and Vicinity, by Le Roy Abrams, and Consortium of California Herbaria, I have decided to go with the following:

foothill needlegrass (Nassella lepida)
melic grass (Melica imperfecta)
June grass (Koeleria macrantha )
purple three-awn (Aristida purpurea var. purpurea)

Needlegrass (Nassella sp.) flowers dance in the sunlight in spring.

After the needlegrass went dormant, I pulled out my trusty electric lawn mower and tidied up real quick and easy.

Many new needlegrass plants have grown from seed along the edge of the sidewalk. I will dig these out and plant them in the front parkway.

Junegrass (Koeleria macrantha 'Barykoel') at Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden. This small, dark green, stiff bladed grass has done very well in the Cultivar Garden. Although it is locally native, I am not sure where this cultivar came from. I will try to get some non-cultivar plants for the parkway. By the way, the fencing is not there to keep the grass from running away, rather it protects the grass from the ravenous hunger of bunny rabbits.

Mix in a bunch of river rocks, maybe some decomposed granite, sprinkle generously with wildflower seeds, and voila!

Now all I need to do is finish digging out the lawn.

Needlegrass seed heads wrapped with the blades of beargrass (Nolina parryi).

Rick Schneider for City Council

noreply@blogger.com (Barbara E) — Sun, 25 Sep 2011 15:58:00 +0000

First a wedding, then a new grand child and now I'm getting all political. No wonder I strive to be a lazy gardener - too much going on to spend enough time working in the garden. I have missed blogging more than I can say, so I thought I'd do a post about South Pasadena - a small town wannabe in a huge metropolitan area - and its upcoming elections.

South Pas, with a population of about 25,000, has a city council of five with a rotating mayor (yes, he/she stands on a small merry-go-round spinning round and round). Although I got involved in the Nature Park so that I could quietly pull weeds in a "remote" part of the city, it has led me on several occasions to spend long evenings in a room (city council chambers) with echoey accoustics, fluorescent lighting, and a heating/cooling system that leaves one freezing by the end of the night. Waiting to hear what the city was planning to do with the land adjacent to the Nature Park, or waiting for my turn to speak to the council for three short minutes - interrupted by blinking lights and beeps to make sure that I knew that I had only 60 seconds, no 30 seconds, left to speak - I learned much about our city and the people on the city council who oversee its operations.

There are five members of city council. Three are up for reelection: Rick Schneider, Mike Ten and David Sifuentes. Rick Schneider and Mike Ten are both running for re-election. There is a field of nine candidates for the three open positions.

Over the past five years I have known Rick from work he has done in and for the South Pasadena Nature Park. In spite of his busy schedule, holding a day job as a doctor and putting in many volunteer hours on city council (along with all of our city council members), he rarely misses a Saturday morning at the park. Furthermore, I know that he visits the park on other days as well to check to see how things are going, pull some weeds, and drag some amazing junk/treasures out of the deep recesses of the park.

Way back in March of 2006 Rick spent Saturday morning pulling weeds in the Nature Park.

During Rick's first term in office I saw him in action many times while I waited for city council to address the items I was especially concerned with - usually related to the Nature Park and environmental issues. During those evenings I listened to his clear reasoning and sincere attempts to understand what was being considered so that he could make the best decisions for the city. He was not prone to grand standing, he only said what he needed to say to make sure he and other members of the council fully understood the matters at hand. His questions were insightful and to the point. He was able to clearly express his point of view, and I always found his positions to be extremely well-reasoned. This was true for agenda items related to infrastructure, cultural affairs, retail businesses, education, the 710 Freeway, and the myriad of other items the city council addresses - as well as the Nature Park.

Follow Rick's campaign activities on his website, twitter, and facebook. Join me and support Rick Schneider - a clear and reasoned voice - for city council.

Rick's specialty in the Park is hauling out trash from a particularly remote spot.

Rick shows concerned citizens the land that has remained unused for the past 50 years but may soon be added to the golf course driving range.

Save Our Trees

noreply@blogger.com (Barbara E) — Fri, 09 Sep 2011 00:36:00 +0000

It is a sad thing when a mature tree dies and a good time to review gardening practices that will help keep our trees healthy. I did not see the Engelmann oak that fell last week in South Pasadena and cannot comment on the cause. I do know that while I was employed at Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden, several large, mature, native trees fell. Often the cause was not obvious nor something that could have been remedied. Sometimes it was due to an extreme weather event; other losses may have been caused by environmental conditions, including air pollution, and weather and climate stresses. Sometimes trees just fell with no apparent disease or cause.

Although we should consider whether anything could have been done to save this particular tree in South Pasadena, I think it is not productive to be too quick to blame. Trees are living organisms and sometimes they just die.

Having said this, here are practices that promote stronger, healthier, more long-lived trees, and should be followed in our city.

For new trees:

When planting, care should be taken to select healthy new trees. Healthy young trees do not have a “lollipopped” shape but rather have juvenile branches growing along the main stem. Smaller container-sized plants are usually better than larger specimens. Each specimen should be inspected before planting to ensure that is disease-free and has a healthy root system that is not coiled or pot bound.

Small healthy tree with juvenile branches intact, properly staked. Grass should be cleared from the base of the tree.

The nursery stake that is tied to the main stem of newly transplanted trees (as is the case on Fair Oaks Drive) should be removed as soon as the trees are planted.

Nursery stake left on newly planted tree can cause damage to the bark, poor root develop and arching trunk. It should be removed as soon as the tree is planted.

Trees should be properly staked, but only when absolutely necessary. These stakes should be removed as soon as possible to allow for the development of a strong and healthy root system, and to prevent damage to the bark.

These stakes should have been removed years ago. Trees develop much stronger root systems if allowed to sway a bit. In this case the stakes are doing nothing for the tree and should be removed before the tree starts to grow over the ties (as in picture below).

This tree in Santa Monica should have been liberated from its stake years ago. It is unlikely anything can be done to save this tree.

The soil is piled too high on this newly planted tree. The flare (where the trunk flares out to roots) should never be covered. This will easily kill this young tree unless corrected.

For mature trees, especially native oaks:

Mature locally-native oaks do best with little to no summer water. Locally-native plants are adapted to our weather conditions and usually do not require supplemental water; however, Engelmann oaks may benefit from occasional deep watering, especially in their early years, and those growing in very lean, well-drained soil.
Trees that require supplemental water should be watered deeply, thoroughly and infrequently. Surface water encourages surface roots; deep water promotes deep roots. Furthermore, wet conditions during hot weather promote the growth of disease-causing bacteria and fungi in the soil. Our native oaks are especially susceptible to root and crown rot due to warm, moist soil.
Keep the canopy and crown (area at the base of the tree) clear of plants and debris. Mature native trees, especially oaks, will be healthiest without turf grass beneath the canopy (as is the case in Garfield Park). Allow natural leaf litter to collect beneath mature trees.

Although this crape myrtle may not have too much difficulty with the grass growing around its crown, oaks will do very poorly in this situation. The turfgrass should be cleared around the crown even for the crape myrtle since it is likely to result in damage to the crown from weed whackers and lawn mowers.

This magnificent tree, nicknamed Majestic Oak, is hundreds of years old. Horticulturists at Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden care for it by keeping the base clear of plants and allowing leaf litter to accumulate naturally beneath it. The tree and the nearby low-growing native shrubs receive no supplemental summer water.

Topping or severe pruning is detrimental to trees. Mature trees should only be pruned under the supervision of a licensed arborist. Mature trees require little pruning of the living canopy, never exceeding 25% - and even this much can severely stress a tree.
Any construction or grade change near a mature tree puts the tree at great risk. All efforts should be made to keep this kind of disturbance well beyond the canopy of valued, heritage trees.

These liquidambers in So Pas require severe, ongoing pruning to keep the power lines clear. Trees should never be pruned this way and should not be planted where they can become a hazard.

Although we may not be able to determine what led to the demise of the Engelmann oak on Ashborne, we can know that many of the practices that can be observed throughout our city put old and young trees at risk. If our city truly wants to be a “Tree City” it should do more to protect this most valuable asset.

For more information on keeping trees healthy consult:
California Oaks
Care of California’s Native Oaks
International Society of Arboriculture (ISO)
New Tree Planting

Our Engelmann oaks are the pride of So Pasadena. This highly endangered species grew naturally in our town. Young ones should be planted and mature trees cared for and treasured.

Grape Jelly!

noreply@blogger.com (Barbara E) — Fri, 02 Sep 2011 21:53:00 +0000

It is grape season and Roger's Red grape (Vitis 'Roger's Red) is loaded up again this year. According to San Marcos Growers, this grape, selected by Roger Raiche, carries the genes of our wild grape (Vitis californica) and the commercial grape (Vitis vinifera). Whatever it is, it is a great garden, deciduous vine that turns bright red in fall after producing bunches of delicious dark purple grapes in late summer.

Bunch of Roger's Red grapes (Vitis 'Roger's Red').

Last year I made iced tea, lemonade, grape juice drink, flavored with wild sage (August 2010). It was amazing!

This year it is going to be grape jelly. Just the beginning! But picking is the easy part.

Lots of grapes. Now to clean them.

All cleaned. Bought new canning jars, collected supplies and equipment and ready to go.

Although I checked a recipe on the web, I went with the recipe in the box of Sure-Jell pectin.

I had 2.5 pounds of grape. A foley mill works well to juice the grapes, and separate out the seeds and skin. Takes time!

And muscle.

I love the color of the grapes.

And especially of the juice. I came up with 2.5 cups of juice.

Cooking the grape juice, pectin (1/2 box) and sugar.

It jelled perfectly and tastes delicious.

Made four 8 ounce jars. I had exactly half the amount of grape juice called for in the recipe so I only got 4 jars. Chanukah presents for my husband and three kids. But my husband opened his already... he is going to be sad in December!

The jelly worked out fine but it is a lot of work. The grape juice, without sugar, is more delicious to me than the jelly, so next year I am going to save myself the trouble and make ice cubes of grape juice. Add some home-made lemonade, and wild sage, and with or without a little "attitude adjuster" it is a winning combination.

Getting Ideas for a Front Parkway Habitat Garden

noreply@blogger.com (Barbara E) — Mon, 29 Aug 2011 17:16:00 +0000

Between now and winter I will be planning a habitat garden in the parkway in front of my house. By November or December, just in time for the rainy season, I will be ready to purchase and plant. The process started this summer when I cut off the irrigation to let the grass on the 76 ft. long by 6 ft. wide front strip die. That was the easy part!

Next I started looking at pictures of parkway gardens on the internet and around the neighborhood. I was not too surprised to find that the Bay Area has led the way in "greening" this forgotten bit of suburbia. Plant SF started way back in 2003 with a vision of "parks along the way." The very first bullet point in their mission statement is:

Plant SF encourages and enables individuals to use an existing permit process to convert areas of the public right-of-way (sidewalks) to exposed-earth gardens.

Friends of the Urban Forest, also in San Francisco, talks about "sidewalk greening," and is a source of pictures, how-t0 information, and ideas.

Moving to the fair city of Los Angeles, the place I call home, I found little information on parkway or sidewalk gardens. When I googled "sidewalk greening los angeles" I came up with Urban Design's podcast "Urban Acupuncture," LA DOT painted curb information, and yelp reviews of Green Street. To be fair there are a few notable examples of sidewalk gardening efforts in Los Angeles.

Most recently Ron Finley's beautiful parkway vegetable garden, west of the Crenshaw area of Los Angeles, was written about by Steve Lopez in the LA Times. Finley, after taking a UC Cooperative Extension class on vegetable gardening, dug out the weeds from the parkway and planted a garden. Of course, this is out of compliance with city code and last May Finley was cited. (For a similar story involving my eastside parkway garden see Busted! The Native Wildflower Garden Must Go). Following the publicity and a petition, the city backed off.

The second example of a lovely neighborhood parkway and sidewalk garden is the LA's Green Street initiative project on Elmer Avenue. This project involved far more than just landscaping parkways. As described by Emily Green in her article, Elmer Avenue becomes Green Street, a water-wise and solar-lighted community effort, several environmental non-profit organizations worked with governmental agencies and the community to replace a street that flooded frequently with infrastructure to reduces urban runoff and street flooding, and to create a safer, more friendly neighborhood environment.

Looking at these websites, and visiting the Elmer Avenue project gave me some ideas. I have thought about not planting anything since the mature sweet gum trees have shallow and extensive roots, making to area difficult to plant. Maybe just a layer of leaf mulch would do the trick. Then I considered - only briefly - a vegetable garden. Pictures of Ron Finley's garden were so tempting. Too many dogs and thoughtless people walking by for this. My daughter, who is gaga over succulents right now, suggested a striking succulent garden. For a couple of days I was on board with this idea but I realized it would be completely out of context with the rest of the yard.

Finally it occurred to me that I should just make the parkway (and the sidewalk, by default) part of the front and side yard gardens. In the front there are curved beds between the sidewalk and the remaining lawn. I can extend these lines across the sidewalk right into the parkway. I have not yet decided how I will create the edges (rocks, edging, bricks, change in mulch material) but for now I will play around with this idea. Here are some more pictures of my thoughts and of the existing space.

Bubble diagram drawn to scale, although the location of the front path is not shown accurately. Will go out and measure it later.

Front of house from across the street. The bed that wraps around the corner of the front yard (right side of photo) has a lot of monkeyflowers. They look great in spring but not-so-good in summer, fall and winter. I think I will remove many of them and replace them with plants that will be used in the parkway also.

Parkway strip is dried out. Time to get to work.

Front yard with ever-shrinking swath of grass. Surrounding garden beds are edged with river rock. I will be rethinking the whole river rock thing, though I do want some kind of edge.

Front garden under deodar tree includes wild strawberry, Pacific Coast Hybrid irises, wiregrass, fescue, and some coral bells. All are doing well in the shade, even with root competition from the big tree.

Picture from front step.

There is no better way to plan a new garden then to get out there with a shovel. Too hot to do much, but it is a start.

The grass is mostly dead, though I know that I will battle Bermuda grass forever. Still, I do not want to use herbicides.

So I have started digging out the dead grass from the area that will be an extension of the central front main path to the house. This area will be covered with either flagstones, decomposed gravel or something else inorganic.

Here are some links to parkway garden pictures:
http://southendseattle.com/?p=3696
http://dangergarden.blogspot.com/2009/05/ne-portland-sidewalk-tour.html
http://localecology.org/plantsf_greenways.html
http://www.fuf.net/otherProjects/sidewalkgreening.html
http://sf.streetsblog.org/2009/01/08/jane-martin-is-a-force-of-nature/
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/home_blog/2010/07/elmer-avenue-sun-valley.html
Pictures of my side parkway garden
Pictures of the front yard and front parkway garden

Work Reduction Work

noreply@blogger.com (Barbara E) — Tue, 16 Aug 2011 16:17:00 +0000

Real quick post before going off to the beach. In my ongoing effort to be a lazy gardener I am always looking for changes that will result in less work. This week I did a big one. There were three very old xylosma shrubs that formed part of a hedge next to the sidewalk. It was always in need of shearing and it was always dripping with whitefly - yuk. I had xylosma in the backyard years ago and got rid of it because it attracts giant whitefly (and is boring). The disgusting insects are hard to get rid of and spread to other less susceptible plants. Once the xylosma was gone, so were the whiteflies. The xylosma in the front next to the yesterday-today-and-tomorrow (Brunfelsia grandiflora) has followed suit. It's gone now!

Whitefly webbing hangs off xylosma leaves. It spread to the Brunfelsia and even the goldenrod in the parkway.

Little spiders had lots to eat but even they could not keep up with these. What a mess.

The xylosma is now gone and there is new space - opportunity for something else.

The next thing that has been happening is the slow death of the parkway grass in the front of the house. The picture below is from my office window. As I write I contemplate what this will become. I want it to be very low and very simple. Arrangements of rocks and plants? Decomposed granite with a few plants? Haven't hit on it yet.

Ideas anyone?

What kind of tomato is this?

noreply@blogger.com (Barbara E) — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 23:49:00 +0000

Why do I always lose the tags? I bought this tomato plant somewhere, at sometime, and it grew and grew and grew. The tomatoes are very big - see the tiny cherry tomato on the plate for scale. Actually the tomato is even bigger than it looks here. It is about the size of a large grapefruit.

Anyway, they look pretty yucky so I decided to cook them up. Before throwing them into a pot I tasted a bit and surprise, it was yummy. Low acid, sweet. Not great but good. And look how cool they look sliced.

Thought I'd also put in a picture I took today of a tomato-red dragonfly. Only had time for one shot before she was off and gone.

Check out the home page to my website for a whole slide show of garden critters, and upcoming plant sale dates.

Keeping cats out of the veggie garden

noreply@blogger.com (Barbara E) — Sun, 07 Aug 2011 20:47:00 +0000

This post is not about cats or vegetable gardens, but I will get to that later. It is about an old fashioned tool, a scythe. Yes, scythe, like in Grim Reaper; and no, not for a Halloween costume. A few weeks ago I ordered a ditch scythe from Scythe Supplies, a company located in Maine. After measuring my height, arm length and distance from ground to hip, I sent the info with payment off to Perry, Maine, and waited impatiently for my very own scythe to be made and shipped.

It just came! I am super excited. It arrived in a long, surprisingly light mailing tube. Opening it I find several items wrapped in a local newspaper from June 10, 2011. In fact, there is almost no plastic in the package, either as wrapping or as part of the tool. The newspaper, The Quoddy Times, proudly informs readers that it is the "Most Easterly Newspaper Published in the United States." Immediately I notice an article called Backyard Gardener: "Cats in the garden." Putting the beautiful parts aside, I read author, Jo Tilley, discussing cat poop in her vegetable garden and the conundrum of how to keep cats out. Since chemical deterrents, serious fencing, and plastic forks buried with the tines pointing up, are not for her, she hits on something that works, at least so far. It is placing prickly apple tree branches, from a recently pruned tree, to cover the garden surface with the something uninviting to kitties. I love the temporary solution - she plans to put up more serious fencing in the future - and right away feel a kinship with a fellow gardener on the other side of the country.

Turning back to the objects at hand, I see my name written in ink with the measurements I sent, further reinforcing the connection between product and client. This was not something stamped out by machine half way around the world, rather it was carefully crafted by my countrymen, and yes, probably it is more expensive than a mass-produced scythe would be. I did not spend the extra money frivolously, though. I believe that it is a better product, one that will work well and last a long time. The personal connection is an added benefit, but an important one, nonetheless.

Individually labeled parts of the snath. The main shaft is made of native white ash and the handles are rock maple or birch (they seem like birch to me).

Scythe parts. The only plastic things in the package are a blue flag to highlight the key for the ring clamp, tape and a small plastic bag for the peeing jig, no styrofoam peanuts or even bubble wrap.

In addition to the parts, there are pages with information on how to construct, use, and care for the scythe. There is also a book, The Scythe Book by David Resemer, addendum on Practical Use of the Scythe by Peter Vido. I can barely contain my excitement.

After reading the instructions on snath assembly, I dry fit the parts together, grab my camera to photograph the process, and retreat to my office to write about it. Tomorrow I will glue it and hopefully be ready to give it a whirl in a few days, after I have read more on the art of scything.

Scythe blade, light weight but very sharp, is manufactured in Austria. Apparently American scythes are not nearly as easy to use as the European versions.

Lower handle, made of smoothly sanded wood, feels so good to hold.

Dry fitted scythe. Can you just see me swinging this thing!

How to know what you got

noreply@blogger.com (Barbara E) — Tue, 02 Aug 2011 16:34:00 +0000

It is 1999. I have lived in southern California for three years, but in my current home for only one. My first gardening project is to replace the weedy grass in the parkway on the east side of the house with a low-water use, native plant garden. The strip is 182 feet long and six feet wide. I still feel like a stranger to my home, my garden, and the plants that do well here.

In my first three years in South Pas, I learned that though it can be hot in summer or winter, it never rains in the summer. The few times during the dry season that there was some moisture in the air - I would not actually call it rain - the “unusual” weather was all the buzz. I'm just amazed that there is a dry season. Water also comes in the form of coastal fog that blankets the garden on some mornings, usually burning off before noon.

Parkway garden began here in December 1999 at the north end of the strip.

I know that to create a garden that will do well with little attention and resources, I must match the plants to the conditions, and therefore, it is critical to know what I’ve got. Though much of the yard is shaded by mature trees, the strip gets a lot of sun. I plan to set up a low-volume irrigation system to simplify watering while the plants are young, but in the long term I hope to do away with irrigation altogether. So clearly I need plants that can survive in dry, sunny heat, with occasional fog, during summer, and cool weather, with intermittent rain, in winter.

All new gardens should start with wild sunflowers (see Emily Green's post, A sunflower or two. Or 200,000). My, how my daughter, aged nine in picture, has grown. She graduates from college this spring!

Easy gardening is predicated on compatibility of plants and soil. I have lived in many places, but it is not until I put shovel to ground that I feel at home. On Long Island where I grew up, I would dig for small, rounded rocks made of quartz. Living at the southern edge of the last glacial advance, these smooth rocks were commonplace. As an adult, my first house and garden was in a hilly area with rocky soil. Gardening was a real challenge. Wherever I put the spade, I hit something hard and unyielding. In my mind the subterranean rock took on propositions of a boulder roughly the size of the iceberg that sunk the Titanic. Mercifully, my soil in South Pasadena is rock-free, yet well-drained. Being located far enough from the youthful, rapidly-rising San Gabriel Mountains, the garden soil is made of medium-sized particulates, neither clayey nor rocky.

Spring 2002, working my way along the parkway. I dug out the grass on the northern half of the parkway.

What puzzles me, though, is what used to live here before it was houses? I hike in the mountains and know what grows there, but I live in the flats. I do not know of any natural open space that still exists around here. In fact, I do not even know of any rivers or creeks that in any way resemble their wild selves. Whenever I visit museums or libraries I look for historic pictures of southern California. Mostly it looks flat and dusty. On one trip to our local library I find an interesting picture taken in the 1930s of the Arroyo Seco near the York Street Bridge. A woman, in a white dress and a hat with a bouquet of wildflowers in her arms, is gazing at the bridge. Trees and shrubs surround her in this idyllic spot.

October 2002. Although I dug out the grass in the north half of the parkway, I hired some stronger backs to complete the job in the south. It is much easier having someone else do it.

Lest I get carried away, I remind myself that I do not live on the banks of the Arroyo Seco or any other river, stream or creek. Geographically, the flats of South Pasadena are located in the San Gabriel Valley. My garden is roughly six and a half miles south of the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains, and twenty miles from the Pacific Ocean. Streams and creeks that once flowed are mostly buried, though some still see daylight as they drain towards the sea in concrete channels, more akin to sewage drains than natural waterways. The area was developed at the turn of the century, with massive building sprees in the 1920s. Prior to housing development, this was a rich agricultural region, primarily orange groves. For thousands of years before European settlement, the area was inhabited by indigenous people, known today as the Tongva.

It is within this framework that I try to envision my new garden. The channelization of the waterways - implemented to allow maximum development with minimum risk of flooding – has resulted in much drier growing conditions. Still my house is probably not located very close to any natural drainage, so what did grow here?

One day, while enjoying lunch with an environmental colleague and friend, LA Creek Freak blogger, Jessica Hall, I posed the question to her. I was thinking that my garden was probably dry, coastal sage scrub. Jessica, though, pointed out the obvious. Street names here include Oak Street, Oak Knoll, Los Robles (Spanish for The Oaks), Fair Oaks, Dos Robles, Five Oaks Drive, Charter Oak Street, Oaklawn Avenue, and so on. Furthermore, acorns sprout in my garden like they belong here. In fact, the most beautiful and majestic tree in the yard is a volunteer oak that the previous owners decided not to remove about sixty years ago. The light bulb goes on: it was oak woodland!

December 2005. Planted three young coast live oaks (Quercus agrifolia) in the parkway.

September 2010. The oaks have grown. Grasses, sages, buckwheat and other coastal sage scrub plants spill over out into the street and sidewalk, though I work hard to keep them within bounds.

September 2010. South half of the parkway has filled in. The white flowers in the center are coast buckwheat (Eriogonum fasciculatum).

March 2011. Somehow these pictures do not show how beautiful the oaks have become. The green foliage is from the two northern most oaks.

With a picture in my mind of families of indigenous people working, playing, and eating among magnificent old oaks, I set to work on my parkway. Low growing shrubs common in drier coastal sage scrub plant communities will be planted between three widely spaced coast live oak trees (Quercus agrifolia). Over time, just as in nature, the oaks will grow and mature, shading out the understory plants. As I grow old and less able to bend and weed, the oaks will provide shade and comfort in a carefree garden space.

Yummy Tomatoes

noreply@blogger.com (Barbara E) — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 23:34:00 +0000

In past years my biggest crop of cherry tomatoes arrived much earlier in July, some years in time for the fourth. Not so this year. We have been enjoying the cherry and grape tomatoes for some time, but they are really coming in now. We are also loving a black cherry tomato. Great flavor! The larger tomatoes are still mostly green on the vine, but the medium-sized, early growing tomato, Glacier, has been producing for over a month.

Well we have been eating as many as we can. Green salad with tomatoes, eggplant parmesan with tomatoes on top, cherry tomato/mozzarella salad, spaghetti with fresh tomato sauce, and so on. My tongue is full of pimples. (Does that happen to anyone else?) This morning I decided to try slow roasting them and found a great recipe. Took a lot of cutting in half but it was really easy. My niece recommended a recipe by Ina Garten. No cutting in half, and cooks at a higher temperature for a much shorter time period. I'll give it a try.

Larger tomato with a hole in it is called Market Marvel. It is growing in a pot and tastes okay, not fabulous. The small oblong orangy tomatoes are Sweet Olive. I thought the other two plants with round cherries were supposed to be Tomato Sun Gold but they are definitely not. They are way too red for them and I'm glad they aren't the yellow ones. I love the more acidic red varieties - probably the reason my tongue hurts. The medium-sized red tomatoes on the bottom of the picture and to the left are Glacier. They've been very good and started producing about a month ago.

Cut in half all these mini-tomatoes while listening to Louis Armstrong. Placed fresh French tarragon, thyme and unpeeled garlic cloves on top. They made the kitchen smell good but I don't think they added much flavor to the tomatoes. Drizzled with oil olive.

Shriveled but sweet and tangy after about 2.5 hours of roasting at 225 degrees. They are wonderful!

Way better than candy!