December Garden Tasks
Winter begins and plant growth is on hold until February
Prune to shape evergreens, and save some of the trimmings for holiday decorations, such as from this Hollyleaf Cherry (yes, my ocean-bred husband does wear shorts all year, even in winter unless it is literally freezing).
~Prune to shape evergreens like arborvitae, juniper, pines, and cypress—and save trimmings for holiday decorations
~Prune dense trees to avoid wind damage; make sure young trees are well-staked
~For overnight protection when frost threatens, cover delicate plants with large cardboard boxes, old sheets, or tarps
~Consider setting irrigation timers to “off”, and manually water in response to our irregular winter weather, based on winds, rain, or snow; using the manual mode on your controller in winter can save precious water
Check out our featured
“Plant of The Month” for December
November Garden Tasks for Southwest Yards
Last chance for fall planting season while roots are still active
This is your last chance for the fall planting season while roots are still active in warm soils
~ You may continue planting this month even with cooler temperatures, but plants will establish roots more slowly than earlier in fall
~ Finish planting California natives
~ Plant seeds for spring & summer blooms; choose mix of western wild flowers with annuals & perennials for long-lasting color
~ Irrigate frequently during Santa Ana winds, which pull moisture from both plants and soil
~ Give one last deep watering to deciduous trees and grapevines but discontinue feeding to harden them off for cold weather
~ Irrigate fall-planted trees and bushes deeply once or twice this month to ensure good root formation prior to dormancy
Check out our featured “Plant of The Month” for November
You can find CALIFORNIA NATIVE PLANTS at these southland nurseries:
High Desert
Bush Monkeyflower – long-blooming, evergreen native shrub waiting for your yard!
Cactus Mart
49889 29 Palms Hwy
Morongo Valley, CA 92256
(760) 363-6076
Mojave Desert Land Trust
60124 Twentynine Palms Hwy
Joshua Tree, CA 92252
(760) 366-5440
Oak Hills Nursery
Hollyleaf Cherry – native evergreen shrub or small tree that makes a great privacy screen.
13874 Ranchero Rd.
Oak Hills, CA 92344
(760) 947-6261
Low Desert
Bob Williams Nursery
48-575 Madison
Indio, CA 92201
(760) 347-6397
Moller’s Garden Center
For stunning fall color and a guaranteed hummingbird magnet, plant California Fuchsia in masses.
72-235 Painters Path
Palm Desert, CA 92260
Moorten Botanical Garden
1701 S. Palm Canyon Dr.
Palm Springs, CA 92264
(760) 327-6555
DesertStrawHouse Native Plant Nursery
16300 Bennett Road
Sky Valley, CA 92241
760-880-0896
Hours: Thursday 12:00-5:00; Friday – Sunday 9:00-5:00
Monday – Wednesday is by appointment
www.desertstrawhouse.com/plant-nursery
Southland and Beyond
Lily Rock Native Gardens
54385 North Circle Drive
Idyllwild, CA 92549
One of our most drought-tolerant native plants, California Buckwheat fills in your yard like baby’s breath fills in a bouquet.
(951) 468-3125
www.facebook.com/LilyRockNativeGardens
California Botanic Garden
(formerly Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Gardens)
1500 North College Ave.
Claremont, CA 91711-3157
(909) 625-8676
see website for plant sale dates
Native Sons Inc.
379 W. El Campo Rd.
Arroyo Grande, CA 93420
1-805-481-5996
Bountiful flowers from late afternoon through early morning attract hummingbirds, butterflies and moths to Bigelow’s Four O’Clock, a tidy, rounded, native evergreen shrub.
Tree of Life Nursery
33201 Ortega Hwy
P.O. Box 635
San Juan Capistrano, CA 92693
(949) 728-0685
High Country Gardens
2902 Rufina St.
Santa Fe, NM 87505
1-800-925-9387
Mockingbird Nursery
Desert Sage’s late winter and spring whorls of blue flowers attract hummingbirds.
1670 Jackson St.
Riverside, CA 92504
(909) 780-3571
Theodore Payne Foundation
10459 Tuxford St.
Sun Valley, CA 91352-2126
(818) 768-1802
Misty Meadows Landscape Nursery
43601 Mesa St
Banning Ca 92220
951-765-7542
Inviting Native Plants into Your Yard
Tips on Planting Native Plants
Prickly Poppy
We have been trained, over generations of time, that whenever we move into an area, we are to remove the native plants growing on our new site and replace them with plants from wherever we were before, or at least with plants we are familiar with. The plants we introduce into our new setting are not necessarily the ones best adapted to that area, but are the ones that have been marketed to us as the industrial standards that are the “right” ones to use. These plants are invariably mass-produced, mass-marketed, and are therefore the plants that we see for sale all around us: available, cheap, and familiar.
If our new place does not support the plants we have been trained to want (due to climate or soils, for instance), we try to change the place. We remove the native plants (often considered “weeds”), take out the native soil, bring in new soil, install irrigation, and add pesticides and fertilizers so the introduced plants will be able to tolerate a climate they are not naturally adapted to survive.
What we end up with across America are the same plants, with the same look, no matter where we live. What differs is the amount of time and resources spent to keep those plants living in every conceivable climate to which they are subjected. This may achieve a certain aesthetic look, but it is not ecological in any way. Traditional landscape designs often isolate yards and gardens from the natural environment, then drain the surroundings of resources and add nothing back in return (except for tainting the whole setting with toxic chemical fertilizers and pesticides).
Our best approach to landscaping is to select plants appropriate to our place, and not try to change our place to fit inappropriate plants. By selecting plants that have evolved with our region’s climate and soils, we eliminate the need to constantly add resources not supplied naturally by our climate. Plants native to an area evolved to grow and thrive in those local conditions, and do not need the place changed at all to survive. Our native plants need very little care or maintenance and need very little or no added water or soil amendments. We may be surprised to find how many songbirds are attracted to our native yard plantings, and pleased to realize that those songbirds keep pests under control, eliminating the need for pesticides.
Paperbag Bush Flowers
Some of the benefits of landscaping with natives, or “naturescaping”, include low maintenance, little or no watering after establishment, no need for chemical pesticides or fertilizers, less cost to maintain, healthier home-site (no leaching of synthetic pesticides and fertilizers into groundwater), enhanced property value, and providing habitat for songbirds whose populations are dropping dramatically every year due to loss of habitat.
Let’s change our way of thinking: pick the plant that fits the place, and not change the place to fit the plant. Native plants take care of themselves because they evolved to grow naturally in your own back yard. Desert native plants, in particular, thrive in one of the harshest environments on our planet, and should be the first landscape plants invited back into our southwest desert yards.
Inviting Native Plants into Your Yard
Tips on Planting Native Plants
Tips on Watering Native Plants
First and foremost, planting at the appropriate time (late fall through early spring) is key to survival for desert native plants. This allows the root system to become established during the cool, rainy season, well before the harsh summer months.
Chaparral Bush Mallow
It is in our nature to buy bigger plants because we want the end result right now; however, it is better to plant smaller natives because they will not develop a damaged root system from growing too long in the container, and the roots will grow faster in their new home. Deep roots are a critical element in a plant’s drought-tolerance. If a native plant has been kept in a pot too long, the roots will hit the bottom of the pot and start coiling. This can cause long-term damage to the roots, and hamper the tap root from reaching its full potential as a lengthy “straw” penetrating into deep, moist soil.
There is some discussion about whether to use a planting mix, mulch, or neither when planting natives. One thought is that because they are nursery grown, they have been spoiled with optimal care, and to set them out in the world with poor soil conditions from the start would set them back. Once they out-grow the amended soil they are planted in, they will be stronger and better able to continue on their own. As the composted mulch breaks down, the humus it contains binds with soil particles to actually improve drainage conditions over time. This holds true for poorly-draining soils, such as caliche and clay, but granitic and sandy soils are fast-draining naturally, and don’t require amendments to improve drainage.
A second thought is that plants which are native to our “Creosote Bush Scrub” habitat have adapted to so little organic material in the soil, no amendments are needed during planting. While soil amendments may be optional for some of our desert native plants, one plant that seems to hate soil amendments or fertilizer of any kind is creosote. Native plants from other (more moist) California regions seem to tolerate or appreciate some soil amendments during planting; however, native plants from all habitats in the Mojave and Colorado Deserts except streamside or marsh habitats seem to grow best when planted with no added soil amendments or fertilizers. Most desert natives (especially cactus and all succulents like yuccas and nolinas), do best with no added soil amendments. Do not fertilize any desert natives.
Datura
Most native species have difficulty becoming established if planted in the heat of summer. The best approach is to postpone planting until late fall. In high desert climates, postpone planting in early fall if temperatures are still warm, as tender new growth encouraged by the warmth may freeze as winter arrives. Later (cooler) fall planting is less likely to encourage new leaf growth before the plant’s first encounter with winter freezes. Early fall plantings are safe in low desert areas, as winter frosts are uncommon.
If you have to install plants in the summer, consider providing temporary shade to native plantings. Use burlap or other mesh cloth supported by stakes on the sunny side of the plant to create a cooler micro-environment. Don’t drape the shade fabric over the plant, as this will create even hotter conditions. Remember, if you wait until the fall or early spring to install native plants, everything is easier for both you and the plants.
Tips on Planting Native Plants
Tips on Watering Native Plants
Brittlebush in Bloom
- Plant in fall to early spring – avoid planting in summer if at all possible.
- Dig a hole at least twice as wide and half again as deep as the planting container size.
- Pre-irrigate the planting hole so there is adequate moisture around the root system. Fill the hole with water and allow it to drain.
- Remove the plant from its container slowly. Most natives will not be the standard size of a nursery-grown plant. They tend to be smaller and not as established while still in the pot. Place your hand on the soil with your fingers spread around the base of the plant. Turn the container upside down, and with a slight tap on the bottom, the plant should slide out. Keeping both hands on the root ball, place it in the hole.
- Set the plant crown one inch higher than the soil level so that moisture drains away from the stem. Planting too deeply will cause rot.
- It is advisable to install a deep-water sleeve (3” x 18” perforated drain pipe) beside the new plant to aid in deep irrigation to establish a deeper root system.
- If you choose to amend the soil, incorporate a well-composed mulch (no manure), and mix it half and half with soil removed from the hole. Back-fill the hole with the pre-mixed soil and mulch. Potting mixes containing synthetic material such as perlite, vermiculite, and supplemental nutrients should be avoided. These materials do nothing to improve soil conditions over time, and do not allow for a smooth transition into the native soil. Keep mulch and excess soil away from the crown.
- For plants larger than 5 gallons, add water into the hole at the same time as you back-fill with soil to eliminate air pockets. Tamp backfill in gently.
- The only time you cannot over-water a native is on the day you plant. Provide ample water to each plant and generous water to an entire bed or area of new plantings.
- Add mulch on the soil surface to hold soil moisture and cool plant roots, but avoid burying trunk or stems. The best mulch to use around most desert plants is rocks or gravel, or even large pieces of driftwood. Desert plants that naturally grow on more shaded north-facing slopes and canyons (holly-leaf cherry, manzanita, scrub oaks, mountain mahogany, sugar bush, etc.), can be mulched with wood chips or chipped bark.
- Many native plants also like to have a rock placed on their south side to help moderate soil temperature and retain moisture.
- Because nursery-grown plants are prone to being chewed by the native animal life, it is advisable to provide a temporary wire enclosure for the first season, or until the plant sends out new growth, at which time you can remove the enclosure (except in extremely dry years, when animals are desperate for food).
Inviting Native Plants into Your Yard
Tips on Watering Native Plants
