Blueberries are in.

My talk with the Auburn Garden Club went well. This is one of the most active garden clubs around. The topic was “What’s new and exciting in the garden center.” I was given lots of new introductions by Monrovia that I was able to share. The southern high bush blueberries, which are a more heat tolerant type good for our region, were especially well received. Blueberries are again popular this year as we are quickly selling out of our bare root types. These southern high bush types are completely taking over the California market from the low bush types.

What’s interesting is how the sales are being fueled by health conscious people looking for the antioxidants contained in the berry. We are also seeing some interest in fruiting Mulberries for the same reason. It’s funny because the fruitless mulberry just like the olive tree where once scorned as being to messy so sterile varieties were produced and sold over the years at the nursery.

Another reason the blueberries are selling well is people realize they can containerize them. Our soil is not the best for blueberry culture but by growing them in containers with our planting mix, which is just right for blueberries, they can be successful.

While the interest in home grown fruit and vegetables is increasing most people don’t realize that bare root season is the time to buy many of the fruiting trees and shrubs. The whole bare root season is a challenge. People just don’t know about it and most don’t want to shop at a garden center in the winter. Our pre-booking of fruit trees, which ends in November, is growing. The advantage to pre-booking is you can buy one or two of any fruit tree on our growers list. We don’t have to buy in unusual varieties that might not sell well during bare root season. So the selection of varieties is huge and people are still gardening in fall and more likely to buy at that time. We bundle the trees by customer when they arrive in winter.

The citrus were hit pretty hard by the cold we experienced a couple of weeks ago. Even though they were covered and under the deck the night temperatures got down to 19°F. Fortunately we don’t carry a lot of citrus at the nursery. We will wait and see if they leaf out in this spring. After two weeks of record cold I am now running around in a tee shirt as the temps are now in the 60’s. This is now the driest January on record. I am not going to complain as we could see gully washers this spring like the last two years. We’ll just make hay while the sun shines.

Naturally, a better way to garden!

I will be giving my annual talk to the Auburn Garden Club this Monday. This will be about the eighth time I have spoken and its fun to do since this is a very active club with over a hundred in attendance at my last talk. The theme is always what’s new and exciting at the nursery. Generally we will talk about new plant introductions, garden supplies, or trends that are appearing.

Monrovia Nursery sent me quite a number of their new plant introductions to take to the event, so we will discuss those as well as our greater emphasis on gardening naturally as we talked about at this post.

There is no doubt this is a trend as I received my latest issue of “Garden Chic, the art of niche retailing.” Over all this is one of the better trade magazines I receive and the latest issue dealt with how to be successful in the organic market. I opened this magazine the day after I posted about this very subject. In addition there is a great article about how to involve the kids at the nursery which we also discussed. This shows that these trends are just starting to be recognized by my industry and those who embrace these ideas will be some of the first to do so.

There was also an article on The Natural Gardener in Austin (warning: when the web page opens a you hear a rooster crow, irritating!) and how they have captured the organic market in that area. It’s a great piece and fun to read. But just so you know why blogging is important to me I had a number of comments from some readers that live in Austin after I had written a post last year. They informed me of this place then and I had checked out their web page, so it was fun to read about it yesterday in the magazine.

One complaint I have is in the section of the magazine called “you can!” It say’s “What not to do in the garden? An online blog provides insight on what many frown upon. Among the hated looks-plastic, in-ground walkway lights, lining every which way of every walkway: ‘It looks like a landing strip for an alien spacecraft.’ Military formation-style plantings with boring shrubs lined up like soldiers didn’t go over very well, either. Overuse of mulch stacked too deep and high around trees to form the infamous ‘Volcano’ look was also noticed.

Now I can’t remember weather I read that in Garden Rant or another blog, but it would be nice if they give credit to the blog. Calling it an “online blog” is unfair to the author. It’s nice to see garden blogs being noticed, but give credit where credit is due.

The Guacamole Hut as Kid Central

We have finally figured out how best to utilize “The Gaucamole Shed”. It is separated from the store and has been a seed department, water garden department, and gift shop. The problem is its not big enough for any of our departments and it’s separated from the store which is a bit of a hassle. What are we going to do? Turn it over to the kid’s!

We are going to put a table with coloring books featuring our mascot “Gordie The Golden Gecko”. We want to put a chalk wall up so they can draw. Book’s to read. Basically anything to keep them occupied while the parents can shop. What we will put in there will revolve around the outside world in a general way. In other words keeping them entertained is foremost but well see if we can’t stir their interest in “The Outdoor Foothill Lifestyle”™.

“The Outdoor Foothill Lifestyle”™ represents our excitement in bringing about a renewed interest in the garden by expanding what it means to garden. We will incorporate all of our ideas on how to create a beautiful outdoor space which include our ideas on "Naturally a Better Way to Garden"™ . Most of the people coming to The Foothills are moving from Sacramento, The Bay Area, or Southern California and have had to adapt to our different climate and attitude. We are a little less stressed out and laid back than those places and we want to be the place you go to pick up ideas and items to help enjoy this new lifestyle.

This is really quite exciting as it frees us up to expand our focus from being a place to buy plants to a place to buy plants, garden art, bird watching supplies, outdoor furniture, BBQ cooking classes, herb and vegetable growing, and gifts You will also learn through our workshops and e-news how to garden with wildlife and learn to enjoy the natural beauty we have all around us. We are hopping to create a new attitude that will invigorate people to spend more time outside in the garden. If we can get the kid’s interested in the outside world then it’s natural they will want to enhance and protect the world when they become adults.

Starting a small garden center.

I have been talking with Anna who is contemplating "trying to start a small garden centre in the south of Spain. The area is a south-facing mountain range (about 1000m above sea level) and to date there are no other garden centres in the entire area." She continues, "This is obviously not necessarily good news (no customers, perhaps?!), but I think there is a niche. The area is changing from traditional agriculture (old men on donkeys picking their almonds) to rural tourism and lots of foreigners buying second homes (a culture of shopping in garden centres, an interest in gardens (as opposed to agriculture) and (hopefully) disposable income!). The nearest garden centres are at least 30 minutes drive (most are an hour) and are very 'industrial' experiences when you get their, if you know what I mean (low plastic greenhouses, no landscaping, no cafe, no personal touch)."

How exciting! I love hearing from people thinking of opening a small garden center or nursery. The above picture is my brother-in-law and I working on the landing to the garden shop before opening. Many of the same issues face us with regional differences of course. While I don't know much about the regional habits of the clientele the questions Anna brings to the table are the same that we all face. She asks "is it a realistic way of planning to make a living?! There are days when everything points to the fact that we may actually get huge orders, particularly for the local trees (people have immense plots of land and in theory - rumour has it! - need large quantites of trees, every so often) and then other days I try to calculate how many 1 euro geraniums we will have to sell to pay the rent, overheads, wages........ and I go pale!" That just about summarizes everyone's fear when thinking about starting a business.

What do I say? That there are days when you will "go pale" There are also day's when you can't keep up with the orders. It's a huge risk and there are no guarantees. But with the risk comes the potential of being first in the area and setting the standard.

We are going on our third year and sometimes just being able to open your doors for another day of business is a success. You have to be able to keep moving forward when the weather and those around you might be less than encouraging.The reason why business successes are often hard to come by is they are "hard to come by".

When Anna mentions there are no garden centers in the area she is right to ask "This is obviously not necessarily good news (no customers, perhaps?!), but I think there is a niche." How bold she will have to be to take a chance and be the first and develop that niche. I believe that she needs to trust her instincts, do some research (but don't over research it), start small, but get started! How many times have we said, "I wish I had thought of that's", but did nothing? I hope that we will be able to watch a new garden center sprout as the area changes, bringing new customers and causing Anna one day to ask what it was that she was so worried about.

On The Way To Cool.

This is a sign at the corner of Marshall Rd. and Hwy. 49 on the way to the nursery. Usually Cal-trans pulls stuff like this down quick, but maybe they figure it’s worth the second looks it gets. This should put to rest any questions about the quality of our education system.

Over at "Garden Rant" they have an interview with Brent and Becky’s Bulbs. “Brent say’s business is just fine, growing steadily every year, despite the downturn in the bulb industry generally. (Some blame the box stores, others lazy gardeners.) B&B doesn't sell to the boxes at all but instead, appeals to people for whom planting bulbs is a ‘fun sport’. We know exactly who he's talking about - real gardeners, us.”

I know at our nursery and our last nursery venture bulb sales have been declining steadily. I do believe that it’s the same reason that bare root sales are declining. They are sold during a season that most people are not into gardening, fall and winter. In addition you have to plan ahead to get the beauty in spring. I wish more people we’re into bulbs but the reality is they are not. I also think the chain stores have pretty much captured the low end of the bulb market. They buy and sell smaller bulbs, but at a very cheap price. Most people don’t know the difference between all the grades bulbs come in and how that determines the quality of the flower.

In addition folks like Brent and Becky have captured the “collector" market with a broad selection that can’t be matched by a brick and mortar store. Bulbs are easy to transport compared to other plants. This is actually where I think the people who treasure the unusual should get their bulbs.

We in the garden centers sell more bulbs based on people noticing them when they come into the store. “Oh, look they have bulb’s”, or we plant them up with other flowers in a container and sell the blooming bulbs in spring. To that end I think there will always be a place for bulbs in the garden center, but I don’t see the category growing much.

Which leads me to the post by Elizabeth at “Gardening While Intoxicated”. She mentions how she loves shopping on the Internet for her unusual seeds and flowers. She say’s “ I know many of my fellow garden blogger's are very familiar with ordering from catalogs, but for those who aren't, give it a try! You buy everything else in your pajamas—why not plants? Or at least plants you’re not going to be able to find at your local nurseries.” She also say’s “I’ll be spending lots of money locally (oh yes, indeed), but the final clincher for online purchasing is that you don’t have to wonder if your local places will carry your gotta-have plants—a nice bit of insurance for us compulsive types.”

This is where the Internet shines, the sales of unusual, smaller sized plants that can be transported within a couple of days. I am sure that flower and vegetable starts, blooming annuals and perennials will still make up a large portion of our business, but I don’t see the sales of bulbs and seed’s ever being what it once was. That’s o.k. though as it frees us up to focus on the areas that will provide the growth in the future.

Naturally a Better Way to Gardenâ„¢

We’re back from vacation and the nursery is open for the first time this year. We are charged up and ready to make this our best year ever. We have been open now 2 ½ years! We have had some very rainy springs that have cut into profits and slowed down our growth. We can’t use the weather as an excuse this year! We are going to have to grow the business if we are going to reach our goals. Sure the weather can hamper things, but we are a business and must do what is necessary to soften the blows the weather causes and find the areas that will help with the growth.

To that end we have decided to focus are energies on creating a new path for the nursery. The Golden Gecko Garden Center, . Our new focus will be "Naturally a Better Way to Garden"™ showing people how to garden in a more natural way. We feel that gardening is looked upon as a chore by many people. They have gotten “stuck” maintaining the garden rather than enjoying it. We hope to plant the seed of an idea that to really enjoy the garden we have to reduce the amount of time maintaining it. In our region of dry summers and wet winters it is time consuming to maintain plants that are from regions that require larger amounts of water and effort to keep looking good. This was driven home to us when we left our house to live at the nursery for a year. The water line was disconnected and some of our landscaping died. Upon our return we decided that we want to create a garden that is beautiful, wildlife friendly, able to withstand the drought of summer better, and requires less time to maintain. After all I garden for a living and would like some time off when I am at home.

I think there are a lot of people like us and we want to reach them. Do they know about all the great new plant introductions coming from Australia? We are finding out that Grevillea is a lot more cold tolerant than first expected and that’s great news for us in the foothills. It’s also deer resistant! What about the idea that using organic fertilizers will help make stronger and better adapted plants than if you use synthetics? What about the idea that here in northern California you have better success planting in the fall than spring? What with the winter rains coming and the cooler temperatures after a hot summer plants establish better planted in fall. How about focusing you energies on the aspect of gardening you enjoy most. By landscaping with "like climate plants" in a more natural way we free ourselves up to concentrate on our hobby of vegetable gardening, fruit tree growing, container gardening, boating, traveling, or whatever.

Here in California we have taken gardening more appropriate to other climates and made it work. The cost though has be in increased watering, fertilizing, and time spent supporting these plantings. The ideas we are talking about are not new but are often looked upon separately by people, where instead they need to be grouped together to create a more natural and effortless garden. We are not saying that you must garden organically. In our area of large parcels Round-up is often used for fence lines and other areas where hand weeding is not appropriate. Gardening in a more natural way means planting and using what works best for your situation. It happens that organics tend to improve soil structure, benefiting plants where synthetic don’t. This is exciting since it takes the argument from organic versus non- organic. Use what works best and in most cases it’s the organics.

We will also be increasing our selection of Mediterranean climate plants. We feel that native plants deserve a much greater representation in our landscape along with other like climate plants. Growing a strictly native garden might be a fun horticultural pursuit but by incorporating other plants from like climate regions we can create a beautiful garden that is unique to our region. Why try for the Cape Cod look or the Tuscan look when we should develop our own unique look. By gardening in a more natural way we will be creating a garden that expresses our region and personalities better.

Here is what we will be doing. Increasing the selection of natives and Mediterranean style plants that we carry, while decreasing the selection of plants that don’t fit in with our goals of creating a more natural garden. Promoting organic fertilizers and pesticides used properly. Encouraging wildlife friendly gardening, and yes this includes the deer! We will work to increase the awareness of fall as a more natural time to plant here. Most of all we will be increasing our efforts to get the word out by making available the information people need to embrace this style of gardening.

I also want to take the time to answer a couple of questions I received about my last post. The chapel pictured is small. It’s might hold 20 people comfortably. The pruned Monterey Cypress has a flat statue of a lady sitting underneath it and if you look very closely a “bird house” has been pruned into the very top of the tree. It stands up above the flat top of the tree.

Mendocino is a lot like Coloma near us. During the season it is packed with tourists and quite as can be in the winter. We wanted to enjoy the quiet and we did. It rained part of one day which we found enjoyable as rain on the coast is different than in the mountains, more mild and breezy. We stayed at a bed and breakfast, the Packard House and had the place all to ourselves for a day. We enjoyed the quiet. Thats our room "The Pacific View" in the piture above. Other than driving to Ft. Bragg we stayed in town exploring the hidden alleys, unique shops, and beaches. If you want to enjoy one of the most beautiful drives in the world take Hwy. 1 from Mendocino to San Francisco.

Back from the coast.

We’re back from Mendocino but not quite done with vacation. It's always amazing to see the wealth of flowers and plants that grow in the benign climate of the coast. A native, Garrya elliptica is in full bloom.

Driving down Hwy. 1 near Point Arena we spotted these Monterey cypresses that have been pruned for many years. While I don't usually like formally pruned plants these are eye catching and whimsical enough to get me to pull over and take a photo.

Down the road further in Gualala was a nursery that uses giant dinosaurs to attract attention. I think this is what happens to nursery people who decide to live full time on the coast. This area is so beautiful, but so isolated that it takes a certain outlook to live there.

This little building is in Sea Ranch. It is a chapel and a good representative of the carefree buildings and people who inhabit this place.

I am gathering up some plants to take to my talk in Sacramento at the California Home and Flower show tomorrow. After the talk Monica and I will wonder around and see what's new or exciting for 2007.

The Snowdrops are blooming!

We're at the nursery today feeding the cats and checking on things. We have been off for one week now and have until next Tuesday off. We came by to stand up the plants that have blown over and check on watering.

Just out front the first flowers of the year have started blooming. The Snowdrops (Galanthus nivalis) are poking up out of the ground. In most climates they wait to bloom until the end of winter. Here things are a bit different and it is not unusual to see these bulbs as well as narcissus blooming now. It's about 65 degrees Fahrenheit today so it’s no wonder these plants think its spring.

We're going to head out to Mendocino on the coast. Stay at a bed and breakfast for a couple of days. We’ll come back Saturday and give a talk at The California Home and Garden Show in Sacramento. Then it's back to work on Tuesday the 9th. Bare root fruit trees will arrive that week!

This last year of blogging has been wonderful! Garden bloggers are unique people and I enjoy the company of people who have interesting things to say. We'll talk again when we get back from the coast.

Happy New Year!

First Day of Winter

I don’t get to work on my blog as much as I would like. Since moving out of the garden center back to our house the only computer I have is here at work. What with the day to day activities I don’t have the leisure time necessary to do as much with the blog. The remedy is to get another computer just for home where I can do fun things as opposed to “work”.

We are getting ready for our winter break which means the store will be closed from Christmas through January 6^th. I would love to take more time off but we have to get back to deal with the bare root fruit trees which arrive about then. In addition we don’t get a paid vacation here. Store closed equals little income.

Right now we are selling garden gift items and gift cards. We had a big 25% to 50% off sale just last month and it helped in moving some plants. I think our winter plant inventory is right about where it should be. This is the time of year when I look out and see too much planting mix and potting soil left over. Sure we can sell it next spring but why did I make that last order? Monica said we could hold off, but I never want to be out of a key item so I ordered it. Sure enough she was right.

There is so much to do here that it is overwhelming at times. We have a number of dead trees that need to be removed. I want to extend the sprinkler system to a new area which means digging trenches. We would like to get the main part of our newsletters ready for next year. Trying to write an e-news and snail mail newsletter during the busy spring is crazy. If we can get about six months done now it would be a great.

A post or two ago U.K. Bob left a comment. He said “Such as you and I keep on gardening no mater what the time of year because it's our life but I've noticed just by reading the blogs that were full of gardening when I first started to read them in August are now given over to other things like cakes and Christmas decorations. I notice also the last few times I've been to our garden centre it's been empty, it’s actually felt weird being the only one in the place. So I'm sure things will pick up for you, what you need is an early spring to get people out gardening again.”

I don’t like to see it but the fact that even in gardening crazy England the garden centre’s are slow this time of year gives me solace in that our occupation shares many of the same quirks no mater where you do business. While many people enjoy not thinking about the garden in winter we are busy planning for next year. We have to as if we wait we will be too busy when spring comes.

This is a good time to get out and spread the word. I will be talking at the California Home Show at the Sacramento Convention Center on Saturday Jan. 6^th at 12:45. The topic is Mediterranean climate gardening. This will give us exposure to many people in the city who might want to make the drive up to the foothills to visit. On January 22^nd I will speak at the Auburn Garden Club Meeting. This has been an annual engagement for me the last 8 or 9 years now. The subject is always “What’s new and exciting for 2007 at the garden center.” They are one of the most active garden clubs around with about 120 people coming to my last presentation.

Winter has arrived today! I like the fact that slowly but surely the days are getting longer and the nights shorter. Each day may only gain a minute or two of light but the minutes add up and soon I won’t be closing the store in the dark.

Keeping invasives in check

In an effort to prevent the spread of invasive species a new program known as “Plant Right” has taken root in California. It is made up of various horticultural groups who are devising a list of potential invasive plants that should be avoided. The list is not out yet but it will be interesting to see what ends up on it.

Most likely pampas grass, scotch broom, and vinca major will be listed. It looks like what they want is for nurseries to voluntarily avoid selling these plants. We do sell pampas grass but these are sterile types. We can’t sell scotch broom in El Dorado County, even though there are sterile varieties available. Vinca major is a common ground cover and planted all over. I don’t like it as much as Vinca minor which has a less aggressive nature.

There are plenty of alternatives for these plants, but I hope that the sterile and non-aggressive varieties don’t get thrown out with the true pests. I look forward to seeing this list and making sure that true aggressive species are not sold.

This area is covered with the yellow blooms of Scotch Broom during the spring. This plant was brought over in the gold rush and has spread through out the hills. It is aggressive and pops up in disturbed areas along side roads or new construction. The sight of its yellow blooms in spring is spectacular, which I would guess is the reason it spread so much. Another plant brought over in the gold rush was Ailanthus altissima, the Tree of Heaven. I guess it’s a pest all across the country. It shoots up seemingly through concrete.

The Coyote Bush is in Bloom

The Coyote Bush (Baccharis pilularis) is in bloom amongst the chaparral of the Sierra foothills. It’s quite common on sunny banks growing along with the Toyon and Ceanothus. In the foothills it will grow into a mound about 5 to 6 feet tall and wide. Along the coast it is often a low 1 foot tall spreading plant. The first picture is of the hills along the road to the nursery and the other pictures are of a Coyote bush growing just outside of our fence along the deer trail.

I have sold a ground cover form of coyote brush called“Twin Peaks" in the past. It makes a good bank or erosion cover in hot sunny areas. Once established it takes a bare minimum of water during the dry season and in addition is quite deer resistant. The problem is that it is not very ornamental in the nursery can. It’s one of those plants that gets better once it grows a bit. Most people just pass right over it, which is the difficulty in getting people interested in native plants. Many natives don’t really take on an ornamental look until they have matured a bit. People also tend to over water native plants the first year. Instead of planting in fall and letting Mother Nature water them, most people plant in spring and water the natives just like any other plant, which often rot’s the roots in our hard clay like soil. Still the number one reason native plants don’t sell well is aesthetics. Most people don’t appreciate the subtle beauty of our native plants, or that the beauty is sometimes greatest in winter when people just don’t get out in the yard or nature as much.

I am looking forward to carrying more natives this upcoming year. We will just have to promote them more so people will take notice of them. We like to inter-mix natives amongst other Mediterranean climate plants for what we consider a more ornamental look. Pure native gardens have their beauty, but it is an acquired taste and most folks just want more to choose from. Using other plants from other like climate regions of the world with the natives we can create a garden that is beautiful as well as water conserving and lower in maintenance.

Rainy day at the nursery.

It’s a rainy day and I don’t think a lot is going to happen at the nursery. We might get a few folks looking at Living Christmas Trees or checking out gifts and gift cards. Today is Christmas at Coloma, an annual celebration that involves people in period dress, lot’s of vendors, and usually thousands of people. Today with the rain it will be more subdued, yet it sure beats sitting at home. I took this picture of the old Emanuel Church from my truck. It’s from 1850 something and is still used. It is very popular with the wedding crowd. This is the town Christmas tree and a group of vendors trying to stay dry.

This time of the year the rain is expected and welcome. Ideally it would be nice to have the weekends dry so people could shop but I am running about 50% when it comes to my wishes being granted. It’s the rain in spring that’s a killer. We have been getting way more rain than we need in April and May. During drought years that rain is a blessing, but when we have been running above average for rain the last two years that spring rain is depressing. We received over 70 inches of rain, twice normal for the year.

This is a time when it’s important to stay positive in mind. It’s so easy to get in a funk when it rains and there is virtually no income. The last two years with slow springs means there is less money stored up to carry you through the winter. It would be easy to just write the year off and sit till spring. Can’t do that though as now is the time to prepare and see if the route you have plotted for the business is the right course.

One area we are going to pursue is sales over the internet. We just started with our Metal Art that we have been selling at our garden centers for years. Made locally in the foothills they rust with age and have been a steady seller for us over the years. We thought we would start with a few unique items to us and see what happens.

If you Google “Metal Garden Art”, a million different web sites come up and it can be quit a feat to sort through all them. We are going to work on the assumption that people are visiting our website for a whole different reason. Maybe it’s to get info, or e-mail a question, or find out directions to the store. While you’re at the web site you notice that we have interesting things available that you might not even have thought of. Kind of like visiting the nursery and spotting something you want.

We are under no illusions about what the potential of internet sales will be for us. We hope its a little extra income but I don’t expect to check my e-mail and see a hundred orders for the day. Maybe someday, but we will be patient. When we got our first order it was exciting!

Over the next few days we will be deciding on what the topic will be and dates we will hold our workshops. We already know that we will do two on pruning fruit trees and shrubs, one on starting vegetable and flower seed indoors, how to vegetable garden in containers or raised beds, water gardening in containers, cactus and succulents in containers, drip irrigation, make a living wreath for the holidays, kids class on making stepping stones, make a hyper-tufa pot, and make a hanging moss basket. We want to do more with kids so we are thinking about what we can do with them. We also want more hands on and less lecture.

Feel free to send any ideas you have my way. We come up with the ideas for some of our classes from customers. We are even invisioning a workshop on using herbs in cooking and having the B.B.Q. fired up to try out the suggestions. Combining food and gardening is always fun.

Not so live oak.

We lost a huge Live Oak at our house during a storm last winter. Since we have just moved back after a year away it’s time to cut it up. This was a tree most likely around 60 years old, or older. Quercus agrifolia keeps its leaves all year, thus the reason it’s called Live oak. During a storm where received 6 inches of rain in one night it looks like the water undercut the tree and it split in half. Now it’s time to cut it up. You can see my chain saw sitting on one of the branches.

We also have Blue Oak and Black Oak on the property. They are deciduous and account for much of the fall color we have in the foothills. Since we we’re gone a water system failed and we lost some fruit trees. I don’t think I am going to replace them. We have a small vineyard and one remaining, and quite healthy ‘Arkansas Black’ Apple. I want to try planting a native grass and wild flower meadow in the old orchard.

The meadow will start growing in the fall, stay green in winter, and flower in early spring. Just after the meadow goes to seed I will cut the meadow down for fire safety during the summer. Laying dormant during the summer it will come to life again in the fall.

I have never planted a meadow myself, so it’s a new experience for me. We’ll see how it goes.

No pears at Graham’s Pear Shed.

On the way to work I passed Graham’s Pear Shed. This old building has been standing for over 100 years. Bill Graham moved here from southern California about 20 years ago. He had grown oranges down there, so when he moved here he planted Oranges and Mandarins. At his elevation, 1400’ it has to be one of the higher and most northern orange groves around. He used to have all cherries but they don’t have a long lifespan in our heavy soil. So as they died he planted citrus. There are no pears at Grahams Pear Shed. The pear industry died out in the 1950's as a result of disease.

You can stop by his shed and pick a bag of mandarins up for $3.00. He also had some apples. In spring you can stop and get the Bing Cherries from his surviving trees! He operates on the honor system with arrows pointing where to leave your money.

So much happens here in fall when it comes to plants. Fall is like spring for our native plants with the Coyote Bush in bloom and the berries hanging in the Toyon. Unfortunately most folk’s don’t realize the benefits of fall planting and miss out. It’s hard to blame them with the holidays coming and the shortening days.

Tis’ the season for toyon.

This time of the year is when our native plants come back to life with the recent rains. One that stands out this time of year among the chaparral is Toyon. Heteromeles arbutifolia, also know as California Christmas Berry. Located on the sunny side of hills it is usually growing along with manzanita and ceanothus. It’s quite showy right now. This is the only time people seem to notice it.

As far as landscaping uses it is one of the more asked for native plants, after manzanita and blue flowering ceanothus. You have to locate it where it will receive little or no summer water, though. It’s quite fussy about being over watered! This is why fall is the best time to plant natives here. The rains water the plants during winter and spring when they are actively growing. Then in summer the plants slow growth and you only have to water every so often to keep them looking good.