Posted on by tonytomeo · 18 Comments

The Coast Is Clear

P80218Between here and Hawaii, there is a whole lot of water. Between Hawaii and Australia, there is a whole lot more. Everywhere to the west and southwest of California, there is a lot of water. Unfortunately, none of this huge volume of water is useful for gardening. It is saline. It would kill plants.

Of course this is not just any water. It is the Pacific Ocean. Although the water within it is useless directly, it is what feeds the weather that provides the precipitation that becomes the water that makes gardening and everything else possible. Rain fills local aquifers. Snow in the Sierra Nevada fills reservoirs as it melts.

The weather that the Pacific Ocean feeds gets shared over a very large area. Weather that does not make rain here might make rain or snow in Nevada, or Oklahoma, or really anywhere the weather wants to go to. In fact all the oceans all over the world cooperate to make climate and weather what it is.

What is so special about the Pacific Ocean being right here off the coast is that it moderates our climate and weather. Places like Nevada and Oklahoma that are not on the coast get water from the Pacific Ocean because weather is mobilized. The moderating effect of all that saline water is not. It stays right here in coastal regions.

Water has a high specific heat. That means that it takes a lot of energy to change the temperature of water. Saline water has an even higher specific heat. The temperature of the Pacific Ocean therefore changes very slowly and very minimally.

This inhibits extremes of temperature in the air above all that saline water. Small batches of extremely cold weather tends to collect a bit of heat energy as they pass over the Pacific Ocean. Weather coming in over so much saline water can not get extremely hot without the water absorbing at least some of all that heat energy. Therefore, coastal weather is rarely extremely cold or extremely hot. Temperatures can be more pronounced a few miles inland from the Pacific Ocean, especially when the weather comes from inland. Farther inland cold and heat can get significantly more extreme.

A lack of cold weather in winter limits what can be grown here. Plants that require a good chill are not satisfied with our pathetic winters. That is why some bulbs that do well as perennials farther inland bloom only once here, and why some varieties of apple that perform well in central Washington are not grown here.

However, a lack of hard frost allows us to grow many plants that can not be grown where winters are more severe. Even if bougainvillea gets frosted every few years or so, it typically recovers. Avocados and lemons are likewise quite happy here. The weather may seem to be boring, but it certainly has its advantages.

Posted on by tonytomeo · 6 Comments

Little League

P80217+K1There are so many big trees in the Santa Cruz Mountains that keep most of us looking up. It is easy to miss much of the understory plants that grow on the forest floor.

While getting the pictures for the ‘Six on Saturday’ article posted earlier, I happened to notice these few small pale flowers that contrasted more with their own dark green foliage than they would have if they were more brightly colored. Perhaps that is a technique to get the attention of pollinators. It certainly got my attention.P80217+K2.JPGThe flowers were not completely white. They were very pale hues of pink. The wood sorrel in the last picture was slightly more pinkish than the unidentified cruciferous (of the family Cruciferae) flowers of the first two pictures. Pale flowers, particularly those that seem to be adorned with barely perceptible patterns, are typically those that use infrared and ultraviolet color to attract pollinators that can see such color. If that was their intention, they would not look so bland to the pollinators whom they prefer to attract.

Much of the surrounding dark green foliage is exotic (non-native) English ivy. It climbs some of the redwood trees and makes quite a mess of the forest. Native specie are too docile to compete with it. The two species in these pictures might have been more common years ago, before the English ivy invaded.

Neither of these specie are the sort that I would plant in my own garden. I do not even know what the first species is. The wood sorrel looks too much like related oxalis. Although several specie of oxalis are popular in home gardens, I still think of them as invasive weeds. Yet, in their natural environment, they are too happy and pretty to not be appealing.P80217+K3

Posted on by tonytomeo · 19 Comments

Six on Saturday: Big League

 

Again, my six pictures are not from my own garden, which incidentally, is not at all interesting. Instead, these pictures are from the biggest site I work at. It is many acres, with some very big features.
1. Big lawns are acres of turf. The kid in front of the building in the distance shows how big the building and lawn is. This is the biggest of three big lawns.P80217
2. Big trees are very common here. These are coastal redwoods. There are also big Douglas firs and ponderosa pines.P80217+
3. Big water features are not constructed backyard fountains or koi ponds. This is Bean Creek, which flows into Zayante Creek less than half a mile away. It is more than a hundred feet below where the picture was taken.P80217++
4. Big shovels are necessary for working in such big gardens.P80217+++
5. Big garden sheds and big garden carts made by Dodge, Ford and Chevrolet are also very important.P80217++++
6. Big insects are quite at home in such big gardens.P80217+++++
This is the link for Six on Saturday, for anyone else who would like to participate:

https://thepropagatorblog.wordpress.com/2017/09/18/six-on-saturday-a-participant-guide/

Posted on by tonytomeo · 18 Comments

Year of the DOG!

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Tet, Vietnamese New Year’s Day, is today! This is the first day of the Year of the Dog! Tet is celebrated for at least three days, and besides all the popularly known traditions that go along with it, a few horticulturally oriented traditions are also observed.

When I grew citrus back in the early 1990s, I can remember than we sold every kumquat and calamondin tree that had fruit on it prior to Tet. When those ran out, we sold every fruited mandarin orange and tangerine tree, and then every fruited orange and lemon tree. Eventually, just about every fruited tree we could supply was gone. Citrus trees with colorful ripe fruit are traditional decoration for Tet, and might even be a gift for someone lacking such a tree. Kumquat trees are the favorite, but others will do if necessary.

Fruit baskets containing primarily citrus fruits are also very popular and traditional. Bananas, pineapple and any colorful fruit are fair game as well. Shaddock fruit is popular if available. Shaddock is the dwarfing understock for other dwarf citrus trees, but is not commonly grown for fruit production.

Blooming stems of apricot, peach and plum, as well as Saint John’s wort flowers, are the favorite traditional cut flowers for Tet. Each type of flower corresponds to the region of Vietnam from which the family displaying it originated. In the Santa Clara Valley years ago, there were plenty of fruit blossoms to go around. The stems were sometimes cut early and forced to bloom on time for Tet. Nowadays, such blooming stems can be purchased from florists, along with the other traditional flowers; chrysanthemums, narcissus, marigolds, pansies and cockscombs. Families who own a bonsai or more display them prominently for Tet.

Happy Tet and Year of the Dog!80131

Posted on by tonytomeo · 17 Comments

More Misplaced ‘Environmentalism’

P80214Nature has been getting by just fine for a very long time before humans started to interfere. It has survived all sorts of catastrophes literally longer than anyone can remember. It was here when dinosaurs were exterminated by a meteorite or comet or vulcanism or whatever catastrophic yet natural event finished them off. In fact, Nature was here for all of the few mass extinction events of the very distant past, including the Permian – Triassic Extinction, which only about 4% of life on earth survived! We all know that “It’s not nice to fool with Mother Nature.”, or serve her margarine that tastes like real butter; but we should also realize that it is rather presumptuous to think that we can be more efficient with correcting all environmental damage. Very often, it is best to let nature do what nature does best.

For example, forest fires are perfectly natural. They are more frequent now because of human activity; but they are less extensive, likewise because of human activity. Humans contain fires that would naturally burn much larger areas. Preventing vegetation from burning allows it to accumulate and become more combustible. If deprived of fire long enough, vegetation within ecosystems that rely on fire as part of their natural restorative cycle eventually deteriorates, or become so combustible that when it does burn, its seed gets incinerated.

Many box elders along the San Lorenzo River have been dying for the past many years. We have not identified the pathogen associated with the necrosis, but it is probably a naturally occurring pathogen that is an intricate component to the natural ecosystem, (although after last winter, an inordinate number of box elders succumbed at the same time). Regardless, trees succumbed and fell. A significant void developed within the collective forest canopy on the Eastern Bank, near the Graham Hill Road Bridge. ‘Environmentalists’ wanted to ‘help’.

These new trees in the picture were planted within the area vacated by a few deceased box elders. The closer of the two is a coast live oak. The other is a bay laurel. There are a few more beyond those in the picture. Native vegetation that developed ‘naturally’ but happened to be in the way was removed to facilitate this project. To prevent native deer from damaging the trees as deer would do ‘naturally’ the trees were imprisoned in small cylindrical cages. Because the trees did not grow there and disperse their roots ‘naturally’, they must be irrigated until they can survive on what they get ‘naturally’ from rain.

The irony of all this is that native vegetation that was growing ‘naturally’ was removed to install ‘unnatural’ nursery grown trees intended to restore a ‘natural’ ecosystem that was already doing what it does ‘naturally’. Although native, the coast live oak ‘naturally’ prefers to avoid riparian environments such as this. It ‘naturally’ prefers a more exposed and drier situation. Bay laurel trees live there ‘naturally’, which is why a few had already started to grow from seed. These seedlings would not have needed to be caged or watered, but were removed to plant the new trees. Yes, bay laurels that would have survived on their own were replaced by bay laurels that must be watered and protected. Willows and cottonwoods that were quite prolific in the area were likewise removed, although many more remain lower on the bank of the River.

In the background, in the upper right corner of the picture, the bright yellow flowers of an Acacia dealbata can be seen. It is a seriously invasive exotic species that displaces native vegetation. Although it is impossible to exterminate the species, this individual tree that has been dispersing profuse seed into the San Lorenzo River for many years, really should be removed. Even if nothing were to be installed to replace it, the removal would benefit the ecosystem. Nature would have no problem finding native trees that would like to occupy that spot.

Posted on by tonytomeo · 21 Comments

Invasive Exotics – Acacia dealbata

P80211Every invasive exotic (non-native) species has a story of how it got here.

Blue gum and red gum were imported to produce the timber needed for railroad ties. Many annual specie were forage crops for grazing cattle. Some got here by stowing away as seed on or inside cattle or other animals. Supposedly, mustard seed was broadcast by those traveling on the El Camino Real so that other travelers could find the route later. Then there are all sorts of invasive exotics that were imported simply because people liked to grow them in their gardens.

It is difficult to imagine why anyone would import any of the weedy specie of broom (Genista specie) or the sloppy species of pampas grass (Cortaderia jubata). It might have made sense at the time, before more appealing specie were introduced, or before less invasive modern cultivars were developed. Black locust has always been, and continues to be a pretty tree, long after more colorful and less invasive cultivars were developed. They were brought to California by prospectors from the East at a time when no one knew or cared how invasive they would be.

Acacia dealbata was likewise imported simply because it is a pretty tree, before anyone knew how it could naturalize and displace native vegetation and wildlife. Now it grows very rampantly in utility easements where other vegetation has been eradicated. Not only does it interfere with the efficiency of utility cables, but it is also combustible if ignited by sparks from electrical cables. Yet, it is so colorful and pretty in the middle of winter that it is not easy to dislike. Unfortunately, environmentalism is not what it used to be, and some so called environmentalists want it to be protected simply because it is ‘alive’.P80211+

Posted on by tonytomeo · 14 Comments

Weather To Die For

B80210KDon’t worry. He is not really deceased. He is just making good use of the lawn. The well foliated trees in the distance are a clue that this pictures was not taken recently, although it illustrates the current weather conditions accurately. We all want to be out in it, whether getting lazy in a local park, walking on the beach, or just staying home and working in the garden.

It seems that almost everyone else is contending with less pleasant weather. The summer in much of Australia had been historically hot. Much of Europe got some nasty storms. Parts of the Southeastern United States of America that get snow only on rare occasion got more than they have in recent memory.

We are certainly used to our share of pleasant weather through winter. We can only see snow in the distance on top of Mount Hamilton. Frost only happens a few times through winter. We often get a few consecutive days at of spring weather. What we are not accustomed to is this sort of duration of pleasant weather.

Many years ago, such a long duration of pleasant weather would have been bad for the orchards of the Santa Clara Valley. It would have prompted them to bloom prematurely, only to get the blossoms and developing fruit knocked off by subsequent rain. Although the orchards are gone, many of us still grow similar fruit trees in our home gardens. Apricots, cherries, nectarines, peaches, plums, prunes and almonds are all susceptible to premature bloom.

We really could use some wintry weather about now. Rain here with snow in the watersheds of the Sierra Nevada would be the best. Otherwise, cool weather to delay bloom of fruit trees until after the rain would be the second best option.

Posted on by tonytomeo · 8 Comments

Six on Saturday: Weeds of Felton Covered Bridge Park

 

Although it is not my own garden, I have obtained some of my plants here, and have planted a few here too. I write about or mention Felton Covered Bridge Park too often to bother posting links to other posts about it. #1 and #2 are not exactly weeds, but were not planted here either. They were likely taken by the San Lorenzo River from gardens upstream, and deposited here.

1. Snowdrop! It seems that everyone else has been posting pictures of theirs, and I had nothing to brag about. I did not know they were here. However, these are Leucojum aestivum rather than a species of Galanthus.

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2. Daffodil foliage emerges annually, but gets cut down by the ‘gardeners’ with their weed whackers. This is only the second time they have bloomed.P80210+
3. Periwinkle is a prolific weed throughout the Santa Cruz Mountains.P80210++
4. English daisy is a prolific weed in lawns in mild climates. Most if not all of the lawns in Golden Gate Park in San Francisco are infested with it; but it is too pretty to dislike.P80210+++
5. Dandelion is another prolific lawn weed that is easier to dislike.P80210++++
6. Dandelion seed is very abundant and very easily blown about.P80210+++++
This is the link for Six on Saturday, for anyone else who would like to participate:

https://thepropagatorblog.wordpress.com/2017/09/18/six-on-saturday-a-participant-guide/

Posted on by tonytomeo · 4 Comments

Ecclesiastes 3: 1

P80207There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the Heavens:

Verses 2 through 8 continue to list a few examples of more specific activities that happen at specific times. If there were more examples, autumn foliar color would probably be cited as well. After all, autumn foliar color happens in . . . well, . . . autumn.

Perhaps it was omitted for brevity. Of course, there is the possibility that it was omitted to avoid confusion. If it had been cited, it might have been described simply as ‘foliar color’ rather than ‘autumn foliar color’. Some foliage colors earlier if distressed. Some foliage does not color until frosted. Some might even delay color until it is in the process of getting replaced by new foliage. Then there are the many sorts of evergreen foliage that do not color at all, or at least in a manner that is visible or notable from outside. Shedding browned or blackened dead foliage, particularly that which is obscured by new foliage, does not count.

This English ivy foliage is the sort that should not color at all. Old leaves should whither and deteriorate once obscured by new foliage. Perhaps the vine is concentrating resources elsewhere while abandoning this section. Perhaps the entire vine is deteriorating. From this picture, it is impossible to determine why this colorful foliage is exposed.

Perhaps this is the time to just appreciate nice autumn foliar color wherever and whenever we get it, even if it is on English ivy in winter. As the flowering cherries try to convince us that it is spring, that would be just fine too. This can be the time for autumn, spring, and maybe even winter if it ever arrives, all at the same time.

Posted on by tonytomeo · 28 Comments

RATS!

P80204

Remember the Beverly Hillbillies? That was a really lame sitcom; but it was somehow very popular at the time.

Each episode began with the stupid jingle that explains how and why the formerly impoverished but suddenly wealthy Clampetts left their home in Bugtussle and moved to Beverly . . . Hills that is.

As they drive their decrepit Oldsmobile down Bedford Drive just west of downtown, the palms flanking the roadway are prominently visible to the left and right. This strictly regimented collection of Canary Island date palms alternating with Mexican palms was not very big back then, in the early 1960s. By the 1980s, they were strikingly grand. Sadly, they are now deteriorating from old age. Many of the broad Canary Island date palms have succumbed to pink rot, so are now absent. Some of the Mexican fan palms are also lacking. It is saddening to see them now knowing how grand they were not too long ago. Although they are being replaced, they will never be as formal and uniform as they were as a monoculture (or biculture) that was planted all at the same time back in the late Victorian period. Even if it were possible to remove all of the trees and plant new ones at the same time, such conformity went out of style decades ago.

Arborists see these historic trees differently. They know that just one Canary Island date palm is likely infested with rats. Such a grand collection must be infested with a disturbingly large population of rats. Within a canopy of a Canary Island date palm rats, are safe from most predators, and get quite a bit to eat from the fruit produced by the female trees. (Most Canary Island date palms are female, with only a few taller and less billowy male trees for pollination.)

When a Canary Island date palm gets cut down from the base, it falls with a big SPLAT on the ground, followed by a blast of wind containing every Frisbee, baseball, tennis ball, kite and whatever got stuck in the tree over the previous few years. After a brief pause, but before the the baseballs stop rolling in the gutters, a herd of all surviving rats flees the scene. Most hide in the closest shrubbery they find. Some scurry up other nearby palms. It can really blow your image of the Canary Island date palm.