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Precipitation Should Continue Through Winter

Red sky at morning, meteorological warning.

Deciduous foliage gets colorful with autumn chill. Then, it gets messy. Then, with a bit of precipitation, it gets even messier! It seems like a waste as it all succumbs to rain and, in other climates, snow. It is sensible, though. Deciduous vegetation will be less vulnerable to stormy weather without it. Weather will be getting increasingly stormy through autumn.

This is how the Mediterranean climate here operates. The dry season that begins during spring continues until autumn. The relatively shorter rainy season centers around winter. Therefore, most precipitation occurs during winter. Spring and autumn are brief transition seasons that tend to favor the dry season. Almost no precipitation occurs during summer.

Spring and autumn transitions between rainy and dry seasons are innately variable. The rainy season tends to finish early during spring, but may not. It sometimes pauses before resuming. It may do so more than once. Conversely, the rainy season tends to begin late during autumn, but may begin earlier. Occasionally, precipitation begins disturbingly late.

Generally, the first significant storm with significant precipitation begins the rainy season. This may be difficult to believe with typically significant time between the first few storms. Yet, with cooler weather, elevated humidity, and shorter daylength, moisture lasts longer. Precipitation, even if merely drizzling fog, will likely dampen gardens before they get dry.

Irrigation obviously does not need to be as generous as it was during summer. Until next spring, some vegetation will require none at all. Not only will weather provide and retain more moisture, but vegetation uses much less. Refraining from manual irrigation is easy. Adjustment of automated irrigation systems actually requires more effort and awareness.

As deciduous species defoliate for winter, some other species might get more vivacious. Cacti, agave, and some yuccas that lack irrigation become more turgid with precipitation. Remaining palo verde foliage is likely to become greener and fresher prior to defoliation. Most xeric species utilize moisture from precipitation as it becomes available seasonally.

Posted on by tonytomeo · 2 Comments

Autumn Foliar Color Within Mild Climates.

Pistache does not need much chill to develop exquisite foliar color.

Cooler climates may not have so much annual flower color to choose from at the end of summer, but have more autumn color from trees and a few shrubs and vines. The weather is of course different every year, so autumn color is never predictable. Just as some of the typically colorful trees may not be so spectacular every year, some of the more mundane trees may be surprisingly colorful if the weather is just so.

In milder climates, sweetgum (Liquidambar), flowering pear and Chinese pistache are generally the most reliable for the most color as the weather gets cooler. All three exhibit a good range of color, from clear yellow, through orange and bright red. Sometimes, particular colors are more prominent, or even exclusive. For example, Chinese pistache can be completely orange without yellow or red. Some cultivars of sweetgum specialize in particular color ranges. For example, ‘Burgundy’ turns dark red or purplish red without much yellow or orange.

In cooler climates, maples color well. Sugar maple is perhaps the most colorful, comparable even to sweetgum. Unfortunately, it does not hold onto its foliage as tightly, and soon looses it to slight wind or rain. Red maple colors just as reliably, but is more red and brown with less yellow and orange. Norway maple typically turns yellow or somewhat orange. Silver maple turns only dingy yellow, but gets big enough to make quite a show.

The best bright yellow is probably provided by maidenhair (Ginkgo biloba) tree. Birch, honey locust, tulip tree, fruitless mulberry, some willows and poplars can be comparable if the weather turns cool suddenly. Redbud, dogwood, hawthorn and flowering cherry are more subdued shades of yellow, but are grown more for their spring flowers anyway. Persimmon probably provides the best brightest orange foliage, followed by abundant and comparably bright orange fruit!

Some ash, some oaks, Chinese tallow tree, parrotia and dawn redwood all provide their own flavors of autumn color. Dawn redwood and pin oak actually turn simple brown, which some people think makes the trees look dead! Raywood ash turns a nice burgundy red or purplish. However, the old fashioned Modesto ash (which is a type of Arizona ash) turns as bright yellow as fruitless mulberry does. Not all crape myrtles have good fall color, but some are as colorful as sweetgum is. Various hazels, spiraeas and viburnums are colorful shrubbery in autumn. Wisteria vines, which are known more for their colorful spring flowers, turn yellow.

Posted on by tonytomeo · 9 Comments

Six on Saturday: Attempted Autumn

Astronomical autumn began more than a month ago. It is about a third done, with about two thirds remaining. Meteorological autumn can start at any time. Sometimes, it starts, but then pauses before restarting a bit later. Sometimes, the first rain is the beginning of the rainy season, which typically continues through winter. A bit of rain arrived between Wednesday and Thursday, and a bit more is here now, but no more is in the forecast for next week. Regardless of future weather, some flowers bloom, or at least try to, as late as they possibly can. Of course, some actually prefer to bloom even later and during winter. Apologies for the lack of focus of pictures #4 and #6.

1. A ‘chance or rain’ in the weather forecast here is generally not taken too seriously until something like this happens. It is a genuine puddle. It is wet, and full of water from rain.

2. Sequoia sempervirens, coastal redwood seems to enjoy this damp weather. It actually enjoys all weather, but appears to be more refreshed by any interruption of arid warmth.

3. Lemna minor, duckweed is even weirder with this border of white foam that develops as the first rain washes away pollen and dusty crud that accumulated since the last rain.

4. Hedychium coccineum X coronarium ‘Peach Delight’ ginger lily, which was blooming for last Saturday, is trying to bloom again. I already doubted its ability to follow through.

5. Brugmansia X cubensis ‘Charles Grimaldi’ angel’s trumpet looks like Carl’s Junior ate too much of its own food. I added this because of response to angel’s trumpet last week.

6. More interestingly, it produced this seed pod. Such hybrids should be sterile. I can not help but wonder if seed is true to type. If so, propagation by cuttings is easier than seed.

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 · 2 Comments

Six on Saturday: Fake Autumn

Daylight does not last quite as long as it had earlier in summer. Shadows stay noticeably longer. Summer actually ended about two weeks ago. For now it is early Indian summer.

1. “Bunny Xing” is as irrelevant to autumn as it is to Charing Cross Road in Los Angeles. I just found it to be amusingly odd that a neighbor seems to be protective of wildlife that can be so detrimental to some gardens here. Bunnies fortunately do not bother us much.

2. Juglans nigra, Eastern black walnut or Juglans nigra X hindsii, royal walnut, yellows early, more likely because it is tired of summer heat than because it anticipates autumn. Both walnut tree types naturalized from understock that sustained old walnut orchards.

3. Quercus lobata, valley oak typically but not always begins to brown after walnut trees yellow. This yellowish color is likely a result of the weather cooling a bit before warming again. This species is native nearby, but may have naturalized here after getting planted.

4. Acer rubrum, red maple is likely only coloring because it is distressed by confinement of its roots within its big clay pot. Recent and suddenly warmer weather after seasonably cooler weather may have accelerated the process. I really want these trees in the ground!

5. Helianthus annuus, sunflower mysteriously appeared precisely where we should have but neglected to grow sunflowers this year. This is the only one, but it is enough to show us what we are missing because of our lack of diligence. It is only a bit early for autumn.

6. Rhody is ready for autumn. More specifically, he is ready for cooler weather. Although it was scarcely more than ninety degrees yesterday, and only for a few hours after noon, it seemed to be unseasonably warm, after earlier weather was already beginning to cool.

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/

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Colorful Autumn Fruit Is For The Birds

Firethorn is typically the most colorful of autumn berries.

It is hard to ignore the slight bronzing of flowering pear trees in the neighborhood. The recent warm weather after such a mild summer may detrimentally accelerate the development of autumn foliar color, as well as the ripening of some of the colorful fruit that adorns gardens through autumn and winter. Sadly, there have been reports of scorched persimmons as well.

Despite their deviation from a more typical schedule, many of the plants that provide the most colorful fruit start to do so about now, just as birds want to fatten up for winter. My favorites of these provide fruit that I like to get before the birds do. I have already harvested gooseberries, currants and grapes, and am in the process of getting to the elderberries and black chokeberries. Pomegranates will ripen later in autumn. Citrus and persimmon will be ready later in winter, followed by loquat. Natal plum produces randomly all year.

Even fruit that I do not want looks good and keeps the birds happy though. Firethorn is probably the showiest and most popular of these, since it produces such abundant bright red berries that linger into winter. Some have orange or even yellowish berries. Cotoneaster and toyon are similar, but not so flashy. English hawthorn makes similar berries, but grows into a larger tree. Fruiting crabapples were harvested in early summer; but the ornamental, albeit sparse fruit of the flowering crabapples will linger after the leaves fall. Plants that provide abundant fruit that is popular with birds may not be so desirable near where cars are parked outside though, since well fed birds can be rather messy.

I am particularly fond of persimmon, pomegranate, English hawthorn and crabapple trees for other reasons as well. Persimmon trees will provide some of the best orange and red autumn foliar color. By the time it falls, there is plenty of comparably bright orange fruit to replace it! Pomegranate blooms with few but bright reddish orange flowers in summer. English hawthorn and crabapple trees are among the most abundant of spring blooming trees. Some of the flowering crabapple trees bloom with unique shades of bright pink and nearly red. 

Heavenly bamboo, Oregon grape (Mahonia) and California pepper tree are not often grown for their colorful fruit, but sometimes like to show it off. Oregon grape is striking because the fruit is so dark purplish black. California pepper tree makes pendulous trusses of small pink berries. Snowberry is an uncommon native that makes few but striking white berries. 

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Dormancy Facilitates Survival Through WInter

Deciduous vegetation defoliates for winter dormancy.

Dormancy is not exclusive to vegetation. Many animals are dormant while they hibernate through cold winter weather. Some animals are dormant while they aestivate through hot and dry weather. Fungi and bacteria can maintain dormancy for many years or centuries. Dormancy is a technique for avoiding unpleasant situations, such as cold or hot weather.

Like some animals, fungi and bacteria, some vegetation is dormant through dry weather. This is evident within local chaparral climates and nearby desert climates. Even within a few coastal forests, buckeye defoliates during summer. Such vegetation resumes activity in response to late autumn rain. However, most vegetation here prefers winter dormancy.

Such winter dormancy is especially evident among deciduous species. Many evergreen species merely halt or decelerate their growth, but without defoliation. Several evergreen species defoliate only partially. A few only shed their old foliage as new foliage replaces it during the following spring. Few species prefer to grow most vigorously through winter.

There are a few advantages to defoliation for winter. Wintry wind blows much more freely through defoliated canopies. Evergreen canopies are therefore more vulnerable to wind. In other harsher climates, defoliated canopies do not accumulate much snow. Evergreen canopies might accumulate more snow than they can support. Some get heavy with rain.

Foliage is not as useful through winter as it is through summer anyway. The sun is lower to the south. Consequently, less sunlight gets through more of the atmosphere. Days are shorter while nights are longer. Furthermore, cooling autumn and winter weather inhibits photosynthesis. For deciduous species, foliage becomes less of an asset than a liability.

Dormancy, whether it involves defoliation or not, facilitates a few horticultural techniques. Bare root stock becomes available at the beginning of winter. Transition from its farms to home gardens is much less stressful during dormancy. So is the aggressive pruning that roses and deciduous fruit trees require. Most pollarding is safest during winter dormancy.

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Defoliation Is A Messy Process

Defoliating deciduous foliage must go somewhere.

Autumn foliar color eventually gets messy. Actually, any deciduous foliage can become messy during its autumn defoliation. Color is not a prerequisite. Some deciduous foliage remains green through the process. Furthermore, some evergreen foliage contributes to the mess. A few evergreen species shed a bit more as the weather becomes more wintry.

Contrary to popular belief, deciduous vegetation is neater than evergreen vegetation. It only seems to be messier because it defoliates completely at once. Also, such complete defoliation exposes bare stems. Evergreen vegetation sheds slower throughout the year. As it replaces old foliage with new, it sheds more in seasonal phases, but incompletely.

Deciduous leaves also seem to be messier because they are generally bigger. They do not disintegrate into landscapes as efficiently as tiny evergreen leaves do. They require raking from lawns, as well as groundcover that can absorb smaller leaves. So, they fall most abundantly, and dissipate least efficiently. That is why defoliation is so very messy.

Defoliation of deciduous foliage occurs at both the best and worst time of year. It allows more warming sunlight into homes and gardens while the weather is cooling. It leaves deciduous trees more resilient to eventual windy wintry weather. However, it gets messy while the weather begins to get less conducive to gardening. Summer is about finished.

It truly is ironic. Rain and wind will eventually dislodge the last deciduous foliage during winter. Rain is also why this same foliar debris must not clog eavestroughs and gutters. Yet, it is why removal of such debris can be such an unpleasant chore. Removal of foliar debris from hardscapes is also important. It stains and gets slippery if dampened by rain.

While defoliation decreases shade above, it can increase shade below. Accumulation of foliar debris can detrimentally overwhelm turf and groundcover. Some large leaves can do the same on top of dense shrubbery. Fungal pathogens proliferate within the dark and stagnant dampness below such debris. Shade from such debris inhibits photosynthesis.

Posted on by tonytomeo

Autumn Foliar Color Appreciates Chill

Maples perform better in cooler climates.

Indian Summer complicates autumn. It is an imposition of pleasant weather that delays inevitable chill. Gardening is a bit more enjoyable while the weather remains summery. However, late warmth confuses a few species that should decelerate growth for autumn. Deciduous species delay dormancy. This delays the development of autumn foliar color.

Consequently, autumn foliar color is somewhat late this autumn. It is only beginning to develop. Some species that eventually become spectacularly colorful remain very green. Only the most sensitive species, such as Boston ivy, are beginning to exhibit their color. Unfortunately, because of this delay, some may defoliate unusually soon after coloring.

Autumn foliar color is underrated here, for various reasons. It is less common in the wild than in other regions. The color range of native deciduous species is almost exclusively simple yellow. Orange or red are uncommon. This is not much incentive for incorporation of such species within home gardens. Nor does it promote more colorful exotic species.

Besides, deciduous trees are innately less popular here than within other regions. Local culture seems to promote a preponderance of broadleaf evergreen species. Penetration of warming sunlight through defoliated trees is not such a priority. Winter weather does not get very cold here. Concealment of undesirable suburban scenery is more important.

Also, the misbelief that chill is inadequate here for much autumn foliar color is common. Technically, many of the most colorful species of cooler climates lack such color locally. This unfortunately includes famously colorful North American maples. Several species, however, do not need much chill for spectacular color. They compensate for what lacks.

Sweetgum develops the most vivid autumn foliar color, including yellow, orange and red. It defoliates slowly to retain its color until winter. PIstache is about as colorful, although it defoliates a bit earlier. Flowering pear provides more orange, red and dark burgundy red. Crape myrtle is a smaller tree with comparable foliar color. Ginkgo becomes vivid yellow. Of course, physical traits of each species are also important.

Posted on by tonytomeo · 5 Comments

Out of Tune Trumpet

Brugmansia X cubensis ‘Charles Grimaldi’

Summer was mild. Vegetation that enjoys warmth grew relatively slowly through much of it. Then, toward late summer, and without increased warmth, some vegetation seemed to accelerate growth unexpectedly. Banana and heliconia pups grew like they should have earlier in summer. Angel’s trumpet cuttings began to get somewhat weedy. Some that did not bloom earlier began to bloom now!

Brugmansia X cubensis ‘Charles Grimaldi’ is likely the most popular angel’s trumpet. It is the most vigorous, and may be the most fragrant. One cutting that survived the unusually cool frost last winter grew from its roots to more than six feet tall since then. Now that it is time for it to decelerate growth, it is blooming! Such performance is impressive, but not in tune with the seasons. It can not continue for long, before disruption by increasingly cool autumn weather. Unusually vigorous growth that continues to bloom unusually late could be unusually vulnerable to frost next winter.

This is not the only angel’s trumpet that is out of tune with its seasons. A similarly mature specimen of an unidentified cultivar with single white flowers is about to bloom also. Two older specimens of other unidentified cultivars are growing about as vigorously, although without bloom. One blooms with double white flowers. The other blooms with single pale orange flowers.

About nine copies of each of both cultivars that bloom with white flowers are growing like weeds in #1 cans, with more than a dozen more small cuttings of the cultivar that blooms with double flowers in cells. Only the original matured specimen that blooms with double white flowers actually inhabits a landscape, and is incidentally about to bloom, but is not here with these in the nursery. More will go to landscapes after winter, where their bloom can be enjoyed.

Posted on by tonytomeo · 17 Comments

Six on Saturday: Autumn in the Redwoods

Autumn is not much to brag about here. Not only is the change of the weather mild, but foliar color is limited beyond synthetic landscapes. Redwoods are only a bit messier now because they did not shed as much as typical while summer weather remained atypically mild. Fireplaces at work get a bit more use, but only for ambience. A few autumn flowers bloom between summer flowers and winter flowers.

1. Sequoia sempervirens, coastal redwood is evergreen. Its foliage does not turn colorful for autumn. It certainly sheds though. It sheds mostly while the weather is warmest and driest through summer. However, without such weather, it sheds more as summer ends.

2. Firewood is too mixed for identification of all species that might be involved with this picture. It comes from the various trees that must be removed and pruned here. Because fires at work are more for ambience than heat, the quality of such wood is unimportant.

3. Anemone hupehensis var. japonica, Japanese anemone exhibits why I find ‘Honorine Jobert’ to be so appealing. This is the only anemone here, and it is ghastly pallid, neither pure white nor pinkish. It actually seems to be slightly grayish. Ick! I learned this species as simply Anemone japonica, but now learn that it is supposedly Eriocapitella japonica.

4. Chrysanthemum X morifolium, is more discolored than anemone, but is instead quite pretty. It was likely white when left here after a wedding. It now lives in a garden nearby.

5. Tagetes patula, marigold is as customary for autumn as chrysanthemum is. Its bright yellow and orange are splendid. This one though looks too much like Ronald McDonald.

6. Tagetes patula, marigold should look more like these. Brownish red is traditional too. Marigold is the official flower of Dia de los Muertos of the first and second of November.

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/