A season of hope. A look to the skies for the start of our rains. New birds arriving from distant lands, long migrations while others have left, flown south. The beginning of the horticultural year in the California natural garden.
We’re entering one of our two “tweener” months… we call May “pre-summer” and September “post-summer.” Now we see fall ambling up the way towards us, with not a care in the world.
Many of our natural gardens in southern California are still enjoying the benefits from our abundant rains last season, especially if they have already received a couple Deep Soaks and several Refreshing Sprinkles to date.
Native plants are adapted to this extended season of long days with extreme heat and no rain. Our natural gardens, properly planned, planted, and maintained, can become adapted as well.
We’re looking forward to summer with warmer temps, but in reality, near the coast we’re still wearing long sleeves and even a jacket now and then.
These copious rains of 2022-23 have been very kind to native plants everywhere… in wild places and in garden spaces… abundant flowers, on both spring annuals and shrubs, and lots of new growth. This month we continue the enjoyment as we begin to methodically prepare for summer.
One of the best years for native plants in memory, and perhaps for some, the best year ever! We have 24.51 inches for the season total to date at Tree of Life.
In general, gardeners are an optimistic lot, and usually our optimism pays off… eventually. After nearly three years of meager winter rains coupled with extreme summer heat, we are now experiencing a “great” rain year, with repeated soakings and copious precipitation that will provide deep moisture for our plants well into summer and beyond.
The strange September soakings coupled with the bountiful winter rains have produced unprecedented blooms in some of our driest places. The desert came out with off-season flowers in fall and winter, and has already made a good start on spring. Other…
January, 2023 in the Natural Garden.
…but our forecast for the next two weeks in southern California has us getting a few scraps of rain left over from the main course being served in northern California. This is fairly typical, as evidenced by Mendocino’s 40” compared to San Diego’s 10” annual average…
