Category: Monthly Garden Advice

M is for May, Mothers, Matilija poppy and Maybe one last rain, (but probably not this year).

Diversity. It is what makes southern California’s flora so amazing, and the lack thereof is what makes southern California’s “ornamental” public landscape so dull. Take a hike, prepared with camera, sketch pad or notebook and you’re in for a pleasant treat.

Spring will have sprung after March 20, 2022. Natural gardens everywhere, even the wild ones planted by God himself, will be bursting into new realms of new life in the next few weeks.

Especially during drought periods, our natural gardens become rich oases, each one a green bullseye on the big target for local songbirds, hummingbirds, butterflies and other beneficials. A simple water source like a fountain or bird bath proves to be an additional invaluable habitat in even the smallest garden space.

The whole ecosystem is undergoing a silent recharge beneath cloudy skies and the sun’s arc low in the sky. And we can take a break from garden chores for a personal recharge on a cold windy trail, or curled up with a good book near a warm fire.

Forecast: Continued dry and unseasonably warm with no chance of rain. After a decent bit at the end of October, we imagined the storm gates might officially open for winter. It appears that through November, we may have to enjoy only imaginary rain, good enough for a poet or philosopher but completely meaningless in the realm of soil moisture.

Now let’s talk about those “many garden tasks” for fall. Gardening, like farming, is all about performing tasks today that will pay dividends in 3-6 months.

Happy New Year! At least that’s the word around Tree of Life today, as September 1 has always been the date we make all things