Words and photos by Mike Evans
Tree of Life has been propagating, producing, and selling high quality California native plants for 45 years. Actually started in the late 70’s but we figure a good place to put the formal beginning is 1980. Then, about 25 years ago, we opened in earnest to the public, and in 2004 built the much-loved Casa ‘La Paz’.
Somewhere along this trail came the internet and our website, and then this newsletter was born some 10-12 years ago. This being the last of our monthly natural gardening newsletters, I am given pause to reflect how much it has meant to me to be able to pass on a little information and inspiration over the years, and I want to thank all of you who from time to time have written with gardening questions or comments. It has been a privilege and a pleasure to be part of this wonderful community.
But my nostalgia yields to my anticipation.
If you would like to continue receiving my free monthly newsletter, much like the one you are reading, (“This month in the Natural Garden”), but more extensive, covering all aspects of native horticulture, please sign up here:
calnativehort.org and scroll to the very bottom of the page. Thank you.
I look forward to being part of this new community with you. Let’s keep this vibe alive!
Current events, history, review, and notes
Our cool season began with generous rains, totaling almost 6” by Thanksgiving, giving hope for a “good rain year.” Hope is not lost, but the forecast for December has no rain on the horizon for the first 2-3 weeks. Warmer than normal for this time of year and dry.
Watering
Unless you have recently added to your garden, you probably do not have to water, given that we got some beautiful rains, sufficient to soak most soils down to the root zone. New plants will require hand watering in their basins while they await the next rain. If this current dry spell extends past Christmas, we may want to supplement our seasonal rains with a Deep Soak, but it is too early to know.
Related to Watering
Rainfall is always better than hose or sprinkler irrigation, but irrigation is always better than bone dry soils, stressed plants, dessication. So if you sense your well established natural garden is longing for a shower, and you’re certain the soil is still moist, you can perform a quick Refreshing Sprinkle (RS) anytime you like. Usually reserved for summer evenings, RF performed in winter can be done any time of day, since the sun is low in the sky and the days are short.
Your plants are not transpiring very much (losing water through the leaf pores as they cool themselves), so your RF will be more a gesture towards reciprocity when done in December. It’s like petting your dog. He could get by without it, but it makes you both feel good.
Pruning
All manner of corrective and aesthetic pruning can be done safely in December. If you “head back” or hedge prune ceanothus, be sure you are not cutting off tiny flower buds on the branch tips. Usually these are evident in January/February for April/May bloom, but some varieties flower earlier.
Weeding
With moist soil everywhere, wouldn’t this be a nice time to stop procrastinating and go out to pull some weeds? They will be easier to eradicate.
Mulching / Top Dress
Many plants are through shedding their leaves (even evergreens lose leaves from the interior branches, i.e.; manzanita) and have accumulated at their base their very own, individualized “leaf litter.” Be sure to leave this in place. Most natural gardens require no additional topdress, as the natural mulch generated by the plants themselves is much better. If you feel you want to refresh the soil surface with imported mulch, December is a good month. Use clean, chunky, attractive wood products, i.e.; 5/8” redwood (or equivalent) bark chips.
Feeding
Organic fertilizer can be applied anytime during the cool season, but Oct. and March are the best months. The soil is basically pretty cold right now so the fertilizer won’t be readily available to the roots until it warms up a bit. You can wait until March.
Troubleshooting – Varmints, Pests and Diseases
Almost all injurious plant pests, varmints, and diseases are laying low in the winter months. Manzanita leaf gall aphid might show up in early spring, so be on the lookout for bright red, distorted new growth.
Annual Wildflowers
If you sowed seed in fall, you are probably seeing germination. If you still want to sow seed for spring bloom, it’s not too late, come on over or call… we have several mixes still available.
Adding New Plants
Rainy season, with or without rain is the perfect time to plant natives.
My Patio Re-wild
Small spaces (including pots) almost always look better if you include a few rocks of varying sizes. If you are trying to create a natural garden, native plants look great when they are planted on undulating soil topography with builders and rocks nearby. Build mounds, find some unique rocks, sticks and other natural features, and you will have made a miniature ecosystem.
Phytophilia
Our love of plants and their love for us. When I look and listen over the natural landscape or into a natural garden, this month I see and hear the words “Steady, all’s well, peace.” The human chaos of the world all around is irrelevant to the pair of redtails I ponder soaring overhead.
Re-wild
Here’s a natural garden rewild tip for winter. Place a few white rocks, any size, hand-held or larger, along the path or at strategic junctions where they will shine bright at night, especially when the moon is out. Quartzite, pegmatite, mudstone, soapstone, sandstone, granite, tuff, gypsum, or anything bright, anything white. In your garden, these will become your nighttime friends, and by day, they will remind you of night.
Important Review
Newsletter – Adios TOLN. Hello CNHF
Hope the rains keep coming
Moist soil, dry weather
RS to help you and your plants, (mostly you.)
Pruning good time
Weeding easy
Mulching good time
Feeding OK but soil still cold
Pests at rest
Wildflower seed good time
Planting best time
Rocks make good companions
Peace
White rocks as nighttime guides
Engage
“Patience” as observed in Nature
Day to Night
Season to Season
Years, Decades, Centuries, Millenia, all unto themselves.
All relate to time, (as we know it).
Change is constant
For the most part steady, slow (by our standards), subtle.
But when change is drastic, i.e.; fire, flood, drought, hurricane, volcano –
Nature’s reply
In adapting, coping, changing, repairing, restoring, or creating anew is
Patience.
Gracias amigos… Adios.
From the Tree of Life desk of this monthly newsletter, Gracias amigos… Adios.
I would be very sad if indeed this were the end of it all. While Tree of Life Nursery is finishing our 45-year run, California Native Horticultural Foundation is beginning with a new horizon 50+ years out, Lord willing.
Check the website calnativehort.org and sign up for the free newsletter.
Please consider joining to be part of a new (actually a continuing) community whose goal will be to promote natural gardening, principally by working together – communicating, sharing, learning, teaching, following and leading… but mostly enjoying the journey, as together we walk a path towards a more authentic and environmentally sensitive California.
CNHF is new. We will only be as strong as our members, and from what I’ve learned having worked with you all for 50 years… that’s a really strong community! Let’s keep makin’ it! And thanks to those of you who already joined!
Ps. Everyone who joins in 2025 will be listed as an “Inaugural Member.”
Stay tuned.
Volume I, Number 1 of a new monthly newsletter will debut in January 2026
“CalNativeHort Connect”
Sign up now! calnativehort.org
From DECEMBER in the Natural Garden,
Mike Evans
Questions? Help is just one call or one email away. Call (949) 728-0685 or email (with pictures if you like) our special helpline: gardenhelp@californianativeplants.com
We Want to Hear From You!
Hi, I’m Pamela from Tree of Life Nursery. As a thank you to Jeff, Mike, and all Tree of Lifers, I’m creating a Commemorative Wall on our website to honor the people and moments that have shaped this place, and I’d love to include your voice.
If you have a story, photo, or shout-out from your time at Tree of Life, big or small, funny, heartfelt, or unforgettable, please share it using the form below.
Your memories mean a lot to everyone at TOLN, they’re an important part of our story.
Thank you for being part of Tree of Life.