In Your Garden

February in your Southern California landscape is the beginning of new growth. It’s also a month of transition. Spring is looming but winter is still with us. Although frosts are possible they’re improbable after February 1st. Be aware of the weather and plan your garden activities accordingly. Don’t prune back flowering perennials too soon and put them at risk to cold damage.

Take this time instead to plan this year’s changes. Review your notes of what did and didn’t do well last year. A successful garden depends on planning and attention. If you have a busy schedule, use low maintenance plantings to create a ‘well tended’ garden with little effort after it’s established. Consider introducing a new plant into your program; perennials and vegetables both. There are a lot of new varieties available at Briggs. Try one just for the fun of it and see how it does.

Color: Filling in blank spots with cool weather annuals such as dianthus, Iceland poppies, pansies, stock, primula, snapdragons and calendulas is a great way to make an impact fast. Clear leaf trash from winter storms out of the beds and punch in a little spring color for instant gratification.

Fruits & Vegetables: There’s still time to plant bare root fruit trees, grapes and berries before they begin to leaf out. Make sure it’s done early in the month. If you haven’t already done it, prune your fruit bearing trees. Midmonth is the time to apply the final spray application for pests on your deciduous fruit trees. Fertilize deciduous fruit trees 2 to 3 weeks before they flower. Along the coast, Citrus and Avocado’s can be fertilized this month. Inland, wait until next month.

Cool weather vegetables like lettuce, carrots, broccoli, celery, white potatoes, peas and radishes can be planted now. At the beginning of the month, the soil’s not warm enough to plant warmer crops like tomatoes and peppers. Wait until the soil temperature reaches about 60 degrees.

Roses & Flowers: Azaleas and Camellias are in full bloom. Plant those now using an acidic soil mix which will help them thrive. However, you want to feed once they’ve stopped blooming. Prune hydrangea and feed with a high nitrogen fertilizer. If you want blue blossoms, apply Hydra blue (aluminum sulfate) or a similar product now for blue flowers next year. Dormant roses should have been pruned by now and you may be seeing some new growth. Fertilize lightly toward the end of the month.

Also: Applying a pre-emergent weed killer will save you time later in the season. Do not apply in areas where you plan to sow seeds for vegetables or flowers. Pull weeds while they’re small before they have a chance to spread seeds around your garden.

Finish heavy pruning of dormant trees before they bud out.

It’s not too late to plant summer blooming bulbs like Canna, Gladiola, Lilies, Tuberoses and tuberous Begonias. If you plant a couple of gladiolus each week through the end of next month, you should have continual blooms through the summer.

In January, your landscape is at its most dormant stage and there’s very little to do.  Aside from pruning and transplanting there’s not a lot going on.  With high moisture levels in the ground, be careful not to disturb the soil too much.   Overworking can result in compaction that may harm the soil structure.   Do go to your local nursery or garden center.  Azaleas, Camellias are blooming along with New Zealand Tea Trees (Leptospermum scoparium) and other plants.  Putting these in your garden will ensure that you have flowers in your garden when most flowering plants are in their dormant stage.

Color:   Fill in bare spots with cool weather annuals.  Pansies, Snapdragons, Iceland poppies and Kale are great additions to the garden along with Cyclamen, Primula and Begonias.  Keep leaf trash cleaned from the base of the plants.  Plant summer blooming bulbs; canna, dahlia, lilies, tuberose and tuberous begonias.

Fruits & Vegetables:  Plant bare-root fruit trees, grapes, berries and strawberries now.  Soak roots in water overnight before planting.  Continue to spray dormant fruit trees for pests, include trunk and soil around the base of the tree.  Prune established fruit trees to maintain a uniform shape.  Many cool weather vegetables are available.  Sow beet, carrot and radish seeds.

Roses & Flowers:  Clean leaf litter from around the base of plants to discourage snails & slugs.  Bait as necessary.  Prune roses before new growth begins.  Water roses thoroughly before pruning.  Other flowering shrubs should be pruned after the first bloom cycle.

Also:  Natives can also be pruned lightly now in order to maintain a uniform shape.  If rainfall isn’t heavy, water deeply.  The moisture they store now will help them through the hot summer months.

Bulbs with higher cold requirements need to be planted in cold soil.  If the weather is cool, between Christmas and New Years, plant then.  Otherwise wait until the soil temperature drops being sure to plant before January 10^th.

Protect tender plants from frost by covering them with a non-plastic material when frost threatens.  Keeping plantings well hydrated will help frost survival also.  A turgid plant will recover from frost better than a dry plant.  Should a frost damage your garden, don’t be tempted to prune off the damaged parts.  They’ll help protect the plant from further damage should another frost occur.  Trim these parts off later in the year when all risk of frost has past.

Plant and transplant Azaleas and Camellias.  Be sure to use a high acid planting mix to promote growth.

Cool temperature weather is the perfect time to prune evergreens

There’s not a lot going on in the garden this month which is good because chances are your time is full of other commitments. Now is a great time to work on your plans for next year’s garden. Pull out the notes you’ve made throughout the year and make your revisions on paper before you tackle the projects in the spring. Do maintenance on your gardening tools. Oil shovels, picks and spades to prevent rusting. Clean, sharpen and oil other tools to keep them in good shape for when you need them in the spring.

Color: There are still a lot of varieties available as both annuals and perennials. Plant a combination of red and white flowers for holiday cheer. Alyssum, Bacopa, Begonia, Cyclamen, Dianthus, Geranium, Gerbera, Impatiens, Osteospermum, Pansy, Salvia, and Verbena are among a few. Poinsettias, which are native to Mexico, can also be used as color in the garden. They’ll be happiest on a drip system which will keep the leaves dry.

Fruits & Vegetables: Plant bare root fruit trees this month. Prune established fruit trees once they’ve dropped their leaves. Spray as needed following manufacturer’s instructions carefully. Cut back grape vines. Artichokes, asparagus, beets, broccoli, Brussels’ sprouts, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, celery, kale, lettuce, peas, potatoes and radishes can all be planted now. Don’t be afraid to try something new.

Roses & Flowers: Stop watering and fertilizing established roses this month and let them harden unless we get

a heat wave. Bare root roses can be planted this month. Now is a good time to transplant roses.

Remember to take as much of the roots as possible and keep well watered.

Also: Natives can also be pruned lightly now in order to maintain a uniform shape.

Cut back Wisteria. Remove the long, thin branches that have become intertwined with the old wood.

If you haven’t done so yet, plant your bulbs. Bulbs that don’t need to be refrigerated can be planted until December 25th. If you wait longer than that, you run the chance of having fewer, smaller flowers. Other bulbs with higher cold requirements need to be planted in cold soil. If the weather is cool, between Christmas and New Years, plant then. Otherwise wait until the soil temperature drops being sure to plant before January 10th.

Protect tender plants from frost by covering them with a non-plastic material when frost threatens. Keeping plantings well hydrated will help frost survival also. A turgid plant will recover from frost better than a dry plant. Should a frost damage your garden, don’t be tempted to prune off the damaged parts. They’ll help protect the plant from further damage should another frost occur. Trim these parts off later in the year when all risk of frost has past.

There is a lot to do in your landscape this month. It’s time to get out there to plan ahead for spring and prepare for winter storms. Soil temperatures are still warm and the digging is easy. Get out there and plant, plant, plant!

Color: Pansies planted now will provide beautiful color through the winter months. Columbine, Cyclamen, Poppies, Primrose, Ranunculus, Snapdragon, Stock and Viola will all add a nice splash of color to your garden.

Fruits & Vegetables: Plant containerized fruit trees and bushes now. Don’t plant bare root plants until next month. Fruit trees should be sprayed for pests in 6 week intervals when the trees are in their dormant stages. An easy way to remember the schedule is to spray around the following holidays; Thanksgiving (when the last leaf has fallen), New Years Day (the height of dormancy) and Valentine’s Day (when the buds begin to swell). Remember to follow the manufacturer’s directions for application carefully. Prune old canes of berries (except raspberries) back to the ground leaving the new canes to produce fruit next year. Plant vegetables like artichokes, beets, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, celery, garlic, lettuce, onion, peas, radishes, spinach and turnips. Plant strawberries.

Roses & Flowers: Stop fertilizing roses this month and prune lightly. Save the hard pruning for January. Most varieties of Hydrangeas bloom on year-old stems. Don’t be tempted. Pruning now will reduce the number of flowers you have next year. To try to get blue or purple blooms on plants with normally pink flowers, apply Aluminum Sulfate now. Mulch around Camellias, Azaleas and other Rhododendrons with a high acid mulch. Removing smaller buds on Camellias will result in larger flowers later on.

Also: Cut back the ornamental grasses when they begin to show signs of new growth.

November is the time to plant natives. Even though they’re drought tolerant, they need to be watered (see water schedules for your local water agency) until they’re established.

If you haven’t done so yet, plant your bulbs. Now is the time also to divide Agapanthus, Iris, Moraea and Daylilies and transplant evergreen shrubs. (Though not tender tropicals.)

Prepare for winter rains. Trim or thin trees with heavy top branches so the wind moves through them easily. If you’re going to trim them yourself, research proper pruning methods to avoid mistakes that may cause problems later on. Double check stakes on young trees.

Not all of your work is outside. Reposition houseplants so that they benefit from the winter sunlight. Keep them away from drafts and the heat from fireplaces or heating vents.

The heat wave we had in September is cooling off. Now – let’s focus on October. October is prime planting month. It’s a good time to plant trees, shrubs, color, groundcover, vegetables roses and of course fruit trees. Get out there and start making the changes you’ve considered this past year. The results of much of the planting and pruning you do now will be evident later on. The soil temperature is still warm which will encourage root growth. Planting now will allow you to take advantage of the winter rains and you’ll see the benefits when the days lengthen in the spring.

Color: Remove the annual color you planted last spring and get ready to replant. If you look at a plant and wonder ‘will it recover?’ the answer is ‘no’. Discard it and replace it with winter color such as Pansy, Kale, Primula, Schizanthus and Viola. Each year there seem to be more exciting cultivars available along with the old favorites. Mix and match to add some fun to your fall color.

Fruits & Vegetables: Keep fruit and vegetables picked to avoid rot spreading to the rest of the crop. Remove vegetable plants that are past their bearing season. Keep the area under the fruit trees clean to discourage disease. Now is the time to plant strawberries for harvest in the spring. Also plant, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, radishes, peas and lettuce.

Roses & Flowers: Feed and water roses deeply to promote a strong fall blooming season. Dead-head all varieties to prolong the flowering period. Plant wildflower seed.

Consider adding some ornamental grasses to your landscape. The movement and texture they provide is a great compliment to leafy plants and they’re virtually maintenance free and very water efficient.

If you haven’t done so yet, plant your bulbs. For bulbs that need a longer period of cold to bloom effectively (tulips & hyacinth), place them in a paper bag in the refrigerator away from fruit. Now is the time also to divide Agapanthus, Iris, Moraea and Daylilies.

Prepare for Santa Ana conditions. Trim trees with heavy top branches. Water deeply and thoroughly. Double check stakes on young trees. During the winds, water lightly and frequently to help keep the moisture in your landscape.