By Cindy Poore
I can feel it. I can taste it. Spring. Yes, it is still cold and occasionally wet. But just enough sunny days out there to warm up the earth for optimum growth potential.
And the weeds have heard as well. They have taken over in droves in so many of the places that lay fallow all winter long. We are systematically knocking them down, yard by yard. If you need help with your weed issues, give us a call. We have been busy with weed control, but will be glad to help you.
The best news is that it is finally warm enough to venture outside and survey the damage from winter. Time to tidy up the yard. You have been patiently waiting to cut back the dead leaves and stems of your perennial plants. Iris, daylilies, sages and the like need their dead foliage removed now to allow the new green growth to pop up and get growing. Rake up the drifts of wind-blown leaves to clean up the yard.
How do you know how much to cut back? When you are not certain how a plant will respond to cutting back, lightly prune back in the fall. In the spring if it is mainly sprouting near the base, then you can safely cut it back to the sprouts. If it is leafing out all over the plant then leave it alone and only cut it back to control size.
If you have not yet pruned your fruit and deciduous trees, there is still time, so go ahead and get that done before they are completely leafed out. Much easier to prune the trees when you can see the branch structure without the leaves.
Next up? FERTILIZE. Especially for lawns, now is the time to give them a feeding to green them up and help them recover from the winter cold. Fertilize your trees, shrubs and perennials as well.
You should see spring annuals in the stores now. Still time for some nice color from some pansies or Iceland poppies which could last until June with tons of color. Put them in large pots in select places around your garden. Plant the pot with a landscape shrub with room for the annuals on the side. Or spend your money on some perennials. Perennials are a good investment as they come back year after year but they will be a bit scarce for a few more weeks.
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March Checklist
Watch your plants carefully for small aphids. They will appear in droves this time of year. The best way to deal with them is to wash off the plant initially a couple of days in a row. If that is not possible or if that does not work, apply a systemic insecticide and that will give a longer term control. Aphids normally will not kill your plants, but will make a sticky mess and attract ants as well.
If you have weeds, hoe them out or kill them before they produce seeds. Seeds beget more weeds and you will prevent thousands potential plants by removing weeds and their carcasses off site early before they bloom.
Time to plant! March is a great time to start planting in the ground the standard landscape plants. March is really time to start your seeds. There is still a possibility for some snow in the high desert and the mountain areas and killing frosts in the inland valley this month and into April. Sowing seeds but starting them indoors or in a cold frame outdoors during this month is a smart move. You can transplant them into the ground in April, early or late depending on your location.
I like to start the seeds in cardboard egg cartons that have a hole poked in the bottom and filled with some starter soil. Plant the seeds, a few per eggs space. Place the egg carton on a rimmed cookie sheet and water the whole thing. Put plastic wrap over the top to keep the moisture in and check on every few days to see that it doesn’t dry out. When the seedlings begin to pop up, remove the plastic wrap and allow the tiny plants to grow up keeping them moist. Transplant the seedlings, egg cup and all in the ground or a much larger pot. The cardboard will decompose and allow the plant roots to expand. Keep transplanted seedlings protected until May.
February is the month of love and no where else is love more abundant than in your garden right now. “Really?” You say. “I don’t think so.” As you peer out your window to the cold and gloomy February outdoors.
But yes, the love is all around you, deep in the heart of your plants and soil. It is waiting. Waiting to be cultivated with just a little love and attention to bud and bloom and blossom into what can be. It will become heavy with fruit and green lusciousness for you to revel in very soon.
Ok. Like all good things love (and your garden) will take some time and effort, but it is so worth it!
So when you look out and see just cold empty spaces; remember it is up to you to make things grow.
“For a seed to achieve its greatest expression, it must come completely undone. The shell cracks, its insides come out and everything changes. To someone who doesn’t understand growth, it would look like complete destruction.” Cynthia Occelli
Cash for Grass Program
We live in a desert. That is literally everybody in Southern California not just the High Desert areas. We grew up with a feeling of abundance when it came to using water in our homes and on our yards. Things need to change. We only have one earth and we need to conserve to keep it going in a healthy direction. We can do just as well with a lot less. We actually can do better!
More than half of the water used at residences and businesses that are landscaped is spent on outdoor watering. If your current landscaping is mostly or a large part grass, re-landscaping it into an attractive water-wise landscape is one of the best ways to help save water.
Locally here in the Victor Valley we have the Cash for Grass Program. Our local program gives you the opportunity to convert your grass into desert-adaptive and water-wise landscaping, with a monetary rebate when you do.
Of course, there are rules and restrictions to the program. You must have living grass to apply. Your grass can be dormant, but if it has been dead for a while you won’t qualify. You can apply through your water company who will give you all the particulars.
Once approved you will get a letter with the guidelines for the program and you will get a list of approved plants to install. The list is large and quite variable for lots of different looks so you really aren’t roughing it when it comes to “making do” with a water-thrifty landscape. You do not have to remove ALL your lawn. You can keep some of your grass if you like, it is just not part of the rebate square footage.
You do not have to hire anyone to do the removal or new installations for you. There are no “approved or not approved vendors”. You can do this all on your own if you feel you are up to the task. However, if you want professional help or advice, design or guidance, removal services or installations services, give us a call. We can do that for you.
February is the time for Insect Prevention
Getting ahead of the game is where it is at. Modern science has given us many tools to help us with preventing problems with our bodies and so too there are things we can do preventively to help prepare our trees and plants to be healthier and ward off attack from pest and disease. February is a great month to apply dormant oil to deciduous trees to coat the branches with the oil that will smother overwintering insects and larvae.
It is also a great month to apply a systemic treatment to the base of large evergreen and deciduous trees. It takes time for the product to be taken into the plant’s conductive tissues and to be distributed throughout the plant’s branches, stems and needles or leaves. The larger the tree or shrub, the longer the process takes. Which makes late winter/early spring a great time to apply protection before the new leaves have emerged. Prevention is key for insects like borers because when they get a foothold on the plant, it is harder to control them than it is to prevent them. So keep your plants healthy with some preventative measures.
February is also for Dormant Pruning
Hurry! Now is the time to do your dormant pruning for your fruit trees, grapes, cane berries, wisteria, roses and other woody dormant plants. Soon the warm weather will cause them to respond with aggressive growth and you want to “direct” their energies with the proper pruning. I like to say that by pruning, you are talking to your plants and telling them what is expect of them. It is much easier to manage this now rather than when they are out of control in a few months.
Don’t forget this is a good month for:
Weed prevention and control before they get out of hand.
Stock your bird feeders.
Plant bare-root trees and shrubs
Break out the seed catalogues and order your seeds
Plan this year’s garden changes
Build your raised gardens and prep the soil.
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My Favorite Recipes
White Chicken Chili
I have had recipes for white chicken chili I have been considering trying. Chicken being low in fat and chili being full of taste and both being warm in your tummy for a nice winter meal. Pair with a salad and some corn bread and you are all set.
I had a hard time finding a recipe that doesn’t make a ton of food. There are just two of us and the hubs doesn’t want to be eating the same stuff for days and neither do I. So I took the other recipes and adapted them to the one below. It is EASY, QUICK and strangely enough, tastes cheesey (without any cheese?) What’s up with that?? I don’t know, but you are sure to enjoy this “a little bit different” chili.
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can of white beans, drained
1 small can of chopped green chilies
2 cooked chicken thighs shredded (or 8 oz)
2 tablespoons taco seasoning.
Put all ingredients into a medium sauce pan and simmer over medium heat for 30 minutes and serve. Makes 2-3 generous servings.
To make things a bit spicier, chop 1 small onion and sauté in the sauce pan first with a tsp of olive oil until the onion is almost translucent. Add ½ to 1 fresh jalapeno (minced without seeds) to the pan and sauté 2 minutes more and then add all the other ingredients and cook as above. Yum!
Winds have been horrible this past week especially down the hill. Trees have gotten knocked over all over the place. I get lots of calls from people asking me about cutting their trees shorter so they won’t blow down in the wind. Really??
So people would like their trees to look like this?? Let me tell you that is NOT the way to keep a tree from getting blown over in the wind. You may not be aware of this, but it all comes from the two most important things, proper planning in the first place and proper care and maintenance. Simple. Selecting the correct tree for the location is key. If you only have room for a tree to grow so tall, or so wide, then just plant one that will reach it’s mature size in the range you want. Also stay with the type of tree that will do well in the location, soil, weather you have. I find that a lot of people not only do not know what the optimal growing conditions of their trees are, they do not even know the type of tree they have. Knowledge is power.
Maintenance is key to a healthy tree and healthy trees do not blow over in the wind. If you are lucky to plant the tree yourself or inherit a smallish tree, then the proper pruning when the tree is young is critical in developing healthy branches with strong connections to the main trunk. If you inherit an older or large tree, have a professional inspect the tree for issues that were not addressed earlier. Some things are obvious like crossing and dead branches. Some other things are not so obvious like compaction or destruction of root area due to construction or grade changes, disease and pest issues. Maintain your trees in a healthy state with proper watering and fertilizing and you will maximize the life of your trees and the benefit to you.
By Cindy Poore
I am always looking for inspirational bits to keep me focused on my goals and I ran across this little gem below. I like it because it demonstrates that growth is not always pretty, some destruction is necessary. That is very true in life as well as the garden. Since my life is spent in one garden or another, I tend to blur the lines of distinction between life and the garden because they actually are one in the same for me. There is nothing more exciting than creating an outdoor space that will allow someone to live a more beautiful life. One that is a reflection of what they are or want to be. One that they can fully love because it is completely tuned to them and their lifestyle and their needs and abilities to take care of it. One of the best parts of my job… So January is all about beginning and planning for the future. I am working with some clients now doing just that and the process is sometimes a little messy, hence the quote below. But it is definitely worth it!
“For a seed to achieve its greatest expression, it must come completely undone. The shell cracks, its insides come out and everything changes. To someone who doesn’t understand growth, it would look like complete destruction.” Cynthia Occelli
By Cindy Poore
Look at that. Just by changing one letter we went from a resolution to a revolution. BIG difference. A new day, a new month, a new year is always nice. A fresh start to the rest of your life. And how better to kick off your new life but with a tiny change.
We usually make big promises to ourselves at the start of the year that often get dropped in a few weeks because the promise was too big. How about if you start small?
Some times the smallest thing can make a BIG difference and they are easier to keep going. I started a few years ago with quitting soda and look where it took me. That small thing let to other things and it led me to a new and healthier life of exercising and eating real food, feeling great and looking a lot better too. A real revolution in my life.
Sometimes we let barriers we build for ourselves get in our way and keep us from moving forward. X has to happen before we can do Y and so on. Just ask yourself is that really true? What would happen if it didn’t go down that way. You just may make a small change that changes your whole world. Think about it and make 2015 your Revolution to your new world.
Cold enough for ya?
Yup it finally got cold, AND we had rain and some got snow. Now everybody is scurrying from the car to the house with nary a glance to the outdoors. Just get inside and get warm! But your yard and garden still need your help.
When it is cold like this, you need to keep an eye on the weather. When we get rain and or snow you do not have to water your garden so make sure your sprinkler clock is shut off for a bit until it needs watering again. Yea!!
How much moisture fell from the sky will determine when you need to water again. I’ve said this before about watering in the winter. Some people just turn off the clocks in November and don’t turn them on again until April and others never touch their clocks at all and their watering system continues as it did in the summer. Neither approach is correct.
Changeable weather conditions here can make scheduling watering during the winter months difficult because so much needs to be taken into consideration. Soil type, precipitation or lack thereof and freeze conditions make your scheduling life difficult.
To help properly know when to water, new sprinkler controllers known as “smart controllers” are helping people better know when to water. Smart controllers use weather stations or soil moisture sensors to determine when and how long water. These new irrigation controllers take the guess work out of watering your landscape. Call us if you need advice on when and how to water. If you feel like one of the “smart controllers might be a good fit for your needs, call us we can install that for you as well.
(760) 868-6104
Pluviophile : (n) a lover of rain; someone who finds joy and peace of mind during rainy days
Got fruit or nut trees? NOW is the time to prevent lots of problems with a dormant oil application. Dormant oil is an organic method for preventing overwintering insects from ruining your fruit this summer. For apples and pears with coddling moth this is the least expensive treatment option that will give good results.
Not much can easily eradicate the coddling moth once your trees are infested. But you can minimize them with good orchard sanitation by pruning your trees now and removing all tree litter under your trees and applying a good dormant oil application now.
Other Coddling moth treatments require repeat applications of pricey organic treatments with perfect timing of stage of development and degree days. Dormant oil is the next best option. Treat with dormant oil and inspect your fruit when it is forming. Thin your fruit and bag each fruit with paper bags or nylon sacks (made from old pantyhose). Dispose of any fruit (off site) that you find with the worms as soon as you find them.
With the rain comes the weeds!
You will see the green coming to the valley in the weeks ahead. The lovely rain we had is all that is needed to wake up the weed seeds that have been lying dormant until now. Give us a call and we can spray to kill those weeds, or better yet, call us now and we will put down a weed preventer with the weed killer and you will not see weeds for months to come!
Plan and organize your veggie garden and order the seeds you will want to grow this spring. Try something different this year, even if only in a pot!
Time to prune those rose bushes! January is the typical month to do the annual severe pruning for your rose bushes to develop strong, healthy canes and beautiful roses come this spring. We can do it for you. Call us.
Need help with scheduling, pest or weed issues or removing your water thirsty grass? Give us a call!
We Are Here to Help You With
All Your Landscape Needs
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- Staying Home May 31, 2020Staying home has new meaning since the tragic and crazy world of COVID-19. While most are keeping a low profile at home, Perfection Landscape knows that we are essential for helping our clients care for their home environments. We continue to do maintenance for our regular and new clients keeping with social distancing guidelines for […]
- Weeds are Back! March 10, 2018Is your yard Exploding with weeds ? You may think a few weeds here or there aren’t much to worry about, but did you know most weeds are capable of producing over a thousand seeds each? Rain and the warmer weather that will follow will make conditions just right for hose little land mines […]