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Garden Data (thru July 3, 2009) Avg. evapotranspiration rate this past week : 1.9" valley; 2.0" foothills. Soil Temperature: 75 (F) valley. 86 (F) foothills. 73 (F) upper foothills. Click Here for more Information about soil temperature and evapotranspiration rates Chilling hours (hours at 45 degrees or less, for deciduous fruit tree production, Nov. 1, 2008 - Feb. 28, 2009: VALLEY: 947-1254 hours FOOTHILLS: 1084-1256 hours ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Looking for lists and pictures of plants that don't require much water? Check out the website... Saturday, June 27 Guided Tour: Ecology of the Redwoods 10:00 a.m., Buehler Alumni and Visitors Center, UC Davis Learn about the complex and fascinating ecosystem of the redwood forest on a free guided tour at the UC Davis Arboretum on Saturday, June 27. This walk will provide a brief introduction to the ecology and history of the coast redwood and the most common animals and plants found in the redwood forest. The tour will meet at 10:00 a.m. at the Buehler Alumni and Visitors Center, located on Old Davis Road at Mrak Hall Drive, across from the Monda vi Center for the Performing Arts on the UC Davis campus. There is no charge for the tour and free parking is available in Visitor Lots 1 and 2 and the Mondavi Center parking structure. For more information, please call (530) 752-4880 or visit arboretum.ucdavis.edu. ======================================== Saturday, June 27, 2009, 10am-4pm Heartland Festival http://eco-farm.org/events/heartland_project/heartland_festival/ Double T Acres, 22368 West 2nd Ave. Stevinson, CA 95374, 209/634-0187 Steven Zien will be enlightening participants on how to manage soil life for pest free gardens and landscapes at 1pm. Other activities at the Heartland Festival include garden and farm demos, renewable energy, healthy eating, farmers market, farm tours, petting zoo, children's activities, square dancing, live music and more. (south of turlock). ========================================== Monday, June 29, 2009, 6:30pm Gardeners of the Grove at the Jesse Wright Conference Center, Suite 100, 9275 E. Stockton Blvd., Elk Grove, 95624 "SOIL NOT JUST A DIRTY WORD: Take a revealing journey into the mysteries of managing your soil's biology for an easy care, healthy, pest free garden and landscape," will be the title of a presentation made by Steven Zien, Sacramento's Organic Advocate. For more information contact 916-691-9722. ============================================ Saturday, July 4 Guided Tour: Discover Plants from Down Under 10:00 a.m., Arboretum Terrace Garden, Davis Commons, First Street, Davis California and Western Australia have similar climate and environmental conditions, so many Australian plants are well suited for Central Valley gardens. The UC Davis Arboretum will offer a free guided tour focusing on the Arboretum's recently-renovated Australian Collection on Saturday, July 4 at 10:00 a.m. The tour will meet at the Arboretum Terrace, located next to Borders Books and Music in the Davis Commons retail center at First and D Streets in Davis. There is no charge for the tour and free parking is available behind the retail center. For more information, please call (530) 752-4880 or visit arboretum.ucdavis.edu. ======================================= Wednesday, July 8 Walk with Warren 8:30 a.m., Gazebo, Garrod Drive, UC Davis campus Visitors to the UC Davis Arboretum can enjoy the midsummer flowers, learn about the Arboretum's collections, and get a little exercise on a morning stroll with Superintendent Warren Roberts on Wednesday, July 8. The free tour will meet at 8:30 a.m. at the Gazebo, on Garrod Drive on the UC Davis campus. Parking is available for $6.00 in Visitor Lot 55. For more information, please call (530) 752-4880 or visit arboretum.ucdavis.edu. ======================================= Saturday, July 11 Guided Tour: Bring the Mediterranean into Your Backyard 10:00 a.m., Arboretum Terrace Garden, Davis Commons, First Street, Davis California's Central Valley has a Mediterranean-type climate, with hot, dry summers and cool, wet winters. Traditional gardens in Mediterranean-climate areas use time-honored techniques to reduce water use and create a cool retreat. A garden expert will discuss Mediterranean-style gardening during a free public tour of the UC Davis Arboretum Terrace Garden on Saturday, July 11, at 10:00 a.m. Participants will learn about using shade structures, container gardens, and water features to encourage outdoor living, lower ambient temperature, increase the sense of comfort, and reduce the area of irrigated garden. The Arboretum Terrace, a home demonstration garden for California's Central Valley, is located next to Borders Books and Music, in the Davis Commons retail center at First and D Streets in Davis. There is no charge for the tour and free parking is available behind the retail center. For more information, please call (530) 752-4880 or visit arboretum.ucdavis.edu. ======================================= Saturday July 11, 2009 11:30 to 12:30 "Agfest 2009" Steven Zien, Sacramento's Organic Advocate will be speaking on how to manage your soil biology to create a better tasting beautiful garden from 11:30 to 12:30 at Fremont Park as part of Common Table &endash; Urban Ag Fest 2009 sponsored by Slow Food Sacramento. This is an all day fun educational event with numerous workshops culminating with a three course dinner.For more information go to http://www.pesticidewatch.org/events or http://slowfoodsacramento.com/ or contact Charity Kenyon, ckenyon@kenyonyeates.com, (916) 609-5012, or (916) 343-0081 (cell). http://slowfoodsacramento.com/agfest-2009-workshops/ =========================================================== Saturday July 11, 2009 Be a Farmer for a Morning at Soil Born Farms Time: 8:30 a.m. &endash; Noon (or less, if you prefer) Location: American River Ranch, 2140 Chase Drive, Rancho Cordova Composting 101 Time: 10:30 &endash; 11 a.m. Location: Fremont Community Garden 14th and Q Streets, Sacramento Learn how to turn your garden and kitchen waste into organic fertilizer. Community gardener Bill Maynard will explain how kitchen waste can be composted, how to best set up a composting area, what equipment is needed, and ultimately how to use the composte to fertilize a garden. Vermi-composting, or worm farming, will also be discussed for those who don't generate a lot of kitchen waste, have much yard space or want to have a worm bin to create fertilizer. ========================================================= Saturday July 11, 2009 Organics 101 Time: 11:30 a.m. &endash; 12:30 p.m. Location: Fremont Park, between 15th and 16 th, O and P Streets Discover why it is critical for a healthy body and planet that you grow organically. Sacramento's Organic Advocate, Steven Zien will bring to light the perils of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides, and how you can begin to nurture a bio-diverse soil food web yielding pest resistant landscapes and more nutritious vegetable gardens. You will walk away understanding how to manage yours soils nutritional, biological, and physical needs. Steve will unearth what organic fertilizers and soil conditioners to use that will create the best tasting, most nutritious, pest resistant and beautiful garden that will be the envy of your neighborhood. ============================================================ Saturday, July 11 UCCE / El Dorado Co. Master Gardener class on "In Love With Lavender" 9:00 a.m., Veterans' Memorial Bldg., 130 Placerville Drive, Placerville Lavenders have long been prized for the fragrance of their flowers and because they are the perfect plant for our hot, dry summers. Plan to attend this presentation by Master Gardeners Virginia Feagans & Kathy Pearson to learn about the various lavender varieties and how to care for them in the garden. There is no registration needed to attend the class and it is free to the public. For more information, please call (530) 621-5512 Tuesday-Friday, 9 a.m. to noon. ===================== Saturday, July 18 UCCE / El Dorado Co. Master Gardener class on "Native Plants" 9:00 a.m., Placerville Main Library, 345 Fair Lane, Placerville California's native plants support wildlife and are naturally adapted to our Mediterranean climate. Plan to attend this class to hear Master Gardeners Virginia Feagans & Joanne Geggatt discuss the wide variety of appropriate native plants to use in the landscape and how to care for them. There is no registration needed to attend the class and it is free to the public. For more information, please call (530) 621-5512 Tuesday-Friday, 9 a.m. to noon. ===================== Saturday, July 18 Guided Tour: Water-Smart Plants 10:00 a.m., Gazebo, Garrod Drive, UC Davis campus Water shortages are beginning to have an impact on California pocketbooks, and many people are interested in reducing their household water consumption. Homeowners can learn how to create a beautiful garden that will continue to provide a green retreat in drought conditions during a free public tour at the UC Davis Arboretum on Saturday, July 18. The tour guide will point out easy-to-grow, drought-tolerant plants that look great in the home garden. The tour will start at 10:00 a.m. at the Gazebo, on Garrod Drive on the UC Davis campus. There is no charge for the tour, and free parking is available in Visitor Lot 55. For more information, please call (530) 752-4880 or visit arboretum.ucdavis.edu. ======================================= Saturday, July 25 UCCE / El Dorado Co. Master Gardener class on "Berries" 9:00 a.m., Veterans' Memorial Bldg., 130 Placerville Drive, Placerville Strawberries, blueberries, boysenberries and raspberries are a welcome addition to summer menus, and they can be grown successfully in El Dorado County. Join Master Gardener Suzanne Wisowaty to hear her presentation on berry selection, planting, care and harvesting. There is no registration needed to attend the class and it is free to the public. For more information, please call (530) 621-5512 Tuesday-Friday, 9 a.m. to noon. ===================== 
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(click here to watch the video!)
HOW MUCH WATER DOES YOUR LAWN NEED??? During the hottest months (June through September), you may need to add an inch and a half to two inches of water to your lawn each week, divided into two or three applications. Apply less water during spring and fall, perhaps one-half inch to one inch per week. There is no need to water your lawn during a typical rainy winter here. Irrigate once every other week if no rain falls during the winter. DO NOT WATER YOUR LAWN EVERY DAY! This practice can lead to serious lawn problems, such as shallow lawn roots (making the lawn more susceptible to drought and insect damage), fungal growths and diseases. To determine how much water your sprinklers are putting out: • Position 6 to 10 flat-bottomed, same sized containers around your lawn. Use drinking glasses, Tupperware, tuna fish or cat food cans; containers with taller sides will keep the water from splashing out. Put some in the greenest areas; put some in the areas that are struggling. • Turn on your sprinklers for 30 minutes. Then, measure the amount of water in each container. There should not be more than a quarter-inch difference among all the containers. If there is, readjust or add to your sprinklers to hit those areas that aren't getting as much water. If, on average, you are getting a half-inch of water per container during that 30 minute test, then you need to water your lawn for two hours a week in the summer, to put two inches of water on your lawn. In this example, you would water your lawn twice a week, for an hour each time. • You may need to adjust this timing if you see water streaming off the lawn. In that case, reduce the amount of time the sprinklers are on at any one time. Then, add a second cycle a few hours later. • It is best to water with rising temperatures, which in the summer, is from about 4 a.m. to 10 a.m. Earlier is better.
HOW MUCH WATER DOES YOUR GARDEN NEED??? Improper watering is the number one cause of plant failure. Knowing how wet the soil is where the plant roots are hard at work can help you determine your plants' health. Keep in mind: different plants have different watering needs. Learn those needs, then group plants together with similar watering requirements. The Sunset Western Garden Book is a good source for that information. To determine the amount of water at the root level: • A day or two after watering, dig down 8 to 10 inches with a trowel or small shovel, near the drip line (outer canopy) of the plant. Doing this in two or three spots would be more helpful. • At that depth, grab a handful of the soil. Squeeze that handful. If it is muddy and watery, reduce your watering for plants that require regular (but not frequent) irrigation. If it is so dry you cannot form a clod in your hand (it turns to dust instead), increase your watering (for those plants that require moderate amounts of water). • If you can form a dirt clod in your hand, yet break it apart with a little effort, that is probably the correct soil moisture for your plant. • An easier, but more unreliable way to measure the water content of the soil: purchase an inexpensive (under $10) moisture meter. Test it's accuracy by putting its probe into a glass of water. If the probe does not read "wet", choose another. Expect it to function for only a year or so. • Extended, infrequent, slowly applied irrigation is the most efficient watering method. Soaker hoses or drip irrigation systems work best. Here in the Central Valley, foothills, and Bay Area, run them for 3 to 6 hours at a time, twice a week, in the summer. This is only a guideline to get you started. Adjust that timing to your particular soil type and plants. • And, don't forget: add more drip emitters and drip lines as the plant grows, especially for trees and shrubs. Make sure to get water to the outer canopy of the plant (and beyond) where the roots travel. |
photo by Stephen Barnett
Date Last Modified: 7/3/09
© 2009 Fred Hoffman