Trouble ID'ing Washington Native....
fizgig777 ╰⊰❀ Z7a ❀⊱╮
8 years ago
last modified: 8 years ago
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Planting CA Natives
Comments (29)I used to run a landscaping business in NorCal and I planted a lot of CA native gardens. In general you wouldn't amend the soil for native plants, but that's assuming you're planting locally native plants in the same kind of soil and habitat they would normally be growing in. And that your soil is relatively healthy. Stripped, graded, compacted soil from recent construction will need some kind of work before you could plant anything except stuff that likes those conditions. California is a political designation, plants don't care. There are multiple ecoregions within that political boundary. Plants native to one, won't necessarily grow that well in others. I had a real issue with that in my landscaping. Most of the 'CA Native' plants available from nurseries were from particular ecoregions, like the Channel Islands. They did ok most of the time but they weren't frost tolerant at all. Bush monkey flowers (Diplacus) were a popular native plant when I was working there, but they barely made it through most SF Bay Area winters and were all wiped out in one bad winter. Native to CA, but not locally native to the SF area. Then even within a particular ecoregion you have different habitats. Big-leaf maple is a CA native but it's a riparian tree, needs water and drainage. Plant it in the central valley or the desert and it's not gonna make it on its own. Up here in Washington it's a weed, grows anywhere and everywhere. Even the driest soils are wet enough for it. Down in CA you need a wetter soil for it to thrive. But not a wetland soil. I would plant stuff in unamended soil usually, with drip irrigation for the first couple years or so, to get them established. Then depending on the species and the weather they ideally wouldn't need irrigation after that. Or fertilizer. But that's assuming you're choosing locally adapted native plants. Woodland plants would like mulching, but desert or alpine plants probably not. I don't believe I mulched chaparral plants, like the manzanitas and ceanothus. Chaparral soils tend to be dry and lean and that's what the plants native there need. Rott: pepper trees are not native to CA. They're from South America, even though they're called CA Pepper Tree. And I'd be careful with Matillija poppy. they're a garden thug. Unbelievably aggressive rhizomes. I wouldn't give them any compost or fertilizer or water, that's for sure!...See MoreWashington state scrambles to fight massive tree die-offs
Comments (11)I was up in eastern British Columbia this Spring and saw many square miles of bark beetle infestations. I was in Colorado from Steamboat Springs to Pagosa Springs this summer and saw the same thing there. I crossed the Continental divide 28 times in one trip from Montana to New Mexico. Yellowstone twice, going and coming. The destruction is devastating! I was also in Yosemite National Park where they do a lot of controlled burns as well as in the Calaveras Grove just north of there. We stayed in Oakhurst near Yosemite and Angels Camp near The Calaveras Grove of Sequoiandendron gigantea. Heat and bare ground are necessary for seed germination for these trees. That's why they burn, in addition to reduce fuel build up caused by fire suppression. The forest Service has numerous pamphlets outlining the benefits of controlled burning. They even admit it took a while to soak in. Their new goal is, diversification in both number of species, and varying ages in the same stand. Bark beetles have always been around. Good forest management might be able to minimize the effect on our forests. I can't see spraying as a viable option in the long run. We also visited the Redwood forests near Eureka, California and the forests around Mt Hood in Oregon for a week. We did some real traveling this year! Now I get to play catch up in the garden! Mike...See MoreCreating a swale garden
Comments (2)Sounds really inrteresting. I recommend taking your time to develop your swale. Here is a link that just might be what the doctor orders ?? Here is a link that might be useful: Native plants Eastern Washington...See MoreBlast from the past - 2000 'Get to know each other' thread
Comments (3)Wow....what an amazing list of people.... too many of them no longer with us or active here. It is nice to remember some of their names and their struggles that we shared. Thanks for the memories....See Moreken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
8 years agofizgig777 ╰⊰❀ Z7a ❀⊱╮
8 years agojekeesl (south-central Arkansas)
8 years agofizgig777 ╰⊰❀ Z7a ❀⊱╮ thanked jekeesl (south-central Arkansas)jekeesl (south-central Arkansas)
8 years agofizgig777 ╰⊰❀ Z7a ❀⊱╮ thanked jekeesl (south-central Arkansas)fizgig777 ╰⊰❀ Z7a ❀⊱╮
8 years ago
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