Search for my post on "starting melons early". This is how I did it last yr. The system I used last yr would likely work in the Imperial valley starting now but that area is much warmer than most of CA. More importantly, it is sunnier, and sunshine is what you need to warm the soil. Any system that relies on sunshine will have the potential to overheat. But melons will stand a lot of heat. I've never seen any evidence of overheating damage. I started mine about March 1 last yr, about 6wks before ave last frost. If you get lots of sun, you could get them up and growing starting now. But at some point you will need to remove the poly. At that time the ambient temps are going to need to be warm enough to sustain growth, 80/50F is about minimum. My early planted hill (of a late variety) last yr had melons from early June until Sept. And would have lasted longer but we had a month of rain nearly every day. The hill ended up 40ft in diameter. I haven't thought too much about what I'll do this yr. Probably will start them about April 1, which would likely be a better time for you also. The Fruitnut

Growing stone or pome fruit in the low desert of Arizona is a trip. Citrus on the other hand is easy. You really would have to be careful of your selection to grow stone or pome fruit. 'Tom' of this forum had a script where he could tell you the chilling hours based on the reports from weather underground. Something like that would be absolutely invaluable if not essential, and I don't know why its not more widely available if not built into the higher tone home weather stations. Tucson would not have quite the extreme climate of Phoenix, but on the other hand, it lacks the unbelievably fertile soil of the Salt River Valley. If I still lived there, I would do the basics. Citrus has few pests and no birds, hangs on the tree ripe for weeks or months, and everyone take it for granted. I would get me some high class citrus. In Phoenix, anything other than Key lime does well. I would go for 'Moro' blood orange, for example, or perhaps a 'Bears' lime. (An unbelievably beautiful fruit tree in my opinion. You could grow the lime tree on the front of the house without worrying too much about fruit thieves.) Figs do very well too, and some of the varieties have two crops a year. Figs for some reason have a kind of 'Geeter Lester' image in Arizona. You won't find too many growing in the foothills of Tucson for that reason. Mulberries do well, but until recently it was almost impossible to get a fruiting variety. Don't plant it too close to the house. A Rosemary hedge is a no-brainer too. You have never lived as a gardener until you trimmed the hedge one hot summer morning turned around when you were done and contemplated the $1,000 worth of trimmings you will be throwing into the trash. Pecan trees do well around there, but they are rarely grown. Too big and too much water I suppose. I always wonder why you don't see Pistachios down there, but you don't. Olive trees thrive in Phoenix. they are outlawed by the yahoos because of the pollen. Almost nobody bothers to harvest them, and the occasional Greek or Italian tourist practically faints at the waste. P.S. Don't try and be a hero and dig through the Caliche. Hire a guy with a backhoe, make sure he calls the Bluestake center, and get a real hole. This isn't Kansas, you know.

I am presented with similar problems, but am in Bakersfield, CA, not LA. In BKF, things are even more scrubby and sandy. I know however, that simply saying LA, does not mean mediterranean climate. LA is a big place and has several regions or zones with their own micro climates, depending upon whether you are close to the coast, inland or at a higher altitude up the side of some range of hills or low bergs ( mountains ). Heck, after they changed location of a weather monitoring station in LA, they found they had to change it back because the new location, completely threw off the mean temps and rain fall averages. If you are near the coast and have that Santa Barbara-like zone 8/9 weather, I envy you. But what I am going to suggest may get me some hisses and cat call rejections from the bleachers, but let me give you the reasoning ... Every well populated area uses hired landscapers. They in turn, know what will survive in the area and what won't. Further down that economic pipe are the suppliers, nurseries and the local gardening section of stores like Home Depot, Orchard Supply, Lowes, Wal-Mart, Target and humble K-Mart. If it sells, they stock it. There is no demand for plants that die. Go to Home Depot or Walmart and you'll find that they even separate out the house plants and keep them indoors while the outdoor thrivers are ... fancy that, out in the outdoor area. Does that help to give you some clues about choosing outdoor plants? It's when you order stuff over the internet that you can get in trouble. In those cases you get unique plants, but you take your chances whether they will thrive in your region. Going down to the HD or WM gets you some assurance based on experience and demand for plants that thrive in your area that you'll get exactly that. However, you pay a price. Your neighbor's plants will often look exactly like yours. ;-) Might I suggest something that you probably can order over the internet and have it survive there in LA? Pacific Iris and the further north, Douglas Iris, the wild flower varieties of Iris native to the West Coast. These critters can flower in several color variations and are just the height you are looking for. Douglas Iris however, are always lavender colored. It's the Pacific Hybrids that vary in color.

seysonn - not sure what's causing the leaf roll. Temps have been in the 80's and the soil is nice and moist. Maybe because that side faces the sun? fireduck - yes, a lot of planning and it turned out a lot better than I expected. My soil (before I started working on it) was also a clay-type called caliche. Mix caliche with water and straw and let them sit in the sun and you get adobe brick. When dried out, it's as hard as a rock. Lots of Kellogg's AMEND, grass clippings and coffee grounds did the trick. HeyJude2012 - the bottom upright is pounded into the ground about 12 inches. Very stable. And the cages are really quite flexible. It all adds up to a nice system. Mike - the lack of marine layer this year (May grey and June gloom) is the answer. I'll have plenty of seeds in case you need them....hope not!