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Sometimes it seems like there is not a lot blooming in August.

This Stephanotis (Madagascar Jasmine) is an exception. In this picture it is growing through the Dwarf Princess flower on the trellis. The pot it is in was placed in bright shade where we keep our limited collection of begonias and other tropicals. The top is reaching for full sun in a western exposure. It seems like it has been blooming all summer.

When my sister moved to Oregon two years ago she dug up this loved Stephanotis put it in a 15 gallon pot and brought it over. I wondered if it would live. It not only lived but thrived and has given us fragrance and pleasure. It’s nice for her to see when she visits Santa Barbara as well.
We had a very interesting visitor in the nursery last weekend.
He was traveling in California from Florida and said he had looked all over the country for a Thevetia thevetioides. Luckily we were able to send a truck over to San Marcos Growers to pick one up for him to send home.
This gave us time to chat and I discovered he has a nursery in Florida, is owner of Butterfly world, and president of the Passiflora Society. I have just started exploring his website http://butterflyworld.com. If you are interested in plants growing plants for hummingbirds and butterflies it is a great site to visit.

Speaking of butterflies we have our first crop of La Sumida grown, pesticide free, Asclepias (Milkweed) available for sale. Milkweed is the host plant for the Monarch butterfly. They lay their eggs on the plants and the young caterpillars eat the leaves. We brought some up front to the register area. On Saturday we had our first cocoon turn into a butterfly. We are anxiously waiting for more”new arrivals”. (Photos attached)
In September cool season bedding plants and vegetables will begin arriving in the nursery. Many years I feel too burned out after the summer garden to do much in the way of fall planting but I am determined that this year will be different.
Take care, D.
 

So now we are head long into summer. The rush of spring planting is over. Our thoughts now turn to keeping our gardens watered and disease and bug free while we wait for our vegetables to ripen and enjoy the fruits of our labor. I have already harvested some of my potatoes, zukes and tomatoes.
While I know that vacation and summertime activities are priority and dominating our lives right now, we don’t want to forget our initial excitement and investment into our vegetable adventure. Planting time is not over. Lettuce can be planted every two weeks. Beans can also make a second appearance in the garden. Squash, cucumbers and chard can still be planted to last longer into the end of summer when your first early plantings have pooped out. And don’t forget that peppers are perennials. They will actually do even better next year as a more mature plants. So think ahead and plant now for next season’s early start.

Most of all, now is the time to start planning for your “Fall” or as I like to call them, your “Late Season” (Cool Season) tomatoes. If planted before the end of September, many varieties of determinate and short season tomatoes will give you fruit into December depending on the weather.

Good varieties to try are: Early Girl, Siberian, First Lady, San Francisco Fog, Glacier, Siletz, Jetsetter, Stupice, Legend, Subarctic, Manitoba, Sun Cherry, Oregon Spring, Sun-gold Cherry,Peasant, and Taxi.

P.S. If you are having problems with your garden, bring samples into us at the nursery. We are here to help you learn. Farmers face different challenges year to year and so does the home gardener. There are good years and bad years. Weather, rodents, bugs and disease are always a challenge. Don’t give up. Don’t quit. Learn and grow! Judi

Our busy spring season is over and we have time to get back to blogging. What a strange year it’s been. We have experienced fires, extreme weather fluctuations and a struggling economy. With all this craziness I am glad to report that people are still purchasing plants.

Well it seems obvious where the trend is going this summer in the gardening world.  It’s all about VEGETABLES.  Everyone wants to supplement their grocery budget by growing as many fresh veggies as their garden space will allow.  Call it a Victory Garden or Recession Garden, I have never seen or experienced such a surge towards folks wanting to grow their own food and to be more self-sufficient.  We all need to feel like we can take care of ourselves.  Maybe it is a bit of a control issue.  We all need to eat.  Who wants to feel like we are dependant on others for the most basic need of feeding ourselves?  Whatever the reason, we are happy to see and help anyone who wants to learn.

La Sumida has one of the largest selections of vegetables in town.  But try to understand and don’t worry if the vegetable that you want to buy is not in stock when you come into the nursery.  We get new deliveries every Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.  We will usually have everything that the growers have available for the week, out and displayed by Saturday morning. And please realize that not all the vegetables are available all the time. The growers may run out but will quickly reseed and have more ready as soon as possible.  Most of them were caught a little off guard by the unusually high demand this year.  They are trying very hard to get the product out to the nurseries.  The supply is not keeping up with the demand.

When I order certain veggies on the list they send me every week, there is no way to know for sure if I will actually get them.  But I will always try to keep getting whatever I possibly can. Especially with the tomatoes.  We carry 108 different varieties, but not all at the same time.  Don’t panic!  There is plenty of time to put all the vegetables in.  And we will continue to carry most everything right thru August.  And don’t forget seeds are always a great alternative.  We have a wonderful selection. And remember, a vegetable garden does not have to be put in all in one day.

Sometimes it is a good idea to stagger your planting or even put in a late crop.

So be patient and enjoy the experience of gardening.

Judi

March heralds the arrival of spring. Days grow longer and soil temperature warms. Now is the time to think about feeding, pruning and planning your summer color.

Planting: March is the transition between cool season and warm season plants.

Summer color: Annuals: Petunias, Marigolds, Cosmos, Dianthus, etc.

Perennials: Foxglove, Cleome, Delphinium, Nemesia, Salvia, Etc. Etc. Etc.

Summer vegetables and herbs are now arriving. See March planting list for more information.

Lawns may be started from sod or seed. Don’t forget soil amendments and fertilizers to assure best performance. Prepare flower and vegetable beds.

Plant summer blooming bulbs:Tuberous Begonias- plant w/acid planting mix or peat moss indented side up (round bottom side down).

Fuchsias:Pinch back for compact growth. Flowers are produced on new wood. Feed with acid food.

Prune: Prune back dead and old growth on shrubs, vines, and perennials. New growth will be quick to fill in. Shrubs – may be cut back by 1/3. Prune Camellias after they bloom. Grasses/Cannas cut just above the ground.

I hope these tips help get you in the spring gardening mood. D

Rose Pruning

In Santa Barbara rose pruning season is generally between Christmas and Superbowl. Roses are a deciduous shrub.  In our mild climate, we don’t often receive the cold required for real winter dormancy, so it’s especially important to clean them up for a good healthy start in the New Year. Pruning actually breaks dormancy.

We prune roses for health, shape, growth control, and to encourage new canes.

·      Remove any dead, diseased or damaged wood.

·      Check for sucker growth. Suckers are canes from below the bud union.

·      Leave 3, 5 or more, young strong canes. Remove week spindly canes . Remove old gray ones. Best blooms come from new growth. Remove crossing canes, and canes that rub against each other.

·      Cut back desired canes into an open vase shape. All pruning cuts should be made ¼ inch above and angled away from an outward facing bud.

·       Light pruning is removal of about 1/3 of the height. Hard pruning is about ½. Your pruned rose will probably be 2 to 4 feet tall.

·      Saw off any dead wood at the base of the rose if necessary.

·      Lightly brush old peeling bark on crown with a brush to stimulate new canes,

·      Remove all foliage. Clean up all debris. Apply dormant spray to plant and soil.

·      Fertilize in March after foliage grows.

General guidelines:

Hybrid Teas: 3-5+ canes in a vase shape open in the center

Floribundas: 5-7 canes in a vase shape open in the center. Sometimes not pruned as hard as hybrid teas.

Shrub and groundcover: Usually have more “twiggy” growth habits.

Prune the same as a floribunda, leaving more lateral branches.

Climbers: need little pruning for the first few years. Prune to shape.

Leave laterals 2-3 , as this is where climbers bloom. Yes, you do need to strip all the leaves.

Don’t worry. Our roses will recover from any mistakes we may make.

Frost Tips

In the Santa Barbara area we have many microclimates. Some of these are susceptible to frost damage in cold winters. If you live in the bottom of a canyon you know how chilly it can get.

 Do not fertilize permanent landscape plants except for lawn, cool season annuals, and vegetables after October 1. This allows plants to harden off. Tender new growth is more susceptible to frost damage.

 Keep your plants well watered. Damp soil retains more heat than dry soil. Mulch to trap soil heat and protect roots.

 If frost is in the forecast, there are precautions you can take. Group tender container plants under eaves, against the house, under covered patios or large trees. They may be covered with sheets, blankets or products like row cover and insulation cloth. If you use plastic, make sure you stake it up, so it does not touch plants. You can string large bulb Christmas lights to keep plants warm.

 Many plants don’t mind cold weather. Most of our trees and shrubs will be fine. It’s the plants of tropical origins that are very unhappy.  Examples include: Hibiscus, Bougainvillea, Impatiens, Mandevilla and Ficus If you have tender plants you may cover them the same as your containers above. Make sure you uncover plants before the sun hits them the next morning.

 If you get frost damage the most important thing to remember is: Do not prune off damaged foliage until new growth appears in the spring and all danger of frost is past.  In Santa Barbara this is usually late February.  Frost damaged leaves and stems may not be attractive but they will protect the plant from subsequent frosts.

 After an occasional hard frost it’s a good idea to hose the plants off before the sun hits them.

 Most established woody plants survive Santa Barbara frosts with minor injury. If you live in an area that freezes most winters its best to avoid tropicals. Watch for clear, cloudless, winter nights with low humidity. A great place to check the forecast is: http://www.nws.noaa.gov/ or 805 9886610.

Those of you who read this blog are most likely local La Sumida Nursery customers. We are very grateful to you. Your support makes it possible for  Independent  Garden Centers to continue in the era of the ‘Big Box’  center. Can you imagine the lack of selection if we could only purchase plants at Home Depot?  

Fall Rose Care

One of the most asked questions for this time of year at the Nursery is, “what to do with the roses?” After the summer heat, fall’s cool down can produce some of the years best blooms. 

 
Do you feed?  Do you prune?  Should you continue to spray for insects and disease?  

No, to all of the above: most experts let them rest. If you must, you may pick or dead head the flowers before Thanksgiving but that is about it until January.  With the cooler temperatures, the roses feel like it is spring again.  They love the cool nights and sunny days.  You can still get a last great bloom for Thanksgiving.

But do not feed!  You don’t want to encourage new growth as we go into winter with shorter days and colder temperatures. The buds and flowers would be ruined by the moisture and dampness in our coastal air.  You want them to slow down and rest.  To conserve their energy for next springs big show.

By allowing the roses to “bloom out” and develop “rose hips”, it sends a signal to the bush to slow down.  It will stop putting out new growth and forces it into dormancy.  It has been working all summer and needs some time off, just like us.

You can keep the bush clean from yellowing leaves if you must, but it is going to look a bit raggedy anyway.  It’s just that time of year.  Very important, is to not forget the regular watering.  Even though they are slowing down, their need for water goes on thru winter.

So now, for the most part, you can take some time off from the demanding summer rose care until January.  At that time you will have to jump back into “rose maintenance”, with the hard pruning and dormant spraying for insects and disease.  But that is a whole other subject.

So until then, enjoy the rose season’s last and possibly, “best blooms”, of the year.  And don’t forget to check our website for the 2009 Bareroot rose list.  It is never too late to find a new place to squeeze in a new rose.

Judi