Executive Care Inc.

October 2009 PDF

Welcome to October’s article in the series of “Making the Most of Your Yard.” Last month was the first in a series of three articles in which I wrote on a relatively new concept of water conservation called Rain Water Harvesting. It is a concept that is relatively new to us, but dates back to Biblical days. Its origin and practice is found in the arid regions of the world, such as the Middle East. Those of us that are interested in sustainability, or have property in areas where water is scarce, pricy or prohibited from landscape use will find this concept of much value. If this interests you, and you would like to read the editorial in its entirety, please go to our website (www.executivecareinc.com) or Home Improvement & Remodeling Magazine’s website (www.homeimprovement-magazine.com) and find it there, along with other editorials we have written. The topics range from landscaping advice to proper maintenance. Other topics include new types of lawns, water conserving nozzles, proper drip installations etc.

Our topic this month deals with a question that I am repeatedly asked throughout the summer. It has to do with timing. Is there a specific time to plant? Do I need to stare at an empty backyard, or old looking landscape for three months before something can be done, or can we move forward regardless of the season? Well those are good questions, so let’s go to the plants for our answers. Planting in our hot summers is definitely a challenge, but mostly on us, not the plants. Let me explain. The plant is going to live either in the nursery or in your yard, but live it will. When I was a “Grower”( department manager is a similar title) working in wholesale nurseries, I would forever be turning plants upside down, pulling the cans off and exposing the roots. I learned that the side of the can that faced the sun had about half as many roots or less, than the side that was on the inside or shaded. The sun side of the can could be quite warm, at times even hot. In the nursery we had to constantly cycle the sprinklers on those 100 degree days to keep the plants cool.

So if I were a plant and could choose where to grow, it would not be in a plastic can but in the ground. The ground is cool, it doesn’t heat up, and the roots are protected from direct heat (the design of the plant is to take the “heat” on the leaf, which often has a waxy surface to protect it, but the roots have no natural defense). Plus in landscaping we add bark/mulch over the top, which is a great insulator as well. The can shows no “mercy,” if you know what I mean, it’s plastic, black or green, and hot. As a side note, if we as landscapers damage the root ball, making it difficult for the roots to transfer sufficient water to the leaves, the plant(s) will go into transplant shock, wilting and depending upon how damaged the root ball is, the plant may not recover.

Now what about winter? I hear the same concern, that it is too cold to plant; but is this true, can it be too cold? Again let’s go back to the same reasoning. The plant is going to live in the can, or in the ground. In the can, 32 degree nights have a far greater affect on the plant than when it is in the ground. When I pulled the cans off the roots in the winter I often found the soil frozen around the roots, in fact when the nighttime temperatures were going to drop to freezing or especially below, we watered the day before so that the soil in the can would freeze. Sounds strange right? If the night was predicted to fall into the high 20s (degrees), and water freezes at 32, then the ice in the can acts as an insulator to the roots; “dry roots”at 28 degrees equals dead or damaged plants. So we come back to the same truth, the ground is still a better insulator from the cold than the can, and with bark/ mulch over the top, your ornamentals have no problem going through the normal winters of Sacramento (perennials will freeze to the ground, but in Spring come back). I have seen this many times, that the same plants in the ground will come out of their dormancy sooner than their brothers in the nursery.

So if this were not true, this would sound like a great sales pitch for landscaping year-round. The truth is this is a great pitch to landscape year-round, but only because it is TRUE. So any time of the year, the ground, provided it is prepared correctly, irrigated and a few other things we do, is a better home to your plants than the nursery. The nurseries also prefer them in your yard as well, if you get my drift. Lastly, I made mention of bark/mulching. Do not underestimate the benefit of this to your plants and soil. Let me give you some precautions however. Prior to putting it down, especially going into summer, service your drip system (read August editorial) and if you are considering putting it down prior to winter, you may want to wait till all the leaves fall first.

Lastly regardless of season, put down an application of fertilizer. This will be good for your plants and for the soil microbes. The act of decomposition, breaking the bark down and returning nutrients back to the soil, occurs as the bark remains on the soil. This process requires nitrogen. We do not want the microbes to take it from the soil, hence competing with the plants, so we provide it by adding a surface application of a balanced fertilizer with mycorrhizae, Dr. Earth, Monrovia Fertilizer and M- Roots are some suggestions of products that can be used. For those of you that want to get it down to a science, I would suggest getting a soil sample so you know exactly what your soil is deficient in ( the nurseries or fertilizer vendors can help you with this). If you were to do nothing else in preparation for winter/summer for your landscape, this would be something very beneficial.

If you need help, please call Executive Care Landscape Management, Inc. at (916) 765-9040 or visit our website www.executivecareinc.com. Executive Care Landscape Management, Inc. is a local full service landscape design/install and maintenance company . I also have preferences on which bark to use, I will discuss that with you in our first meeting. Now as always, thank you for reading, and good gardening!