An Alameda Garden

The Native Bees of 2010

2009-11-27T15:16:00.000-08:00

If, like me, you're more than ready to close the books on 2009 and start planning the new year, you might want to check out this beautiful 2010 calendar benefitting the Great Sunflower Project (sponsored by San Francisco State University):

The calendars are $14 (including shipping) and must be ordered online by Monday, November 30. Calendars will be shipped to arrive by the holidays. Click here for more information and order form.

I Finally Reported the World's Ugliest Tree

2009-09-04T11:00:00.000-07:00

Today I finally made the call I've been intending to make for a couple years. I called the City of Alameda to ask them to evaluate the world's ugliest tree, which just happens to be in front of my house.

I really began to pay attention to this tree a couple years ago when I was taking an arboriculture class and had to do a tree report. For convenience sake, I did the report on this tree and believe me, there was plenty to report on. Poor branch structure, included bark, some old damage to the trunk (probably from a car clipping it), and to be brutally frank, just a general state of ugliness. The pictures here are from that report I did in late 2006. Time has not improved the situation. If anything, it's worse because there are now a couple obviously dead branches.

It'll be interesting to see how the city decides to handle this problem. I realize budgets are beyond tight and removing the tree and replacing it may not be affordable. But I would so love to see this thing gone and some tree with real potential put in its place. The city has recently updated its master tree plan and when I checked it, I found the report made the following recommendations for new/replacement tree plantings on my street:

Silver linden
Various American and hybrid elms
New Zealand Christmas tree
Chinese pistache 'Keith Davey'
Scarlet oak

Any of those would be a vast improvement over the current tree, but the last three options on the list would really give some great fall color.

But I shouldn't get my hopes up. If the city decides that removal isn't a priority or in the budget, then the world's ugliest tree and I may still have a long future together.

My Garden Has Me Down

2009-08-10T11:16:00.000-07:00

If anyone's wondering why I haven't been posting lately, the reason is simple: I'm a depressed gardener. While my garden would usually be a source of comfort and relaxation, it's been more of a stressor lately, just another thing that's not working out well and it shows. When friends have asked me how my garden is doing, I've answered honestly, "It looks like shit." That pretty much covers it.

The reasons it looks like shit are not uncommon and fall into three categories of varying degrees of severity at various times: 1) lack of time and energy for proper maintenance, 2) lack of money for supplies and more plants, and 3) aphids and their evil partners in crime, ants.

The time and money issues are, I think, slowly working themselves out. And in the past few days, I've decided to throw my budget to the wind, accept the fact that I'll never get caught up on my own, and hire some one-time help to clear weeds in the front yard and prune a neglected and overgrown camellia at the side of my house. I feel a bit better having made that decision, and will, I'm sure, feel much better when it's finally done.

The aphid problem on the other hand is a tougher fix. My plan earlier in the year to do absolutely nothing about the aphid problem in the hopes that the beneficial insects would really go on the attack resulted in my cherry tree being decimated, my plum being later hit so hard that it looks like it has peach curl, and several other plants getting the life slowly sucked out of them. The ladybugs have shown up and in greater numbers than I've seen here before, but clearly they're not up to the task. I'm still refusing to spray chemicals, although I have tried a few home remedy mixes that don't seem to have done much. I'm also hitting the plants with jets of water, which I honestly think just provides the aphids with a temporary Slip'N'Slide more than it kills or discourages them.

And their good buddies, the ants, are everywhere! Alameda's sandy soil must be ant heaven for them--fast draining and oh so easy to tunnel through. I finally realized that I'd never get the aphids under control without controlling the ants, so I've put Grants ant stakes all over the place. It seems to have decreased their numbers slightly, but I know this is an ongoing battle.

All this being said, there have been a few high spots in the garden this year, for which I am grateful. It's been the best year for roses that I've had so far, possibly because I finally have them situated in the best spots in the garden. The salvias (Mexican Limelights, Hot Lips, and Argentine Skies), bless them, have bloomed like mad and (with the exception of the aggressively sharp elbows of the Mexican Limelights) been maintenance-free. The kangaroo paw I put in last year has bloomed non-stop most of the year as well. The Bright Lights swiss chard has added a lot of color and produced enough greens to fortify at least a squadron, if not an army. And the green beans (Roma and haricot vert) have been delicious (in spite of the feeble bamboo teepees I built them).

So my goal now is to do what one should always do when depressed:

Take a breath. It's probably not as bad as I think it is.
Get some professional help. No gardener is an island (even if my garden's on an island) and there's no reason why I have to go it alone.
Face my enemies head-on with the proper defenses. I'm off to buy a bottle of Neem this afternoon.
Count my blessings. At least I have a garden to be depressed about!

Sale at Flora Grubb

2009-07-02T20:48:00.001-07:00

There's a great sale tomorrow (Friday, 7/3) at Flora Grubb Nursery in San Francisco. All plants and pots are 20% off! Flora Grubb has a great selection of plants, especially succulents, so this is a great chance to stock up. Treat yourself to a cappuccino at the cafe there while you're at it--their coffee is as good as their plants.

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Forget the Gorgeous Young Man, What I Really Want Is the Garden

2009-06-30T23:09:00.000-07:00

Went to see the movie Cheri tonight. It is a gorgeous thing to watch, a truly stunning representation of the Belle Epoque in all its art nouveau glory. It's the story of an aging courtesan (Michelle Pfeiffer) who falls in love with a beautiful young man (Rupert Friend). And he is indeed beautiful, but what I was really lusting after was the garden of the beautiful young man's mother (played by a very wonderful Kathy Bates). Lush, rose-laden, romantic--it was everything you could want a garden to be. But like all good things, it was fleeting--just glimpses here and there and before you can fully appreciate it, everyone has moved indoors. Ah, well. It was nice while it lasted.

CHERI: Movie Trailer - Click here for another funny movie.

What to Do This Weekend: Carnivorous Plant Show

2009-06-18T12:19:00.000-07:00

The Bay Area Carnivorous Plant Society is hosting it's annual plant show and sale this Saturday (June 20th) at the Garden Center at Oakland's Lakeside Park (by Lake Merritt). Pitcher plants, sundews, venus fly traps, terrariums, and more will be on display in this juried show and there will be plants for sale as well. Shows like these are a great opportunity to get growing advice from the experts on the very particular needs of these amazing plants. The show runs from noon to 4 p.m., but I'd suggest getting there early before all the plants have pigged out and fallen asleep in front of the TV.

Dates Set for SF Flower & Garden Show 2010

2009-06-09T13:32:00.001-07:00

After narrowly escaping a complete shutdown, the recently rescued SF Flower & Garden Show now has dates set for next year's show. Mark your calendars: March 24-28, 2010. Once again, the show will be taking place at the San Mateo Event Center rather than in San Francisco proper. Show organizers promise that the show is committed to focusing on the topics relevant to bay area gardeners, including the organic and show food movements.

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Propagation Demystified

2009-06-06T10:27:00.000-07:00

Ever wondered why those little black seeds you've planted never sprout? (Tip: Most black seeds require some form of scarification.) Or how you can successfully root cuttings from your grandmother's favorite rose bush? Or how to cross-pollinate two flowers to breed an entirely new variety? Plant propagation doesn't have to be so mysterious--you can get these questions and a lot more answered in the Advanced Propagation class at Merritt College in Oakland.

Like so many other places, Merritt College is having massive budget cuts and this class is in danger of being cut from the Fall schedule if at least 25 people don't enroll by Wednesday (6/10). This 2-unit class requires no text, has no tests, and costs just $40. What it does offer is lots of hands-on lab experience with a wide variety of propagation techniques, the opportunity to try your own propagation experiments with some guidance and supervision and a greenhouse, and many informative field trips to propagation nurseries around the bay area for a behind-the-scenes look. The instructor, Susan Ashley, is knowledgeable and enthusiastic. I took this course a few semesters ago and learned so much that I've been able to try out in my own garden. And it was really fun.

Click here to start the registration process. The class is LH52 and the class number is 44469 lecture, 44470 lab. Classes are on Tuesdays from 1-5 pm starting on Aug. 25. If you have more questions, you can contact Susan at susanwashley at gmail dot com.

Plant Sale This Saturday

2009-05-21T10:27:00.000-07:00

For readers in the Bay Area: East Bay Wilds Nursery in Castro Valley is having its Big Annual Native Plant Sale this Saturday (5/23) from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. East Bay Wilds is usually a by-appointment-only nursery, so this is a great chance to get your hands on their amazing selection of native plants. Check out their site for complete information and a plant availability list. Directions to the nursery are here.

Photo: Yucca whippleii (Our Lord's Candle)
Photo Credit: Pete Veilleux/East Bay Wilds

The First Plums

2009-05-18T20:44:00.000-07:00

I wasn't expecting the weeping Santa Rose plum tree I planted a year ago to fruit for at least another year or two. But surprise! I've spotted at least a half dozen plums so far. They're well camouflaged among the leaves while their skins are still green, so I'm hoping that there are more that I'm just not seeing. I can't wait to bite into the first one!

Now This I Like

2009-05-15T09:02:00.000-07:00

Watch this short video to see a very resourceful, clever, and beautiful garden in Seattle. The composting fence idea is nothing short of brilliant. This is the kind of garden I'm aiming for.

(Hat tip: Empress of Dirt)

Welcoming Back Spring

2009-04-14T10:26:00.001-07:00

Enjoy this brief (less than two minutes) animated film from Jeff Scher, courtesy of the NY Times. It's really lovely.

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Who Knew You Could Eat the Leaves Too?

2009-04-11T08:51:00.001-07:00

I love plants that offer a two-fer. Like Amaranth--you can eat the leaves and the grain. Beets--roast the roots and saute the greens. Or grapes--eat the fruit, roll the leaves up into dolmas, and by all means drink the wine!

And this morning while reading the SF Chron online, I learned about another horticultural two-fer: fava beans. Not only are they great for the soil because they put nitrogen back into it, but it turns out you can eat both the beans and the greens. In fact, the greens are turning out to be one of the latest culinary trends in Bay Area restaurants. Move over, arugula!

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Recession Hits the SF Botanical Garden

2009-03-24T23:19:00.000-07:00

The S.F. Recreation and Park Department is proposing the imposition of a $5 entrance fee to the San Francisco Botanical Garden in Golden Gate Park. Facing an $11.4 million shortfall for the coming year, this is just one of the fees under consideration by the parks department. You can read more about the proposal in this article in the SF Chronicle.

I hate to hear about things like this because these are the kind of proposals that become self-defeating in the end. You take a venue that everyone can enjoy and appreciate because it's free and impose an entrance fee. Only then, there are many people who will never set foot in it again. Then it becomes a sort of "rarefied" spot, the kind of place that people think isn't really meant for the masses. Which is, of course, exactly what an urban garden should be.

I know a $5 fee doesn't sound like much, and these are exceptionally hard times, but it still sounds like a bad idea to me. Couldn't the city impose other, more worthwhile fees instead? Like for gun registrations, for example? Here's a bumper sticker I'd like to see: "Use a gun, fund an orchid."

We Have a Winner!

2009-03-21T11:07:00.000-07:00

Sorry, I should have posted this last night, but I got distracted. So here's the big winner of a free pair of Ethel Gloves-- Christine! Christine didn't leave her e-mail address, however, so I've notified her by way of her blog, Through the Garden Gate. Stop by and congratulate her on her win.

And for those of you who didn't win, don't forget that you can get 10% off your entire purchase of Ethel Gloves when you place your order from their website and use the discount code ALAMEDA. I think you'll really be pleased with these gloves!

Don't Forget to Enter the Ethel Glove Giveaway

2009-03-19T22:35:00.000-07:00

Don't miss your chance to enter the drawing for a free pair of Ethel Gloves! You can enter by posting a comment here, including your e-mail address. A winner will be chosen at random tomorrow (Friday) at 5:00 p.m. PDT. (I'm extending it from the original drawing time of noon.) Don't wait!

Ethel Gloves Revisited--And a Glove Giveaway!

2009-03-13T11:37:00.000-07:00

Eight months ago I posted about trying out a new pair of garden gloves called Ethel Gloves. I gave the gloves a favorable review, but that was only after a week or so of intensive gardening in them.

I'm happy to report that the gloves are still going strong and they remain my favorite gloves to garden in. After eight months there are no tears or holes, no shrinkage in spite of several machine washings, and except for a few small sap stains, they clean up well.

It's good when a product lives up to one's initial impressions and it's also good to be able to try out a product for free. And one lucky reader will get the chance to do just that. The folks at Ethel Gloves will give away one pair of gloves (winner's choice of style and size) to a reader of An Alameda Garden. Just post a comment to this post. Your comment can be about anything garden- or garden blog-related. Be sure to include an e-mail address. The contest will remain open until next Friday, March 20--coincidentally, the first day of spring. At noon on Friday I'll randomly choose one winner from all the commenters and, once the winner has provided a mailing address, the folks at Ethel Gloves will ship out the new gloves.

And, just in case you can't wait for the end of the contest or aren't feeling particularly lucky, you can order gloves directly from the Ethel Gloves website and get a 10% discount as a reader of An Alameda Garden. Just enter the discount code ALAMEDA and you'll get 10% off your entire order. I think they'd make a perfect gift for Easter or Mother's Day! This discount offer is good until Friday, April 3.

Going Green and Off the Grid

2009-03-11T11:10:00.001-07:00

Check out this video report from the NY Times on a woman who left the rat race behind to farm in upstate New York. Yes, it's a more extreme (and more rural) life than I would want to live, but I still find it fascinating and inspiring. At a time when most of us seem to be revising our lifestyles, examining the choices that others have made can really open up the range of possibilities.

The New York Times - Breaking News, World News & Multimedia

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Yes, We Need the Water, But...

2009-03-01T23:25:00.001-08:00

There hasn't been a whole lot happening here in terms of gardening because we seem to be having one rainstorm after another and when we had a brief break from the storms a couple weeks ago, I had a cold and was too miserable to do anything. My one big accomplishment was that I bought 50 bare-root strawberry plants (Ranier) on sale at Berkeley Hort and actually managed to get them in the ground before they died. That happened yesterday, in a rush, during another short respite from the rain. The ground was still really too wet, but the plants couldn't wait any longer. So I weeded out the bed (probably losing way too much damp soil with the weeds) and stuck the plants in. Finally, I can feel like I got something actually done in the garden! Except that it's not really done because I still need to mulch the bed.

The forecast is for rain and more rain throughout the next ten days at least. And still they say we are in a drought and can look forward to more water rationing this year. You'd never know there's a drought by looking at my garden. The weeds are positively thriving!

Oh, and check back here soon--I expect to have another giveaway happening in a week or so. Details to come.

Thought for the Day

2009-02-06T13:33:00.001-08:00

Unemployment is capitalism's way of getting you to plant a garden. -- Orson Scott Card

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Beginnings (Again)

2009-01-29T15:44:00.000-08:00

I've been wondering what it was going to take to wake me from my gardening coma. Mild weather with blue skies and whole stretches of days without rain wasn't enough to do it. The cats luring me out to play didn't do it. And god knows, the burgeoning weed population hasn't done it either. But yesterday a large envelope arrived in the mail--a promotional package from Renee's Garden--and today it did the trick.

The package announced Renee's new seed varieties for 2009, including a couple of beautiful new sweet peas ("Zinfandel" and "Painted Lady"), a honey-scented alyssum ("Summer Peaches"), and two lettuce mixes ("Asian Baby Leaf" and "Ruby & Emerald Duet"). There's more--those were just what caught my eye at first glance. And to entice me further the package contained a complementary pack of the Asian Baby Leaf seed mix.

Renee's Garden is my favorite seed company. Their seeds are reliable germinators and they provide so much more information on their seed packets than most other seed companies. One thing in particular that I love is that they actually provide detailed information about how to harvest--exactly when to cut, how much to cut, and how to get a second growth. Sometimes they even provide information about how to cook the veggies. And if you're not a fan of their pretty seed packet illustrations, you can always go their web site to check out the real-life photos of each variety.

So with my new packet of Renee's Garden seeds in hand, I stumbled bleary-eyed out to the garden today, freshened up a couple of containers with an addition of new compost, and sprinkled Asian Baby Leaf seed mix over the top. Come early spring, these will make easy salad pickings right outside my back door. And while I was at it, I also planted another container with some of the sweet pea seeds from my last year's crop.

It wasn't much of a dent in all the gardening that needs to be done, and I'm not sure the funk I've been in is entirely lifted. But I defy anyone to plant seeds without feeling just a little bit better.

They Should Have Just Asked a Gardener

2009-01-05T13:37:00.001-08:00

The LA Times has an article today about a study done at Kansas State University showing that yes, gardening can be strenuous enough to count as a moderate workout and to help keep people, particular seniors, fit.

I'm all for scientific research, but this seems like another one of those cases where a study was done to prove something that should be fairly obvious. Anyone who's ever raked a lawn, dug holes for planting, or pulled a significant amount of weeds can tell you that of course regular gardening activities are equivalent to a workout. While not every activity will get your heart rate up enough to count as a cardio activity, some, such as vigorous raking, will. Add to that the bending and reaching that comes with pruning, planting, and weeding, and you've got a pretty good all-over routine.

For those who need quantifiable proof of things, I hope this study, published in HortTechnology, will put the issue to rest. But honestly, I think it could have been settled just as conclusively by picking up a shovel.

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Happy New Year! Time to Have Some Fun Again!

2009-01-01T20:35:00.000-08:00

It's a new year and time to turn my attention back to both my garden and this blog. It's shameful the way I've been neglecting both in the past couple months but work and life have conspired to steal my time and drain my energy. I've realized though that there's another, even bigger reason why I've haven't been spending time either gardening or blogging: Neither has seemed very fun lately. And that is a shame, because both have given me a lot of pleasure in the past.

So as I was thinking about new year's resolutions and goals for 2009, it occurred to me that the best resolution I could make is to find the fun again--to make a point of enjoying my time in the garden and blogging about it. 2008 was for me personally and perhaps for the world at large somewhat of a soul-sucking experience. I'm ready for a fresh start and more than ready for some fun.

Happy new year and best wishes for my fellow gardeners, bloggers, and readers in 2009!

Let's Say Good-Bye to the First Lawn

2008-11-07T22:03:00.000-08:00

Let's hope President-Elect Obama adds this to his First Hundred Days To-Do List:

This Lawn is Your Lawn from roger doiron on Vimeo.

Another Change of Season

2008-11-04T11:50:00.000-08:00

Today's the day when when we have the chance to change the season with no help at all from nature. The calendar may say it's autumn, but it feels more like the end of a long, dark winter. Be your own equinox. Please, vote.