The Spring Break Report

30 Mar '08 7:28 am

Well here in Berkeley the kids are out of school for a week and so are their teachers. Since we're getting off and on again drizzle I thought I'd post an early state of the garden report with photos taken over the last couple weeks. Then, if I actuallly accomplish anything that shows, I'll do a follow up report.

Last weekend I was ambitious and dug up that thirty foot tree daisy and moved it away from the corner deck, down the hill and closer to the creek. We should still be able to see the flowers next winter without it crowding us out. The first picture shows the corner deck and flowering crab apple two weeks ago. If you look closely you can see t he leaves of the tree daisy (Montanoa leucantha) just in back of the deck. Then I have a picture of the deck taken the day after I moved the tree daisy, showing how much more open that area is now. Then there are a number of photos showing the area along the creek which is tough to photograph very well. Finally I've got a couple shots using Lia and I to show the size of a couple of prized plants and one of old girl Sophie look especially distinguished.

30 Mar '08 1:21 pm

I thought you live in a desert type of environment, but seeing your garden, Eh?

Must be only your climate that is desert like.

You are so lucky to have a creek. I sure would like to have that feature. I am installing a pond in our grotto. I bought a pump and am making my own filter. So I will have a trickle.

I'm intrigued by your tree daisy. I never heard of one. Does it bloom with daisy like flowers? I am particularly fond of Shasta daisy. I am trying to grow the largest clump in the world, but mom keeps thinning them out on me. d'oh!

Christopher

30 Mar '08 1:22 pm

I'd never heard of tree daisy. Interesting. Sounds like a huge job.
I love crab apples. I'd put that out of my mind. How many more things can I squeeze into my garden anyway! But your photo has me thinking again.

30 Mar '08 4:22 pm

We have a summer dry climate like the other Mediterrainean regions. We average no rain each month from May through September. In April and October we average an inch of rain per month. Then from November through March we average 3 to 4 inches per month. Unlike most deserts you think of we rarely get very hot during the day or cold during the night. In the last hundred years for San Francisco, the average HIGH day time temperature ranges between 70 degrees F in September to 56 degrees F in January. During that same time period the average LOW night time temperature has ranged between 45 degrees F in January to 55 degrees F in September. That's only a difference of 25 degrees between the lowest average night time temperature in Winter and the highest average daytime temperature in Summer. Weird. Being on the Eastside of the bay we're a few degrees cooler in winter and warmer in summer because we have slightly less marine influence on our weather. Before we had a vehicle with air conditioning I can remember driving home from Yosemite through the valley in digit temperatures. As we came over successive passes nearing the bay you could feel the air temperature lower until the last one at which point you breath a sigh of relief to feel cool air again.

Here are some pictures of the tree daisy, Montanoa leucantha taken this past fall. This tree has been in the same location for a few years, planted on the north side of the deck about 7 feet below the level of the hand rail. It was cut down below the level of the rail the previous Spring.

6 Apr '08 6:05 pm

There are New Zealand shrubs we call tree daisies but they are Olearias - but hey , they look like a really close relation!

Is your creek an independent, well-behaved creek? In other words, it doesn't flood, or dry up, or decide to change course, or attract nasty insects. Does it have frogs?

I would dearly love to release some of my tadpoles into my new pond, but - oh dear - the water wheel provides the water, and if that gets stuck there's no water. Frogocide! Aargh! Guess I shouldn't meddle with nature. But really, they've been stuck in their bathtub for ages - how many weeks/months does it take to grow a pair of front legs?

I love seeing the photographs of your garden, Mark - and of course the snoozing dog. What a beautiful face she has! Cheers

6 Apr '08 6:29 pm

Well lots of pruning and weeding got done, but by far not all of it. Lots of weeds got started in between the pavers in the driveway and I've yanked all of them. Next I need to use an herbicide I've bought to keep them from coming back. Another area I've cleaned up is the broken concrete slabs outside the backdoor. I've weeded that and planted out another sixpack of Elfin Thyme. Then the voracious passionvine on my fig tree in the back got cut way back, along with the fig tree itself. I planted out a bunch of plants, perhaps even as many as I bought.

Hi Moosey. The Creek is year around and has never dried up during any draught we've been through. There is a footbridge over creek in the park behind us and a year or two ago in a huge storm some trees were washed into the creek where they backed the water up very high on our bank. It also left mud and branches over the bridge. Lia says the creek has backed up even more in the past to the point of flooding the neighborhood and over flowing the street.

Lia spent the entire week very sick with a cold and I seem to have avoided it, knock on wood. School starts up again Monday and I'm half way looking forward to it. Whatdoyathink? Does that mean I'm not ready for retirement? It won't be to much longer .. 5 to 7 years. I thought I might go to 80% next year but decided to hold off on that at least one more year too.

Moosey I really envy your frogs. So far none have found my pond. There aren't any in the creek. Probably its too steep and fast running. There are small fish that brings in herons.

Well if any one is coming to California next month come on by because we've settled on Sunday, May 11th -mother's day- for our big garden/studio party this year. Bringing mothers will be encouraged but not required.

7 Apr '08 8:10 am

You could get all sorts of 'old women' turning up to your mothers day garden party! Anyone who has successfully raised a seedling (or cloned a perennial) will consider themselves eligible! Yeay! Hope the day goes well, and please have a healthy toast for absent old women mothers!
M

7 Apr '08 10:34 am

Heck, by that definition I'd be a mother myself. Besides, older guests are not all bad. Being the oldest one in a group happens more and more, especially at school. I find I like being the 'young' one.

The Spring Break Report

The Spring Break Report

Marvelous!

We're not really in desert conditions in Northern California

Up the Creek?

Spring Break Summary Report