Wanna Be Gardener

Recording successes and failures of managing with minimal water on a half acre of southwest facing slope. Lime Ridge, Concord, California, USA

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California fuschia

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Manzanita

This 20 year old manzanita just died this month. 3 years ago (2020) I lost a few to drought so I began supplementing my remaining manzanitas with summer water.

Now, 3 years later, I believe this one died because of root rot.

Going forward, I think I need to avoid deep summer water and instead, supplement during winter and spring in dry years.

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California Peppertree

Schinus molle (Peruvian pepper, also known as American pepper, Peruvian peppertree, escobilla, false pepper, rosé pepper, molle del Peru, pepper tree, peppercorn tree, California pepper tree, pirul, Peruvian mastic, Anacahuita o Aguaribay and Pepperina)

Sprouted 15 years ago (2008) in our yard. 30 feet in diameter now. Never been pruned (I’ve totally ignored it - no water or fertilizer either).

I’m going to be pruning it today. Cutting out conflicting branches, dead wood, suckers, and lower branches.

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Penstemon. Zoom in and notice the seed head’s forming.

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California Buckwheat planted just 4 months ago flowers starting to blossom.

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Twenty years ago I started that 20 foot diameter sage from a cutting I found on Mount Diablo.

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Wooly Bluecurls

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Salvia ‘Bright Eyes’

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Penstemon.

Purchased at Ruth Bancroft Garden in mid January, four months later they’re 10 times bigger and loaded with blossoms.

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California Fuchsia - San Jose and Catalina Island varieties. Zauschneria californica.

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Maybe Interior Live Oak, but leaves seem too curled. Or maybe a Leather Oak but tree seems to be growing bigger than those. Maybe a Blue Oak but leaves seem to be a darker green than the blue-green leaves of a Blue Oak. Not sure.

I am pretty sure this tree sprouted in 1987/88 - about 36 years ago. It grows much slower than the Valley Oaks in our yard.

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Scrub Oak. Quercus berberidifolia.

Slow growing, this one is about 6 years old and is still only a foot tall.

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Pinus sabiniana. Gray Pine and Digger Pine.

This tree sprouted out of a load of wood chips we brought in around 2003 - twenty years ago. It has never been watered.

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Toyon and Chrismas Berry. Heteromeles arbutifolia.

Needs some summer water - notice the dead branch in photo caused by lack of summer water during recent drought.

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Morning Glory. Calystegia macrostegia grows wild.

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Yarrow. Achillea millefolium.

Growing in partial shade under a manzanita.

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Quercia lobata. Valley Oak/White Oak.

Pictures of 2nd-year, 3rd-year, and 35 year old trees.