The Weekly Weeder

By Toni Martinez

For the last month, the Weekly Weeder has been advising readers that it would soon be spring, er…fall in Baja. No, I am not crazy! Trust me, this is the best gardening opportunity time in Baja! I know that we are having relatively hot, muggy days here and that some hot, dry days will be coming soon. But the weather will be gradually cooling, especially at night. The weather conditions here are at their best for young plants to get a head start on growth before they slow down during the cool weather.

Although you may not see a lot of growth above ground, your new plants and seedlings will develop strong root systems before they slow their growth. Then when the weather warms they will shoot up into healthy, beautiful plants. If the spindly little seedlings bother you to look at them, try putting a few decorative items like masetas nearby to draw your eye. Just be sure to water your new plantings as needed until the rains start.

Just a reminder, the first week of September is the ideal time to plant any peas, especially flowering sweet peas. Give them a deep, fertile trench for their roots. Soak the pea seed in water overnight and plant them now! You will be happy you did when they are producing next spring. You can read more about planting peas and other fall vegetables in an earlier Weekly Weeder, online at the Baja Times website at http://www.bajatimes.com/articles07/articles08_07/art32.html.

This month is also a great time for you to move, divide or start any perennials and native plants. A wonderful native plant to start from seed this time of year is the California poppy, Eschscholiza californica (yes, it is spelled like that, and sounds like you are sneezing when you say it.). The simplest way to start these seeds is just to sprinkle the tiny seed over the soil. Don’t cover them at all: they need light to germinate. Although the original golden version is the official flower of the State of California, these lovely and sturdy blossoms now come in a variety of hybridized colors such as pink, yellow, cream, red, and bicolor. Just a note of warning here though: if you live in an area adjacent to a native population of California poppies, please do not plant the hybrid varieties. All varieties will cross pollinate and if hybridized varieties are planted near well adapted native plants, the resulting offspring plants will weaken the native gene pool. Our native plants are ecologically sensitive and in danger of being diminished already.

If you are a fan of hummingbirds, many native and perennial plants are great attractions for these amusing birds. Small plants that you put in at this time of year will grow into fine, permanent plants that will provide a natural source of food for hummers and butterflies for years to come. One of the best choices for this is the Beard Tongue, Penstemon species. This lovely bush grows from one to three feet in height, and bears tubular flowers along the sides of tall wiry stems. The blossoms come in a variety of colors including red, orange, yellow, pink, blue, purple, magenta and white. Many penstemons are native to the Baja area, others may be hybrids, but all are lovely. They can be cut for floral arrangements, but the cut end must be seared for the blossoms to hold up. These plants love the sun!

A plant with similar-looking blossoms but that will prefer a spot on the east or northwest side of your garden is the Hummingbird Trumpet, Zauschneria californica. This flower is also called the California fuchsia and will thrive in any area that is partially shady. As the name implies, the long, red, tubular flowers offer hummers another source of nutrition, and the lipstick red color will pop in a semi-shady corner!

The great family of flowering sages, Salvia species, can also be a wonderful fall addition to your garden. These shrubby plants also offer tubular blossoms that attract butterflies and hummingbirds. There are many native sages, with names like Meadow, or Mojave, or Bush Sage. Their flowers range from hot pink, to red, to purple. After they have bloomed, the spent flower stalks can be trimmed off (called dead heading, in some gardening circles), and the resulting tidy plant will provide interest to the garden. Most flowering sages have narrow leaves, that range in color from bright green to a grey-green, and will complement most landscapes. By the way another great feature about the sage family, as well as many native plants, is that they are very drought tolerant and love our Baja climate!

Speaking of interesting, drought tolerant plants, Lamb’s Ears, or Stachys byzantia, have wonderful, soft, fuzzy grey-green leaves. The flowers are sort of nondescript and are usually cut off of the plant before they bloom: this plant is grown for its interesting leaves and tactile quality. Although not a native Baja plant, it is originally Mediterranean and loves growing here. Be careful with this one though. It can be an aggressive spreader in rich, moist soil. Better to grow it in a dry spot with marginal soil conditions.

Some other colorful plants that love those dry, marginal conditions are Blanket flower, Gaillardia species, Calliopsis, and Coneflowers, Echinacea purpuria. All of these plants produce rosettes of leaves at the base of the plant, and then send up strong stems that bear daisy-like blossoms. Butterflies will thank you for planting them. They do like some space, especially the Coneflower, which can grow up to five feet in height. They make excellent specimen plants, or background plants in dry areas.

Two herbs that also fit these growing conditions are lavender and yarrow. They will do well if planted from small plants now. Once established, these herbs will provide lovely flowers that can be cut and dried for permanent flowers. There are many varieties of lavender, some native Mexico and some native to the Mediterranean area. The flower racemes range from the tall-stemmed French lavender style to the stocky Mexican lavender, almost all are in the purple range in color, although there are some white varieties. All are very fragrant, even their leaves smell good. Herbalists tell us that lavender is good for relaxation and a small fabric bag of dried lavender tucked among your sheets will help induce a restful night’s sleep.

Another way to induce a good night’s sleep is to divide your perennials. This is a great activity this time of the year. (A hot one too!) This year I have to divide my daylilies. When we moved into Hacienda Weekly Weeder there were no actual garden areas. We had a bare dirt lot, then a house. We planned where we would be putting in a deck and I planted my original daylily roots in the general area where the edge of the deck was to be. Three years later and the plants are crowded and overtaking my little walkway. Here is how I plan to divide my daylilies (and this is how to divide most overgrown perennials): my first step is to choose a secondary site for part of the plants. I have a long unplanted area next to part of my house. After amending the soil, I will be ready. Carefully, I will dig out the crowded plants. Since several colors of daylilies are growing in close proximity, I will have to be a little more careful to separate the sets of roots. Daylilies have thick, succulent, and tuber like roots. I will dig out an entire clump and place it on a sheet of plastic or a tarp. To actually divide the plant I will look at the part that is at the top, approximately at the soil line, this is usually a clump and is called the crown. One plant can have several crowns, and each will make a new clump of daylilies. My job is to separate these crowns by whatever means it takes. Sometimes, if I am lucky, I can separate them with just my gloved hands. Other times I have to bring out the heavy-duty stuff, like my spading fork and shovel. To use these I have to carefully work the spading fork down between the crowns, then place the shovel (or another spading fork) back to back and push the two away from each other. This causes the clump to split in two. I use the tarp or plastic sheet to move part of the plant to the new home and replant part of the clump back in the original place. Before replanting, I make sure to cut off any broken or damaged roots and to incorporate new compost and bone meal in the soil. I usually have to cut back the green tops because most of my daylilies seem to be evergreen. This gives the roots time to reenergize themselves before cooler weather sets in. Dividing perennials is a great, inexpensive way to add to your landscape, or to make friends with your gardening neighbors. After all, eventually you will run out of space to transplant your perennial divisions in!

By the way, I have to divide my society garlic again (this seems to be an annual event!) and I will be happy to give some divisions away in the next few weeks. If you are interested in some free plants, just email me using the email at the end of the column and I will provide the details. This is a very useful perennial that seems to bloom all summer long. It has clumps of thin strap-like leaves, and circlets small tubular lavender flowers that bloom at the top of hollow straight stems. The entire plant smells like garlic when touched, and the blossoms can be added to salads for a mild garlic flavor. This is a very low maintenance plant that can lend vertical interest to the landscape.

No matter how large or small your own hacienda is, there is room for at least a few perennials or native plants. There are literally dozens of native and perennial plants that are useful here in Baja. Many more than have been mentioned here. Put a few in your garden this fall and you will be rewarded next spring and summer with interesting and easy to maintain plants. Many of these plants will do exceptionally well in large masetas or pots in a sunny spot. Several will attract butterflies and hummingbirds to provide a living show. They are usually inexpensive and most are available in garden centers in pots ready for transplanting into your garden now.

This is the time of the year to remember that it is not the branches of the plant that are of greatest importance, it is the roots that support it. Plant now so that the roots can establish themselves before cooler weather starts and growth slows.

Until next time, good gardening!