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Spring Gardening Tips for a Flourishing Garden
As the vibrant colors of spring burst forth and the air fills with the sweet scent of blossoms, it's the perfect time to roll up your sleeves and tend to your garden. Whether you're a seasoned gar...
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‘Atmospheric river’ could soak Sacramento with 1.5 inches of rain
Arugula sprouts quickly and can still be started in the cool-weather garden. Keep the soil moist. (The rain we get this next week should help.) Kathy Morrison
According to the National Weather Service, our first “atmospheric river” of the 2023-24 rainy season is on its way to Northern California. It’s expected to start drizzling Tuesday morning in Sacramento and won’t let up until Friday afternoon.
For the most part, this rain won’t be heavy but it will be consistently threatening. The weather service predicts “likely rain showers” starting at 4 a.m. Tuesday and forecasts “likely” or “chance rain showers” every single hour after that until 4 p.m. Friday.
How much rain will we get? Sacramento’s final total will be about 1.5 inches, predicts the weather service. That will boost our monthly rain total to close to normal. November average’s 2.08 inches of rain in Sacramento. So far, we’ve received 0.12 inches.
This storm bodes well for another wet winter. Our first atmospheric river of 2022 arrived Nov. 7, starting one of the wettest years in Sacramento history.
Before this new storm arrives, this may be our last sunny 70s weekend of 2023. All that incoming cloud cover will keep high temperatures in the low to mid 60s, which is normal; our average for mid-November is 64.
Make the most of this sunny break before rain. Get outside and garden!
* Turn off the sprinklers; Mother Nature should take care of irrigation this week.
* Rake and compost leaves, but dispose of any diseased plant material. For example, if peach and nectarine trees showed signs of leaf curl this year, clean up under trees and dispose of those leaves instead of composting.
* Make sure to rake leaves away from storm drains and keep gutters clear so water doesn’t pond in the street.
* Give your azaleas, gardenias and camellias a boost with chelated iron.
* Prune non-flowering trees and shrubs while dormant.
* Pull faded annuals and vegetables.
* Save dry stalks and seedpods from poppies and coneflowers for fall bouquets and holiday decorating.
* Prune dead or broken branches from trees.
* Keep planting bulbs to spread out your spring bloom. Some possible suggestions: daffodils, crocuses, hyacinths, tulips, anemones and scillas.
* This is also a good time to seed wildflowers and plant such spring bloomers as sweet pea, sweet alyssum and bachelor buttons.
* Now is the best time to plant most trees and shrubs. This gives them plenty of time for root development before spring growth. They also benefit from fall and winter rains.
* Set out cool-weather annuals such as pansies and snapdragons.
* Lettuce, cabbage and broccoli also can be planted now.
* Plant seeds for radishes, beets, bok choy, chard, arugula, mustard, spinach and peas.
* Plant garlic and onions.
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Garden Checklist for week of May 19
Temperatures will be a bit higher than normal in the afternoons this week. Take care of chores early in the day – then enjoy the afternoon. It’s time to smell the roses.
* Plant, plant, plant! It’s prime planting season in the Sacramento area. If you haven’t already, it’s time to set out those tomato transplants along with peppers and eggplants. Pinch off any flowers on new transplants to make them concentrate on establishing roots instead of setting premature fruit.
* Direct-seed melons, cucumbers, summer squash, corn, radishes, pumpkins and annual herbs such as basil.
* Harvest cabbage, lettuce, peas and green onions.
* In the flower garden, direct-seed sunflowers, cosmos, salvia, zinnias, marigolds, celosia and asters.
* Plant dahlia tubers. Other perennials to set out include verbena, coreopsis, coneflower and astilbe.
* Transplant petunias, marigolds and perennial flowers such as astilbe, columbine, coneflowers, coreopsis, dahlias, rudbeckia and verbena.
* Keep an eye out for slugs, snails, earwigs and aphids that want to dine on tender new growth.
* Feed summer bloomers with a balanced fertilizer.
* For continued bloom, cut off spent flowers on roses as well as other flowering plants.
* Don’t forget to water. Seedlings need moisture. Deep watering will help build strong roots and healthy plants.
* Add mulch to the garden to help keep that precious water from evaporating. Mulch also cuts down on weeds. But don’t let it mound around the stems or trunks of trees or shrubs. Leave about a 6-inch to 1-foot circle to avoid crown rot or other problems.
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