Full Circle Gardening

Spring Blooms

Lora — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 21:27:40 +0000

Spring is in full swing here in Southern California. We finally had a year with at least some decent rain and now its effects are starting to show. I went to Palm Springs and Joshua Tree last week and the desert was absolutely beautiful. The wildflowers were just starting to bloom and the palm canyons in Palm Springs were literally lush.

Being a fruit tree person, one of my favorite things is the ephemeral but stunning display of blossoms put out by the peaches, plums, apples and other deciduous fruit trees. The early varieties started blooming at the end of February and now more and more peaches are blooming around town. It is so beautiful. These blooms really say seasonal interest to me. When a whole tree is in bloom it really does take your breath away. Sure, it doesn’t last forever, but those few spectacular weeks of flowers wouldn’t be so special if they weren’t so brief.

Being a gardener I feel closely tied to the seasons here. I really enjoy seeing the subtle and not so subtle changes our seasons bring. As the days are lengthening and the weather warms, plants are starting to grow really fast. Which means, I have to get back out to the garden, there’s lots to do.

Chicken & Fruit Tree Classes for Winter

Lora — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 00:47:38 +0000

I am planning on teaching a lot of workshops and classes in the new year. I have had several requests for urban chicken classes and fruit tree pruning. So those are what we will start with.

Our first urban chicken class will be January 16th from 10:30-12 at

The Learning Garden in Venice. We will cover all the basics of backyard chickens-

food, housing, health and where to get chickens and supplies. This class is also a bargain at only $10.

Our Winter fruit tree pruning workshop will introduce students to the idea of backyard orchard culture and how to prune deciduous fruit trees. You will learn how to cut, what kind of tools to use, how to encourage tree health through pruning and how pruning relates to fruit production in different species. There will also be the opportunity for a little hands on pruning. The class will be held at a private location in Silverlake. You will receive the address upon RSVP. The class will be Saturday, January 23rd from 1-3pm.

Fruit tree classes are $30 per person. Please RSVP to fullcirclegardening@gmail.com.

Kale, Pomegranate and Persimmon Salad

Lora — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 19:22:19 +0000

Season’s Eatings.

This is my favorite new fall salad. The colors are fantastic and rich. Kale is abundant in my garden right now and the farmer’s markets are full of kale as well. If you have never tried kale raw before, this will alter the way you think about salads. Kale is much more nutritious and satisfying than lettuce. I always feel great after a big bowl full.

Ingredients:

1 bunch black (Tuscan aka Lacinato) kale

2 fuyu persimmons – these are the flat ones, not the pointy ones

1/2 cup pomegranate seeds

for the dressing:

2 tablespoons olive or grapeseed oil

1 -2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar

1 teaspoon Bragg’s liquid aminos, tamari or soy sauce (I prefer Bragg’s but use what you have)

1/2 teaspoon sesame oil

Rinse and chop the kale into bite size pieces

Cut the tops off of the persimmons and cut into roughly 1/2″ cubes

To get the seeds out of the pomegranate, the easiest method is to open the pomegranate in a bowl of water. This eliminates squirting and stains. The sees sink to the bottom of the bowl and the pithy white parts float for easy separation.

Throw everything into a bowl and toss. You can use apples if pomegranates are not available. Shredded carrot would add a nice dash of color if you are using apples.

Enjoy.

It’s fruit tree planting time

Lora — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 06:31:24 +0000

How is your home orchard? Fall is the time of year to start planning and planting perennials here in Southern California. That means that you can start planting native plants, drought tolerant shrubs and lots and lots of trees. Here at Full Circle we especially love fruit trees. Fruit trees can serve so many purposes.

They can be ornamental, adding seasonal beauty to a landscape. A peach tree in full blossom is a sight to behold. Thousands of flowers adorn the branches for a few weeks every spring. Persimmon trees have beautiful leaves that turn from green to orange in the fall. They really make you feel in touch with the changing of the seasons. In winter, citrus fruits take on jewel tones with a few cold nights- citrus fruit’s color deepens with dropping temperatures. Brightly colored oranges, grapefruits and lemons are lovely against their deep green foliage. Fruit trees can be used like other ornamental trees in the landscape. They can be treated as specimens, adding a focal point to a yard. Or they can be massed together to create a wall of green. Some can be trained to grow in specific ways such as espalier. I have trained apple trees over a trellis framing my front walkway. Soon, I will have juicy apples hanging down as I walk up my front steps.

Then of course, fruit trees can provide valuable shade in a landscape. They can protect plants beneath them from blazing sun. Deciduous trees (those that lose their leaves in the winter) planted around a house can block harsh summer sun while allowing the light in during the winter when we need the precious warmth of those few hours of daylight. They can also shade a hammock or favorite seating area.

And then of course there is the fruit. There is a wide variety of fruit that grows in our climate. We can grow apples, peaches, plums, pears, oranges, avocados and even more tropical treats like mangos and bananas. There are far more exotic fruits that we can grow, but these are a good start.

We can help you with existing fruit trees, select a single tree for a small space, or plan an entire home orchard.

The picture above is of a quince. Learn more about quince here.

Fall Season Seedlings Are Here

Lora — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 19:31:10 +0000

The backyard nursery is crammed full of trays full of baby seedlings. We have been planting up a storm. There are both Tuscan black kale and the curly blue kale, several kinds of broccoli and cauliflower, lettuces and arugula everywhere. We will have these at the farmer’s markets for the next few months. We are always at Highland Park on Tuesdays and beginning October 11th, we will be at Atwater Village on Sundays. Come on down and buy some seedlings for your fall garden.

Pineapple Guava- Feijoa sellowiana

Lora — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 05:02:04 +0000

This is a great multi-purpose plant. Feijoa are native to South America and are considered sub-tropical fruit trees. They are well adapted to the California climate, enjoying heat and tolerating occasional cold snaps. They also need very little water once established. You have probably seen this pretty plant all over the place and never realized that it bears delicious, edible fruit.

I’d say the appearance of feijoa is like a cross between an olive tree and a madrone. They fit well into mediterranean landscapes, cottage gardens and many other garden styles. They have blue-grey leaves and pretty bark that peels off in a decorative manner. The color of the bark and leaves pairs well with blue agave or other blue-grey succulents. They can be trained as either a bush or as a tree. So versatile! I have several planted together to form a hedge in my backyard. I also know of some in the neighborhood that have been trained as trees. They only get about 20 feet high at the most, making them a nice small landscape tree. They are not going to take over your garden or swallow your house. Rather, they are a perfect little tree to complement or define a space.

The fruit are harvested after they fall from the tree. This makes it easy for those who are unsure about when to pick fruit. I simply lay a sheet under the tree at harvest time and collect my bounty with ease. The fruit is sweet with a little tropical flavor- thus the common name of pineapple guava.

This is perhaps my favorite edible ornamental plant. It is easy to grow, needs little water, makes great fruit and its pretty. A winner all around.

Mulch

Lora — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 19:28:42 +0000

Mulch is a magical, multifunctional thing. It conserves soil moisture, protects plant roots, prevents erosion and over time, leads to more workable, healthy soil. So why isn’t that we don’t see it around every tree and beneath every shrub? I see a lot of bare, hard earth in gardens full of struggling plants. I am here to spread the gospel of mulch.
Mulch is any material placed on top of soil. When we talk about mulch for gardens we most often mean wood chips. But mulch can be leaves, wood chips, ground up rubber, shredded bark or even plastic sheets. You have probably seen the black plastic sheets used as a mulch in strawberry fields.
When I go to spruce up a landscape the first thing I usually do after weeding and trimming is spread a nice, thick layer of mulch. In a matter of hours a garden that looked tired and weedy becomes tidy and beautiful. The mulch makes the space between the plants more defined and the color of the wood chips contrasts nicely with the colors of the plants it surrounds.

Mulch promotes living, healthy soil. If you scrape off a handful of mulch you will find rich, dark soil full of bugs and microorganisms. You won’t find that in uncovered soil baked in the unrelenting Southern California sun. I work with a lot of fruit trees and too often see sad trees with no mulch around them. Citrus and avocado trees have rather shallow root systems so they do notably better under a layer of protective mulch. But nearly any plant benefits from a protective layer of mulch. When mulching around trees do not let the mulch actually touch the trunk. Leave a two to three inch space around the trunk of the tree. Then spread several inches of mulch out beneath the canopy of the tree.

So I recommend you get mulching. You can buy bagged wood chips at any nursery or garden supply store. Local tree trimmers are often willing to drop off large quantities of wood chips for free. This is a great option if you need a large amount of mulch and aren’t too picky about the type or color of wood chips.
Mulching a garden is a service that Full Circle provides as well. We are always happy to spread more mulch.

Real Gardening For Goodness’ Sake

Lora — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 19:28:42 +0000

People often seem confused when I tell them that I am a professional gardener. They understand the title landscape or garden designer and are familiar with guys that mow lawns and blow leaves around. But apparently my job description is baffling.
I spend time with plants and play in the dirt. I trim, rake, hoe and dig. I take out dead plants and replace them with new ones. I sit with clients, staring at an open hillside, deciding what kind of tree would be most appropriate for the site. This is what I call honest to goodness gardening.
My parent’s house, where they have lived for thirty years, has a big, wild backyard. My dad loves to spend time outside fussing with the yard or just sitting and staring at the giant cacti and bamboo that surround the space. We spent a lot of time in the backyard growing up. Dad would put us to work raking leaves or planting cuttings of succulents from friend’s yards. In college, I became involved in a student run organic vegetable garden. I found that getting my hands in the soil helped me cope with the pressures of college life. We did a lot with that little piece of land. We had vegetable beds, a ‘permaculture’ area of perennial edibles, a natural farming plot where we experimented with the techniques of the legendary Japanese farmer Masanobu Fukouka and a California native plant border. I was hooked. There was so much to know and explore.
Now, ten years later, I am putting my knowledge of plants to work. I have assembled a small crew of friends and associates to help me design, build and maintain landscapes of all kinds. My personal specialty is pruning. I have spent several years studying fruit trees, so pruning and caring for fruit trees is one of Full Circle’s special services. But overall what we are is a company of real gardeners- for goodness’ sake.

Backyard Orchard Culture

Lora — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 22:15:31 +0000

The idea behind backyard orchard culture is to maximize available space and spread out your harvest by keeping trees small. It is called backyard orchard culture to differentiate it from commercial orchard culture. The available space, harvest and labor considerations are radically different for home growers versus commercial growers.
Most deciduous fruit trees- peaches, plums, apples, apricots, etc. benefit from regular pruning. So they can be pruned to stay at a height that is easy to pick and doesn’t take up too much space. There is no need for a home gardener to have a thirty foot high apple tree because they have no use for such a quantity of one type of apple. Instead, it makes more sense to plant three different kinds of apples and keep the trees small through pruning. Then you can plant an early, mid and late apple variety, thus spreading out your harvest. If weather conditions are bad for a certain variety one year and that tree does not bear well, the other two trees may compensate for it. Backyard orchard culture takes advantage of the benefits of diversity. It is surprising how much fruit you can produce throughout the year by intensive plantings of a diverse array of fruit trees. In my own front yard I have three apples, a pomegranate, a kumquat and two different lime trees. In my backyard I have another apple, a navel orange, a meyer lemon, a eureka lemon, three peaches, a plum, a fig and a nectaplum tree. None of the trees will be allowed to get more than eight feet high. This way I can cram all these exciting things into my little urban lot. If you doubt you have enough room for a home orchard, think again. You don’t need a lot of space. And we can help you to plan and plant your orchard.
The best resource for further information about backyard orchard culture is from Dave Wilson Nursery. See the BOC page here.

Citrus leafminer Phyllocnistis citrella

Lora — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 12:41:49 +0000

Distorted leaves affected by citrus leafminer

Is your orange tree a little ugly right now? I get a lot of questions related to this particular problem. In the summer and fall, leaves on citrus trees are distorted by the activities of citrus leafminer larvae. The leafminer is a relatively new pest of citrus in California having first being identified here in 2000. They are now a common pest of citrus trees around the world. Luckily, they do not do serious damage to established trees and they have many natural enemies. The larvae affect new, succulent growth. They do not damage older leaves that have hardened off. The citrus leafminer leaves a distinctive curving path as it carves its way through the leaf. These leaves then tend to become misshapen and distorted. This is unattractive. However, those leaves can still photosynthesize and provide food for the tree. Therefore, on young trees it is best not to remove the affected leaves. On more mature trees the affected growth can simply be cut off. While citrus leafminer makes trees less attractive it is often best to leave the trees alone and allow beneficial insects to keep the pests in check. Spraying trees is an option but should only be used in severe cases on very young trees. Even organic sprays can kill beneficial insects that are natural predators of citrus leafminer and other common garden pests. So I recommend doing everything you can to reduce stress and encourage healthy new growth. Maintain a layer of mulch around trees, plant a variety of flowering plants to provide habitat for beneficial insects and provide adequate water. If you need more personalized advice, I’m available to help or for more information check out the University of California integrated pest management site. The University of California provides great scientific information that is helpful to gardeners of all levels of expertise.