So a raccoon has been ripping up my garden/orchard. I have sprayed beneficial nematodes twice in the last few weeks and yet this morning was the worse morning yet. I live in a city and can’t really but down screening over all the ground. Suggestions?
Thanks for your suggestions. Artemesia Nursery has a lot of great natives including the globe mallows. Their website and online ordering was super easy.
My Scott's is all green, but this has some red tint to the leaves. Normal? TIA
Few pics from a hike. Plus a non plant one as well for the thrill
I threw out some California Poppy seeds in January this year. Can anyone identify this Katydid?
Dudleyas are popping. The Matilija Poppy is too...it actually resurrected itself after ripped it out on the other side of the fence lol.
Yet another blow to rare CA native plants
Update: 15,000 acres. "Overnight, the fire was most active on its northeast edge. The fire has been observed reaching South Wreck Road and Quemada Canyon Road. This has also been confirmed by satellite infrared. Satellite imagery is showing the fire about ½ mile from Torrey Pines area. There is no updated acreage this morning as the fire was not flown for mapping last night.
Air resources have conducted daily flights over the island. To date, airtanker drops have been attempted, but not successful due to unfavorable wind conditions. However, with conditions now shifting, crews will reassess operations today and are optimistic that water drops can begin soon in protection of values at risk, including the Torrey Pines. Firefighters have focused on defensible space preparation work around park housing by reducing any plants, wood piles, or any other potential ember-receptive materials. This work enhances defensible space of the historic structures.
Today, work will continue with point protection preparations in the Vail and Vickers Ranch Historic District. Priorities are historic structures, like the main ranch house and island infrastructure like the fuel building. Firefighters will focus on the pier as a priority and the bridge adjacent to the pier as these are key transportation elements for the island.
The weather today will be mostly clear and dry conditions. With this weather and the winds shifting from the weekend, firefighters are expecting another very active fire behavior day.
Firefighters are reporting clear skies this morning and will be looking for opportunities to request aircraft support as the weather and winds allow.
Additional firefighters are arriving today via boat and additional equipment will be arriving this week in addition to more personnel to support the firefighting effort."
We've decided to forgo grout and instead have plants fill the spaces in our flagstone pathway. We've heard of creeping thyme etc. but I was wondering if there's a CA native we can try out. Strawberries could be cool but we've had to guide their spread when they shoot out. Thank you!
In my opinion, it is a bit hard to keep up with controlling it's spread, but I love it as a lawn alternative for a little small space I have in my backyard. Any alternatives? I'm close to the coast near Santa Barbara.
Thanks!
I’ve been battling aphids every year and was just about to use the hose the get as many as I can off when I noticed three ladybugs on the plant and at least one cluster of ladybug eggs! I’ve never seen them in years past and I know they’ll eat the aphids. I didn’t hose them off because I didn’t want to scare away the ladybugs or damage the eggs but the infestation is bad…should I just let them do their thing or try to get some of the aphids off?
Also I can’t believe it took me this long to realize ANTS are my real problem. Whenever I water they literally pour out of the soil/mulch. So I finally got Advion ant gel and bait traps but I don’t see the ants swarming them. Any advice on how to control/kill the ants?
Jacaranda season is peaking in SoCal. Question for the native-plant crowd: would you accept Western Redbud (Cercis occidentalis) as a like-for-like substitute, or is the canopy density/scale too different to satisfy the people who plant jacarandas for "spring purple"?
Asking honestly — I live in Claremont, where jacarandas are basically civic identity, but the ecological argument against them is strong. Curious whether native alternatives can compete on the cultural use case (street trees, photo blocks, neighborhood vibes), not just on ecosystem function.
Obviously, a Redbud won't hit the massive height of an old-growth Jacaranda, so I'm curious what other purple/pink natives you'd advocate for to preserve that iconic urban canopy character.
I put together a photo spotlight of our local canopy's current peak bloom over on my neighborhood project site if you want a look at the spectacular display we are discussing:https://iloveclaremontca.com/jacaranda-guide.html
If you live in SoCal, drop a photo below of the blooms peaking in your neighborhood right now, or hit me with your best native shade-tree alternatives! 📸💜
I am in the process of removing oxalis pes caprae from a small strip of my yard. Of course now in summer they are invisible and I have just bare dirt. The soil contains a lot of clay and some areas are very hard. In order to keep the soil alive and improve it I would like to plant something. I already planted a few California poppies that I grew from seed and have a few more I will plant. I was wondering what other suggestions you might have for plants I could plant just for this summer. I will probably have to remove them again next rainy season to combat the oxalis :(
Here are some plant species found in the Costal Sage Scrub community, though not all are endemic to it.
-California Buckwheat
-Hairy Horsebrush
-California Beeplant
-Dudleya Lanceolata
-Brown Spined prickly pear
-Coastal Goldenbush
-Rock Bush Monkeyflower
-Telegraph Weed
Got a little Coast Live Oak seedling, maybe a foot tall in a little nursery pot at Earth Day, seemed like not the best time to give them out since I assume best time to plant is fall.
Question I have is, would it be better to put it into a taller pot and just keep it watered until Fall, or plant it now and just keep on top of watering?
Can a Ray Hartman be planted in a pot (say 2 X 2 feet) if the bottom is cut off to allow roots to extend down? Also, can the Ray Hartman be kept to a 5 or 6 foot high tree?
The bark near the root crown of 2 of my 18” manzanita saplings has peeled back. Can anyone diagnose and let me know if this is complete plant death, or if this is normal manzanita bark peeling? I’m afraid the cambium layer has peeled back. For pictures 3+4, clay soil was sitting around the peeling point for roughly 4 days before I replanted higher and cleaned the area.