Greetings!
This week's rain is setting up perfect conditions for planting this weekend. A good 1/2" to 1" of rain will moisten our soils to a depth of 6-18" making digging a lot easier. A couple days of moisture will also test the leaf disease resistance of the grafted tomato plants we promoted a few weeks ago. October is normally warm, windy and dry so make certain that newly installed plants are provided any needed support and regular irrigation. Realize that newly installed plants can't tap into the moist soil that surrounds them until they are established. This means that you need to water them irregardless of how wet the surrounding soil looks. Bedding plants get established within a few days, whereas a 1-gallon plant may require a week and a 15-gallon tree, more than a month. Be aware that properly grown plants in properly prepared soil won't easily suffer from conditions that are very wet. It is better to keep plants acquired from us too wet, rather than too dry. Nearly all plants (excluding bedding plants) you purchase from Laguna Hills Nursery will be grown in a mineral-based soil. The majority of plants purchased at other garden centers will be grown in a compost-based soil. Compost (ground bark, sawdust, etc.) can induce root-rot when submerged. Mineral-based soils are not likely to, unless submerged for many days at a time. |
New Items of Interest
 Strawberry Temptation 6-pack $3 This is a variety of Alpine (Woodland) strawberry that is known for its intense flavor, heavy production and long bearing season. Alpine strawberries are normally quite small (even tiny), but this is larger than typical. I would still describe it as being a bit smaller than medium sized. Alpine strawberry plants also produce few or no runners. Strawberry Sequoia 6-pack $3 This is your standard, large, excellent tasting homeowner cultivar of strawberry. Production is heaviest from mid-winter to early summer.  Cauliflower Graffiti 6-packs $3This is a striking color variation of normal cauliflower. The color intensifies with sun exposure; no need to blanch. Eaten fresh the heads are tender and mild flavored. Cooked heads are mauve. 80 days.   Euphorbia Ascot Rainbow quart $4 This lovely perennial creates a tidy shrub, 24-30 inches tall and 20-24 inches wide. The blue-green foliage is edged in creamy yellow. It emerges flushed with red and reddens with cool winter temperatures. The flowers appear in mid spring and last into summer. This hybrid was discovered in Australia and introduced to the trade in 2005. Situate in sun. Provide decent soil and average to light irrigation. Also Back in Stock Salvia Hot Lips quart $4 Cilantro quart $3 Parsley Moss Curled quart $3 Purple Sprouting Broccoli 6-pack $3
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Exclusively at The Great Park Farmer's Market we will have a new and expanded selection of succulents including the Haworthia (above), Echeveria, Sempervivum, Aeonium, Kalanchoe, Euphorbia, Gasteria, Sedum and more.
Desert Rose Adenium obesum 6-inch pots $15 This succulent bush is native to arid regions of eastern and southern Africa. It blooms in spring and fall with brilliant flowers that are creamy white edged red. Specimens rarely grow more than a few feet tall and develop a caudex. It is related to Oleander and Plumeria.
Best grown in containers in Laguna Hills Nursery Tropical Potting Soil. Desert Rose is very tender to cold and must be brought indoors when temperatures drop much below 50 degrees F. (Plants left outdoors during winter will die!) Loves sun and heat.
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