We've been potting like crazy people over here and we're almost out of 1 gallon pots. If you have them laying about, we could sure use them.
Markham Regional Arboretum Society 1202 La Vista Avenue Concord, California. 925-681-2968
Nursery Hours: Tuesdays 9am till Noon.
But what about my lawn?
Love them or hate them they're still a big part of our community and there are ways to manage their water more sensibly.
The vast majority of lawns use pop up spray heads from 4" or 6" submerged bodies, run through a timer. Spraying the lawn for a long period of time tends to cause run off as the soil cannot absorb the amount of water being thrown at it. Not only is your precious water running down the street but it is more than likely taking the nitrogen fertilizer with it which causes all sorts of problems downstream.
A smarter approach is to irrigate at intervals, allowing the water to percolate into the soil before adding more. An example could be 3 intervals of 5 to 7 mins each (with a 10 min break in between) every three to four days.
Urban Farmer in Richmond has a great chart with suggested times for all products and soils. You can download a copy here.
Swap out the heads. Spray heads are the standard attachment to sprinkler body's however they have a major drawback. They blast water at such a rate that it creates a fine mist. On days with even the slightest breeze the mist is blown all over the place with up to 50% or more of the water not going to its intended target. Try swapping the spray heads for rotators which throw streams of water which are heavier and less likely to be affected by wind.
Just these two steps can significantly reduce water usage on the lawn.
At Markham were trialing a few lawns that are touted as drought tolerant. The grasses are now mostly established and we hope to publish some results in the near future.
Have a comment or topic suggestion? Feel free to drop us a line at here.
Don't forget, the nursery is still open every Tuesday from 9am till Noon so feel free to stop in and see what we're up to.
Thanks for your continued support and we look forward catching up at the next Saturday Plant Sale on September 8 (if not on a Tuesday sooner).
