Gardening on the Moon ( GOTM )

Written by Jeff
Non-GOTM pictures credited by hover notes – move cursor over image

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© Jeff Ross and www.gardeningonthemoon.com, 2000-2075. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts of 50 words or less and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Jeff Ross and www.gardeningonthemoon.com with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

As deserts go, the Sonoran desert may have a bit of an identity problem. It is one of the more moderate deserts in the world. It does get approximately 10-12 inches of rain a year and the temperatures, at times, are quite moderate. As a matter of fact, the Sonoran Desert does get snow and frost from time-to-time.

As you can imagine, we plant heat-loving plants in the desert because of irrigation concerns during the hot, hot summer. Unfortunately, those heat-loving plants don’t like the cold. Take our long-flowering summer, 2011 favorite, morning glory bush.

Here it is after a few cold evenings. Not necessarily freezing, but in the low 30′s.

You might recall what it looked like from an earlier post HERE!

We flirted with freezing temperatures a couple of evenings where it may have dipped to 32.

Our potato vines didn’t fare much better

This is our fifth winter in the desert and for three of those winters, we didn’t have any hard freezes. When the weather turns in December, we try to plant some frost-tolerant plants that help us maintain season-long color in our garden areas.

One cool weather star is decorative Kale. Of course we also have to deal with the Javelina who don’t read the labels that say DECORATIVE Kale and will enjoy it if they can get to it; ditto for the rabbits.

We removed the morning glory bush and planted the Kale in that large, raised planter. We also put some pansies in the planter to add additional colors. I did most of the digging, root removal and soil refresh while my wife, Mary, performed the detail work of restoring the mulch and watering the newly planted treasures!

When we were finished we had replaced the dead plant with a very pleasant, frost-tolerant arrangement.

Gardening on the Moon, www.gardeningonthemoon.com, originally published this post

Written by Jeff
Non-GOTM pictures credited by hover notes – move cursor over image

Follow Jeff on Twitter for daily garden tips and news!

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  Is Aquarium Water Liquid Gold for Your Garden? Apparently there are groups of people who think so and if the Native Americans used fish to fertilize their plants perhaps there is something wonderful about this by-product!

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  Hedge your bets by letting shrubs grow together if they were initially planted too close. BONUS – Snickerdoodle recipe included in the post!

http://www.azplantlady.com/2011/12/crowded-shrubs-and-pizza-night-at.html

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  A compendium of organic gardening resources. Integrated Pest Management (IPM) is really the way to go to avoid chemical residue and help our people and our planet remain healthy. Scroll down to see the list of resources and ideas!

http://www.vegetablegardener.com/item/11644/collection-of-successful-organic-controls

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  Physocarpus opulifolius ‘Center Glow’ from Monrovia (not pictured above). This is a lovely performer in the correct zones during the Fall.

  “A mounded, vase-shaped, Ninebark cultivar that typically matures to 6-8’ tall and as wide, and is most noted for its attractive foliage.” Also highlighted is the more shrub-like ‘Seward’ Summer Wine and ‘Mindia’ Coppertina for zones 3 – 8. Appears to be especially well suited to erosion control!

http://allthedirtongardening.blogspot.com/2011/12/ninebark-physocarpus-opulifolius.html

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  8 ways to make a small garden look big. A few tricks can help make a small area look big. Using paths and other techniques, the garden can offer a number of “areas” to increase the feel of depth.

Gardening on the Moon, www.gardeningonthemoon.com, originally published this post

Follow Jeff on Twitter for daily garden tips and news!

The first two frosts have hit our garden (more about that in a later post). It didn’t freeze by much, but my heat loving, sensitive desert plants have suffered.

Before the frost, the spring-like weather rejuvenated many of the garden specimens.

Here is the Madagascar Palm, one of my favorites.

Of course it really isn’t a palm tree at all, it just looks like one and the animals don’t bother it.

The green potato vine also “took off” once the cooler weather hit the scene. It enjoyed the sun and cooler evening temperatures.

We also purchased a purple potato vine to sit on top of our Chimera (outdoor fireplace) and it too is doing very well.

A follow up post about after-the-frost conditions to follow in a couple fo weeks!

Gardening on the Moon, www.gardeningonthemoon.com, originally published this post

Written by Jeff
Non-GOTM pictures credited by hover notes – move cursor over image

Follow Jeff on Twitter for daily garden tips and news!

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  “…time to join Donna at Garden Walk, Garden Talk with a Word 4 Wednesday post. This week’s words are Texture and Pattern and Donna’s post is full of great garden design information with fantastic photos to illustrate that information.”

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  Great Native Shrubs: Fothergilla ‘Mt Airy and ‘Blue Shadow’ for consideration for those living in Zones 5-8 +/- (please do some further investigation for your planting zone if interested).

http://serenityinthegarden.blogspot.com/2011/11/great-native-shrubs-fothergilla-mt-airy.html

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  A San Francisco garden with removal of an agave Americana and pictures of other interesting plants. Highlighted are the Gilia tricolor “Birds Eyes” which are stand outs and Erysimum franciscanum var. crassifolium. Removing a mature Agave is not for the faint of heart. Wear goggles and gloves!

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  Green roofs have gained in popularity for the aesthetics and the energy savings they provide. This entry provides reflections in building a green roof.

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  Torchglow Bougainvillea – Too bad the rabbits and/or javelinas seem to think it is food. They ate the leaves off of the plant pictured above in two weeks.

http://gardeningandthespanishway-rohrerbot.blogspot.com/2011/11/lighting-torches.html

Gardening on the Moon, www.gardeningonthemoon.com, originally published this post

Written by Jeff
Non-GOTM pictures credited by hover notes – move cursor over image

Follow Jeff on Twitter for daily garden tips and news!

© Jeff Ross and www.gardeningonthemoon.com, 2000-2075. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts of 50 words or less and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Jeff Ross and www.gardeningonthemoon.com with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

A couple of weeks ago I noticed our orange Justicia had “thrown in the towel.” This was a problem plant from the day I brought it home and I should have left this particular pot at the garden center. The roots were never completely below the soil line. They were slightly above the level of the soil almost like a “walking” tree, but I thought I could remedy this by burying it deeper over time. It never seemed to work and this bush, that should be sturdy, needed constant staking.

It was beautiful when in full bloom and the humming birds enjoyed it.

Our experience with the Morning Glory Bush ((Ipomea Fistulosa Carnea) has been a positive one. As long as it is given enough water, it continues to bloom throughout the summer and is relatively problem free. Having a bouquet of medium-sized pink flowers to look at every day in the searing desert heat is no small feat and is much welcomed!

We grew one in a large pot and it received sun in the morning and filtered sun the rest of the day. This specimen grew large; over six feet tall. It also flowered earlier than the full-sun plants. The reasons for this large growth could be the lack of competition from other plants, the more than ample water supply or the partial shade. I must say that the size of the plants grown in full sun is more preferable.

We were finally able to solve the problem of the birds destroying the coconut fiber mats we used in our hanging baskets. I will try to prepare a post about this next planting season. Here are a couple of pictures of our purple potato vines on a double shepherds hook with the Bush Morning Glory in front.

The double purple datura has survived a bout of white fly to flourish in the cooler weather of our Sonoran Desert autumn!

Gardening on the Moon, www.gardeningonthemoon.com, originally published this post