Home Gardening Calendar 2008

Oakland Tribune, Dec 31, 2007 by Holly Hayes

JANUARY

SNAPSHOT: Generally our wettest, chilliest month. Smart buys: bare-root fruit, flowering and shade trees; grape and berry vines; strawberries; and roses. Protect tender plants from frost. Order seeds from those tempting catalogs that are piling up.

FLOWERS: Set out transplants of pansies, English daisies, Iceland poppies, primroses and snapdragons. Sow seeds of sweet peas for armloads of fragrant spring bloom (protect seeds from birds and slugs). Try new varieties of California poppy in luscious colors: Dusky Rose, Buttercream, Native Orange. EDIBLES: Put in transplants of broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage and lettuce to harvest in early spring. Plant asparagus, artichokes, seed potatoes, onion and garlic transplants.

TO-DO LIST: Prune roses, fruit trees, berries and grapes. Apply dormant spray to deciduous trees and shrubs if aphids, scale or whiteflies have been a problem in previous seasons. Apply tribasic copper sulfate or lime sulfur for peach leaf curl now into mid- February. Learn how to compost - a number of organizations offer free classes.

FEBRUARY

SNAPSHOT: Frosty nights and _ let's hope _ lots and lots of rain. Stay off waterlogged soil to keep it from becoming compacted.

FLOWERS: Plant hardy annuals and perennials, including calendulas, fairy primroses, pansies, snapdragons and violas. Callas and tuberous begonias are good bets. Check out new daylilies for planting now.

EDIBLES: Plant dormant roots of asparagus, rhubarb, artichokes, horseradish and strawberries, plus potatoes, onions and garlic. Transplant broccoli, cauliflower, leaf lettuce and chard.

TO-DO LIST: Feed fall-planted annuals and perennials. Fertilize lawns late in the month. Pick up camellia blossoms to control petal blight (avoid overhead watering). Before new growth emerges, apply dormant spray to fruit trees. Prune lantana. Apply pre-emergent control for crabgrass in the lawn (try a shaker bag to apply this if your lawn is small).

MARCH

SNAPSHOT: Crisp days and chilly nights. Smart buys include azaleas, rhododendrons and camellias in bloom. Start summer vegetable and flower seeds indoors to transplant outside when soil warms.

FLOWERS: Attract hummingbirds and butterflies to your yard by planting passion vine, trumpet creeper, cape honeysuckle, alstroemeria and wild lilac. Many types of ground cover can be planted now, including Mondo grass and ground morning glory. Get instant color from cinerarias, ageratums, begonias and dwarf marigolds.

EDIBLES: Plant an herb garden. To rejuvenate perennial herbs such as sage and mint, cut back dead or old growth. Put in broccoli and cauliflower transplants; get peas, lettuce, spinach and carrots going from seed.

TO-DO LIST: Check drip irrigation system; flush out sediment and clean or replace emitters. To encourage robust spring growth, fertilize plants that have special nutrient requirements, such as annuals, using slow-release nitrogen as found in alfalfa meal. Get inspired at the San Francisco Flower & Garden Show, March 12-16 at the Cow Palace. For tickets and information, go to www.gardenshow.com.

APRIL

SNAPSHOT: Warmer days mean soil is welcoming to just about everything.

FLOWERS: Six-packs and pots of annuals and perennials will tempt you. Cosmos and nasturtiums _ grow the gorgeous scarlet-orange climber called Spitfire on a fence or trellis _ are easy from seed. Love sunflowers? Plant them in stages so you'll have continuous bloom through summer. A new variety on the scene is Moonshadow, with creamy lemon-custard petals and dark chocolate centers. Put in begonias, dahlias, glads, callas and cannas. Late-month, after frost danger has passed, put in tropical hibiscus, jacaranda, bougainvillea. EDIBLES: Plant summer vegetables, herbs and ornamental gourds. Midmonth, put in cucumbers, peppers and tomatoes.

TO-DO LIST: Feed acid lovers such as azaleas, camellias and rhododendrons after they finish blooming. Roll out new sod or sow grass seed. Spray apple and pear trees for codling moths after the petals have dropped. Buy tickets for the annual Bringing Back the Natives garden tour, May 4, www.bringingbackthenatives.net.

MAY SNAPSHOT: We're in full swing now. Water deeply; don't sprinkle. Smart buys: sun-loving tomatoes and peppers.

FLOWERS: Plant now: hot-weather annuals such as asters, cosmos, marigolds, petunias and portulacas. Pinch azaleas, fuchsias, mandevillas and marguerites for bushier plants. Give roses a good feed. Try the new Glacier Star morning glory from seed; the petals are a soft baby blue accented with cerulean blue throats.

EDIBLES: Reseed or transplant seedlings every three weeks for successive harvests of beans, corn and squash. Plant pumpkins, melons and gourds. No space? Try Little Prince from seed, an eggplant variety that produces glossy 4-inch fruits and is designed to be grown in containers. Ditto Green Fingers, a variety of Persian baby cucumbers - they're ready to pick at just 3 inches long.

TO-DO LIST: Build water basins around shrubs, trees and roses to catch every drop, and add mulch to hold in moisture. Plant avocado, citrus and other tender trees. Watch for snails and slugs; hand- pick, if you can stand it _ otherwise, the safest product on the market is iron phosphate. Stuck on a gardening question? Can't identify a plant or an insect? Call the Master Gardener Hotline at 925-646-6586, 9 a.m.-noon, Mondays-Fridays; 75 Santa Barbara Road, Second Floor, Pleasant Hill. In Alameda County, the Master Gardeners Plant Doctor Hotline is 510-639-1371 Tuesdays and Thursdays, and 925- 960-9420 Thursdays.