Newspapers, horticultural magazines and your friendly water department are bombarding you with suggestions for saving and conserving water. We will add our voice to that chorus and hope you will find something usable.

A great free resource for planning a Water Wise Garden is available through the Bay Area Water Supply & Conservation Agency (BAWSCA). The BAWSCA which includes all of the Cities and Water agencies on the Peninsula has developed a practical and comprehensive CD--Water Wise Gardening in the Bay Area. This resource will walk you through a redesign of your landscape to make it over into a water friendly environment. The free CD will guide you through garden tours so you can get a visual sense of all of the possibilities. Then go to the Garden Gallery, which is divided into specific applications such as Low Maintenance, Hillsides, Parking Strips and many more plus a focus on Surfaces, Decks, Garden Ornaments and everything in between. The program then allows you to create your own Plant List from a comprehensive Plant List broken down by type, size, name, type, exposure and more. Also included is an encyclopedia of resource knowledge on design, irrigation and care tips.

This is the most comprehensive CD Wegman’s has ever seen and we are proud to team with the BAWSCA to offer you this free CD. Call 650-349-3000 or email bpink@bawsca.org to receive your copy today! Don’t miss out on this opportunity to do an extreme makeover for our environment and have fun doing it!

Idea #1
Lawns use more water per square meter than any other part of the landscape. Why not remove one or two feet of lawn all around its perimeter and thus enlarge the flower beds surrounding the lawn. Most people have flower beds that are too narrow, anyway! We suggest flower beds that are four to eight feet wide. Fill in this newly acquired space with annuals (impatiens or petunias or whatever) until the shrubs take over. You probably will have to adjust your sprinkler system as well. Think soaker hose. Shrubs, especially hedges and foundation plants are more efficiently and economically irrigated with Gilmore soaker hoses than by other methods. Usually, you ooze them three to four hours once a week. There is no spray; water just drips or oozes very slowly.

Trees and turf don't mix, so if you have a tree in the lawn area, do some redesign work so that they become separated.

Idea #2
Then, what are you doing with the rinse water from your washing machine? Mr. Ed has connected a 50 foot hose to the discharge hose from the washing machine and runs it out to a group of birch trees and a big toyon bush. This has been going on for six or seven years and all the plants are thriving. The water may contain soap suds or bleach, but there has been no harm to the plants.

Idea #3
If there is a bare area that needs total landscaping, think of xerophytic plants surrounded by light colored rock. Clean and level (or mound) the area, water it to bring up the weeds and then spray herbicide to kill all the weeds. Cover the area with weed barrier cloth if you are not going to plant annuals or bulbs. Place a couple or more of large light colored rocks (3 feet or more long) off center into the area and cover one-quarter to one-third of their base with soil. Don’t just have rocks sitting on the surface of the ground;, it does not look natural. Cut ‘X’ shaped flaps in the cloth to locate your plants. Put the plants around the specimen rocks and in other natural looking locations. A large grass such as Red Fountain Grass can sit by itself. The smaller grasses should be clustered or planted around the rocks with a minimum of three in a group. The following grasses should be able to survive on a drip system set for one gallon of water per week: Blue Fescue, Japanese Blood Grass, Blue Oat Grass, Fountain Grass and Rattlesnake Grass. The Red Fountain Grass will need two or three gallons per week. Bush Germander and Artemisia ‘Powis Castle’ will get big enough to stand alone or perhaps as a group of three and will need about two gallons of water per week. Ten to twelve mixed colors of Yarrow will make a colorful display planted alone and will require about eight gallons of water per week for the whole cluster.

Two bulbous plants: Spring Starflower and Anomatheca laxa (no common name) can survive entirely on winter rain. They should be planted as a group in front of a grass cluster or near one of the big rocks.

When the plants and drip lines have all been placed, cover the entire area with two or three inches of one inch "Desert Gold" rock. This will act as a mulch to suppress weeds and evaporation. It will also act as a neutral background for the plants you have installed. Depending on the size of the area you will use less water than one of your toilets does during a week.

Idea #4
One final possibility if you want to see more California green in the spring: Get a few pounds of our Pacific Coast Seed Non-Irrigated Pasture Mix and scatter this over part of your area before covering it with the ‘Desert Gold’ rock. No need to water the seed or set up a drip system. Just let Mother Nature do her thing and let the seeds sprout, grow and re-seed for future generations.

Remember, most plants need water all year round. Some can go dormant and live on stored water. Some survive as dried seeds and start anew each year. And some can survive on very small amounts of water which you supply on a regular basis. However, do not expect that there are plants you can install and then never have to water them. Most plants can survive just a little bit longer than you would if neither of you receive any water.

Sundays with Mr. Ed Continues this Sunday!

This Week’s Topic: Creating Moss Baskets

Join Mr. Ed as he continues his series of informal seminars on Sunday mornings at 10 a.m. in the nursery this Sunday, May 31. Ever wanted to do your own hanging moss basket? This is the seminar for you--there will be a hands-on demonstration showing you step by step how to create a gorgeous hanging basket.

Incorporated into the landscape, citrus trees and shrubs offer year-round attraction with their glossy deep green foliage, fragrant flowers and decorative fruit in season. They require full sun to perform best and may perform even better if you locate them in areas that collect heat and light, such as near stucco walls or in bright corners. They also make excellent container plants if you select appropriately sized containers.

PLANTING: Since citrus trees prefer well-drained soils, it is important to locate them in fast-draining locations, and to amend the soil when planting. To plant, dig a hole at least 2 times the diameter and the exact depth of the nursery container (See also our Information Sheet on Planting Trees and Shrubs). Amend the native soil with one-third Gold Rush or Bumper Crop. Add Master Nursery Master Start to the bottom of the hole and mix in well. The next step is to backfill with remaining soil mixture, ensuring that the graft union remains 4-6 inches above the soil line. To facilitate watering: build an irrigation basin 4-6 inches high and about one foot beyond the drip line with the remaining soil mixture. To prevent water from sitting against the trunk, start the basin 6 inches away from the trunk. Remember that the basin will need to be extended as the tree matures.

There should be no plants (grass, shrubs, annuals, etc.) within the drip-line of the tree. Mulching within the drip-line is advisable, but not closer than 2 inches from the trunk.

WATERING: During the peak of summer heat, newly planted trees should be watered approximately twice a week, and established trees should be watered every other week.

For additional information print the following Care Guides:

Citrus Trees
http://www.wegmansnursery.com/services.asp?page_id=68

Planting Trees and Shrubs
http://www.wegmansnursery.com/services.asp?page_id=125

Wegman's Bedding Department has a large selection of ground covers. Ground covers are great for water conservation and look terrific! Here are a couple of ideas that give your garden depth and color.

Woolly Thyme forms a flat to undulating mat 2 to 3 inches high. The stems of Woolly Thyme are densely clothed with elliptical, woolly gray leaves. Wooly Thyme blooms sparsely and seldom but when it does it produces pinkish flowers in summer. Use in rock crevices, between stepping stones, spilling over banks, up hillsides or over raised beds. Woolly Thyme is drought tolerant and likes regular watering.

Blue Star Creeper is a star in the garden. In bloom it covers your area with a light blue flower. Out of season it is a deep emerald green. Blue Star Creeper likes shade in the warmest areas and regular watering. The small, ground-hugging plant reaches just 2 to 3 inches high in bloom with creeping, branching stems that root at the joints. Set plant 8 to 12 inches apart and fertilize periodically. Small, closely set leaves and tolerance for an occasional footstep make them choice selections for use between stepping stones. Blue Star Creeper blooms in late spring and summer.

This is the time to fertilize your fruit and citrus trees as well as vines. Deciduous fruit trees (apples, peach, etc.) are normally fertilized about Memorial Day and Labor Day. Citrus trees are fertilized about Valentine’s Day, Income Tax Day and Memorial Day. Wegman’s recommends these products:

For Fruit Trees and Vines
Master Nursery Fruit Tree & Vine Food is a granular blend of nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium plus numerous micronutrients (calcium, magnesium, sulfur, iron manganese and zinc) which big box store fertilizers lack. It is formulated to encourage growth and quality fruit production. In addition to regular pre-harvest feedings, a feeding after the fruit is harvested is critical in aiding in the development of next year's fruit buds.

For Citrus Trees
Master Nursery Citrus Food is formulated for the home garden. It contains the essential nutrients nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium plus the micronutrients listed above which assist in the development of blooms and fruit.

Dr. Earth’s Fruit Tree Fertilizer is an organic alternative. Remember organics take a bit longer to work so plan to use a few weeks ahead of a non-organic fertilizer. Dr. Earth’s Fruit Tree Fertilizer is a superior blend of feather meal, fish bone meal, cottonseed meal, kelp meal, alfalfa meal, soft rock phosphate, mined potassium sulphate, humic acid, seaweed extract, beneficial soil microbes plus ecto- and endo-mycorrhizae. Note that organic fertilizers lack iron so sprinkle a handful or two of Iron Plus in with your organic fertilizer. Use on all fruit and citrus trees, vines, berries, grapes, avocado and other trees.