• Water your plants and lawn only when necessary. In general, people tend to have a bad habit of overwatering their plants and this habit only intensifies during drier months and drought periods. The Tomato King Steve Goto, a recent guest speaker at The Greenery, said people overwater out of “guilt.” It is imperative to avoid this pitfall and maintain a balanced watering cycle.
• Invest in mulch and reap the rewards. A three inch organic mulch, such as compost, can retain 30 percent of the water that a plant is fed. Mulch is an important tool in one’s garden not only because it helps keep soil consistently moist, but it deflects heat away from the plant as well.
• Check your irrigation and replace malfunctioning features when needed. Drip systems are smart methods to lean on and are exempt from most city watering restrictions. If installed improperly or due to neglect, drip systems will not operate to their full potential. Drip lines should run for hours instead of minutes because they allocate water very slowly and systematically.
If interested in replacing your water thirsty plants, The Greenery has a wide assortment of “California friendly” plants that can save a homeowner large amounts of water in the near and long term. Two years ago, The Greenery began purchasing native and “desert adapted” plants from supplier Mountain States Wholesale Nursery in Arizona to provide more drought tolerant options for customers.
The Greenery’s Top Choices in Desert Adapted Plants:• Melampodium: A darling little plant with daisy-like flowers which only grows 18 inches tall.
• Desert Museum Palo Verde: A tough tree with yellow flowers through the entire hot season. This variety is thornless, fast growing and stands upright.
• Lynn’s Legacy Leucophylum: A sage green bush that grows slowly to be 5 feet tall and wide. This plant is a showstopper when it blooms with masses of lavender flowers in the spring and fall with sporadic blooms in between.
• Pink Parade or Brakelights Hesperaloe: Resembling desert plants but with shocking flower spikes. Pink Parade has pink blooms in the spring that last for weeks and dark bronzy foliage in the winter. Brakelights has stoplight red flower spikes that last steadily for weeks.
To learn more about gardening during the drought, please visit the “California Friendly” page on The Greenery’s website or drop by the nursery in person.
The Greenery hosts over 40 seminars annually featuring topics such as gardening, cooking, preserving and home décor. Reservations are required. For more information, visit
www.greenerynsy.com.
— The Greenery Nursery and Garden Shop is the premiere nursery centered in the heart of the San Joaquin Valley. Headquartered in downtown Turlock, the Greenery is locally owned and operated while featuring a large selection of quality plants, shrubs, flowers and trees. Additionally, the gift shop and recently added Gourmet Pantry is a local favorite for gift shopping.
