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Give your garden some post-storm TLC


Check around the garden for containers -- empty or otherwise -- that might have accumulated excess rain. Tip it out or dump it into plants under the eaves. (Photo: Kathy Morrison)

How did your landscape cope with so much rain?



We may not have had a March miracle, but so far April showers have us soaked.

According to the National Weather Service, Sacramento received about 2.2 inches in two days – more rain than the whole month of March. That’s also more than Sacramento historically averages for April, May and June combined.

How did your garden hold up during the weekend storm? It’s time for a post-rain check-up:

* Postpone planting or any other digging this week until soil has a chance to dry out a little. Working wet ground can cause compaction and root problems.

* This storm probably gave you a good idea about where the low spots are in your landscape. Mark them with a stick, so you’ll remember where they are when the landscape dries out. Avoid planting anything in that wet spot that demands good drainage.

* Consider such soggy spots for a rain garden, where water can naturally percolate into the ground to irrigate the landscape.

* Make sure storm drains, gutters and down spouts are clear of debris. These storms brought down a lot of tree litter from evergreens.

* Tip excess water out of containers. Make sure potted plants aren’t waterlogged.

* Eliminate any standing water that may have accumulated in wheelbarrows, saucers, etc.

* Not everything got watered by the rain. Check plants under eaves and overhangs; they may need a drink.

* Turn off the sprinklers. This storm saturated the soil. You can delay further irrigation for at least a week and save water – on average 800 gallons.

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Garden Checklist for week of Feb. 9

Be careful walking or working in wet soil; it compacts easily.

* Keep the irrigation turned off; the ground is plenty wet with more rain on the way.

* February serves as a wake-up call to gardeners. This month, you can transplant or direct-seed several flowers, including snapdragon, candytuft, lilies, astilbe, larkspur, Shasta and painted daisies, stocks, bleeding heart and coral bells.

* In the vegetable garden, plant Jerusalem artichoke tubers, and strawberry and rhubarb roots.

* Transplant cabbage and its close cousins – broccoli, kale and cauliflower – as well as lettuce (both loose leaf and head).

* Indoors, start peppers, tomatoes and eggplant from seed.

* Plant artichokes, asparagus and horseradish from root divisions.

* Plant potatoes from tubers and onions from sets (small bulbs). The onions will sprout quickly and can be used as green onions in March.

* From seed, plant beets, chard, lettuce, mustard, peas, radishes and turnips.

* Annuals are showing up in nurseries, but wait until the weather warms up a bit before planting. Instead, set out flowering perennials such as columbine and delphinium.

* Plant summer-flowering bulbs including cannas, calla lilies and gladiolus.

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