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It's officially spring! Let's talk about seeds

Sacramento Digs Gardening
BY Kathy Morrison PUBLISHED MAR 19, 2020

California poppies are easy to grow, and the seeds are easy to

find. There are many other great flowers to sow for

pollinators, too. (Photos: Kathy Morrison)

Plan for native pollinators with native flowering plants, if possible

Welcome to spring! The sunshine has returned after that nice soaking the past several days. Since most of us are at home for the time being, we can get outside and work in the garden. Maybe even sow some flower seeds to bring in the pollinators.

May I make a suggestion? Stick to named varieties. Don't buy or sow seed mixes without knowing what's in them. The package photos look so cheerful, but what's on the front may not be what's inside. "Packet illustration is a guide only to the contents," to quote one package. At the very least, you could waste your money on seeds that don't sprout. At the worst, you unknowingly may plant something that's invasive in California.

One national seed company sells a variety of "wildflower" collections in its online shop, from "Fragrant Mix" to "Meadow Mix" to "Pollinator Mix," and I was shocked to discover that not one listing notes what's inside the package. They're aimed at a general audience, for "any sunny garden location in the United States and Southern Canada." Really? That's dozens if not hundreds of microclimates. Quite a crapshoot.

Here's the deal, especially if you're hoping to attract bees, birds and butterflies to your garden: Native pollinators need native plants for their young to thrive. And even if you just want to offer nectar plants for adult pollinators, wouldn't you prefer knowing what those plants are? After all, if they do well, you can plant them next year, too.

When in a nursery or shopping online, look for mixes chosen for California, native seed mixes or individual packets of some of these flowers:

-- California bluebells ( Phacelia campanularia ). Adorable blue flowers are great in rock gardens.

-- California poppy ( Eschscholzia californica). Our state plant is easy to grow and reseeds readily. Like most wildflowers, its best bloom is typically through May.

-- California gilia ( Gilia achillefolia ). A native member of the phlox family, it's popular in bee gardens.

This 'Moonbeam' threadleaf coreopsis, growing at the

Fair Oaks Horticulture Center, is a cultivar best grown

from transplants, but many other coreopsis easily can

be grown from seed.

-- Coreopsis, many varieties. Often called tickseed, these easy-to-grow flowers --- both natives and cultivars -- attract pollinators.

-- Lacy phacelia ( Phacelia tanacetifolia ). Butterflies as well as bees and hover flies love this native member of the borage family with lavender flowers.

-- Lupine. California has 138 native varieties of lupine. If you can find seeds for Lupinus bicolor , that's the blue and white lupine that often grows wild with California poppies; those two together gave us our state colors. But there are many others that grow well in the Sacramento region.

-- Purple Chinese houses ( Collinsia heterophylla ). This is a pretty native that grows well under oak trees.

-- Salvia. Another species with many California natives, these are wildly popular with hummingbirds and bees. Easiest to find (especially in transplants) are hummingbird sage ( Salvia spathacea ) and Cleveland sage ( Salvia clevelandii ).

-- Tidy tips ( Layia platyglossa). This cute yellow daisylike California native grows well in coastal and valley areas of the state.

-- Western yarrow ( Achillea millefolium californica ). The small white-flowered perennial grows just about anywhere and is popular with butterflies. Look for it as a transplant.

I've found good selections of native seeds at Peaceful Valley ( groworganic.com ), Renee's Seeds ( reneesgarden.com ) and Botanical Interests ( botanicalinterests.com ).

Baker Creek Seeds also carries some California natives, mostly poppies, but apparently has been overwhelmed with orders since the coronavirus closures began. The website is temporarily shutting today until March 23 so the skeleton staff can catch up on orders.

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GENERAL GARDENING

An article about gardening.

Keywords:

seeds hummingbirds Sacramento California natives wildflowers spring flowers gardening annuals bees pollinators butterflies perennials flowers

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Garden Checklist for week of April 21

This week there’s plenty to keep gardeners busy. With no rain in the immediate forecast, remember to irrigate any new transplants.

* Weed, weed, weed! Get them before they flower and go to seed.

* April is the last chance to plant citrus trees such as dwarf orange, lemon and kumquat. These trees also look good in landscaping and provide fresh fruit in winter.

* Smell orange blossoms? Feed citrus trees with a low dose of balanced fertilizer (such as 10-10-10) during bloom to help set fruit. Keep an eye out for ants.

* Apply slow-release fertilizer to the lawn.

* Thoroughly clean debris from the bottom of outdoor ponds or fountains.

* Spring brings a flush of rapid growth, and that means your garden is really hungry. Feed shrubs and trees with a slow-release fertilizer. Or mulch with a 1-inch layer of compost.

* Azaleas and camellias looking a little yellow? If leaves are turning yellow between the veins, give them a boost with chelated iron.

* Trim dead flowers but not leaves from spring-flowering bulbs such as daffodils and tulips. Those leaves gather energy to create next year's flowers. Also, give the bulbs a fertilizer boost after bloom.

* Pinch chrysanthemums back to 12 inches for fall flowers. Cut old stems to the ground.

* Mulch around plants to conserve moisture and control weeds.

* From seed, plant beans, beets, cantaloupes, carrots, corn, cucumbers, melons, radishes and squash.

* Plant onion sets.

* In the flower garden, plant seeds for asters, cosmos, celosia, marigolds, salvia, sunflowers and zinnias.

* Transplant petunias, zinnias, geraniums and other summer bloomers.

* Plant perennials and dahlia tubers for summer bloom.

* Mid to late April is about the last chance to plant summer bulbs, such as gladiolus and tuberous begonias.

* Transplant lettuce seedlings. Choose varieties that mature quickly such as loose leaf.

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