Get advice from local experts; see how they tackle spring tasks
Native Douglas irises -- as well as the 'Canyon Snow' cultivar irises -- are in bloom at the Fair Oaks Horticulture Center this week, which also happens to be California Native Plant Week. Kathy Morrison
Spring stirs thoughts of gardening – and lots of questions. Here’s your chance to get expert advice from Sacramento County master gardeners during a (hopefully) sunny midweek morning.
From 9 a.m. to noon Wednesday, April 17, the master gardeners will host an Open Garden event at Fair Oaks Horticulture Center in Fair Oaks Park – rain or shine. Admission and parking are free.
See the latest renovations and additions to this growing resource. Watch master gardeners as they tend to spring tasks and prepare for summer planting and rapid growth.
“For gardeners, there is no better time than spring to get inspired and tap into some practical and scientific know-how,” say the organizers. “Join Sacramento’s UC Master Gardeners to view new and established plantings and get locally relevant answers to your gardening questions.”
Master gardeners will be available to answer questions. Bring photos and samples of pests and/or problem plants, if desired (in zippered plastic bags). Got a garden mystery? These garden detectives are ready to help.
Stroll around the Hort Center and see what the master gardeners are busy doing this week. Ask questions! They love to talk gardening.
Some areas of interest:
BERRIES: Loganberries and ‘Baby Cakes’ raspberries are joining the berry garden. See how the various blueberry plants are doing.
HERBS: International culinary herb beds are making room for new annuals. Sniff the scented pelargoniums and the various lavenders. View edible flowers such as calendula and Johnny jump-ups.
VEGETABLES: Beds are being cleared of cover crops and revitalized with compost and fertilizer. As the soil warms, All-America Selections of tomatoes, flowers and vegetables will be planted.
ORCHARD: As the citrus harvest concludes, trees are being fertilized and pruned. Other sections of the orchard are being prepared for new trees including some in containers.
WATER-EFFICIENT LANDSCAPE: Subtropical varieties are being tried the Sacramento area in anticipation of climate change.
Fair Oaks Horticulture Center is located at 11549 Fair Oaks Blvd., Fair Oaks, south of the Fair Oaks Library.
Details and directions: https://sacmg.ucanr.edu.
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Food in My Back Yard Series
April 22: Should you stock up on fertilizer? (Yes!)
April 15: Grow culinary herbs in containers
April 8: When to plant summer vegetables
April 1: Don't be fooled by these garden myths
March 25: Fertilizer tips: How to 'feed' your vegetables for healthy growth
March 18: Time to give vegetable seedlings some more space
March 11: Ways to win the fight against weeds
March 4: Potatoes from the garden
Feb. 25: Plant a fruit tree now -- for later
Feb. 18: How to squeeze more food into less space
Feb. 11: When to plant? Consider staggering your transplants
Feb. 4: Starting in seed starting
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Garden Checklist for week of April 27
Once the clouds clear, get to work. Spring growth is in high gear.
* Set out tomato, pepper and eggplant transplants.
* From seed, plant beans, beets, cantaloupes, carrots, corn, cucumbers, melons, pumpkins, 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. Late April is about the last chance to plant summer bulbs, such as gladiolus and tuberous begonias.
* Transplant lettuce and cabbage seedlings.
* Weed, weed, weed! Don’t let unwanted plants 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.
* 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.
* Start thinning fruit that's formed on apple and stone fruit trees -- you'll get larger fruit at harvest (and avoid limb breakage) if some is thinned now. The UC recommendation is to thin fruit when it is about 3/4 of an inch in diameter. Peaches and nectarines should be thinned to about 6 inches apart; smaller fruit such as plums and pluots can be about 4 inches apart. Apricots can be left at 3 inches apart. Apples and pears should be thinned to one fruit per cluster of flowers, 6 to 8 inches apart.
* 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.
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