Downtown has received more than 18 inches so far in 2024 -- with more on the way
A moisture meter is an essential tool for the Sacramento-area gardener. Makes a great gift, too! Kathy Morrison
Will 2024 be remembered as a wet or dry year? (Hint: Look outside.)
Although we’ll certainly remember the heat (with more than 50 days in triple digits), 2024 saw above-average rainfall – and we’re not done yet.
According to the National Weather Service, Downtown Sacramento has totaled 18.03 inches through Dec. 17 – more than 1.5 inches above average for those 50 weeks.
February (4.63 inches), April (1.60), November (3.53) and December (2.27 and counting) all tracked above average and other months (such as January with 3.53 inches) were pretty darn close.
This weekend, another atmospheric river will flow a steady stream of showers into Northern California. Starting Saturday (the first official day of winter), Sacramento is expected to receive 1 to 2 inches more rain before Christmas (including a very soggy Christmas eve), says the weather service. That could push our annual total close to 20 inches – 3 inches above normal.
Our fall rainfall has replenished reserves in both reservoirs and our own landscapes. No matter how dry 2025 may be, we’re set up to have a good “water year,” which officially runs through Sept. 30.
The new year could get off to a wet start, too. According to the Old Farmer’s Almanac, January and February 2025 are expected to be warmer and wetter than usual. Those two months combined average more than 7 inches in Sacramento. In 2024, January and February delivered a total of 8.16 inches.
Be prepared for all that moisture:
* Get a rain gauge. It will help you track your own garden’s micro-climate and precipitation totals.
* Use a moisture meter. Check your soil before irrigating; top soil may look dry, but a few inches down, it can stay damp much longer.
* Dig up and store bulbs that are prone to rot (such as dahlias).
* Place stepping stones through planting beds so damp soil isn’t compacted by your heavy footprints while tending flowers or vegetables.
* Consider setting up rain barrels and saving some of that water for dry periods to come.
For the latest weather updates and rain totals: https://www.weather.gov/sto/#
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Garden Checklist for week of Jan. 12
Once the winds die down, it’s good winter gardening weather with plenty to do:
* Prune, prune, prune. Now is the time to cut back most deciduous trees and shrubs. The exceptions are spring-flowering shrubs such as lilacs.
* Now is the time to prune fruit trees. (The exceptions are apricot and cherry trees, which are susceptible to a fungus that causes dieback. Save them until summer.) Clean up leaves and debris around the trees to prevent the spread of disease.
* Prune roses, even if they’re still trying to bloom. Strip off any remaining leaves, so the bush will be able to put out new growth in early spring.
* Clean up leaves and debris around your newly pruned roses and shrubs. Put down fresh mulch or bark to keep roots cozy.
* After the wind stops, apply horticultural oil to fruit trees to control scale, mites and aphids. Oils need 24 hours of dry weather after application to be effective.
* This is also the time to spray a copper-based fungicide to peach and nectarine trees to fight leaf curl. (The safest effective fungicides available for backyard trees are copper soap -- aka copper octanoate -- or copper ammonium, a fixed copper fungicide. Apply either of these copper products with 1% horticultural oil to increase effectiveness.)
* When forced bulbs sprout, move them to a cool, bright window. Give them a quarter turn each day so the stems will grow straight.
* Browse through seed catalogs and start making plans for spring and summer.
* Divide daylilies, Shasta daisies and other perennials.
* Cut back and divide chrysanthemums.
* Plant bare-root roses, trees and shrubs.
* Transplant pansies, violas, calendulas, English daisies, snapdragons and fairy primroses.
* In the vegetable garden, plant fava beans, head lettuce, mustard, onion sets, radicchio and radishes.
* Plant bare-root asparagus and root divisions of rhubarb.
* In the bulb department, plant callas, anemones, ranunculus and gladioli for bloom from late spring into summer.
* Plant blooming azaleas, camellias and rhododendrons. If you’re shopping for these beautiful landscape plants, you can now find them in full flower at local nurseries.
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