Sacramento and Placer groups welcome visitors to their demonstration gardens with free workshops
Orchards in January are pretty bare, but the Fair Oaks Horticulture Center's orchard will be busy this Saturday during Open Garden Day, 9 a.m. to noon. Bare-root demonstrations will be on tap beginning at 10 a.m. Kathy Morrison
Start the New Year right with expert advice – and plenty of gardening inspiration.
On Saturday, Jan. 11, UC master gardeners in two counties will host Open Garden Days at their demonstration gardens. Admission to both events is free; no registration necessary.
From 9 a.m. to noon, the Sacramento County master gardeners will invite visitors to watch them tackle January tasks at the Fair Oaks Horticulture Center. It’s an opportunity to ask questions while getting some hands-on training.
“Open Gardens are informal, free events where you roam the gardens, watch what we are doing, see what we are growing and ask questions,” say the master gardeners. “Bring samples of your problem plants, mystery pests and questions to the ‘Ask the Master Gardeners’ information table. Get one-on-one advice based on the most recent research-based sustainable practices.”
In addition, the master gardeners will offer two mini-talks. At 10 a.m., it’s “Bare-root Extravaganza.” “See demos on planting asparagus, fruit trees, cane berries, and landscape plants,” say the organizers. “Featuring a special soil mix for planting blueberries in containers.”
At 11 a.m., the master gardeners answer, “Where does it go? Organic waste bin or the compost pile?” Besides tips on sorting organic waste, get some composting advice, too.
Open Garden also is an opportunity to purchase a Sacramento County Master Gardeners’ 2025 Gardening Guide and Calendar with cash or check for only $12 including tax.
Fair Oaks Horticulture Center is located at 11549 Fair Oaks Blvd., Fair Oaks. All events are outdoors; no pets please.
Details: https://sacmg.ucanr.edu/
Also on Saturday, the Placer County Master Gardeners will host their Open Garden Day at their Demonstration Garden at the Loomis Library and Communication Center. They’ll be there from 10 a.m. to noon, answering questions as they tend their vegetables, flowers and perennials.
Inside the library, they’ll offer a free one-hour workshop – “Seed Saving Techniques: Select, Collect, to Sow and Grow.”
“Come learn the fundamentals involved in collecting, cleaning and storing seeds from your garden's plants, so you can grow them again in future seasons,” say the master gardeners. “This session will teach you how to select healthy plants, identify when to harvest seeds, proper seed cleaning methods and appropriate storage techniques to ensure seed viability for future seasons.”
And the Placer County master gardeners still have copies of their 2025 Gardening Guide and Calendar, “Healthy Garden, Healthy You.” Get your for $12 (including tax).
The demonstration garden is located on the grounds of the Loomis Library, 6050 Library Drive, Loomis.
Details: https://pcmg.ucanr.edu/
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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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