Placer County master gardeners offer free pollinator workshop
A painted lady butterfly revels in the nectar from a lacy phacelia plant, which is a California native. Kathy Morrison
How do you get more fruit and vegetables from your garden? Start by inviting more pollinators into your landscape.
Get ready for a spring full of bees and butterflies with the help of this free workshop, “Attracting Pollinators to Your Garden.”
Set for 10:30 a.m. Saturday, March 11, this one-hour workshop will be offered live in person as well as via Zoom. Presented by the master gardeners of Placer County, the class will not only share how to attract bees, butterflies and birds, but how to keep them around.
“(The class is about) attracting and protecting our winged visitors,” say the master gardeners. “Come and learn what hummingbirds, butterflies, native bees and other garden visitors need in our gardens. See the plants!”
The in-person session will be held at Loomis Library, 6050 Library Drive, Loomis. To see it on Zoom, register in advance with this link:
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZwvduCqrTIoEtf1gBFONrxiLZacECgfLQUK
Upcoming workshops presented by Placer County master gardeners include straw bale gardening (March 18) and “Firescaping” (April 8). Learn more at: https://pcmg.ucanr.org/.
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Garden Checklist for week of May 5
Survey your garden after the May 4 rainstorm. Heavy rain and gusty winds can break the neck of large flowers such as roses. Also:
* Keep an eye on new transplants or seedlings; they could take a pounding from the rain.
* Watch out for powdery mildew. Warmth following moist conditions can cause this fungal disease to “bloom,” too. If you see a leaf that looks like it’s dusted with powdered sugar, snip it off.
* After the storm, start setting out tomato transplants, but wait on the peppers and eggplants (they want warmer nights). Pinch off any flowers on new transplants to make them concentrate on establishing roots instead of setting premature fruit.
* 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, 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.
* Don’t wait; plant summer bulbs, such as gladiolus and tuberous begonias.
* Harvest cabbage, lettuce, peas and green onions.