It’s Time for Last-Minute Planting Before Summer
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Though it is quite possible to plant almost anything at any time in Southern California, there are seasons better suited to planting, and we are fast coming to the end of one--spring. But Southern California gardeners--especially those living near the coast--often get a last-minute reprieve.
The same weather that usually makes Memorial Day weekend a little chilly at the beach lets gardeners get in a little last-minute planting before summer begins.
May and most of June are traditionally foggy in the mornings and afternoons near the beach, and the effect is felt fairly far inland, tempering what would otherwise be hot weather. These “night and morning clouds” often last until July 4, and on more than one occasion the fireworks at the beach have disappeared in the gathering fog.
It’s a good time to be able to plant because by now, spring has peaked and some flowers and vegetables are beginning to fold their tents for summer. The chart on this page lists the flowers and vegetables that can be planted now--flowers that bloom best in summer and vegetables that will survive, or even thrive, in the heat ahead.
It is not the ideal time to plant because summer is so close at hand, but if you plant soon and water often at first, perhaps even every day for a few weeks, they will take hold.
One way to make sure they get watered is to plant only inside the pattern of a portable sprinkler. I use a little round sprinkler and before I plant I water the ground thoroughly and make a note of the area that gets wet. When the soil has dried enough to work, I plant only inside these boundaries. This makes it easy to keep new plants watered.
As the plants take root and begin to grow, wean them from this frequent watering by irrigating less and less, but for longer durations. In a few weeks you should be able to water once or twice a week at most, because the roots will have grown deep into the soil where they are safe from the hot, drying weather.
This is also the favored time to plant citrus and other subtropical fruit trees and subtropical ornamentals, such as bananas, bougainvillea and hibiscus, that need a warm soil before their roots will grow. If you live where these were hit by frosts this year and they have not yet recovered, it is time to replace them and hope it’s another 10 years before we get similar cold weather. You can also plant the subtropical lawn grasses, including Bermuda, St. Augustine and zoysia.
Any major landscaping would be better put off until fall, after the weather cools and when rain will help with the watering. Otherwise you’ll spend most of your summer trying to keep them moist, and this year we are supposed to be using less water because of the current drought in the northern half of the state.
Recent research also suggests that the roots of most plants--but not the subtropicals or the summer flowering or fruiting annuals just mentioned--grow only in the fall. If you plant now, they might grow more foliage but they will not make roots, and this adds to the burden of watering because you are essentially still growing them in a container since they are not well rooted into the surrounding soil.
Some other research recently published might change how we plant these larger elements in the landscape. It appears that improving the soil that goes back into the planting hole for trees and shrubs may not be a good idea in the long haul. The research suggests that improving the soil in the planting hole helps the tree or shrub get off to a fast start, but within a few years the plant dramatically slows and loses strength compared to plants put in a hole with only the natural soil for backfill.
This research was not done in California, but it probably applies here as well. The new suggestions for planting trees and shrubs are to fill the hole back up with natural soil, only pulverizing it, not amending it, so there are no clods.
The plants will get off to a slower start but it will be surer, and within a few years they’ll be growing faster and be much stronger than those in improved soil.
Varieties of citrus have always been planted this way commercially, and you might want to try this new planting technique on them. Otherwise, file it away for the big fall planting season.
THIS WEEKEND YOU CAN PLANT: Annual flowers to plant now, from seed or small plants, for color that will last all summer:
Ageratum
Amaranthus
Asters (annual kind)
Balsam
Bedding begonia
(in shade)
Candytuft
Catharanthus
(Vinca rosea)
Celosia
Chrysanthemum
paludosum Coleus (some shade)
Cosmos
Bedding dahlia
Gloriosa daisy
Impatiens (shade)
Lobelia
Marigold
Nasturium
Petunia
Annual Phlox
Portulaca
Sweet alyssum
Verbena
Zinnia
Most perennials can still be planted if you are quick about it, but these are most likely to flower through summer, or in early fall:
Agapanthus
Chrysanthemum
Coreopsis
Daylily
Dusty miller
Gaillardia
Gayfeather (Liatris) Gazania
Gerbera
Japanese anemone
Nicotiana
Border penstemon
Bedding salvia
(S. farinacea) Tulhbagia
Yarrow (Achillea) Vegetables to plant now for summer harvest:
Basil
Snap and Lima bean
Beet
Carrot
Chayote
Corn
Cucumber
Endive
Leaf lettuce
Melon
New Zealand Spinach
Onion
Parsnip
Pepper
Pumpkin
Radish
Salsify
Summer and winter
squash
Sunflower
Swiss chard
Tomato
Turnip
Watermelon