Presents for the yard
Though the weather has been feeling quite wintry, that season doesn’t begin until Dec. 21. The fall planting season is still in full swing, although there’s less and less light to garden by each day. Finish up planting fall bulbs and bedding plants that will bloom in the spring (don’t forget the tulips cooling in the fridge), and take advantage of the chilly, sometimes rainy weather to get other, more permanent plants off to a stress-free start. There is also lots of holiday greenery at nurseries now and some tempting fall foliage.
In and out
Berry-bedecked potted plants, including holly, pyracantha, cotoneaster and our native toyon, make fresh, long-lasting, fire-safe greens. Try tucking a few fall-blooming camellias in among them for even more color, especially the red sasanqua named ‘Yuletide,’ now in full flower. Look for poinsettias that are not in paper or plastic sleeves; they’re less likely to drop leaves or bracts. Remember to keep saucers under all pots and to water.
Living Christmas trees begin dropping needles if kept indoors longer than two weeks. Move them outdoors to a shaded spot, at first, where they re-acclimate. Before buying one, make sure you have a place for it after the holidays. Many conifers are too big for the average garden, and only a few will grow well in pots for more than a season. One that will stay quite happy in a container for five or more years (with a little pruning) is the deodar cedar, with grayish foliage and an open habit that leaves lots of room for ornaments. Keep trees moist while indoors. One clever way: Put ice cubes at the base and let them melt.
As the leaf turns
Fans of fall color might consider planting such foliage now, since the best time to shop is when nursery trees are turning. Move quickly before all the leaves have fallen. The golden ginkgo is the most reliable to color up, even near the mild coast, with liquidambars close behind, though they are so variable that you must see the tree in its fall finery to know the exact shade.
Other good bets include pistache, persimmon, ornamental pear, pomegranate, crape myrtle, Chinese tallow tree (Sapium), sour gum (Nyssa), Japanese maple and Modesto ash.
Compost happens
With leaves falling, now is the perfect time to start a compost pile and make your own brown gold.
Compost enriches garden soils and potting mixes; it makes excellent mulch when only partially decomposed. All you need to do is pile up soft garden debris such as leaves and trimmings (sticks take a longer time to break down) and then keep the pile moist, which is easy in winter when things remain damp for a long time.
Weeds awake
Winter rains bring up weeds by the thousands, but these cool-season kinds are generally short-lived annuals that are easy to hoe out while they are still young.
In the morning of a warm and dry day (during a Santa Ana is ideal), scrape weeds off with a scuffle-type hoe, severing the roots. The weeds will quickly wilt and die. If the weather is too moist, they may re-root and keep on growing. In that case, rake them up and toss them out (but not in the compost).
Some kinds of oxalis, with their clover-like leaves, grow from bulbs or tubers, and these must be carefully dug out to prevent a quick return. The same goes for the pernicious false garlic (Nothoscordum) with its grayish, onion-like leaves.
