The bit of chill each morning alerts us to the changing of season, from summer to fall and the resulting refocus on cool-season veggie and posy crops.  Even though daytime temperatures will continue to be blasting hot – this week’s threatened highs are in the high 90-degrees – but we know the trend is ultimately toward cooler temperatures.  So we can begin the first of several sowings of overwintering types of edibles and posies. 
 
Seeding Veggies
    Last night, I sowed into my seed trays bok choy, celery, chard, chives, cilantro, collards, several other greens, kale, leeks, lettuce, onions, parsley and spinach.  Next week, directly into the beds where they’ll mature, I’ll sow beets, carrots, garlic, kohlrabi, peas and radishes.  I’ll wait another month to purchase seedlings from nurseries of broccoli, cabbage and cauliflower since they’re always much stronger than ones I start from seeds.
     This time around, I was much more careful than I’ve been in the past about allowing only 2 seeds to fall into each section of the seed trays.  Even if both of the seeds germinate, this will allow their root systems to develop more fully.  Then, when they’re ready for transplanting, I’ll sacrifice the weaker of the two plantlets by cutting it off at the soil surface so I don’t disturb the root ball.  The cut bits of foliage will go into that night’s salad.
 
Ordering Flowering Bulbs and Planting Seedlings    
     On the pretty side, I ordered several kinds of flowering bulbs from online sources so I’ll receive them as soon as they’re shipped, in a month or so, perfect time to plant into the cooling soil.  Wouldn’t it be wonderful to have some rain then to water them in!
     I’ll also keep my eye on bulbs becoming available in local nurseries so I can immediately purchase the freshest, largest ones for planting.  I know to choose big, plump bulbs as these have the most stored food and will produce the largest and most numerous blooms over the longest period of time. This is definitely NOT the time to wait for bargain prices at the end of the season!
     When considering which bulb varieties to purchase, try to stay with ones that supposedly thrive within our local zones 9 and 10, especially if you’re interested in their potentially multiplying each year.  Bulbs suitable for colder zones won’t get enough cold from our “winters” so probably won’t bloom or even survive past this first year. 
     I know this because in the past I’ve purchased quite a selection of different colors and shapes of daffodils, only to have them never reappear the following year.  And this situation gets even worse with our increasingly warm winters due to climate change. 
     As overwintering flowering seedlings become available in nurseries, both annuals and perennials, I purchase some that promise long-time color until early spring.  Some, like Johnny-Jump-Ups, I keep in mind to plant on top of the bulbs in large containers to offer color before, during, and after the bulbs do their thing.
 
2021 Tomato Results
     This wasn’t a great year for my tomatoes, with 1013 fruits from 30 plants.  Although this total number sounds good, 828 of them were from cherry-sized fruits, and only 185 of them either medium or large sized.  The real successes were for two Sungold plants that yielded 667 fruits that I actually picked and ate, with many more going to my neighbors’ additional harvesting. The other good producers were Black Cherry, Celebrity, Green Zebra and Stupice. 
 
185 Medium- to Large Fruits
14 Black Krim
1 Black Russian
3 Brandy Boy
7 Carbon
63 Celebrity – 3 plants
2 Cherokee Carbon
11 Cherokee Purple – 2 plants
30 Green Zebra
0 Kellogg’s Breakfast (that’s right, none)
5 Paul Robeson – 2 plants
6 Pineapple
32 Stupice
7 volunteers – 2 plants transplanted from my compost pile
 
828 Small and Cherry Fruits
1 Atomic Fusion
93 Black Cherry
1 Black Zebra
3 Brad’s Atomic Grape
1 Indigo Gold Berries
11 Isis Candy
20 Jaune Flamme
667 Sungold – 2 plants
31 volunteer – another seedling transplanted from my compost pile that I have no idea what it was!
 
Taste Winners
My favorites in the flavor department are – in alphabetical order – Black Krim, Celebrity, Cherokee Purple, Isis Candy and Sungold.  I’ll grow these varieties every year, usually with multiple plants because they’ve been so successful.
 
For more gardening opportunities and tasks, see September Monthly Tips

Why plant bulbs now for Spring color?  They’re easy to plant, require little maintenance, and provide years of increasing color.  What’s not to love?  You can choose among several characteristics – early bloomers, critter-resistant, fragrant, shade-tolerant, cut flowers, or forcing indoors.  Here are tips like what’s a healthy bulb look like, when to plant, how to plant, how to care after they bloom.  Then, my comments from my garden on 27 common types to choose, and online resources.  Go for it!

Why Plant Bulbs?

• Easy to plant
• Little maintenance
• Years of increasing color

 
Specific Bulb Characteristics

• Early bloomers: Anemone, chasmanthe, crocus, hyacinth.
• Critter resistant: Paperwhite, snowflake.
• Fragrant: Allium, daffodil, freesia, grape hyacinth, hyacinth, narcissus, paperwhite, tulip.
• Shade tolerant: Camassia, daffodil, galanthus (snowdrop).
• Cut flowers: Allium, anemone, daffodil, freesia, hyacinth, ranunculus, and tulip.  However, you don’t want to cut too many blooming stems because this will deprive the bulbs of their energy for next year’s bloom. 
• Indoor forcing:  Crocus, daffodil, grape hyacinth, hyacinth, tulip. Bulbs probably won’t retain sufficient energy for planting and blooming in the future.

 
Bulb Planting Tips

• What does a healthy bulb look like?  Large for their type, firm, and dry. Don’t even consider tiny, shriveled bulbs or any that have mold or squishy spots, especially late in the season.
• When to plant bulbs: Bulbs that flower in the spring are planted in the fall. Purchase and plant them as soon as they’re available so you get the highest quality, and they have as long a growing season as possible before blooming.

• How to plant bulbs: Generally, plant bulbs 2 or 3 times as deep as the bulb is tall – Larger bulbs like daffodils are planted up to 6” deep, and smaller bulbs like crocus are planted up to 4” deep. Plant the pointy side of the bulb facing upwards (or with any visible roots facing down).  If you can’t tell (as with anemone), simply plant the bulb on its side, and the bulb’s roots and shoots will find their correct direction. See below for more techniques in planting masses of bulbs.
• How to care for bulbs after they flower: When the bulbs are done blooming, allow the spent flower stalk and the foliage to dry back naturally.  Wait until the foliage is crispy brown, then break them off at ground level. This enables the bulb to reabsorb the nutrients for the following season.  Cutting the foliage off too early will lessen the energy available for the next year’s bloom.

 
Planting Masses of Bulbs

• Dig a wider hole. Instead of digging separate holes for each bulb, simple dig a wider hole.  Place several of the bulbs at their recommended depth and spacing, top with soil, and water in.
• Layer the bulbs. If your space is limited, as in a container, and you have several types of bulbs, layer the bulbs. Plant the larger bulbs the deepest. Add enough soil to barely cover them.  Place the medium-sized bulbs a bit offset from the points of the larger bulbs. Barely cover with soil.  Place the smaller bulbs. 
• Top with blooming annuals. You may also want to transplant fall-blooming annuals on top to camouflage the bare soil and provide color until and while the bulbs sprout and bloom.

 
Fall-Planting Bulb Choices
Allium
Amaryllis
Anemone (Windflower)
Bearded Iris
Brodiaea (Fool’s Onion)
Camassia (Wild Hyacinth)
Chasmanthe
Chiondoxa (Glory of the Snow)
Crocus
Daffodil (Narcissus)
Daylily
Dutch Iris
Freesia
Galanthus (Snowdrop)
Hyacinth
Hyacinthoides (Wood Hyacinth, Bluebells)
Ipheion (Starflower)
Ixia (African Corn Flower, Wandflower)
Leucojum (Snowflake)
Lycoris (Spider Lily)
Muscari (Grape Hyacinth)
Nerine
Ornithogalum (Star of Bethlehem)
Ranunculus (Buttercup)
Scilla (Squill)
Tulip

Online Bulb Resources

• American Meadows - https://www.americanmeadows.com/
• Bluestone Perennials - https://www.bluestoneperennials.com/
• Brecks -                           https://www.brecks.com/
• Dutch Grown -   https://www.dutchgrown.com/
• Easy To Grow Bulbs - www.easytogrowbulbs.com
• Eden Brothers - https://www.edenbrothers.com/
• High Country Gardens - https://www.highcountrygardens.com/
• Holland Bulb Farms - https://www.hollandbulbfarms.com/
• K. van Bourgondien - https://www.dutchbulbs.com/
• White Flower Farm - https://www.whiteflowerfarm.com/

 

     I’m afraid that I’ve already had enough of this heat, partly because my tomatoes and squash and beans are pretty dried-up and crispy, despite the lack of over-the-top torrid heat and having kept everyone’s roots sufficiently moist. They’ve just run their course, and we’ve eaten all that they provided.  I haven’t replanted new tomato plants in June for several years due to the drought – which in previous history these plants produced more tomatoes through fall.  So, not having these delicious orbs to continue looking forward to, I’ve had it with my hot-weather garden.  The three remaining delights are my blooming plumerias, the figs hurrying to ripen, and the promise of cool weather to come – which means sowing seeds for winter-through-spring eating!
 
Sorting through your old seed
Assuming that you’ve kept your open packets of seeds in a dark, dry, moderate-temperature (about 70 degrees) place, most seed will still be viable for 3 or 4 years, but you may have to sow a bit more thickly than if you’re purchasing the seed new.  Exceptions are leeks (2 years), onion (1 year), and parsley (1 year).
 
Purchasing new seed
Be sure to purchase from a vendor who keeps the seed display racks indoors in the shade – as close to that dark/dry/70-degree temperature place as possible.
 
Which to Sow, and Which to Transplant?

• The general rule is to sow root crops like beets, carrots, parsnips, radishes -- directly where the crops will mature so roots can develop long straight roots. This applies also to peas, so root systems can develop deeply into soil where they’ll mature, instead of having to overcome transplant shock.
• Others – like broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, kohlrabi, leek, lettuce, spinach, Swiss chard -- can be sown into seed trays or sixpacks to be later transplanted into larger containers once or twice before planting them into the garden where they’ll mature.  This allows you to monitor the plants so they’re more mature and well-formed when transplanted.  Because they tend to lean as they develop, you may need to bury the stem up to the first leaves to give them more stem support to grow straight; their hard cuticle will prevent any rotting.
• Many seeds – like beets, kale, leek, lettuce, spinach, Swiss chard -- will do fine whichever method you choose. 

 
Don’t soak seeds ahead of time. 

• Rather than enabling quicker germination, this softens the delicate outer seed coat, which then can break as you sow the seed, potentially letting in diseases. 
• Instead, thoroughly moisten the seedbed or row ahead of sowing, gently drop in the dry seed, pull soil over it, and water it in thoroughly.  This “melts” the soil closely to the seed, enabling the best possible germination. 
• Once the seed sprout itself breaks through the seed coat, it’s developed sufficient energy and hormones to withstand any exterior disease elements.  

 
Keep Beds Moist

• Keep seed beds or flats moist and shaded during the hottest portion of the day until the seeds germinate.
• A light mulch helps keep the soil surface from crusting, especially over tiny seeds that take a while to germinate, like carrots and parsley.

 
Sow Consecutive Crops
Sow another batch of seeds every couple of weeks through October for a succession of tender crops through the winter.  Even if some seeds don’t seem to germinate, keep repeated sowing.  Last year, I resowed my peas 3 times, and then they ALL came up!
 
See August for More Tips and Tasks
 

    Dare I say what a great relief the last couple of weeks have been, with temperatures in the high 80s instead of the forecasted 100+!  Especially since our living room air conditioner blew out three weeks ago and the new one has just been installed.  And the mornings’ overcast skies have added to the pleasure and forestalled the afternoon’s warmth. 
     The garden’s plants have felt the relief as well, with the heavily-laden tomatoes not looking wiped out at the end of each day, the beans and squash continuing their fruit sets, and the figs looking absolutely thrilled with large perky leaves and many fruits filling out.
     Taking heart with this wonderfully mild version of summer, I’ve made more sowings of beans and squash seeds to continue my current harvests and fed my tomatoes for renewed energy in putting out more blossoms.   
     And, dare of dares that this pleasant weather will continue for at least a while, I’ve transplanted several native milkweed plants -- Asclepias speciosa 'Davis', Asclepias speciosa ‘Showy’, Asclepias syriaca ‘Virginia Silk’, Asclepias fascicularis ‘Narrow Leaved’, and Asclepias physocarpa ‘Family Jewels Tree’. 
     All of these milkweeds are available online at Annie's Annuals & Perennials.  Although located in Richmond, on the “warm” side of the San Francisco Bay, I’ve found it to be an excellent source of 4-inch pots of a tremendous variety of plants that thrive in Southern California.  I heartedly recommend getting onto its mailing list to receive notice when your wishlist items become available.
 
Veggie Problems?

• See my 3/14/21 blog if you’re having problems with any remaining cool-season plants, including asparagus, beets, carrots, celery, lettuce, onion family (chives, garlic, leek, onion, shallot), peas, radishes, and spinach.  If you had any of these problems in the past, these notes will also help you prepare for the upcoming planting season.
• See my 3/28/21 blog if you’re having problems with any warm-season plants, including beans, corn, cucumber family (cucumbers, pumpkins, squash), melons (honeydew, muskmelon, watermelon), peppers and eggplants, sweet potatoes, and white potatoes.

 
My Search Bar
Whatever issues you may be curious about, type in terms or phrases into my Search Bar on my Blog page, on the right side, above “Archives”.  Lots of referrals will come up for you to explore.
 
More July Tips
See July.
 

     In my Pasadena area garden, we’ve been lucky enough to escape the over-100-degree heat that other Southern California areas are suffering through, with our temperatures getting only into the high 80s and low 90s – the top edge where we can still leave the windows and doors open and enjoy our iced tea without the ice melting immediately.  To add to the delight, our summer harvests have begun.
 
Tomatoes Are Ripening

• Cherry-sized harvest started back on May 29 with Sungold, and we’ve harvested 334 since then from two plants.  Since June 12, I’ve picked 22 Black Cherry.  Just yesterday, we also picked 6 Jaune Flamme, 1 Brad’s Atomic Grape, and 5 Isis Candy.
• Big-sized fruit harvest started with 3 Black Krim on June 12.  My three Celebrity plants are loaded with fruit turning red, and I’ve picked 9 so far.
• Black Krim has harvested 3 fruits.  I do love their slightly-salted and sweet flavor.
• For the perfectly-ripe tomato, wait to pick them until they gently “give” a bit when you exert slight pressure as you cup each in your hand.
• Be sure to keep your tomatoes well watered deeply.  A bit of droopy foliage at night is to be expected after a hot day, but if it’s still droopy in the morning, water immediately.

    
Crookneck Squash

• I do love my small crookneck squash.  Picked when they’re barely 5 inches long, their delicate flavor and perky yellow color, steamed till barely “squashy” and a small dollop of butter is just heaven.  I’ve enjoyed them so much this simple way that my Mom made them, that I’ve never wanted to “waste” them by preparing them any other way – and it’s been some 65 years!  I must admit though that I more enjoy the globe portion, and I freeze the solid neck portion and the cooking water for later use in soups and stews.
• This year, I’m growing 5 varieties to compare plant growth rates, fruit set, and flavor distinctions – Butter Dish, Dixie Hybrid, Early Prolific, and Pic ‘N’ Pic.

 
Green and Yellow and Purple Beans

• Over the years, I’ve tried every bush and pole bean variety I could find.  After a couple of years, I narrowed my choices to the stringless ones.  This avoids the nuisance of keeping track of which kind you’re harvesting each time so you know which to remove the string so it doesn’t get stuck in your teeth when you’re eating
• Bush varieties grow only about two feet tall, can be kept from sprawling with cages, and bear many pods over a period of two to three weeks if kept well watered and picked every other day or so.
• Pole varieties can grow more than six feet tall so definitely need tall cages, will continue bearing for a month or more but with fewer pods each time. 
• This year, I’ve grown these bush varieties:  Blue Lake, Cherokee Wax, Contender, Gold Rush, Golden Wax Improved, Provider, Rolande, Roc ‘d Or, Royalty Purple Pod, Stringless Green Pod, and Weekend.
• I’ve been very pleased with the full growth and heavy yields of the Blue Lake, Cherokee Wax, Contender, and Royalty Purple Pod varieties. 
• As a note to new cooks puzzled with how long to simmer beans, Royalty Purple Pod beans turn green when they’re sufficiently cooked, so are an excellent timing cue.
• I’m also growing these pole varieties:  Asparagus Yard Long, Chinese Red Noodle, and Orient Wonder.  Planted at the same time as the bush varieties, they’re still growing and haven’t set any beans yet. 

 
Peppers

• My plants from a year ago continue to bear fruits in several colors - why I purchase the six-pack with one plant of each color - though smaller.

Chard

• My several chard plants are finally bolting (going to seed) after harvesting them since October.  The leaves are thicker than they were during the spring, but still usable, and they haven’t gone bitter the way bolting lettuce does.  My husband likes the chard best mixed with lettuce in raw salads, whereas I like them better sauteed with leeks and added to my breakfast burritos. 
• At the end of the month, I’ll start more chard seeds in trays and in my beds, and hope to transplant them the month after that for another year-long harvest. 
• For those of you who’re in cooler climes, starting new chard seeds and the other veggies in my July Monthly Column should work fine since you won’t have the blasting heat of July and August to deal with.

 
Cucumbers

• Since the drought started several years ago, I haven't grown cucumbers because they take too much water for the number of cukes to harvest, and the ones that do result many times are bitter just because that gene gets concentrated due to insufficient water.

See July for more tasks and opportunities

     With several over-90-degree days, including a couple of over-100-degree days starting next Monday, this weekend is the time to water deeply and have some shadecloth on hand.  Since our garden plants and trees have been blithely growing with nary a day of harsh conditions until now, they’ll be shocked to suddenly have to endure these coming days.  So, the more water and shade you can provide them ahead of time, the better they’ll be able to handle those stressful conditions when they occur.       
    Here’s how to help your plants survive the onslaught and continue thriving afterwards.
 
Plants Shut Down Above 100 Degrees

• Plants stop functioning during torrid heat, going into self-preservation mode where leaves stop transpiring so they won’t evaporate too much moisture, and roots stop absorbing moisture because the leaves can’t get rid of it.  So the plant just sits there to wait out the extreme conditions.
• It’s better to water plants well before the heat hits so the soil is thoroughly moist but well drained so roots have access to both moisture and air.
• If you water during the extensive heat, you run the risk of drowning the plant because it can’t absorb the moisture through the roots or release it through the leaves.
• Plants will resume functioning once the temperatures lower down to at least 85 degrees for several days up to 2 weeks.  This includes setting new blossoms on tomatoes, so hopefully you’ve already had a good fruitset on plants before this heat so they’ll be ripening before new blossoms set.

 
Hold Off On Planting Anything
     Existing plants, whether already in the garden or still in their storebought containers, will be dealing with more than enough stress just making it through these several days of suddenly-hot temperatures, so no need to inflict even more stress by transplanting new plants.  Do keep them in a lightly shaded area until temperatures lower and you can proceed with transplanting them. 
 
Hold Off On Pruning Anything
     Trimming is a shock to plants, so even if bloomed-out plants are shabby looking, leave them alone until the air temperatures lower back down into the mid-80s. When plants are comfortably growing again, do your light trimming. 

Afternoon Is The Worst Time of Day
From about 2 to 6pm is the most intensely hot direct sun, so provide some protection to plants during that time. 

• Lightweight shade cloth is generally available at nurseries and online. 
• Even cheesecloth or paper bags will serve nicely. 
• Clothespins or other clips will anchor the fabric or paper so it doesn’t blow away.

 
Move Containers Into Afternoon Shade

• By their very nature, container plants need considerable attention since they’re captive in their containers and so can be victims of what seem to be minimal changes in their environment. 
• You may have to water them every day – or even more frequently – just to keep the potting soil moist.
• Moving them into afternoon shade will help them moderate the damaging effects of the too-intense sun and extreme heat.

 

Four different colors of epiphyllum.

Aren’t we lucky -- we’re still experiencing warm but mild spring weather!  We’ve made it through May with nary a hot day over 90 degrees, much less our week of over 100-degrees that has plagued us in the past.  But, those over-90 degree days are forecast for this coming week, so we’ll see what’s to come later in the month.  As long as we continue to have this glorious spring weather with just enough heat to keep the tomatoes happily growing and sweetly ripening their fruits, I’m in heaven!
 
Continue Sowing and Transplanting

• In the hopes of continuing nice weather for at least a couple of weeks, it’s worth continuing to sow more seeds and transplant more seedlings of veggies and flowers so they’ll get settled in nicely before getting blasted with the coming summer heat.
• Do make a point of choosing heat-tolerant and bolt-resistant vegetable varieties to assure that you truly do get a crop to enjoy before they move on to setting seed.
• Choose transplants that aren't rootbound.  They'll have to spend too much effort trying to reach out into the soil to get established, and may not even manage it before the heat hits.
• Gently loosen the rootballs of transplants before planting them so roots can quickly reach out into surrounding soil to establish themselves and access moisture and fertilizer.
• Transplant them closely enough so that the leaves of the mature plants will shade the soil between the plants. This will keep plant roots cooler, and there's less evaporation, so you'll have to water less.
• Provide transplants with light shade for at least a week, and keep them evenly moist so the roots can reestablish themselves and begin putting out new growth.

 
Corn

• If you’re a beginning gardener and have a block of garden space of at least 4 feet by 4 feet, I urge you to grow corn, just for the experience.  You probably won’t get a great crop because the ears won’t completely fill out due to incomplete pollination and fertilization, and it’ll take a long time to get one or two ears per stalk.  The process just takes up too much garden space for too long to get too little to eat. But then you’ll know the process and consequently appreciate even more buying your corn at the farmers market!
• Sow seed no later than this month.  If sown later, they'll likely develop big grey and black puffy fungus in place of kernels when harvested in the fall.  However, like regular mushrooms (also a fungus), they make a tasty addition to omelettes.  Your choice to appreciate it or not!

 
Get More Tomato Fruits

• When tomato blossoms appear, you can help spread the sticky pollen easily by flicking each bloom during the driest part of the day. Big plants can be taken care of with one or two shakes while holding onto their cages or stakes.
• I accomplish this simply every time I water each plant by tucking more of the branches under the rungs of the cages.  Just moving all this foliage every other day or so makes the magic happen as new blossoms appear.
• When blossoms appear, fertilize your plants so they have the nutrition to support all the foliage, keep producing blossoms, setting fruit, and ripening the fruit.  Big fruits may take a good 30-45 days to mature.
• If your garden gets good air circulation, allow foliage to grow as it will – more foliage means more photosynthesis for more energy, and shade for developing fruit.
• If your garden doesn’t get much air circulation, or gets a lot of air moisture like toward the coast, you may want to do some pruning of interior growth so diseases don’t get a foothold in the crowded foliage.

Root Cuttings of Ornamentals

• Now’s a great time to root cuttings of firm green and woody branches, including azalea, chrysanthemum, carnation, fuchsia, geranium, hydrangea, loquat and succulents.
• Choose growth that is somewhat woody and not still bright green and pliable.
• Cut a five- or six- inch piece, and strip off all of the leaves but the tiny young top growth and one or two well-developed more mature leaves.
• Place the cutting in light, sandy soil or planting mix up to the bottom leaf.
• Sprinkle the foliage and thoroughly wet the soil mixture.
• Provide filtered light in a sheltered location and keep the soil mix moist but not soggy until the rootings are well-established and new foliage appears in about a month.
• Gently tug on the rooted seedling, and when it gives resistance, gently remove the potting mix to see whether it has several new white roots.
• If it does, transplant it to its permanent home.
• If it doesn’t, repot it and water it in for further growth and checking in another month.

 
For more garden tasks, see June.

Different colors of everblooming Salvia greggii.

     Amazing – It’s raining!  We were promised a possible drizzle, but it’s been periodically moistening the soil a good amount all day long, and all the garden’s foliage is perking up in pleasure. The rest of the week promises to remain in the mid-70-degrees and cloudy-ish, so this is definitely a wonderful continuation of our mild spring weather.  I’m relishing it since I know the HEAT will be upon us shortly.  But in the meantime, I’m loving it.  Here are some of the things I’ve been playing with this week.
 
Help Your Tomatoes Set More Fruit
     Tomato blossoms pollinate themselves when each blossom’s pollen moves to its stigma, and then the fertilized flower begins to form the fruit.  You can help your plants set more fruits by merely brushing the bush to jostle the pollen onto the stigma.  Breezes can also do this, and you can just shake the bush.  If you’ve provided cages for your tomatoes, each time you push all that foliage back under the rungs of the cage so the branches are corralled and grow upward inside the cage, you’re accomplishing what the blossoms need to set fruit. 
 
Start or Transplant Succulents
     Now’s a great time to take cuttings of succulents for rooting. 
   I always hesitate to say that some gardening technique is foolproof because there will always be someone who isn’t successful and then they feel really bad and are convinced that they have the proverbial “black thumb”.  But this process really is simple. 
     Just snap off a section of the stem of a succulent that’s about an inch in length, cut a straight cut just above the break, let sit for 2 days to form a callous, and then stick the stem up to the foliage part in some potting soil in a container, and water it in so that the potting mix makes good contact with the stem.  Place in a location with bright light but no direct sun for a couple of weeks, and water only once a week during that time to make sure that the potting mix remains barely moist.  After several months, roots will have developed, and the plant can be transplanted.  Perhaps the “best” way to not have success is to water too much!   
 
Take Cuttings for Rooting
     Prune tips of azaleas, chrysanthemums, fuchsias, geraniums, lavender, marguerites and rosemary that are about 5 inches long.  Remove foliage on the bottom 3 inches.  Place into potting mix, water in, and proceed as described for succulents above.
 
Thinning Grapes and Tree Fruits
     Thin grape bunches and tree fruits for superior fruit quality. Remove about half of the number of grape clusters, leaving large gapes of air between remaining clusters.
     Thin tree fruits on alternate sides of branches for balance. The minimum distance to leave fruits on branches is about five to eight inches for apples, pears, peaches, and nectarines; four inches for plums and apricots.
     Thin too much rather than not enough so trees and vines aren't strained, especially when trees are young.
 
Encourage Bees and Butterflies
     Bees will aid pollination of most of your vegetables and ornamental plants and fruit trees.  They'll visit your garden more readily when you provide with their favorite plants -- including basil, borage, calendulas, catnip, hyssop, lemon balm, mint, summer savory, thyme, and other plants with blue flowers.
     To attract butterflies to your garden, plant asters, lantanas, buddleias ("butterfly bush"!), marigolds, sweet Williams, tithonias (Mexican sunflower), zinnias, and other daisy-like flowers.
 
For more garden tasks, see May.

We’ve just had a bit of a taste of our coming Summer Heat, with a day reaching 93 degrees, still pleasant enough to keep the doors and windows open during the day and leave more windows open at night than we’ve managed thus far this year.  In the garden, the tomatoes are loving the additional warmth and starting to blossom and even set some cherry tomato fruits, and beans and cukes and squashes are sprouting strongly.  But the unpleasant intensity of heat will be coming, so make sure your garden soil and plants are well-prepared to thrive and not just survive its onslaught.
 
Preparing the Garden

• Watering – Continue deep watering so the full root systems of each plant stay moist (not soggy) from watering to watering.
• Fertilizing – Assuming you incorporated amendments like manure and compost initially into your growing beds prior to planting, sprinkle some more Dr. Earth or EB Stone organic slow-release fertilizer when vegetables start blossoming so they have the additional energy to continue setting and maturing their fruit.  Choose fertilizer versions that have lower first (nitrogen) numbers but higher second (phosphorus) and third (potash) numbers so the plant’s energy will be more directed to developing its roots and flowers and fruits.
• Planting new stuff – This is up to you depending on your locale.  Here in Pasadena in the past several years, I’ve discontinued planting additional tomatoes and other summer-lovers because I just didn’t want to spend the money for the additional water I’d have to use as a result of the constant intense heat; and when I did plant and water them, the resulting struggling plants didn't really thrive anyway.   So, if you choose to add more plants, getting them in as soon as possible now to assure that their roots will get well established before the real heat arrives and stays.  This is why I make a point of getting my consecutive plantings of tomatoes established by the end of April at the latest.  Consider that anything under 90 degrees is ok for plants, above 90 degrees will begin being stressful for plants, and above 100 is definitely torturous.  At these high temperatures, plants literally shut down and discontinue photosynthesis, so continuing to water them will potentially drown them until temperatures lower to the low 90s.
• Mulching – Keep a two- to four-inch layer of organic mulch covering soil to help prevent crusting and cracking of the soil surface, hold in moisture, encourage earthworms, moderate soil temperatures, improve the soil as it decomposes, and prevent weed seeds from germinating (and any that do germinate are easy to pull up).
• Covering plants – As a last-minute protective measure on any torrid-heat days, spunbonded polyester or similar fabric (even just plain old cheesecloth) helps cut down the amount of direct sun but still allows in water and air circulation.  This worked well on my tomatoes that year when we had two days of 116-degree heat. 

 
Loving the Harvests

• Artichokes – We’ve enjoyed the single super-large first globes and the 2nd and 3rd progressively-smaller ones, and are waiting on the 4th set of tinier “baby-size” artichokes.  Amazing flavor – as with everything that’s literally eaten within half an hour of picking!
• Breadseed Poppies – What colorful and delicate blossoms! I’ll leave the blossom pods to ripen so I can collect the seeds.  See my note below for doing this at school and community gardens.
• Baby Bok Choy, Tatsoi – After months of harvesting single outer leaves, it’s now a wonderful bonus that the bolting shoots going to seed are even sweeter than the single leaves were. 
• Chard – These tender, colorful and tasty leaves also continue to be tasty but smaller as the bolting stalk grows to some six feet tall!  I’ll collect some seed but also let a couple stalks of each color scatter their seed and wait for them to germinate next fall so I can transplant them as soon as them come up on their own.
• Kales – The Lacinato – Dinosaur or Tuscan – kale is the only one that seems never to bolt, so you can just keep pulling off the individual leaves as the stem grows taller and puts out side-shoots.  Years ago, I finally pulled up one that’d lasted for some four years, just because I wanted something smaller in the garden.  I enjoy the flavor of this variety more than the other kales which are more bitter and tougher in texture.
• Lettuce – Even the “bolt-resistant” varieties planted last fall that we've been eating since have finally bolted.  The issue is the heat – even though any fabric covering shades the plants, the heat accumulated around the lettuce plants results in the hormonal shift to bolting.  But this is worth the couple of weeks’ more harvesting before the lettuce turns too bitter!  Seeds and transplants put into the garden now will have this problem later this summer.  Consequently, plan on these two planting times each year to make sure you have lettuce almost year-round.
• Peas – I’d reseeded my peas about four times from last fall through the winter because not too many actually germinated each time.  But now I’m literally reaping the benefit, because many of them did indeed finally germinate and so I have several generations of plants at different stages of developing their foliage, growing taller, putting out blossoms, setting pea pods, some almost ready to pick, and others dying after harvesting the very first batch that had germinated.  Another reason to keep resowing every couple of weeks through the fall and winter!

 
Note to school and community gardens
When you allow plants to mature fully so you can collect the seed, I suggest erecting a sign such as “We’re saving the poppy [or whatever] seeds!” facing the public walkway or street so non-gardener passersby know that all that “trashy dead stuff” remains for a good purpose and is temporary.  Otherwise they may complain to their city council person that the garden is neglecting to clean up all its trash and making the neighborhood look bad.
 
For more garden tasks, see May

Peach on left is fully set with fruit.  Branch on right has been thinned so individual fruits can develop fully without rubbing on each other.

     This week’s surprise drizzles and cloudiness are perfect for continuing to sow seeds and transplant seedlings of summer veggies and flowers. The mildness of the cloud cover and rain make tender baby plants’ growing easy to get established and develop their root systems out into the garden’s native soil for nutrition and moisture. This month is ideal for these encouraging conditions, so take advantage of getting your plants in the soil or containers before the summer heat is upon us and the plants start getting stressed.
 
Last Chance for Cool-Season Veggies
     My last sowing of lettuces and bok choy and peas are in the ground just in case this mild weather extends far enough into May and June to allow enough harvesting to make it worthwhile making the effort.
     I also started a batch of asparagus seed, and the baby plants are now about 2 inches tall.  In another couple of weeks, I’ll transplant them into their well-amended bed to develop over the summer and fall and then put up new shoots next spring.  But I probably won’t harvest any until the following spring, since I want them to get really strongly established before robbing them of any energy by harvesting even a couple of shoots.
 
Third Planting of Tomatoes
     Early in February, I found 3 volunteer tomato plants coming up amongst my beets.  Since they had germinated on their own – probably from the compost that I’d incorporated in January before sowing the beets – I knew the soil was warm enough for me to start buying some of the tomato varieties that I grow every year and are generally already available at nurseries.
     Later that month on my first forays to nurseries for tomato plants, I brought home 2 Sungold cherry plants and 3 Celebrities, which I set on top of the soil to acclimate to the area for a week, and then planted on March 3.  The Sungolds are now about 3 feet tall, so I’m letting them set their blossoms.
     Three weeks later, on March 20, I planted the 14 plants I’d purchased at my local Fig Nursery from its Tomatomania sale.  Those plants are now about 20 inches tall.  I’ll wait until they grow another foot before I let them set their blossoms, to make sure their root systems are extensive and deep.
     This last weekend I purchased another 6 plants from the Tomatomania sale at Descanso Gardens, and planted them. 
     With these multiple plantings over 2 months’ time of varieties with varying maturity ranges, I’ve guaranteed continuous harvests through the summer and into the fall.  
     Here’s who I’m growing this year:  Atomic Fusion, Black Cherry, Black Krim, Black Russian, Black Zebra, Brad’s Atomic Grape, Brandy Boy, Carbon, Celebrity, Cherokee Carbon, Cherokee Chocolate, Cherokee Purple, Green Zebra, Indigo Gold Berries, Isis Candy,  Jaune Flamme, Kellogg’s Breakfast, Paul Robeson, Pineapple, Stupice, Sungold, and then whoever those volunteers become….
 
Plant Everything by Mid-May
     In the past – before our several years of drought and those couple of torrid days of 116 degrees each year – I used to plant yet another batch of tomatoes and squash and beans and cukes in late May or early June, to carry our harvests through the heat of summer. 
     But, with the advent of those droughty years, I found that I couldn’t even keep those plants alive – much less thrive -- even with extra effort and expense of more frequent watering. 
     So, now, I make a point to get everything planted in April or early May to enable root systems to develop deeply into the soil so they’ll be strong enough to withstand summer’s heat. 
     All more the case this year, since we’ve had not even 6 inches of rain so far, with nary a promise for more!
 
For more gardening tasks and opportunities, go to April.