My Garden Diary

Because the soil is so saturated from the rain and because even more rain is expected tonight and tomorrow, I scatted generous amounts of gypsum in the beds in back where plants are sensitive to wet soil. This meant thoroughly covering the camellia, teardrop, and circular beds; but the other beds also received gypsum. I finished an almost-empty bag and then used most of a new 50-pound bag. The gypsum (calcium sulfate) reacts with the clay in the soil to make it more porous and to improve drainage.

The downpour we had earlier in the week packed down the compost pile. I "fluffed it up" and then tossed some urea granules on top. The coming rain will rinse this high-nitrogen fertilizer into the pile to speed the decomposition of leaves I added last week.

(New Year's Eve: The expected rains did indeed fall, another 0.85 inch by noon today.)

Finished pruning the peach tree. There is a large pile of branches on the ground because the trash bin for garden waste is already full. Fortunately, today is when trash is collected. Tomorrow, I'll cut up the branches so they will fit into the bin (after I partially fill the bin with leaves).

Raked the lawn, and raked it some more. The Oak Park Gardeners came and took three large bags of leaves for their community compost, which is deficient in "brown matter". I have no room in the trash bin or my compost pile for more leaves, and I'm almost through mulching the beds. I haven't even raked the patio or most of the walkways. Yet, as I finished today's pruning, the lawn looked like I had not raked at all.

Stirred the compost pile while adding more leaves (which went to the bottom of the pile). Finally, after almost a year, it looks like I will actually be able to sift some compost soon.

Pruned another limb of the peach tree. Only one more limb to go. Despite the uncertain future for the tree (13 December), I am pruning for renewal and not merely to promote a good crop of fruit next year.

Pruned another limb on the peach tree. Pruning gives me a chance to examine the tree closely. Although I spray for bark borers in the spring, they still invade the major limbs and branches. I can see extensive areas of dead bark and exposed wood. The tree will have to be removed either the end of next summer or the year after. Peach trees remain vigorous for only 10-15 years, and this is already the second tree in that location.

Noticed some significant frost damage to the Cuphea hyssopifolia in the teardrop bed. I'm not concerned because these plants resprout nicely in the spring. What's surprising is that damaged plants are still putting out new flowers.

Besides the usual maintenance — raking leaves and removing dead flowers — the only real task I did today was pruning the fern pine (Podocarpus) at the south-west corner of my house. The painters (30 November) really butchered this tree. However, it was well overdue for thinning. After I did a few more corrections, it now looks better than before the painters started.

However, last night's temperatures finally killed my basil. Since it's an annual, it was already struggling to survive the approach of winter; so its demise was expected.

Gave my mailbox a "haircut", trimming the Hahn's ivy (Hedera helix 'Hahn's') growing on it. I think that, when the weather warms in the spring, I might renovate the ivy by cutting it back to its main branches. I might do that also for the ivy growing around the liquidambar tree.

After raking leaves in front — again — I started to clean up the damage from having the exterior of my house painted. In front, the painters trimmed the dwarf Burford holly (Ilex cornuta 'Burfordii Nana') and fern pines (Podocarpus) away from the house. I'm still picking branches out of the leaf mulch on the lawn. And there were several broken branches in the holly and Pittosporum tobira around on the side that required trimming.

In back, nothing needed to be trimmed by the painters. Still, they managed to break branches in the 'Pride of Dorking' azaleas near the airconditioner and in several of the Camelia japonica under the dining room window. There is also debris from masking windows now lying in the various beds. I'm so glad the exterior painting is done. The house does look very nice; it was about three years overdue for painting.

While taking a load of leaves to the compost pile, I noticed a sprinkler head on the patio. The riser was broken off right at the base of the head. I'm having some repairs and painting done to the house and the paint crew spent the morning power-washing the stucco. One of them must have accidentally kicked the head and broken it; it was some 20 feet from where it belonged. It was simple and quick to repair, but I had to go out and buy a 30¢ riser. The garden supply store removed the broker stub from the head. I am upset because the contractor's employees should inform me when something like this happens so that I can indeed make repairs before turning on the sprinklers.

Scattered gypsum and soil sulfer in the teardrop bed around the tea tree (Leptospermum laevigatum) so that winter rains will not cause chlorosis.

Taped the wood handle of my lawn rake. The rake is quite old. I got it from my parents well more than 35 years ago, and it wasn't new then. Every time I used it, I got splinters in my hand. Hooray for duct tape (the narrow kind)!

Should have planted my rooted cuttings of red clover (31 August) two weeks ago, but I forgot to put this task on my calendar. Today, I dropped two handsful of gypsum at each spot where they will be planted. In about three weeks (when my calendar now says the cuttings will be planted), the soil should be easily dug.

Our son, Allen, came for breakfast this morning (lox and bagels). After eating, he helped me transfer the dwarf 'Robertson' navel orange tree from its decaying redwood tub into a new terracotta pot. In the process, only one branch was broken. I trimmed that and several other branches so that the demand on disturbed roots would be reduced.

Raking leaves while the wind blows and even more leaves are falling might be a Sisyphean folly. But if I didn't do it today, soon I would be overwhelmed with more leaves than I need for mulching, more than I can add to my compost pile, and more than I can cram into the garden waste bin for collection. Today, I even had to rake in back — twice.

The only significant leaf fall in back is from the peach tree, whose leaves are now bright yellow. Most of those leaves have fallen directly below the tree, where I want them as a mulch. I raked the few that fell onto the adjacent walkway into the camellia bed, which also needs a mulch.

Turned over the compost pile in anticipation of adding leaves to it, now that they are no longer needed as mulch in front.

My Japanese zelkova (Zelkova serrata) is coloring much better than last year. From gold, through red-orange, all the way to burgundy, it almost has the same colors that my liquidambar (Liquidambar styraciflua) will soon have. Other zelkovas down the street show bright yellow and flame red. It's quite nice. I forgive my tree for dropping its leaves for me to rake.

In the back, fall color is being provided by the peach tree, grape vines, and asparagus, all of which are bright yellow. The Tree has dropped a few leaves but not enough to rake yet. This tree, I won't forgive.

Made another 0.5 cubic foot of potting mix for when I move my dwarf orange. I put some more into the large flower pot that I will use. I reserved the rest for packing around the sides after potting the tree.

Yesterday, bought two pails of washed plaster sand at Thousand Oaks Building Materials for $1 each or about $1.33 per cubic foot (not the $3 per cubic foot that Do-It Center wanted).

Today, mixed a large batch of potting mix for repotting my dwarf 'Robertson' navel orange. Only after I remeasured the pot and the depth of mix at the bottom, did I realize that "a large batch" was only 0.5 cubic foot.

Started cutting back the edible asparagus (A. officinalis). I need to minimize the number of berries that drop. Otherwise, I'll have asparagus coming up all over the yard.