Jeff Rice

The weather so far this fall has been pretty nice. There is a Super El Nino forecast for this winter, in case you had not heard. I’ve been watching all the forecasts for that and it started out with a 50/50 chance that our winter here would be really wet. Lately I’ve been seeing predictions that are more certain that it will be wet. I guess at least we can count on a good water year anyway. Whether it is excessive or not, who knows but it seems like it’s leaning to maybe a wetter than average year. Regardless of the forecasts, FALL IS THE BEST TIME OF YEAR FOR PLANTING TREES AND SHRUBS. October is a good month for planting fall/winter vegetables. We have a selection of organic winter vegetable starts in now. We also have a large stock of onion and garlic for fall planting. Fall fertilizing should be done soon if you haven’t already done it. Get it done before the plants start showing lots of fall color. This fertilizing is important because it gives plants a good boost and also gives them stored food for winter. Next spring they will use that stored food for growth …

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The weather feels like fall. Weather predictions I’ve seen are calling for early fall weather and at least average precipitation for this winter. Maybe above average, seems like a 50/50 shot for that but a good season ahead, FALL IS THE BEST TIME FOR PLANTING. __We have an excellent selection for fall planting and if we don’t have it in stock we can get it usually within two weeks. Fall fertilizing should be done this month. Use a balanced fertilizer for most of your trees and shrubs. We carry16-16-16 in 20 pound bags, and 15-15-15 in 50 pound bags. We carry organic all purpose fertilizer in 5# box, or 25# and 40# bags. If you have only a few plants, we also have it in 1# boxes. Be sure to fertilize your deciduous plants and perennials before they show signs of dormancy. Give your tomatoes a balanced fertilizer now and you should get more production out of them for another month, maybe longer. With the cooler weather coming, trees and perennials will start to go into dormancy probably in October. I’m actually seeing a few signs of fall color at the nursery now. Fertilize citrus now, then let them go …

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Well, the summer up until this week has been very nice. Only 3, 100 degree days in July. Once past this week, it’s going to cool down nicely. My current long range shows highs in the 90’s for next week, hopefully and beyond. But days are getting shorter so even the warm part of the day doesn’t last as long as we get further into the month. Fall will be here before you know it. Start planning for your fall planting and maybe even get a jump on that fall planting now. The temperatures are going to start trending down as the month goes on. Mornings will be cooler and the cool mornings are a great time for gardening. Remember that fall is the best time for planting trees and shrubs. Especially trees. The ground is a bit hard after the summer but if you start a hole and soak it, and then dig a little more and soak it, pretty soon the hole you need for the tree or shrub is done and it is a fairly painless way to dig a hole. It’s worth the effort to get things planted in the fall. Note the diagram describing the …

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We are having another average water year this year, at least here at the nursery. By my rain tracking, we are at 26.10″. That’s four decent rainfall years in a row so that’s some good news, locally at least. Looking at the forecasts, looks like we are in for some nice spring weather after this latest storm. Been a little cool the past couple of days but really nice spring weather coming our way for the next couple of weeks as far as my long range forecast shows. We have a large selection of vegetable starts, and bringing more out of our greenhouse as fast as we can, so we have a good selection of vegetables for the planting season. I preach to wait until the nighttime temperatures are consistently 50 degrees, or close to it and the ground needs to be warm to get good results from your vegetables. It looks like it’s there with the warm March we have had but then again, it’s 42 degrees this morning as I write this on April 2nd. Get your gardens prepped if you haven’t done that yet so you can plant your vegetable starts when the weather is right. No, …

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Bare root season continues through February. The selection of bare root fruit trees is still good. I did a count yesterday and we have more than 300 bare root fruit trees still available. The cool nights and not too warm days are ideal for the bare root trees, and now is the time to plant them. Looks like more moisture coming over the next few days so it adds to this being ideal time to plant bare root trees. THREE WEEKS LEFT TO GET BARE ROOT FRUIT TREES. At the end of the season we pot up what has not been sold bare root and then the price goes up. Take advantage of bare root prices and selection and get your fruit trees in now. Final Dormant Spraying is Due This Month The third and final dormant spraying to prevent leaf curl is due this month. Don’t delay. The final spray should be done before you see color in the flower buds. Usually mid February is a good time but watch your trees closely. Depending on weather, they may start budding to bloom early in the month. Get the spraying done before the buds open. Use copper and horticultural oil …

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BARE ROOT FRUIT TREES ARE ARRIVING MONDAY JANUARY 5TH. We will begin the sorting and preparing them for sale as soon as they arrive. Hopefully we will have many ready to go on Tuesday the 7th, (yes, we will be here Tuesday the 7th) and all ready on Wednesday the 8th. Roses came in a couple of weeks ago. Blueberries, cane berries, figs, and pomegranates in pots are in. Complete price list for bare root fruit trees is available on our website, at the nursery, or via email by request. Bare root season goes through the end of February. We have a large selection of fruit trees during bare root season, but don’t wait till the end of the season to shop. Once a variety is sold out, it is gone until next year’s bare root season. At the end of February, the trees that are left, which should be few, are potted up and sold later in the year and the price is higher after we pot them. Bare root roses are now available as well. We have a nice selection of roses to choose from. We sell them bare root until the end of February and after that …

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