The Coastal Gardener - September, 2004
September is a second Spring
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"….the hottest, driest fall day is beautiful…The dry air is so extremely clear that every hill and mountain has moved nearer, sunlight is very strong and shade is very black. It is the time of year that the mountains color best: autumn leaves are pale compared to the colors of stony mountains when the sun goes down." Judy Van Der Veer, from Foothills, 1946
September signals the start of many things that can be done in the garden. The season is ready for the rain to come and summer flowers have sent out their last flowers and will soon be dormant or consigned to the compost pile. Trees are tired of holding onto their leaves after the long dry summer and maples are turning yellow, the river is at low ebb. But at night the air is a little cooler, mornings a little more dewy and underground things are stirring. Daffodils are sending out new roots to seek moisture for flower buds forming in their hearts. With a little moisture, native plants like mimulus will continue to send out a display of apricot flowers for hummingbirds to enjoy. The California fuchsia, Epilobium cana, is just getting into it's stride along road cuts and rock outcroppings, with fiery red tubes in clusters atop wiry stems. In recent years there have been several selections made that exhibit a compact habit, better color and larger blooms. I have found some available at Sierra Azul on Lake Street in Watsonville (sierraazul.com) and through High Country Gardens (highcountrygardens.com).
Mimulus on the other hand have been tinkered with since the 1940's but have never caught on with gardeners, not for a lack of charm. Mimulus are drought and deer resistant and named cultivars have larger flowers in yellow, apricot orange, pink and lavender. In my own garden I have the common native form, M. aurantiacus, plus the red flowered M. longiflorus rutilus and a cultivar with yellow frilled blooms called Canary Bird. All should be available though Valley Hills by order. If you did not get the hint yet, this is a good month to shop for natives. Planted this month and next they will be much more self reliant next summer.
I will not bore you with another admonishment to plant fall bulbs; I will simply cast a stern look in the direction of the guilty. Tulips and hyacinths benefit from a period of cooling before planting. This is best accomplished by placing the bulbs in paper bags (never plastic) set down in the vegetable compartment of the refrigerator for about 3 weeks. Plant them as soon as they come out of the fridge and water them well once. The rain will do the rest in most cases. I always reserve a few choice bulbs to pot up for the patio, when they flush with bloom they can be brought out for display, even set in the house as a living bouquet. Some of my patio favorites include the Dutch Iris 'Purple Sensation' and Allium christophii (who needs pre-chilling) with round heads of purple blooms that fade to starburst clusters of tawny seed-heads.
September gives you plenty of time to make cuttings of tender plants that you may want. Angels trumpet, geraniums, pelargonium, coleus can all be struck now. Cuttings should be kept sheltered from hot sun and protected all winter under a shady tree or potting table; they will be strong enough to plant out come spring.
Back to dry fall weather again quickly. I have been finding that the use of a water polymer, a granular substance that holds moisture in the soil, has been giving me great benefits. I use "Soil Moist", available at Brintons, mixed with compost in plantings holes. Plants set in with the soil polymer needed only half the amount of water in the first month and were much less likely to show stress on hot days compared to similar plants set in without the polymer. I recommend it to a friend in the Coastlands who was having trouble getting things to establish. Soil polymers are helpful in hangings baskets and pots to reduce watering chores.
Enjoy! Dave Egbert
