Container Gardening

by Charlene Burgi

Dianthus in container

Container gardening is chosen for various reasons. Some gardeners live in condominiums or apartments with only a small balcony but a burning desire to play in the dirt. Others yearn for a spot of color on a patio, or wish for edibles closer to the kitchen, or find too much hardscape exists for their planting needs. Still others, such as yours truly, have oodles of planting areas, but choose to plant some things in containers in hope they will be out of the reach of wild nibbling critters—or up and out of the way of two rambunctious puppies. And roof gardening is the granddaddy of all container gardening and brings the thought process to a whole new level!

Note that whatever space we choose to garden (other than in the ground), it comes with a higher maintenance plan. Consider the weight you are adding to your structure if you are planting on a rooftop or balcony. Soil is heavy, so add a soilless mix to your containers to reduce the weight. Water also weighs a lot. One gallon of water weighs slightly less than 8.5 pounds—multiply that by the amount of water needed to sustain your plants! Roof gardening requires a heavy-duty, moisture-proof membrane, and containers need some type of tray to catch excess runoff, or the potential patio furniture below may be the recipient of irrigation overflow.

And, speaking of water, how are you planning to water the containers? Some people run drip tubing to each planter, while others carry filled cans of water to their plants if hose bibs are not available. In this case, patios with many containers require a lot of schlepping as contained gardens dry out faster! To help reduce your labor, consider adding polymers to the soil to retain moisture for a longer period of time. Mulch the containers to prevent additional evaporation and add pebbles to the tray beneath to increase humidity around the plant. Use double-walled planters that act as insulators from heat and cold. This type of container is also much lighter than ceramic, clay or wood.

This brings up another point—hydrozoning is critical. Choose plants that do well in the existing conditions. Sun exposure must be carefully considered when choosing plant material for roof or containers. Attempting to grow a shade-loving plant in afternoon sun could be disastrous, as would deep-rooted plants on a roof garden. Native, low-water-using plants with shallow roots are best for roof gardens. If you are mixing plants in the same container, make certain they have the same water needs.

Containerized plants also deplete soil nutrients faster than if planted in the ground. I was thinking about this very thing as I mixed up some organic fertilizer and compost tea the other day for the containerized blueberries. Some plants require more feed than others, such as roses, fuchsias, fruit-bearers and vegetables. Be certain to use a good organic fertilizer once a month to optimize growth, fruit and flower production, and the plant’s well-being.

Rock container with violet

Despite the added work and thought process that comes with container planting, there is nothing more rewarding than having a fresh herb garden growing in a container right outside the kitchen door, or gazing upon the splendor of a window box overflowing with color, or popping cherry tomatoes into your mouth as you lounge on the patio. The payoff from this kind of maintenance is priceless!

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A Spot of Green

by Charlene Burgi

Let’s face it: Despite the fact that we live in a Mediterranean climate, where we experience five to six months of dry weather every year, we love our lawns. We know that lawns consume more water than any other vegetation in our yards, yet the love affair continues. Where did this affair start?

Historically, large expanses of lawn in England were signs of great wealth. As our ancestors crossed the “pond,” they brought their traditions, customs and ideals with them as they settled on the East Coast, and with them came lawn seed. For the most part, lawns planted on the Eastern Seaboard did not require irrigation systems as the weather offered year-round rainfall—enough water to keep lawns looking lush and green.

As the covered wagons moved west, so did the love affair. Lawns sprouted up with the growing population. Irrigation systems were needed to maintain these spots of green since summer rainfall is a rare commodity on much of the West Coast.

Simple solutions in the east became more complicated out west. The migration also brought maintenance habits that caused this water-guzzling spot of green to need more water, encourage more weeds, require more fertilizer and add more work for mowing. The way you mow your lawn can make or break these habits.

The theory is to keep it simple. The key is to mow your lawn to a height of 2.5 – 3 inches, which will shade the root system, keeping the roots cooler and requiring less irrigation. The taller grasses also prevent weed seeds from getting enough light to germinate, eliminating the need to use herbicides to eradicate the weeds. The tips of grass clippings (not clumps of grass) from frequent mowing will add nutrients to the soil and feed the lawn as the clippings decompose.

This brings up another issue for managing lawns. I am often asked if it is better to water a little every day until the evapotranspiration rate is met for the week. Let me go on record saying that a deep soaking every three days is better for your lawn. If you are on a slight slope, you may need to set your controller for multiple run times, or use the cycle-and-soak feature. This will help prevent runoff by allowing the irrigation system to water for short spurts, with time in between for the water to soak into the ground.

If you have a love affair with your lawn, remember:

1. Good practices now can make a lawn strong and healthy in case of future drought and help sustain it if water restrictions should occur.
2. Watering deeply early in the morning will develop deep roots that can tap into moisture deep within the soil.
3. Cutting lawns too short allows the soil to dry out faster and weeds to develop.
4. Short water times every day should be avoided since this will keep roots close to the soil surface.
5. Check various types of lawn seed or sod for water-conserving and disease-resistant varieties that were not available during the pioneer days of yesteryear.

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Thank You Garden Hosts, Volunteers, Sponsors & Guests!

by Robin McKillop

The Marin-Friendly Garden tour was a huge success with over 600 guests making 2,200 visits to nine diverse gardens on Saturday, May 18. Gardens featured native plants, edibles, rainwater catchment, smart irrigation, wildlife habitat, salvaged materials and more. (See photos of the gardens on our Facebook page.) In addition to strolling through these inspiring gardens, guests had the opportunity to attend on-site presentations by local experts on rainwater harvesting, defensible space and gardening with California natives. We hope the tour inspires visitors to embrace gardening practices that are easier on the environment, in particular ones that conserve and protect our precious water resources.

The garden tour was made possible by the generosity and talent of our host gardeners who shared their amazing gardens and vast knowledge with all of us on tour day. Thank you host gardeners for going above and beyond! Also, thanks to all of the volunteers who donated their time to make this tour possible. Many of these volunteers have been supporting MMWD garden tours for several years, while others just joined. We also owe a debt of gratitude to our sponsors for helping to make this tour possible:

The Urban Farmer Store
Bayside Garden Center
Marin Art and Garden Center
Marizco Landscape Management
O’Donnell’s Fairfax Nursery
Point Tiburon Plaza
U.C. Cooperative Extension Master Gardeners

Last, but not least, we would like to thank everyone who attended. We hope you enjoyed the tour as much as we did!

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Knowledge

by Charlene Burgi

This week a friend sent an email containing a test that challenged the reader’s knowledge of science. I dropped all that I was doing and quizzed myself before sending it on to my daughter, son and Jack with my results. The gauntlet was officially thrown down and the game was on!

It seems the family loves these challenges, as we all get caught up in self-testing. It made me wonder if you, too, enjoy seeing just how much you know? Are you in? Okay, I am throwing down the gauntlet! Answers will be found at the end of the blog. No fair checking our website or internet for answers first!

1. How many water supply reservoirs does MMWD maintain on the Mt. Tamalpais Watershed and in West Marin? Extra points if you can name them all.
a. 3
b. 7
c. 12
d. None of the above

2. Which sprinkler heads are most efficient on a slope?
a. Impact heads
b. MP Rotators
c. Spray heads
d. Rotors

3. It is acceptable to mix various types of sprinkler heads on the same valve.
a. True
b. False

4. It is best to use pressure-compensating emitters on a slope.
a. True
b. False

5. As a whole, we use more water:
a. Washing clothes
b. Flushing toilets
c. Watering lawns
d. Taking showers

6. Clay soil doesn’t have any nutritional value.
a. True
b. False

7. All native plants are low-water users.
a. True
b. False

8. Evapotranspiration refers to:
a. Loss of water from the soil
b. Loss of water from plants
c. Both a and b
d. None of the above

9. The evapotranspiration rate is highest in:
a. Mid August
b. Beginning of September
c. End of April
d. End of June

10.  Toilet leaks can waste as much as
a. 1 gallon a day
b. 15 gallons a month
c. Too small to measure
d. 500 gallons a day

The next step we take in the family is to share our answers and where we got hung up. It opens up the discussion! Did you learn anything or was this just too easy? Did you share this test with your family, too?

Join Us for the Marin-Friendly Garden Tour on Saturday, May 18

If you haven’t registered for tomorrow’s Marin-Friendly Garden Tour, it’s not too late! This FREE, self-guided tour showcases nine Marin gardens designed to protect our local environment and conserve water. Discover native plant selections, edibles, rainwater catchment, wildlife habitat gardens, recycled materials, composting systems and more. Visit our website for last-minute registration details.

Answers

1. – b. MMWD’s reservoirs include Phoenix, Lagunitas, Bon Tempe, Alpine, Kent, Nicasio and Soulajule.
2. – b. Slow precipitation rates of the MP Rotators will allow the water to penetrate instead of run off.
3. – b. Each type of head throws out different gallons per minute, causing some areas to get too much water and other areas not enough–what we call a lack of distribution uniformity.
4. – a. Non-compensating emitters will lead to water running out faster at the bottom of the slope, leaving little emitting at the top.
5. – c. Lawns use the highest amount of water.
6. – b. Clay has nutrients trapped in its particles. Adding amendments can break down the particles and release the nutrients for plant needs.
7. – b. There are many aquatic native plants.
8. – c. Soil loses moisture through evaporation; plants lose water through transpiration.
9. – d. On average, plants require more water at the end of June than any other time of year.
10. – d. Can you believe that! You can lose up to 500 gallons a day!!

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Why is Marin-Friendly Gardening Important?

by Robin McKillop

Perhaps the interconnectedness of gardens, watersheds and people is nowhere more apparent than in Marin. Almost all of our water supply comes from local rainfall, collected from local watershed lands and stored in local reservoirs. Unlike most Californians, people in Marin live in the same watersheds that supply our water, witnessing first-hand the impacts of our activities on our local waterways. It’s apparent that what we do in our gardens has a direct impact on water quality in our local creeks and waterways, and on the plants and animals living here.

Marin Municipal Water District watershed lands total over 21,000 acres, and are home to over 400 species of animals and 900 species of plants, including many rare, threatened and endangered species. The watershed comprises only 0.2 percent of the area of California and five percent of Marin County, yet 15 percent of the state’s native plant species and 50 percent of the county’s can be found here. Lagunitas Creek, which begins above district reservoirs near the peak of Mt. Tamalpais on land owned by MMWD, is a spawning and rearing ground for endangered coho salmon and steelhead trout. It supports one of the best populations of coho salmon in California.

In addition to its critical role in nature, water plays a central role in our gardens. All plants need water to survive, but different plants need different amounts of water. Many plants that grow in Marin naturally have adaptations that allow them to survive through our hot, dry summers without any supplemental irrigation. Other plants, like thirsty lawns, require constant watering and maintenance. In Marin, a lawn the size of a tennis court needs about 400 gallons of water per day in July to remain healthy. That’s equivalent to having 16 people each taking 10-minute showers at your house every day! When you consider that irrigation systems are never 100 percent efficient, even more water is needed. Much of this water is wasted due to runoff, which travels into local waterways carrying harmful chemicals and other pollutants with it.

Marin-Friendly gardening is grounded in the notion that there’s a better way to achieve productive, beautiful gardens and minimize our impact on the environment. Marin-Friendly gardens use practices sensitive to our local environment, particularly ones that conserve and protect our precious water resources.

Want to see Marin-Friendly gardening in action? Join us for the Marin-Friendly Garden Tour on Saturday, May 18.

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Another Sneak Preview: Marin-Friendly Garden Tour

by Craig Lauridsen

Registration is still open for the 2013 Marin-Friendly Garden Tour, scheduled for Saturday, May 18, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. It only takes a minute to sign up using our online registration system, and there’s no charge to attend! Register by May 1 to be automatically entered into a drawing to win a Marin-Friendly prize! We hope you can join us.

The 2013 tour features nine inspiring gardens that showcase a variety of environmentally friendly practices, ranging from conserving water to creating wildlife habitat. Here’s a sneak preview of one of the gardens on this year’s tour.

There are so many reasons to visit this garden. The front yard has a collection of towering redwoods and an impressive valley oak that have watched the neighborhood mature for over 100 years. When you enter the backyard, it’s hard to believe that for 40 long years the entire space was covered in cement and a swimming pool. This all changed when new owners purchased the home in 2010. They worked with a landscape professional and designed the backyard to be drought-tolerant and wildlife-friendly, with mostly native plantings, and a vegetable and herb garden. Stepping-stone pathways connect three small patios, and artwork is peppered into the landscape to add color and character. One corner of the backyard features two raised beds for a seasonal vegetable garden and a wire trellis on the fence encouraging two young kiwi plans to grow. Soil is kept healthy through the use of a compost bin. An onsite well is used for irrigation, and the owners carefully manage their water by using drip irrigation and a self-adjusting irrigation controller.

For more information about the 2013 Marin-Friendly Garden Tour visit marinwater.org.

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Fix a Leak

by Charlene Burgi

It’s National Fix a Leak Week—a week when we’re reminded to check our plumbing fixtures and irrigation systems and make any needed repairs to stop water waste.

Ironically, while visiting my granddaughter and a few out-of-town friends this morning, life presented a near water disaster that tied right into the “fix-a-leak” theme. The morning bustle found early risers lining up for showers and completing daily scrubs before granddaughter Kate rose and prepared for work. Within minutes of entering the bathroom she re-emerged in a state of shock wondering who last showered! It seems that she turned her back on the shower enclosure while waiting for the water to get hot enough to enter. Much to her surprise, water spurted up and over the top of the shower enclosure not only drenching her but creating rivulets on the tile floor before she could react to “stop the leak.”

Leaking showerhead

We laughed at her detailed account of the situation, and then investigated why we all managed to fulfill our bathing ritual keeping the water within its intended confines. The story unfolded as we surrounded the shower stall and tried to replicate the drenching. It seems that the last person in the shower had adjusted the shower nozzle when leaving, angling it into a position that dispensed an unwelcome stream of water. Water was pouring out the top of the showerhead before ever reaching the spray portion of the head. One could only guess how long the showerhead had been losing effective shower water!

Leaks are deadly to your water bill. Silent leaks are the worst, as they come packaged in many forms and can catch you unaware. A toilet that flushes without anyone in the room is not the work of a friendly water-waste ghost, but a silent leak that lowers the tank water to a level that causes the toilet to refill even when no one is using it. Sometimes a leaking toilet can only be found by adding food color to the tank, then checking back after 15 minutes to see if the color has seeped into the bowl.

Leaking sprinkler head

Water manages to find the easiest exit out of a pipe. While performing water leak investigations, MMWD’s Conservation staff often discover broken pipes silently leaking below ground. They also commonly find leaky seals around sprinkler heads throwing irrigation water out of the pipe before it ever reaches the nozzle— much like the showerhead misfortune Kate experienced this morning.

Water loss also can rear its ugly head when water pressure exceeds an irrigation system’s intended use. High water pressure may not show up as a leak by the conventional definition, but rather as misting into the atmosphere. This is as much a water-waster as a dripping faucet. Drip emitters can also pop off of a drip line when pressure exceeds the recommended amount of water flowing through the drip tube. The installation of a pressure regulator will correct these problems.

This week, check your water meter. Turn off all the water in the house and yard, then carefully remove the lid of the meter box with a screwdriver. Lift the meter cover and check that all the dials and triangle are not moving. If you see movement, you have a leak to find and repair. This is the week to investigate! While you’re at your meter box, snap a picture of your water meter for a chance to win a water-efficiency prize package through the Sonoma-Marin Saving Water Partnership’s “Fix a Leak Week” photo contest.

Remember, if you have water, you have the potential to find a leak when you least expect it, and it isn’t always found by an annoying drip, drip, drip. Just ask Kate!

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Doing the Right Thing

by Charlene Burgi

The approach of mid-March, daylight saving time, rising evapotranspiration (ET) rates, and prolonged dry weather are indicators that we are long past due for testing our irrigation systems for leaks, breaks, and clogged heads and emitters before we turn them on for the season.

This spring chore is as necessary for saving water outdoors as is installing a high-efficiency toilet or repairing a leaking faucet indoors. One might argue that the water from a missing drip emitter is still watering the ground; however, the missing emitter is also reducing the water pressure in the line and starving plants “down stream” of their needed water supply. A clogged emitter prevents any water from getting out of the pipe, and a broken pipe is literally water down the drain without any benefit to the garden—but a sure bet of a high water bill.

What amazes most of us is our irrigation systems worked perfectly before we turned them off in the late fall. What creates this added chore in our already busy schedules? And if we do the right thing by checking before turning the irrigation system on, what is the best “down and dirty” way to approach it so we can move on to more exciting things going on in our lives?

First, check the controller for the time and date setting to determine if winter power outages tampered with that detail. A controller will default to watering ten minutes every day on every station. That is a lot of water! Replace any back-up battery if your controller has that feature. Many new controllers have a built-in feature that maintains the settings for a given period of time without a battery back-up. If your controller is malfunctioning, this might be the time to consider upgrading to a smart controller: Once calibrated to your garden, it will free up time now spent monitoring the controller on a weekly basis.

Missing nozzle

Next, manually turn on each individual station from the controller and walk around that station listening and watching for water hissing or spurting in the air. Exposed broken pipes will sound like an uncontrolled gushing hose. Broken pipes underground may present themselves by puddling or lifting the lawn in a pillow-like fashion. Watch for sprinklers that no longer spray to the adjacent heads on the same station. Lack of water pressure indicates a break in the pipe somewhere. The stations with drip emitters should be producing the same amount of water at the end of the line as at the beginning, closest to the valve. If you are on a sloped area, be certain you have pressure-compensating emitters installed so there is an equal distribution of water despite the elevation variation in your garden.

Emitters that are plugged need to be cleaned out. Replace missing emitters and repair damaged drip tubing so water is not escaping where it isn’t wanted. Remember you are directing water to the root zone of plants to prevent unnecessary weed growth elsewhere. Contact a licensed QWEL landscape contractor if you experience a lack of communication between the controller and the valve that opens the station to be watered. This could indicate a broken wire, malfunctioning solenoid or a problem with the controller. You might want to leave this chore to the pros.

Each station requires this type of scrutiny before you turn on the irrigation system for the season. You won’t regret taking the time for this chore. Fix problems now, and your water bill will reward you for your efforts!

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Misplaced “Save Green, Save Blue” Coupon Results in Six More Weeks of Winter!

by Keith Bancroft

According to folklore, if it is cloudy when a groundhog emerges from its burrow on Groundhog Day (February 2—this Saturday!), then spring will come early; if it is sunny and the groundhog sees its shadow, it will retreat back into its burrow, signaling that winter weather will continue for six more weeks.

In many areas of the U.S., early morning celebrations are held where people gather to watch the groundhog emerge from its burrow. The most famous of these events is in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania (setting of the 1993 movie Groundhog Day), where “Punxsutawney Phil” is the resident rodent prognosticator. However, many areas have jumped on the furry bandwagon and have adopted their own marmot mascot—Dunkirk Dave, Susquehanna Sherman and Wiarton Willie to name just a few. And for those towns where alliteration just isn’t their thing, we have the likes of Gus, Uni, Spanish Joe and, of course, Jimmy the Groundhog.

Few people know that our local groundhog, Marin Mortimer, is the star of his own annual festival and proudly emerges from his burrow every February 2 under the watchful gaze of curious onlookers, eager for news of what weather the next six weeks will bring. His last appearance was, unfortunately, not his proudest moment. For just after Mortimer fully emerged from his burrow, he realized he’d left his “Save Your Green, Save Our Blue” coupons on the kitchen table, and hastily retreated into his burrow to retrieve them, inadvertently signaling to the collected crowd the advent of six more weeks of winter. By the time he’d re-emerged from his cozy den, coupons in hand (rather, in paw), the crowd had disbanded, leaving Mortimer alone to rejoice at his lack of shadow and the imminent arrival of spring.

Moral of the story: Don’t forget to grab your coupons before leaving the house. Visit MMWD’s “Save Your Green, Save Our Blue” coupon page to get discount coupons from local retailers and plumbers on leak repair, high-efficiency toilets, smart irrigation controllers, rainwater harvesting tanks, mulch, native plants and more.

*          *          *

On a more somber note, we wish to extend our sympathy to our favorite retired gardener and blogger, Charlene Burgi, on the recent passing of her mother. Our thoughts are with Charlene and her family. We look forward to hearing from Charlene when she returns.

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Cheap Insurance

by Charlene Burgi

Water troughs with heater and without

The water pipes are wrapped. Minimum/maximum temperature controls are installed on heaters in the outbuilding that contains a water source. The wellhouse down the road is double-covered with heat lamps. Water trough heaters are installed so the donkeys can get water to drink despite the below-freezing temperatures we’ve experienced week after week.

Despite the planning and preparations, all was not well. Last Thursday night I was cleaning up after dinner and noted a reduction in water pressure coming from the faucet. We had water, but not with the same output (pressure) we normally have. With this news, Jack donned his heavy coat, hat and boots to head out into the single-digit weather to look for a break in the line. He returned shortly to say we were in luck. The pipe in the barn bathroom split from the cold, and although the unfinished room was flooded he was able to turn off the water feeding the break. We still can’t figure out why the heater failed to protect the insulated bathroom from freezing temperatures, but the experience provided a valuable lesson to share with you.

First of all, broken water pipes could happen to you if you have not prepared your outdoor pipes for a freeze. And yes, trust me on this, it happens in Marin! First, wrap all exposed pipes and faucets with pipe insulation, which can be found at the local hardware store or purchased online. Tape the seams closed. If the stores are sold out, you can always use old towels and blankets and wrap them with plastic to keep the material dry. Backflow devices have special insulated blankets designed to be placed over them to protect the exposed pipes. Turn off your irrigation system at the isolation valve to eliminate potential breaks in the lines that might be exposed to the cold.

Some of you might ask what isolation valves are. That is the lesson to be shared. Always install or have someone install a shutoff or isolation valve at the point of connect whenever you tee* off the main line to the house. That teed-in line might be used to carry water for irrigation, pools, spas, ponds, outbuildings or outdoor faucets that stand away from the house. The isolation valve can eliminate a lot of water waste if there is ever a break in the line and can eliminate the need to turn off the water at the meter if you need to work on the auxiliary system. Some people call this device a gate valve or shutoff device. Great job if you have them installed at each point of connection already and even greater if you have a landscape contractor that automatically installs them while working on your property. If you do not have this bit of insurance on your pipes, consider getting the job done soon.

One other note of concern: Do not cut corners if you have broken pipes or are thinking of adding any system to the property. Class 200 pipe is very inexpensive as it has very thin walls that crack and break easily. Time is money and you or a maintenance repair service will be digging up and repairing this kind of pipe time after time. Please use Schedule 40 pipe or better when installing any pipe on the property. It is money well spent.

I am certain that money and time well spent was what Jack was thinking as he hung up his overcoat last Thursday night. His plan for potential problems paid off as he easily shut off the water source to the barn bathroom with the isolation valve he installed during construction. Even though the Schedule 40 pipe froze, the pressure in the house was back to normal and the broken pipe could wait until daylight to be repaired. The emergency was avoided because of this cheap insurance.

*A tee is created by cutting into the main line going from the meter to the house and installing a T-shaped fitting for another main line pipe going to another area of the property. (If you need to do work on the main line, call the water district to turn off your water at the meter.)

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