Chilean Mesquite

If you happen to be searching for a fast growing and solid shade providing desert friendly tree then you need to look no further than the Chilean Mesquite, Prosopis chilensis for this is your tree. As the name suggests the origin and nattve habitat of the tree is the dry, interior valley's of central Chile.

There are many positives about the Chilean Mesquite for sure. As briefly mentioned before the tree is famously fast growing and for a desert tree it is a fairly tall grower. Chilean Mesquite's can grow up to 40 feet. The tree is also a broad spreading tree to 30 feet. Chilean Mesquite provides dense, not filtered, shade. The tree is tough. It takes full-sun and the reflected heat from streets and buildings and in winter it can take low temps down to the mid teens.

Chilean Mesquite is an extremely drought tolerant tree that prefers infrequent and very deep watering. In late spring and summer it blooms these puffy pastel-yellow flowers that have an interesting structure. The tree is very attractive. In its natural form Chilean Mesquite is somewhat arching, especially when young. They are also semi-deciduous in the summer and winter as well. They are also very adaptable to a wide range of soils and will take acidic soils. All of these attributes make this tree a wonderful addition to the xeriscape garden.

Now that you are familiar with the positive features of the tree there are some down sides that, to be fair, must also be mentioned. Chilean Mesquite does involve a moderate amount of work so if you aren't one for occasional maintenance around the yard this may not be the tree for you. Because of its dense foliage and semi-deciduous nature the tree can be somewhat messy. Be sure to take that into consideration if you have a pool or some other water feature. As for those pastel-yellow flowers well, they can stain decks and even concrete if allowed to pile-up and get wet so take that into consideration as well if you have a pool or some other water feature.

After bloom time Chilean Mesquite produces an abundance of elongated bean pods that should be picked up because the tree readily self propagates. Lastly, in its native form,Chilean Mesquite has pointed and sharp thorns that can be quite nasty and somewhat hazardous if not taken into consideration. There are hybrid versions that are thornless so definitely look for those if thorns are a concern.

OK, so lets review. Chilean Mesquite is a great tree, attractive, colorful, drought-tolerant, heat resistant, fairly hardy, and good shade production with some obvious negatives; messy, not good around pools, possible stains on concrete, and sharp thorns. To me the positives out-weight the negatives when we use to the tree in adequate settings. It might be worth considering using Chilean Mesquites in areas of the yard where there is minimal foot traffic yet where the shade can be enjoyed at the same time.

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The Bird of Paradise

Having grown up in Oxnard, California I am quite familiar with this plant. They grew like weeds in my mother's backyard when I was a kid. They grew like weeds in my mother's backyard when I wasn't a kid! Heck, I can even pronounce the botanical name which isn't always the easiest thing to do without tripping all over various consonants! Strelitzia reginae. These are without a doubt one of the most beautiful, interesting and unique plants one can grow in the landscape. They grow virtually throughout all of southern California. If you have a desire to have a tropical looking landscape it would simply be an incomplete landscape without this plant prominently and abundantly displayed.

Bird-of-paradise is sometimes called the crane flower and is a native of South Africa. It is closely related to the banana plant. The plant is herbaceous and gets its common names from the very unique flower it bears, which obviously looks like a brightly colored bird. The leaves are very leathery in appearance and grow on stiff leafstalks. The plant forms a somewhat dense 3 to 5-foot-tall clump that should be used as the focal point in the landscape. It can also be used 'en masse' but I don't particularly recommend this because it can tend to make the plant look ho-hum and ordinary. The plant is evergreen so year round interest and color are always present. The plant as I said is a must in any tropical landscape design and it is an excellent addition around swimming pools.

One thing that this plant can't do, and won't do, sadly, is grow in the High Desert region of southern California. This I know from first hand experience for years ago I tried planting transplants from my mother's back yard into my yard! Needless to say these plants died. OK, OK...I killed them! No need to be sad though. Plants do not have central nervous systems so it is unlikely they died a painful death! You see the winter temps here routinely drop well below freezing for months at a time. This type of freeze pattern is death for this plant and makes it is impossible to grow outdoors.

So needless to say I was a bit disheartened the other day when I stopped by our local Home Depot for some rose food and found this plant for sale in both 1 and 5 gallon sizes and readily available in a fair quantity to boot.

So what did I do?

Well, for one I informed the store manager about the situation, very politely of course. I then called the Home Depot corporate office and spoke to a wonderful young lady named Stacy (all young ladies named Stacy seem wonderful to me - and I'm not just saying that because my daughter is named Stacy). I let her know that I spoke with the store manager and let her know that a plant like this shouldn't be sold in our region. But this does bring up a valuable point. While I was looking at these plants a couple walked up and began discussing the plant. That's when I excused myself and let them know that they needn't waste their money on a plant that was just going to die in 8 months. Of course I shilled for my business at the same time! That's not the valuable point however (well it can be depending on your POV) but this is: Go to stores like Home Depot, Lowe's or for that matter even your local nursery with a specific purpose in mind for a plant and have plant information with you and readily available whenever possible. Avoid buying anything on impulse just because you like the way the plant looks without doing a modicum of research beforehand. Think of it this way. Great Dane's and Chihuahua's are both cute and small as puppies. Yet both have drastically different needs when full grown! This one simple tip will help tremendously in choosing plants that work well in your garden, serve the desired purpose and have the best chance of long term survival.

Texas Umbrella Tree/Chinaberry

This is another great desert tree that should be considered when contemplating the addition of shade trees to the yard, the Texas Umbrella Tree or the China Berry Tree, Melia azedarach ‘Umbraculiformis’. These trees are native to Australia and southern Asia. The name of the tree comes from its upward-arching branches and drooping foliage.

The tree is extremely adaptable to many different areas and conditions. Widely dispersed throughout the southern United States, from the east coast to the west (even Hawaii), this tree provides excellent shade and has wonderful ornamental qualities. It is a fast grower to 40 feet, sometimes taller. Spread is roughly 20-25 feet. Size however is greatly dependent on planting location. Planted in dry areas at elevation the tree will not generally grow as fast or as tall as areas where humidity is high and elevation is below 1,500 feet. That said the tree is also somewhat drought tolerant but does look best with fairly regular water. Planted near lawn areas should eliminate the need for direct water.

As for soil conditions that is slightly more difficult to nail down in that the tree will grow in wet conditions as well as dry. Texas Umbrella produces masses of purplish, fragrant, star shaped flowers that are very attractive. It will also take some shade so its OK to try these in a somewhat shaded area. Make sure they do get at least 6 hours of full sun.

There are some major drawbacks that should be noted and seriously considered before planting. The Texas Umbrella reseeds itself easily. This can provide quantities of unwanted seedlings that require a certain level of effort to control. Texas Umbrella is invading and disruptive in certain areas. It is reported to be invasive and disruptive in 11 states that included Hawaii and Texas. The tree is not considered invasive according to the California Invasive Plant Council.

There is some thought that these might not make the best landscape trees based on the fact that no too much will grow under them and because they have a relatively short life span. Also note that each and every part of the Texas Umbrella tree is poisonous. Leaves, bark, berries and seeds. Eating as few as 6 berries can result in death. Be very minful of this if you have young children around the house. Even birds that eat too many seeds have been known to become paralyzed.

Is this even worth the risk you might ask? That seriously depends on your point of view. If you are looking for a uniquely structured and very colorful accent tree then these negatives just might be worth the risk.

Don't Blame the Grass III

OK, hopefully this will be the last installment of “Don’t Blame the Grass.” The first “Don’t Blame the Grass” was regarding how Bay Area communities may possibly begin restricting lawn sizes and how we can better learn to manage our individual lawns.

“Don’t Blame the Grass II” was regarding a subsequent article I read on Science Daily about a recent study conducted by researchers from the University of Irvine titled, “Urban 'Green' Spaces May Contribute to Global Warming.” That study concluded that GHGS (greenhouse gas sinks) were negative polluters meaning care and maintenance of these carbon ‘sinks’ actually created a negative effect.
Well now we come to find out that just a few days after this study was released the study was apparently full of holes and inaccurate information. So much so that UCI released another paper to explain the problems of the first study! This “peer-reviewed” study was never properly verified and yet it was trotted out as an accurate study! Truly amazing!

According to Lawn & Landscape Magazine days after the release of the first study another study titled “Carbon Sequestration and Greenhouse Gas Emissions in Urban Turf” was released by the Toro Company's Center for Advanced Turf Technology (CATT)which sought to correct certain points of misinformation that the first study had based its findings on and thus reported. That information was apparently based on faulty, non-verified calculations. Apparently "CO2 emissions reported for fuel use by turf maintenance equipment was an order of magnitude higher than work done by Toro’s research team" and thus needed correcting.

The article goes on to mention, "With the error corrected, turfgrass is actually found to be a net positive sequester of carbon,” said Dana Lonn, managing director of Toro’s CATT group. “In other words, properly maintained turfgrass actually traps and utilizes carbon thus removing it from the atmosphere. We credit the authors for tackling a complex and comprehensive issue. Consistent with what we have found in working with leading research institutions, this study provides a solid foundation for future work. With further improvements in technology to increase efficiency and reduce fuel consumption, grass can become an even greater asset."

As Gomer Pyle used to say, "SHAZAM!"

And how did this come about so? What was the catalyst for this change in thought regarding carbon sink holes and the true positive effect they offer the environment? Well I suspect it has everything to do with dollars quite frankly. Can I prove it? Nope. Should you care then or should I? Well that depends on what you choose to care about.

My personal feeling is that UCI suddenly remembered who was buttering their bread quite frankly because there were many in the lawn and turf industry up in arms about the first study. What are we being led to think? Can we take any study regarding water and turf management as fact? How many other studies regarding water and turf management and the effect on the environment have been done with faulty information only to be corrected by industry interested in protecting its own interests?

I think this is just another reason why managing your own personal law turf is so vitally important.