| Darn, Bridget, I wish you'd contacted me. I live a stone's throw from Quail and would have come to meet you and even give you a tour! (that goes for everyone else on the list as well)
Your question about controlled burns is complex. As Barry said, controlled burns cause more problems than they solve. If you had been here back in October, you'd see out of control widlfires. They came within just a few miles of Quail and at one point, looked as if they would burn all the way past Quail to the ocean (I wrote about it in this month's Pacific Horticulture if you are interested).
Another problem is that Quail is in such a densely urbanized area (as you saw) that it would be impossible to do a controlled burn. Did you notice the houses that now abut Quail on three sides? Behind is a YMCA, a retirement home, and a mental health hospital. There is no way you could burn just the native area and keep it under control. Same goes for the patches of chaparral that remain. They are dots in between housing developments.
This doesn't even begin to address the incredibly flammable invasive material (pampass, arundo, etc) that clog the estuaries on both sides of Encinitas (and all along San Diego County's coastline).
Nan
On Aug 2, 2008, at 6:12 PM, Bridget Lamp wrote: This week I was in San Diego and went to Quail Botanic Gardens for the first time--I know, I have no excuse! There is a boardwalk that leads to a lookout tower with natives all around. It smells great and I appreciate the beauty of the natural landscape (one that makes me a little homesick). What a contrast to the homes you can see in the distance that are popping up all around. Thirsty lawns boarder them on all sides. I asked my friend why they aren't leaving the natives? She explained everyone is afraid of fire. Is it too much to do controlled burns? I lived in Davis where burns happened in the summer. I may be changing the subject, but for all those out there in southern California, is this what everyone is thinking out there? Cheers! Bridget Seattle, WA On Sat, Jul 26, 2008 at 12:10 PM, N Sterman <T*@plantsoup.com wrote: Wow, Diane, your list goes to show the difference in overall precipitation between north and south. I am an hour north of the Mexican border and I've never been able to keep Lobelia tupa going in my garden - it is just too dry.
Several of the plants you list I don't grow at all but and some others you have in flower now are dormant or heading into dormancy in my garden:
Lithodora,
Acanthus spinosus,
Allium flavum
Eschscholzia californica,
Nan On Jul 26, 2008, at 11:06 AM, Diane Whitehead wrote: I have a couple of areas that receive no summer water. Usually they start the summer with soil damp from winter and spring rain, but this spring was drier than usual and a few plants that usually look fine look dead.
Shrivelled or totally dry leaves:
Thymus Spicy Orange,
Helleborus x hybridus,
Paeonia mascula, P. caucasica,
Salvia arizonicus
Leaves looking good:
Arctostaphylos uva-ursi,
Brachyglottis greyi,
several Cistus,
Lithodora,
Euphorbia characias,
Teucrium fruticans
In flower now, looking good:
Acanthus spinosus,
Allium flavum,
Castilleja,
Epilobium (fireweed),
Erysimum 'Bowles Mauve',
Eschscholzia californica,
Grindelia (a seashore local native with intricate gummy buds and bright yellow daisy flowers ),
several lavenders,
Lobelia tupa - (much smaller than it is when watered),
Lotus corniculatus ( also naturalized along our highways),
Lychnis coronaria,
Malva moschata,
Pelargonium quercifolium ( a hardy South African),
several penstemons,
Spartium junceum,
Stachys byzantina
Verbascum dumulosum
one self-sown snapdragon is looking great, but a second one is not.
Diane Whitehead
Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
maritime zone 8, cool Mediterranean climate
mild rainy winters, mild dry summers
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