Our "never lovlier" clay soils!
- To: m*@ucdavis.edu
- Subject: Our "never lovlier" clay soils!
- From: M* B*
- Date: Mon, 13 Dec 1999 17:41:35 -0700
Dear Medit-Planters, 12/13/99
Although the largest part of my garden is strictly a drought
slope---south/west to the SF Bay watered 3 x per annum, I am by no means
fascinated or convinced by Sean's concept of Hortulus Aptus, especially
since urban woodland gardens and succulent slopes represent two of my favorite
kinds of gardens to own and design.
I think it would be of interest in the light of Sean's very recent
post to share the following with you:
1) I did not dare disturb the clay on my drought slope lest it lose
its integrity, so all the xerophytes planted therein went into large holes
with amended soils using chipped granite, expanded shale, crushed lava
and Am Soil's Organic Clodbreaker which I insisted Lou Truesdell create 18
years ago because I wanted no heavy metals anywhere in my garden. Contrary to
all the warnings I received the planting holes did not turn into sinks and
nothing drowned. It is after all a 58 percent grade---miserable to maintain
and gorgeous to see and in spite of its clay structure now well archored
with roots of Cheiranthadendron and Xanthoxolon plus numerous acacias.
2) My urban woodland is shaded by two huge parking strip Plane Trees
to the west and now a gorgeous Crytomeria japonica 'Elegans' to the south.
As it runs north 126' it gets darker and darker. Like most members of the
Cal Chapter of the American Rhododendron Society I use a modified version
of the late Jack Evan's approach to planting rhodos in gardens made of East
Bay Clay. I do not plant in, I PLANT ON THE NATIVE SOIL. An outline of
a planting hole is established and an inch or two of mulch and soil removed.
The rhododendron in placed on top and a huge mound of acid oak leaf mold,
red wood soil products, shale, lava and mosses are built up around the
elevated root system leaving a two inch clearance of the main stem. This is
the mulched over with oakleaf mold and 1/4 fir bark clean. My woodland is
watered 7 times each fortnight, twice a day for 5-11 minutes depending on
the season with heavy overhead spray. The floor is carpeted with species
bulbs that precede the rhodies, Tiarella cordifolia, some California ferns and
many small tropical and subtropical ferns and two huge colonies of Primula
vulgaris (fragant pale yellow) and Primula moupinensis (pale lilac and
vigorously stoloniferous). Liliums follow the main rhodie bloom; using the
rhodies for support they require no staking! The 138' parking strip across
the sidewalk from the woodland has species camellias, magnolias, 'London
Pride' saxifrage and four spp. of rubus as ground. covers. It also functions
as the home for 40 varieties of blueberries so we pick from late May to
mid-September. The birds can't find them for as Don Rose once quipped,
"It's the 'Where's Waldo' of gardens!". There are also plantings of white
Alpine Strawberries and Fragaria californica (YUM!!)
I suppose in someway I am compromising with the Mediterranean Climate
in that the drought slope is three times as large as the woodland
and gets watered June 1, July 1 and Sept. 1 for many hours while the wood
land is maintained consistently moist. Now if only it didn't freeze up
here!
Yours as always,
Michael D. Barclay
Really Special Plants & Gardens, Kensington, CA
Cal Hort Council opga@wenet.net Growing 2,000 species of plants
15 miles from the Golden Gate. ARS Speakers Bureau lecturer.
