Re: lithodora diffusa
- Subject: Re: lithodora diffusa
- From: d* f*
- Date: Fri, 4 May 2001 22:52:41 -0700 (PDT)
Angela,
Just speaking of drought tolerance as it applies here
in coastal California, location and distance from the
ocean make a huge difference. What may tolerate no
additional summer water along the northern California
coast, may require twice a month watering along the
southern California coast, and weekly watering inland.
Your soil type also makes a differnce. A really good
reference book, unfortunately now out of print, which
really addresses microclimates and water requirements
is Bob Perry's book, Landscape Plants for Western
Regions. The state Water Department also puts out a
list with water requirements for specific plants
called WUCAL, but I find that almost any list of what
some particular group of experts comes up with is
often biased to begin with. As a landscape architect,
I always hated being tied into using only approved
plants from a predetermined list, and often feeling
that many listed plants were just plain wrong. Even
the EBMUD book on drought tolerant plants for the SF
Bay Area,(in general a fairly good reference book),
lists many plants that are only marginally drought
tolerant, while failing to mention equally good ones,
and this becomes the bible for what you can and can't
plant on projects requiring city approvals.
It is also unfair, or at least unrealistic, to figure
that anything planted outside the fall rainy season in
southern California will survive on monthly irrigation
if planted now, whereas it might if it had become
established from a planting in November/December, and
had been progressively weaned off regular irrigation
in its first summer. The best criteria of drought
tolerance in your local area is to see if the
particular plant is being grown under the regimen you
intend, with similar sun/soil/temperature range, and
grows well with limited watering. Don't forget that
tree roots can also be a significant factor, and the
shading benefit may be outweighed by the tree's
greater ability to mine the soil volume for
supplemental water.
With respect to Lithodora, I haven't personally seen
any vigorous plantings in full sun which only receive
monthly irrigation here in the Bay Area. Some other
blue flowered ground covers which can tolerate this
regimen, (at least in coastal clay soils), are
Scaevola 'Mauve Clusters' or S. 'Petite Wonder', and
Ipheion uniflorum. Campanula porschkaryana is
similarly adapted in more shaded situations, although
much more lush with more water. How about Senecio
mandraliscae? No blue flowers, but beautiful blue
succulent foliage, and easily tolerates once a month
irrigation in coastal environments. If you like
yellow with your blue, Bulbine frutescens is another
succulent ground cover which is very drought tolerant.
--- Margaret Moir <olivehill@wn.com.au> wrote:
> I had a short and unsatisfactory acquaintance with
> Lithodora....I believe
> the drought tolerance only applies in a kind of
> alpine environment, or at
> least a cool summer one. I find this a lot with
> plants reckoned to be
> drought tolerant with respect to UK or European
> gardens.
>
> Margaret.
> Margaret and Peter Moir
> Olive Hill Farm
> Margaret River, Western Australia.
> www.wn.com.au/olivehill
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: LEE,ANGELA IUE-CHIH <angelale@ucla.edu>
> To: <medit-plants@ucdavis.edu>
> Sent: Saturday, May 05, 2001 4:25 AM
> Subject: lithodora diffusa
>
>
> > Hi!
> >
> > Does anyone grow Lithodora diffusa 'grace ward"?
> How big does it get and
> > how drought tolerant is it? I am in the process
> of pulling out the plants
> > that didn't survive our parking strip (water once
> a month) and would like
> > to put in something low growing with blue flowers.
> The nursery label
> > claims that lithodora diffusa is drought tolerant
> but my experience with
> > commercial nursery labels has been that they are
> often times inaccurate (
> > or maybe we just don't share the same definition
> of drought).
> >
> > Thanks for any information
> > Angela
> >
> >
> >
>
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