WILD(flower) Ideas in Tucson

The African Daisy

Dear Sexy Tucson,
                  " I love you most this time of year as things get warmed up.  I love your display of wildflowers before our spring season gets started.  Your natural firework display is THE BEST!  And every year, you get me excited with your razzle dazzle display of colors. Truly yours.  Rohrerbot"

This photo shoot was taken in February around the second week.   A neighbor took their front yard and made magic happen.  They spread wildflower seed all around and as you can see in the photos, it is something special for the human eye.  As we get further into wildflower season, I'll be taking you to some hot spots around the city and state in search of the best display.

The best time to see wildflowers here in southeastern Arizona is either during the spring wildflower season (March through early May) or during the summer wildflower season (late July through early September). Autumn wildflowers will begin blooming here in October as the weather cools a bit, and they will continue blooming until the hard frosts of late November. Scattered wildflowers can be observed here in lower elevation desert areas almost all year-round.

Today's feature flower is the African Daisy. (OR Dimorphotheca aurantiaca)

 CULTURAL REQUIREMENTS:

• Exposure: full sun
• Water: water flowering plants every week; fall-sown seeds need weekly watering if winter rains are sparse
• Soil: any well drained
• Propagation: annually from seed; self-sows
• Maintenance: none; leave dried seed heads on to encourage self-sowing

                                                            LANDSCAPE VALUE:

Wonderful early spring color.  Annual color in landscape. And a great example of a wildflower garden!

So where will I be next?  Stay tuned for more adventures.  You never know where I'll show up, but if it's worth a picture and some helpful info...I'm there!  For now, I hope you enjoy the light show of sun and dazzling color.  I'm pumped for this season!  More tomorrow....

To Rise From the Ashes of the Phoenix

Soon our desert floor will erupt with an array of flowers.  Keep your eyes open around the Tucson area.  Take a road trip down to Kitt's Peak where I think our wildflower season will be a hit.  Today's photos were taken in Tucson at the Tucson Botanical Garden.  The normal desert floor will turn from a brownish green to a burst of intense pinks, yellows, blues, reds, and oranges.  This year promises to be spectacular. And as always, if you can't make a visit to our desert for vacation, I'll be snapping the shots of our "spring" season here.  Stay tuned for more....

Black Eyed Susan

November Gardening in Tucson

Ah it's November and time for our monthly "To Do List" for Southern Arizona.  For me, this month is perfection in the garden as the plants seem to "glow" green.  It's our last month of happiness before winter sets in and lasts until the beginning of March.  The plants relax from the intense heat for a moment before going to sleep.  Here are some of the rules to abide by in the desert.  For permanent type plants in the landscape, like trees or shrubs, you should transplant in October or the beginning of November.  Once the colder nights arrive in December, it's about working on projects around your home and garden areas for spring.  Once the middle of March arrrives, you may begin to transplant more trees or bushes into your yard. The exception of course are the bare root roses or fruit trees.  Those are best transplanted in January or February for their chill hours.  So if you have something you need to get into the ground, do it now:)  Roses, if given the slight prune and fertilizer in September, should either be having their second and final bloom for the season or just about finishing up.  Here are some general "To Do's for the Month of November" in Tucson......

1. Plant spring-blooming bulbs in loose, well drained soil that has been amended with plenty of organic matter.  The Christmas favorite, Amaryllis, bearded Iris, crinum, crocosmia, Dutch iris, freesia, lycoris, rain lily and watsonia are good choices.  Bulbs need excellent drainage to prevent rotting.  I usually put my bulbs in pots so that I can closely monitor the watering.  If you live on the outlying areas of Tucson, I might put something around these plants to protect them from critters digging them up:) For more info on bulbs, click here.
2. Okay wildflower fanatics...get ready.  This is the month!!!  Wildflower seeds can still be sown if you did not have time last month.  Some local favorites include blackfoot daisy, California poppy, chocolate flower, desert bluebell, desert marigold, globemallow(my favorite) and penstemon. Important!!  Keep the soil moist(never wet) until seeds germinate and reach 1 to 2 inches in height.  Then taper off watering, providing a slow, deep soak once every few weeks, or just often enough to prevent wilting.  If winter rains are spaced adequately(which hasn't happened in a couple years), they may provide sufficient moisture.  Last year at the Tucson Botanical Garden, my wildflower friend, who is very much a wildflower gardener, had a bust.  She's been doing it forever but because it was a La Niña winter(dry for Tucson), many of the wildflowers never came up.  Our forecast this year.....the same:(.  Wildflowers are adapted to survive in desert conditions, so don't overwater.  Hint:  Birds of a feather flock together.  You may want to cover the area with bird netting to keep our winged friends out of the area.  It's a constant battle for me.  They got into my wildflowers last year and ate all the seeds!!! For more on wildflowers, click here.
3. Finally watch your watering.  As temps cool, water needs decrease.  Over-watering promotes root rot, which ultimately kills plants. 
4. Trim back herbs such as rosemary and oregano to rejuvenate these woody herbs.  Give them a good soaking to a depth of 1 foot.
5. I'm guilty of this but I'm a sucker for roses.  Dead head flowers to keep them blooming until they can't anymore:)  Here's why roses are cool Tucson.  Click here.