Gardening When It Is Hot, Hot, Hot

Living in the Valley of the Sun when temperatures in April can reach 100 degrees and by May 100 seems as though it is a daily occurence, gardening still goes on. To deal with the unusual heat and direct brutal sun, however, certain accommodations must be made.

Because of the unusual emergency situation in the US this year, we were late in getting to some of our planting. One family of plants that is reliable even in the heat and sun of Phoenix, AZ are gazanias.

While gazanias can be grown everywhere, they do very well in hot weather. After all, they are native to South Africa. In areas that receive cold weather, these would be annuals. In the desert, they can be weathered over, but to be honest, they get bedraggled after one year and need much pruning and tender care to keep them going.

We find it more beneficial to introduce new plants each year.

I have written about them HERE and HERE

When planting even these hardy sun-loving plants, the gardener can’t just place them in their pot or garden space with appropriate fertilizer and water and anticipate that they are going to adjust and adapt easily.

What we have found that works well, is to provide a covering or some shade for two or three days and then remove the covering towards the evening of the last covered day when sun is no longer on them so they are prepared for the next day.

Here is what it looks like in our garden when we plant during the heat of the season!



The picture above is of a newly planted gazania. We use rock mulch to hold the emitters in place and help keep the lower layers of soil damp.



This is the same plant with its “hat” on. Notice that there is some light that gets to the plant, but not extreme sun. These simple baskets can be found at stores that sell things for a dollar (+/-). Of course there are more expensive coverings as well. We have a plastic milk crate we sometimes call into action for larger planters.

NOTE: If wind is going to be an issue, place a rock or other weight on top, making sure the covering is not crushing the plant.



We also use shade cloth when necessary because it is the only available covering at the time or the pot is large. We hold the covering above the plant by inserting bamboo garden stakes and using medium stationery clips to affix the cloth to the stakes; strong twist ties would do as well.

Gazanias are striking plants with exquisite color variations. They are very forgiving and I recommend them. The flower to leaf ratio is generous so there is much color in the area when they are cultivated.

Read more about gazanias.

How To Grow Gazania Treasure Flowers: Care Of Gazania Flowers


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All original content on this blog is copyrighted by Jeffrey B. Ross with ALL Rights Reserved. While reference links back to JBRish.com are appreciated and encouraged, please acquire approval for any reproduction of original content from this website.

©Jeffrey B. Ross 2014 – 2020 – JBRish.com



A Rascal in My Garden

It all began when I started some seeds indoors in February. I nursed these seedlings as though they were my only charge and when they had sprouted and showed some green, I put them out during the day and took them in at night.

One day, upon inspection, I noticed that three of the four seedlings had been eaten. I have seen birds do this so I simply chalked it up to my feathered “friends.”

Additionally, I take an almost daily inventory of plants growing in our desert garden areas. The tipping point in the desert is very narrow and a plant can go into stress and die within a day under the right conditions. There is little room for error when temperatures rise to near 110 or when the daily low is 92.

It is currently the spring in the desert, but temperatures during the day would be representative of summer temperatures elsewhere. On the day I am writing this, the temperature was 86 degrees at 1:00 PM. Several days ago, while making the rounds in our courtyard, I noticed that the leaves on our hibiscus had been decimated.



To be sure, the plant had been cut back to stimulate new growth after our winter, but all of the branches had leaves on them and now they were almost denuded. This led me to investigate further.

This gazania in the planter below had blooms on it which apparently were a favorite for the critter who had scaled our courtyard walls to gain a free meal. You may also notice that the right side of the plant has leaves that were trampled and eaten (see arrows).



It is even more obvious in the middle of this geranium and alyssum arrangement. The leaves in the middle were matted (see arrows). If you know geraniums, they have a pungent smell and this may have saved it for extensive damage. This was not the work of birds!



We weren’t sure exactly which animal was doing this, but we were determined to stop the devastation. We own a Havahart trap that we put into action. For two days we had no results. We used peanuts and peanut butter. On the third evening, I was going outside to refresh the bait and look what we found…



A bushy-tailed squirrel! I have been told that these are not native to the Sonoran Desert and they are quite large.



He didn’t like being caught and was trying to bite his way out; but not this time!



We have a plastic box with a top that we use to transport our Havahart critters and in he went, trap and all! We put paper on the bottom for hygiene reasons.





Of course this is stressful for the animal as can be seen by all the droppings it left behind. Interestingly enough, there is a piece of corn that he must have had in his pouch as we have no kernels on our premises.



Once the top is secure, into the back of our SUV it goes!



This is a field several miles from our house. We are hopeful that the squirrel will live and we like the idea that we are giving it a chance.



Here he is just before release.



To keep my seedlings safe, I now cover them with our sifting grate.



I know we are not done with the critters in our courtyard. The area is fenced in, but these creatures are fighting for survival while we are just growing plants to look at. Nevertheless, we try to keep our plants safe and healthy.

You can read about how we use our sifting grate HERE.

See another type of critter with which we have to contend in our garden – HERE

 

Read more gardening posts HERE


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All original content on this blog is copyrighted by Jeffrey B. Ross with ALL Rights Reserved. While reference links back to JBRish.com are appreciated and encouraged, please acquire approval for any reproduction of original content from this website.

©Jeffrey B. Ross 2014 – 2019 – JBRish.com



Gazania Mania

During our hot summer it is difficult to find plants that can “take the heat” and keep on blooming or even surviving for that matter. One of our favorites is the Gazania. Well, I am happy to report that they can take the cooler weather as well. While we do protect them from any frost, the cold weather has slowed them a bit, but has not stopped the parade of blooms and the array of colors.

Here is our bicycle planter with Gazanias in the planter-box basket

 

Orange Gazania in Bicycle Planter

Pink Gazania in Bicycle Planter

Closeups reveal the interesting streaking found on the flower petals with the dark starburst-like ring in the centers.

Orange Gazania Flower Closeup

Yellow Gazania Flower Closeup

Light Orange Gazania Flower Closeup

Pink Gazania Flower Closeup

For more information about growing Gazanias, you can read the following article:

How To Grow Gazania Treasure Flowers: Care Of Gazania Flowers