This is the time of year when I look at the garden and see the bare and open areas that need attention. Some situations are solved with selective pruning and transplanting shrubs that have become squeezed by larger neighbors.
Do not be timid about training and moving plants around that are not performing to your expectations. The beginning of a new year may be just the motivation necessary to try something different. Those bare spots in need of some color may be filled with varieties of ornamental grasses and Mediterranean perennials. Soil amendments are not usually necessary because most plants adapt to the native soil and fertilizers are rarely needed. Creating an extension of our beautiful forests in the garden using natives also attracts birds and butterflies that are year-round and local.
Growing natives does not have to be an all-or-nothing proposition. Natives that have low irrigation needs, like ceanothus, can be planted at the edges of your property so that you may focus your water needs on a thirstier planting closer to the house. If you live on the edge of a natural area, the use of some of the same plants will blend with and soften your propertys borders and seem to actually extend your garden.
Mahonia and some of the Manzanitas are great for slope stabilization on even the most severe hillsides. For dry, shady areas consider Pacific iris or Western sword fern. Wet or regularly watered areas will support perennials such as columbine, wild ginger and coral bells. Wild strawberry makes a good groundcover for these areas.
This is also a good time to divide and propagate many of the common native plantings. Clumps of strawberry and sword fern may be lifted and gently separated to spread out and transplant. Follow the same steps as though you were dividing any perennial. Make sure the soil is well drained.
Now is a good time to propagate hardwoods through stem cuttings. The beauty of this style is that there are no special facilities like a greenhouse, coldframe or rooting compounds necessary. All you need is a healthy plant with plenty of vigorous wood from the previous season. Take only tip cuttings of 6-8 inches longer than you would expect. The extra length and amount of wood is necessary to feed and sustain the growth tissue through the transition to form new roots. Be sure there are at least four, or ideally six, buds arranged along the length of the cutting. The wood should be no thicker than a pencil and even though a particular shrub, like red-twig dogwood, may have no leaves this time of year, it will still root. Cuttings may be buried up to the top 2 sets of buds in a box or container of compost or even sawdust and stored in an area that is protected from freezing temperatures. Check the cuttings periodically to make sure they are moist, and be patient, because this type of cutting may take several months to root.
Regarding culinary herbs this time of year, rosemary and thyme are the best choices and are still going strong right now. Rosemary is beginning a bloom cycle that will last throughout the spring. There are many types of thyme that look good and take weather changes well. Sages and mints are also good choices for herb foundations, but their flavor and fragrance is not as strong as it will be later in the spring and summer.
