HARVEST RAINWATER & KUMQUAT

The Melianthus major pictured above is an example of Nature's own gutter system for plants efficiently bringing rainwater to where the plant needs it most; its root zone.

We humans can do it too!  By designing rainwater harvesting systems for the roofs of our homes, barns, outbuildings and more we can effectively conserve water while recharging local water tables.

Contact us for more information!

KUMQUAT  Fortunella spp.

The Kumquat is a delicious garden addition.  They are superb eaten raw; the outer layer slightly spicy while the inner layer sweet as in the variety.

Kumquats, or comquats, are called 'gold orange' in China from where they originated.  They thrive in our valley climate and are said to produce sweeter fruits in our warmer winters.

Slowly growing to 10 feet or more they require seasonal food and water once established.  All the while producing food for snacking or preserving.

MULCH-ON-SITE

During leaf season instead of raking up leaves, bagging them, and/or taking them out to the curb or worse burning them try Mulching-on-Site!  Let annual leaf drop stay in the landscape in a beautiful way to promote healthy and seasonally replenished soils!

• Resource efficient
• Air pollution reduced
• Replenishes soils
• Reduced in/outflows
• Conserves forest products
• Less volume to City/County programs

SHEET MULCHING

Do you want more garden space without the hassle?   TRY SHEET MULCHING!!!

Sheet mulching is a method for turf eradication and also for building soil health on weedy or infertile ground.

 

By simply placing out overlapping sheets of clean cardboard, adding 4-6 inches of compost and a final layer of arbor mulch one can easily renovate a lawn into a functional and fertile garden space.

Click on the images below for more information.  Give us a call, mention this blogpost and receive a free estimate on turf removal!

DID YOU KNOW?

Lyme disease is caused by a bacterium which lives in the belly of ticks, such as the western black-legged tick here in California.  When a juvenile tick (about 1/20th of an inch in size) ingests the blood a Western Fence Lizard a protein in the lizards’ blood actually kill the bacteria!  This seems to leave the tick unable to transmit Lyme Disease! 

WAY TO GO MOTHER NATURE!!

Read the Berkeley news article from 1998 here: http://www.berkeley.edu/news/berkeleyan/1998/0429/lizard.html

Blue belly lizards hibernate over winter and reestablish their home territory in the same areas the following spring. Mating begins in early may with eggs hatching by july. They defend their space (a ¼ acre territory) through posturing (push ups) and through chemical cues and markings.

This baby blue belly is maybe 4 cm long -excluding the tail. It probably hatched a few days prior to these photos in mid july 2008. *note the shoe is a child’s size 9 lost in the landscape for a season!!

Can you find the baby lizard? While not the most focused of photos it does clearly illustrates how well camouflaged lizards are for protection from predators. The leaves next to the baby are from a common garden sage plant.

This sunny location is perfect to blend in (for both protection and predation) while warming the blood; lizards are reptiles and therefore cold blooded requiring warmth from external sources for energy and survival.