UC Master Gardener Program of Sonoma County

University of California

UC Master Gardener Program of Sonoma County

October in Sonoma County

FOOD GARDENING SPECIALISTS DISCUSS PLANTING GARLIC AND POLLINATOR-ATTRACTING PLANTS.

If you missed the Food Gardening Specialist (FGS) project's October zoom event, don't despair: you can watch the video on the Sonoma County Master Gardener YouTube channel. October and November are ideal months to plant garlic in Sonoma County. Master Gardener Janet Barocco presented Part 1: Preparation and Planting Garlic which was extremely informative (selecting the best location, how to prepare the soil, how to plant the garlic cloves, and the differences between hard neck and soft neck garlic). Since garlic has a long DTM (days-to-maturity), Janet will return in spring to present Part 2: Maintenance and Harvesting of Garlic. Master Gardener Sue Lovelace shared beautiful photos of some of her favorite flowers, shrubs and trees that she uses to attract pollinators and other beneficials year-round in her edible landscape. With the rainy season around the corner, mid to late fall is an ideal time to plant. How to plant and to group plantings, and the importance of selecting a variety of flower structures that provide nectar and pollen in every season was emphasized. We're ready to take advantage of the end of the season sales at our local nurseries. Mark your calendar for the second Tuesday of the month (except December), 12:30 pm for future FGS zoom events. Zoom events are free, but pre-registration is required—check this home page for upcoming zoom meetings.

Come Zoom with Us!—Ask a Master Gardener

The Master Gardeners Farmers Market Project is going Virtual on Zoom. We have been present with Master Gardener Tables at the Sonoma County Farmers Markets for many years. We miss seeing and speaking with you. So, we are going Virtual on Zoom with Master Gardeners answering your questions about food gardening, seasonal maintenance, drought and fire-resistant landscapes, and pest problems.

Our next session is October 29. All sessions begin at 12:30 PM and end at 2:00 PM.

You will need to Pre-Register. Just click here to complete the Pre-Registration form and you will receive an invitation. You can pre-submit a question or ask your question at the Zoom session. Come Zoom with us!

Food Gardening

The Late Cool-Weather Food Garden

If you didn't get your fall and winter garden planted in September or if you just couldn't bring yourself to end summer crops that are still producing, there still is time to enjoy a cool-weather vegetable garden. Let Master Gardener Janet Barocco tell you how. Read more.

COVID-19 Notice

To reduce the spread of COVID-19 pandemic and in compliance with county orders, we have adjusted our services accordingly:

All in-person events, including library talks, are suspended

Thanks for your patience during this time. We will inform you when the library talks resume.

Interesting new posts are frequently added to our Facebook Page. Check it out! And please check our Food Gardening page, and Food Gardening Articles for help in starting, upgrading, or extending a veggie garden.

The Effects of Smoke and Ash on Plants

Produce Safety After Wildfire

Master Gardeners in Print

Press Democrat
Common plants that don't deserve their bad reputation 8/28/2020

The Garden Doctors
Dana Lozano & Gwen Kilchherr, The Press Democrat
Tips on planting garlic and caring for olive trees 9/4/2020
Build the Perfect Raised Garden Bed 8/14/2020

Argus Courier
Mannion Knoll Park: a walk in the woods 6/25/2020

La Voz
Ani Weaver
Usted puedo cultivar su propia comida. Siembre un jardin. 5/2020

Master Gardeners are volunteers trained by the UC Davis Cooperative Extension.

Sonoma County Master Gardeners will provide environmentally sustainable, science-based horticultural information to all of Sonoma County’s population. We strive for diversity and inclusion in all aspects of our organization.

UCCE Farm Advisor: Stephanie Larson, County Director

SCMG Coordinator: Mimi Enright

Getting Help

We are not currently accepting walk-ins or specimen drop offs at our Master Gardener Information Desk at the UCCE Sonoma office.
Please email your questions and attach photos if you have them. One of our Information Desk experts will get back to you. You can also attend one of our October Zoom sessions.

Upcoming Events

Event Name	Date
Ask a Master Gardener via Zoom	10/29/2020
What’s happened to all of the butterflies? via Zoom	11/14/2020

Sundays with Sue

By SCMG Sue Lovelace
October 25, 2020

I never thought I would love orange so much! My grandmother loved orange and many times during my childhood, gifts from her would often be orange. I did not always relate to her color choice, but knew her passion for it was great. She lived her whole life in Ohio and I do wonder if the brilliance in the change of seasons seen well there, influenced her love of orange. At any rate, I am finally seeing it, actually feeling it, seeing the prominence the color orange plays in the fall and when I see it, I always think of my grandmother.

To explain further, I was in the garden the other day deadheading blooms in the front yard. By the street, we have a large domestic oak which is showing the effects of the cool nights we are now experiencing. The leaves first show a brilliance of orange that contrast dramatically with the browning the leaves would eventually achieve. The color is fleeting, I know, but its presence creates a warmth that prompts me to collect and simply enjoy the color while I can.

Speaking of orange, in the middle of the front yard garden are two persimmon trees. Both are dwarf varieties and one is just a year old. The young one is now staked well, as one day I walked out to find it bent to the ground because of the weight of several persimmons fruiting at the top of its skinny branches! This persimmon tree is a Hachiya and is astringent. (Do not bite before ripe!) The fruit is shaped like an acorn and needs to fully ripen before being eaten. I’ve seen the ripeness described as being comparable to the feeling of a water balloon. The pulp of the ripe Hachiya is sweet and mushy and lends itself to being baked into breads and puddings.

The other tree, a Fuyu persimmon, is about 6 years old and is full of fruit, lots of fruit. The fruit is non-astringent and can be eaten crisp like an apple. One day a passerby asked me if I had a pumpkin tree. I thought that was so funny but, really, the fruit does look like little, round, princess pumpkins. I love this fruit! The sweetness, the texture and the taste are so good. This is the first year that we have had sun scald on some of the fruit. The series of hot, hot days created unsightly brown spots. We have experienced this effect on several apples, as well. Eating around the spots isn't difficult, but the appearance is certainly lacking.

The emergence of chrysanthemums

from pots and plant hangers around the garden are a delightful surprise. Yes, more orange! I’m hardly deserving of this surprise because these plants get virtually no care besides splashes of water throughout the year. They sit dormant most of the year then out of nowhere they come alive in the fall. Self-seeded California Fuchsia (Epilobium) is another orange that pops up everywhere. There are spots that the plant nestles into that I do not appreciate, especially when they land in the middle of a raspberry plant. Thankfully, seedlings are shallow rooted and pull up effortlessly.

I feel like I should mention the pomegranate shrub as the orange blossoms that blend with red and even pinkish salmon are a delight throughout the year. The variety I have is ‘Nana’ which usually designates a dwarf in all varieties of plants. Because I like to remember close people with plants in my garden, these shrubs were planted with my grandmother in mind. These small shrubs are mostly ornamental; however, they produce plenty of fruit that I use in wreaths and for other ornamental uses. Even now with the reddish fruit maturing, blossoms are still intense with shape and color.

I have this habit of letting pumpkins get very soft then throwing them off the porch in a very careless way just to see what they will do the following year. Every year pumpkins come up in different places as a result. This year a sweet little pumpkin patch emerged close to the house. The pumpkins were not large but very much “oranged up” a blank corner of a small bed. Perhaps next year I will designate a separate bed as pumpkin territory, or try tossing the soft fruit in a new area. I love the unexpected appearance a self-seeded garden displays. In fact, I would go so far as to say that the surprises a garden offers is one of my favorite parts of gardening.

From all accounts, we are due to have heavy winds for the next few days. Many parts of the Bay Area including Sonoma County are on high alert because of very dry conditions which will be friendly to sparks of fire that can be propelled by the winds. Be careful, everyone, as this is one bit of orange we do not want to experience. Let’s hope to enjoy a safe and pleasant week and may scary come from the little ghosts and goblins that may come our way.

“There is a child in every one of us who is still a trick-or-treater looking for a brightly-lit front porch.” Robert Brault

Webmasters: Kim Roche, Stan Pawlak

Website Editor: Penny Fink

Food Gardening Editor: Open, please apply!

Staff Photographers and Videographers:
Cie Cary, Electra de Peyster,
Coby Lafayette-Kelleher, Laura Salo Long