I love this time of year, planting time.  We have back-to-back projects ranging from little renovations to entire back gardens.  In many cases, the pathways and wood structures are done.  What remains to be done is irrigation of various description and installation of plants and mulch.

I have been revisiting emails and notes for each garden, some from as far back as last November when the clients and I first met.  The planning, the budgeting, time taken for holidays, birthdays, and vacations have paced the projects into phases.  We now find ourselves on the very cusp of completing the garden.  I am, admittedly, congratulating myself before the final walk-through, but I cannot resist doing it.  It is as if the last few months have been a series of windups, and now we finally get to pitch.

Shorter and cooler days are upon us.  The rains are hopefully coming soon as well.  In California, this is a great time to plant with far less concern about transplant shock than one would have planting before summer.  Granted, there are a few draw backs, but the scale still tips in our favor.

The ground can prove a ferocious foe if unirrigated through summer, as many of our projects this time of year are.  If it is an option, we have the home owner run the irrigation every couple of days for about a week before we get going.  We leave about two dry days prior to breaking ground so we are not working in mud.  This is not necessary if we are dealing with an area that has been prepared with sheetmulching in advance.  We have also implemented mobile hose-end sprinklers that are as reliable as the client is committed.  Relying on brute strength is a common last resort.

Plant availability and appearance is always a concern.  Frankly speaking, fall is not when spring and summer bloomers put their best foot forward.  Planting deciduous, herbaceous perennials always feels like a version of the Emperor’s New Clothes.  Yes, they look like 1-gallon cans of dirt, but they are really beautiful plants (cut to full color screen shot of website).  We best rely on a well-communicated plant lists and planting in phases.  Most folks that are looking at a long-term garden plan will know what to expect 5 months and 5 years down the road. Beyond that, they can give us a call to recalibrate.

For homeowners looking for free or inexpensive mulch, start calling now (or last July if you have time travel capabilities).  For small to medium companies doing tree work, this is flood season.  Call and call again.  Know that you are not a priority unless you are in close proximity to their job.  Our main challenge with this approach has been coordinating with the arborist.  Due to this significant drawback, we have been using West Coast Chip Harvesters with absolutely no complaints for years.  If you find yourself in Berkeley or Albany, they have sites where free mulch is stored in the open for locals to use in their gardens.  There are options.

And with that, we wait for the rain.