STOCKTON
GARDEN CLUB
Hello
My name is Carol Burns
President of the Stockton Garden Club, and a busy grandmother of 5,
futilely balancing life and all it offers.
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My experience of gardening as a child was pulling weeds, as a young married
wife - mowing the lawn with a toddler strapped to my back, then gaps of no
gardening through the years working full-time and raising teenagers and driving...always driving.
My husband has always been the gardener in our family, always knows all the plant names - Latin and all.. and has the 'green thumb'. But I am a bit competitive! I dared him to take horticulture classes with me and see who came out on top! (PS we both got "A's", but my A was better than his A!) I was thirsty to learn and eagerly soaked up everything I could read and treasured new tidbits from experienced gardeners' comments. Thus began my journey where I believe I can now confidently call myself 'a Gardener'. - As our club apron says "I'm a Gardener! What's Your Super Power?"
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Since I've been in the garden club these last few years, many individuals I've met expressed their common desire to grow and create their own garden, yet were held back from starting by a lack of confidence and knowledge.
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This year, I want to encourage new gardeners to just 'Take the First Step'. Learn alongside us. The journey is well worth it; the learning is life long and the joys it brings are incalculable.
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"Everybody needs beauty as well as bread, places to play in and pray in,
where Nature may heal and cheer and give strength to body and soul alike."
John Muir
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Click on an "Education" page below to help you get started
President's Project
"Pollinator Corridors in Home Gardens"
"It's the back-yard gardeners that are going to make the difference".
Doug Tallamy, Author Bringing Nature Home
"Take the First Step"
Before you take the first step, arm yourself with some facts about Pollinators.
Pollinators can be birds, bats, bees, butterflies, beetles, and other small mammals that travel from plant to plant carrying pollen on their bodies transferring genetic material to the reproductive systems of most flowering plants.
Pollinated plants are responsible for bringing us one out of every three bites of food. They also sustain our ecosystems and increase our natural resources by helping plants reproduce.
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These are the very plants that
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bring us countless fruits, vegetables, and nuts,
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½ of the world’s oils, fibers and raw materials;
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prevent soil erosion,
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and capture carbon and store it in their 'biomass' and the soil (carbon sequestering or capturing and removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere)
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Definition of a Habitat:
A Pollinator Habitat is an area that provides the necessary resources for pollinators, like bees, butterflies and birds, to survive and reproduce. It provides Food, Water, Shelter and Nesting Sites.
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What can I do?
Many pollinating insects are declining in California, including bees and butterflies. In fact the population of western monarch butterflies has declined 95% since the 1980's, due to a variety of reasons,
including habitat loss and degradation, pesticides, and climate change.
Increase Habitat
& Encourage Others
One important step we can take to protect these important animals is to increase the amount of habitat available to these species. Developments, paved roads, lawns, concrete parking lots and road divider strips have eliminated habitats used for shelter and food sources.
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A varied habitat offers year round food such as seeds, nectar, berries, and places to drink, hide and build nests.
This includes planting host plants near nectar-rich flowers for caterpillars to complete their life cycle as a butterfly.
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If you provide habitat and ask your neighbor to put aside a small patch in her yard, then another neighbor to do the same - you've just created a "Pollinator Corridor" or pathway for pollinators to stay within their flying area and receive proper sustenance!
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For extraordinary statistics on how much of nature humans have removed for developments, read Doug Tallamy's book Bringing Nature Home
Don't Use Pesticides
Don't like spider webs or bugs? Hiring a pest control company to rid your yard of them also destroys the good bugs that feed on the bad bugs. The spiders and caterpillars are food for birds. Not using pesticides may be inconvenient but you are helping the natural ecosystem.
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For example if you spray to kill spiders, the spray will likely kill lacewings, which are voracious eaters of aphids on your roses and other plants. Lacewings also contribute by pollinating plants as they feed on nectar and pollen. They are a natural form of pest control.
Visit www.xercessociety.org for 7 reasons to stop pesticide use at home.
Plant Pollinator Flowers close together for each Season
Pollinators need nectar for energy & nutritional support and pollen for protein and nutrients for feeding their young in every season, not just spring or summer. Choose plants that bloom in every season; leave seed heads on in winter for food and don't blow your leaves off your beds - they provide shelter for insects and ground nesting bees throughout the winter. Grouping flowers allows pollinators to visit multiple blossoms in one area, more energy efficient and ensures visibility for pollinators flying overhead.
It is recommended to plant a
3 ft x 3 ft area
Your yard will flourish with bees, birds and humming insects if you plant a diversity of plants throughout the Seasons.
PLANTS POLLINATORS LOVE
The goal for a Pollinator Corridor or Pathway is to close the gaps between food sources;
Grow Plants for each season; &
Plant them close enough together for them to eat their fill without flying far!
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Recommended planting groups of 5 or more of each species
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The Pollinator plants listed below are tried and true!
Don't Stress, just try a few!
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Remember Butterflies like a flower with a "landing field"
Hummingbirds poke their long forked tongues into tubular flowers to lap up nectar
and Bees ... well, Bees are easy to please!
spring
Wild Strawberry (Fragaria Virginiana (Early Spring)
Phlox
Catmint (Nepeta)
Salvia
Red Columbine
California Poppy
California Lilac (Ceanothus - Ray Hartman is a good one)
California Buckwheat
Yarrow
Sage
Lupine
Foothill Penstemon
Manzanita​
Baby Blue Eyes (like a sunflower)
Clarkia
Citrus Trees (April)
Monkey Flowers (May)
Phacelia (May)
and of course: Lavender
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summer
Early: California Poppy
& Lupine
Sunflowers
​Buckwheat
California Fuchsia
Narrrowleaf Milkweek
Yarrow still blooming
Sage
Coyote Mint
Sunflowers
​Hollyhocks
Beardtonque (tubular!)
Globemallow
Black Sage
Coneflower (Echinacea)
Lavender
Blanket Flowers
Catmint (early summer)
Russian Sage
Germander Sage (Salvia Chamaedryoides)
Brittlebush
Globe Mallow
Rosemary
Oregano
Any bolted veggies or herbs
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fall
Goldenrod (Solidago)
Yarrow still blooms
Asters
Cosmos
Salvias
California Fuchsia (still!)
Toyon (large)
California Poppy (can be encouraged to bloom into fall!)
Sunflowers
Western Redbud
Agastache
Borage
Coneflowers
Marigolds
​Blanket Flowers
Russian Sage (still!)
Germander Sage (still)
winter
California Fuchsia
Toyon
Buckwheat
Black Sage
Cleveland Sage
Flowering Quice
Camellias
California Coffeeberry
Manzanita
Astors
Yarrow (seed heads)
Borage
Rosemary
Lavender
Ceanothus (some varieties)
Chaparral Currant
Coreopsis (November)
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Contact
I'm always eager to answer any questions or share more about our Club. Let's connect,
Carol