Hello again, Westside Gardeners. I wish everyone a Happy New Year! January is an important month with much to do in your garden.
First, let’s discuss pruning roses and stone fruit trees. Pruning too fast and hard is the number one mistake folks make when they prune. The basics consist of first studying the plant you’re about to prune.
I typically remove two-thirds of the top growth above an outward-facing bud node. This now allows you to visualize the structure and make final important cuts.
Remove all dead wood and cut back to the base crown. Open the center by removing crossing canes that rub against each other, which can cause damage and disease.
Remove canes that are thinner than a pencil. It’s important to make cuts at a 45-degree angle. Doing so allows water to run off and prevents fungus issues and disease.
Any sucker growth needs to be cut below the crown base level. This will prevent resprouting. Please do not seal cuts: allowing them to heal by scabbing over is much better.
The final step is to fertilize the plants. I like creating a nice water basin around each plant, ensuring the bud union is exposed. I only use organic fertilizer.
Remember: you are feeding the soil in addition to the plant. The healthier the soil, the healthier the plant will be. This is true with flowering and combating insects and disease.
I simply blend several plant-based organic materials to feed my roses: alfalfa, cotton seed and kelp meal. I also use bone meal and Epsom salts.
Spread the blended fertilizer in and around the water basin and topdress with worm castings. Keep plants watered—do not rely on rainwater.
Pruning stone fruit trees isn’t much different. The big difference is that you must prune before buds begin to swell.
Remove broken or diseased branching and branches that grow toward the tree’s center. I typically remove one-third of top and side growth and leave fruiting spurs.
Fertilization is the same. Instead of worm casting, I prefer to use organic compost and topdress with arbor mulch.
Other January garden duties consist of cleaning any woody herbaceous perennials. Remove all dead and diseased foliage and stems. Add compost to your vegetable plots, allowing it to break down culturally.
Please don’t turn the soil with a shovel or fork: it will disturb and harm the earthworms, millipedes, ground beetles and other insects. They all help decompose organic matter, aerate the soil and control pest populations within the garden ecosystem.
If your lawns seem yellow and stressed from the winter cold, I like using a fertilizer derived from rock phosphate, potassium, ammonium and ferrous sulfate.
You should not throw any additional leaf-fall from your shade trees into the green waste container. Instead, spread it on your planter beds and allow it to decompose. This builds an organic humus and continues enriching your soil.
This is also the optimum time to prune our deciduous shade trees. The trees lack leaves, allowing you to see the tree’s structure and select which branches to remove. Pruning at this time encourages wounds to heal as soon as the tree begins pushing growth in the spring.
Please contact a California-licensed arborist. An arborist knows how to prune correctly and within the International Society of Arboriculture standards.
Anyone needing advice with their gardens or tree concerns can feel free to contact me. I have degrees in landscape architecture, horticulture and civil engineering. I am also a California-certified master gardener, landscape technician and master arborist.
Mark Koehler of Los Banos is an arborist and master gardener who has degrees in landscape architecture and landscape horticulture from UC Berkeley and Northeastern University. Please send any questions or comments to markgardenguru@gmail.com.
