With each morning walk, Capay, Richard, and I spy Mother Nature’s fresh seasonal surprises. They bring a smile and, literally, a breath of fresh air. This morning, we were treated to pink clouds with the sunrise, the splendor of the yellowing pomegranate leaves and geese flying overhead, There’s so much beauty at the Farm in Fall, and we are blessed to be part of it.
Gorgeous Spring and Summer blooms start with Fall planning and preparation. In fact, now is the time to prep our lavender plants for their future photo ops – test the soil, mow vegetation, reduce irrigation, prune, and generally clean up the place. In Northern California, it is important to tend the plants during the weeks before Thanksgiving in preparation for that expected “hard frost" we may have in late December or early January. Pruning six weeks ahead of a frost is the rule.
Lavender gardeners often ask me how to overcome the problem of “woody” plants, those mature plants who resemble a bonsai tree. The answer? Proper pruning.
Every Fall you should give the plants a good haircut! With shears or hedge trimmer, cut into the green, shaping as you go.
Lavender plants can easily double in size for their first five years. A good trim keeps them neat.
Green is good; Brown is bad
With Fall pruning, plants in Northern California should awaken in late February or early March, depending on sunlight hours, soil temperature, and air temps.
Speaking of dormancy – the Farm’s not “dormant” yet! In fact, we’re open for four more weekends. We’d love to share Mother Nature’s seasonal surprises with you sometime soon.
For today, the lavender has been pruned for the season, the poms have been juiced, and the olive oil will soon be bottled and ready for sale.
It's time to put up our feet, say goodnight to the sun, and enjoy an evening by the fire.
