The Tough Ones
I wanted to do a post dedicated to those plants that have been able to withstand and some even flourish under our very difficult growing environment.
First let's talk about a permaculture favorite Jerusalem Artichoke (Helianthus tuberosus). They like sun. They need a little water. They multiply like rabbits. Their tubers are edible and their leaves and stalks make excellent forage. The bees like the flowers and when dried they make excellent kindling. They can grow up to 8 feet tall and two inches in diameter. I placed them in the northeast sector which gets blasted by drying winds. They create a buffer and shade for other plants which in addition to water is the one major necessity of many plants here. If a plant says full sun on the tag, for us it would do better with part sun. Only the tough ones can take FULL sun and still grow well.
The next one I want to talk about is Bottlebrush (Callistemon). The grasshoppers don't really like this plant and neither do the deer so it's a good candidate for some of our most challenging locations, ie. north sector above the pump house, down slope of south swale and southeast storm evergreen guild. It does like the full sun and seems rather stunted if it gets shaded by wild oats in spring or has to compete with weeds for water. It doesn't grow incredibly fast but it's tough no doubt and evergreen which is a huge plus for us.
African Sumac (Rhus lancea) has performed outstandingly here. I would suggest anyone with similar conditions to us, terrible wind, blistering sun, little shade and clay soil, to give African Sumac a go. It grows pretty fast with slender, pointed leaves which are evergreen. Once again a huge bonus. The plant can get fifteen feet tall in maturity as you can see on the exit off of I-5 at Orland. It can be trained into a tree form or a very large bush. Chickens like the seeds and goats love the leaves. I don't know yet if its good for them but there it is. The grasshoppers will eat it in an invasion year but they don't kill it. The deer don't seem to care for it at all. Hooray for African Sumac!
Another Australian plant is Grevillea x 'Noell'. We got ours at Orchard and some at Home Depot. They are getting easier to find. They are beautiful and tough as nails. I have one planted on the north slope which has the worst soil, even star thistles are stunted here. And although its not growing like crazy, it is growing. The deer AND the grasshoppers absolutely do not like this plant which is awesome. It can grow to be quite a large bushy shrub but it doesn't grow but moderately fast. It is evergreen which again is wonderful. It has unusual flowers that the hummingbirds go crazy for which is how I first discovered it. Those hummers know where it's at.
Silk Mimosa (Albizia julibrissin) is another plant that deserves mention. It is amazing the varying types of conditions this tree can handle. While it can withstand little water and baking in the valley heat, we have friends who live in Cohasset and it flourishes there as well which gets snow. They even gave us some starts since their trees set so much seed. People call these messy trees due to the leaf litter and volunteer seedlings. But I love them so much. And so do the bees of all sorts, butterflies, and hummingbirds. I actually saw a new type of butterfly due to our mimosa flowering so much this year. And recently I discovered they are medicinal. Oh, and the flowers smell divine.
Mulberry (Morus nigra/alba) trees are a love of mine. They are tough, grow fast with some water and some give fruit. Goats love the leaves and I love the berries. They are also used in Chinese medicine. What more could you ask for in a tree? I prefer the black variety like black beauty and pakistan varieties but there are white ones from Australia which are also good. You can get ones that don't produce fruit, as we have, which will help with the fruit production of the others.
So there you have our list of the toughest of the tough. Recently I planted out a Black Locust started from seed (can't find them in commerce here) and a Honey Locust also started from seed. You can find Honey Locusts I know since they are planted in the Raley's parking lot in Chico but I don't know from where. Some of my seed actually came from here. I think these trees will also prove to be good candidates. My Osage Orange is getting big enough to plant out this wet season. I started it from seed as well. I tell you, starting trees from seed is a three year endeavor at least. But if they live and flourish then it will all have been worth it. In other news the Siberian Peashrubs are struggling and several died. The poor soil, heat and grasshoppers are no friend to them. We will see. The Sand Cherry and Nanking Cherry are doing ok though thus far.
First let's talk about a permaculture favorite Jerusalem Artichoke (Helianthus tuberosus). They like sun. They need a little water. They multiply like rabbits. Their tubers are edible and their leaves and stalks make excellent forage. The bees like the flowers and when dried they make excellent kindling. They can grow up to 8 feet tall and two inches in diameter. I placed them in the northeast sector which gets blasted by drying winds. They create a buffer and shade for other plants which in addition to water is the one major necessity of many plants here. If a plant says full sun on the tag, for us it would do better with part sun. Only the tough ones can take FULL sun and still grow well.
The next one I want to talk about is Bottlebrush (Callistemon). The grasshoppers don't really like this plant and neither do the deer so it's a good candidate for some of our most challenging locations, ie. north sector above the pump house, down slope of south swale and southeast storm evergreen guild. It does like the full sun and seems rather stunted if it gets shaded by wild oats in spring or has to compete with weeds for water. It doesn't grow incredibly fast but it's tough no doubt and evergreen which is a huge plus for us.
African Sumac (Rhus lancea) has performed outstandingly here. I would suggest anyone with similar conditions to us, terrible wind, blistering sun, little shade and clay soil, to give African Sumac a go. It grows pretty fast with slender, pointed leaves which are evergreen. Once again a huge bonus. The plant can get fifteen feet tall in maturity as you can see on the exit off of I-5 at Orland. It can be trained into a tree form or a very large bush. Chickens like the seeds and goats love the leaves. I don't know yet if its good for them but there it is. The grasshoppers will eat it in an invasion year but they don't kill it. The deer don't seem to care for it at all. Hooray for African Sumac!
Another Australian plant is Grevillea x 'Noell'. We got ours at Orchard and some at Home Depot. They are getting easier to find. They are beautiful and tough as nails. I have one planted on the north slope which has the worst soil, even star thistles are stunted here. And although its not growing like crazy, it is growing. The deer AND the grasshoppers absolutely do not like this plant which is awesome. It can grow to be quite a large bushy shrub but it doesn't grow but moderately fast. It is evergreen which again is wonderful. It has unusual flowers that the hummingbirds go crazy for which is how I first discovered it. Those hummers know where it's at.
Silk Mimosa (Albizia julibrissin) is another plant that deserves mention. It is amazing the varying types of conditions this tree can handle. While it can withstand little water and baking in the valley heat, we have friends who live in Cohasset and it flourishes there as well which gets snow. They even gave us some starts since their trees set so much seed. People call these messy trees due to the leaf litter and volunteer seedlings. But I love them so much. And so do the bees of all sorts, butterflies, and hummingbirds. I actually saw a new type of butterfly due to our mimosa flowering so much this year. And recently I discovered they are medicinal. Oh, and the flowers smell divine.
Mulberry (Morus nigra/alba) trees are a love of mine. They are tough, grow fast with some water and some give fruit. Goats love the leaves and I love the berries. They are also used in Chinese medicine. What more could you ask for in a tree? I prefer the black variety like black beauty and pakistan varieties but there are white ones from Australia which are also good. You can get ones that don't produce fruit, as we have, which will help with the fruit production of the others.
So there you have our list of the toughest of the tough. Recently I planted out a Black Locust started from seed (can't find them in commerce here) and a Honey Locust also started from seed. You can find Honey Locusts I know since they are planted in the Raley's parking lot in Chico but I don't know from where. Some of my seed actually came from here. I think these trees will also prove to be good candidates. My Osage Orange is getting big enough to plant out this wet season. I started it from seed as well. I tell you, starting trees from seed is a three year endeavor at least. But if they live and flourish then it will all have been worth it. In other news the Siberian Peashrubs are struggling and several died. The poor soil, heat and grasshoppers are no friend to them. We will see. The Sand Cherry and Nanking Cherry are doing ok though thus far.
Glad to hear about the mimosa....I've been noticing them around, some in areas apparently without supplemental water. We had a lot of it in GA and I've already got some seed coming up. Great nitrogen-fixer, goat browse, coppice wood, and filtered shade for other plants. We still have a lot of oaks on our place, so finding or creating shade isn't a big problem....rather the opposite to locate the fruits and nuts in the sunny spots. Been reading up on mounding for planting citrus, etc. in the clay!
ReplyDeleteYes my citrus on the west is struggling with the terrible soil. I did add sand and sit it up but mounding would be a good idea. Can't find anything I dislike about Mimosa... ah shade....
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