Sunday Gardening Tips

Sunday Gardening Tips

updated: Sep 08, 2013, 4:07 PM

By Lisa Ann Kelly

I wanted to write to Edhatters and say that, if you plant only three new plants in your garden this
Spring—-these are the three I recommend highly.

First: Did you know we can grow blueberries in Santa Barbara now? This is my second crop off one
plant this Spring/Summer. Look how huge these berries are! You will need two plants, for cross-
pollination. I recommend the “O’Neal,” which you can get from Knapp Nursery. The berries are larger
and tastier.

Second: If you like to see little yellow birds in your garden, then plant a few Cosmos flowers from seed,
and let the flowers die off—leaving the flower seeds for the Lesser goldfinches to harvest. Goldfinches
go nuts for Cosmos seeds.

Third: Plant a few hollyhock flowers. With hollyhocks you will attract those huge black Carpenter bees,
honeybees, hummingbirds and, as an added plus, the WestCoast painted ladies (butterflies) like to use
hollyhocks as a host plant (for butterfly caterpillars).

Gardener’s note:
Plant blueberries in a 1/2 barrel. Be sure and add peat moss and cottonseed meal (get it at Island Seed
Feed, in bulk). Yum. Fresh, organic blueberries, warm off the plant. Let the fun begin!