Need help with grass in San Fernando Valley (CA) backyard
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2 years ago
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dchall_san_antonio
2 years agoRelated Discussions
Those in the San Fernando Valley We Froze!!!
Comments (25)I'm so sorry to hear about everyone's damage. I hope that spring will prove that it's not as bad as we all think it is. I guess I'm lucky because even though I'm only about 30 miles from Palm Springs we have cold winters here so I was at least somewhat prepared (I think). I've been to chicken to check on them for the last five or six days so I guess I'll cross my fingers and take a little stroll to the shed tomorrow. I hope for those of you who have damage that it will be confined to the tips only and that cutting back will keep you from losing the plant in its entirety. If I had any large enough to cut I would offer to help replace those of yours whose are damaged, but unfortunately with this being my first year I don't even have anything to offer. I hope you guys will keep us updated. Bill if you see this I am feeling much better now. If you need any help let me know and I will be happy to come down and give you a hand. Jerri...See Morelarge slope behind pool in our backyard
Comments (27)Thanks for your appreciation for my approach, s8us89ds, and I like the the points you have made about opportunities to create habitat and ecosystems. (Disclosure: I am a restoration ecologist, by profession, and this is what I do, even at home: create habitat.) I've observed that birds, in particular, find my yard more a more useful and better place to hang out than elsewhere in the neighborhood, which is a 1970s tract development with lots generally in the 1/5- to 1/3- acre range. This is a big plus, aesthetically, for me, along with the visual pleasure of the tapestry of chaparral plants. The other great advantage to taking this approach, as you point out, is that it is inexpensive and can pretty much be done by anyone who can dig a minimal planting hole in unimproved soil (what you want when planting natives) while standing on a steep slope. Blanchette, a bit of advice, with reference to "craning in" large oaks or olives. Planting a relatively modest-sized tree and letting it establish from a younger age invariably works out better, in my experience, than the instant (but generally short-lived) gratification of installing a large tree. Beyond the eye-popping expense of buying and installing mega-trees, there are often major, years-long problems with establishment that need to be skillfully managed when using such trees. Fine if you are up to doing that, but often a disappointment. Case in point: about 10 years ago, a neighbor a few houses up my street had a very large olive tree (was at least the 300-gallon size) installed (using a crane, etc.) in his front yard about the same time I planted a gallon-sized olive in my back yard. His tree has developed significant root problems and it has lost two-thirds of its canopy; the tree is, at best, barely surviving and unhealthy -- not to mention disfigured because of major branches having to be amputated. The olive tree I planted is now larger than his (in fact, is currently about the same size he started with) and quite healthy. I personally won't plant anything larger than a gallon-sized plant and consider 5-gallon the upper limit....See MoreLarge backyard!!! Not cozy
Comments (32)Yes, I would demo all those things you've marked out and the bed by the path by the grill. In my opinion, they "read" more as obstructions than as focal points or objects of interest. So, the perimeter -- 1.5' -- is even more shallow than I surmised ... impossibly shallow! Making it only 3' or 4' deep is still too shallow. It needs to be in the 6' range because that's what kind of space plants take/require and what kind of size works to "decorate" something as big as a house and yard. However, I wouldn't make any changes (except demo) until you have converted whatever ideas you have, or will have, to PLAN form. In the measured plan is where all ideas are worked out... to know if, in fact, they will work out when implemented. Committing the ideas to paper is vastly easier than committing them to the ground only to discover that things don't fit or work the way one had thought or hoped. It's a step that cannot be overlooked. Besides that, it's a fun step....See MoreHelp selecting sod variety for Encino CA (San Fernando Valley)
Comments (5)Thank you both for your feedback. We've gone back and forth on artificial vs natural grass. Many times. It's 150-200 sqft feet on a 18,000 square foot lot, so 1% of area. The vast majority of the portion of the lot that is landscaped is done so with succulents and cacti. Basically xeriscaped. The downside to artificial grass is that it is expensive and requires 4' gravel sub-base (when done properly) which is hard to remove if there is a change of heart. It also gets very hot to the touch, and odor control is nontrivial. That said, we may do it. OTOH, I certainly could establish a lawn over the next months prior to the commencement of Metropolitan's water usage restrictions. I called LADWP and they have no idea it is being implemented. I'm 95% sure we live in Met's jurisdiction but I'm still running that info down. Natural grass looks better, feels better but does require some care, and I'm concerned about shading on one of of the two areas. I've read good things about Citrablue which is a relatively new St. Augustine cultivar (rapid, horizontal growth for faster recovery), improved drought and disease resistance, and wear tolerant. It says 'exceptional shade tolerance' but after talking to two sod farms who sell both CitraBlue and Sunclipse each replied that Sunclipse does a bit better in the shade. I'm sure both do much better than Bermuda. At 1:30pm today, only 3/4 of the one parcel that gets shade was in full sun. The sun did not yet arc to get beyond the Juniper canopy. So while my research led me to CitraBlue, I'm unsure about this. If I wait until Fall, what size wood chips? Do you just cover the area like bark? It seems that it would not decompose into the soil? Thank you...See Moremojavemaria
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