Gardening in Templeton

GARDENING IN TEMPLETON, CALIFORNIA

METHODS / GARDENS / CRITTERS

As one raised in Southern California in Los Angeles and Ventura County, I found Templeton hotter in the summer and colder in the winter. I haven't seen much successful citrus growing in Templeton, especially where I live in West Templeton. But we can grow more varieties of apples because we have more cold winter days. I am starting this page in April, 2007. Last summer was very hot with many days over the century mark. And last winter had the lowest temperature I can remember since moving here in 1993 -- 15°. it caused many of us to lose plants -- at least we thought we had. I have a home in Paso Robles, and after the days of below freezing weather I walked the neighborhood and everyone's yard looked gray and dead. My gazanias in both Templeton and Paso Robles appeared to be dead, and my marguerites in both locations definitely didn't survive the frost.

Fortunately, some of what we thought was dead revived.

Here is one of the gazanias in Paso Robles I thought was dead. There was no green to be seen in the beginning of March. But this was taken the first week of April. You can see the new growth emerging from the gray mess. It remains to be seen how much of this will return.

Here is a clump of gazanias that was planted to the east of the pump house wall on our Templeton property and it was taken the came week as the picture above in Paso Robles. The gazanias in Templeton had been almost covered with dry leaves before the most severe frost hit. As you can see, they are now in bloom again. The Dusty Miller also came through the freeze with flying colors and is about to bloom.

I was also afraid my lavender, which is growing on a small slope facing north, was dead. But just this week I noticed that it, too, emerged safely after the freeze and you can see the new green shoots poking through the gray dead remains from last year's growth.