Dealing with mud.

You may think of currants as the small raisins in holiday desserts. But true currants are in the genus Ribes, and include many winter-blooming California native shrubs. This variety of the Chaparral currant (Ribes malvaceum) is called Montara Rose. Ribes flowers attract hummingbirds, and the tiny tart fruit attracts songbirds.

One of the first sure signs of spring is when gardeners wander into garden centers looking for something, anything, to brighten their yards. Trees and shrubs are bare, herbaceous perennials are dormant, and days of fog and rain have left our yards mostly muddy. A few bags of bark make the paths passable again, but there isn't much to look at.

A quick way to brighten the garden is to pop in some winter annuals. Perhaps the brightest flowers, with the broadest range of color, are English primroses (Primula polyanthus). Though they return to bloom again in subsequent years in mild-summer areas, primroses are treated as annuals in the Sacramento Valley. Other cheery winter annuals include pansies, violas, snapdragons, and – one of my favorites – Paludosum daisy. Planted now, all of these annuals will bloom freely into May.

Low-growing evergreen shrubs and winter-blooming perennials perk up the garden in February. Looking for ideas? Take a stroll in the UC Davis Arboretum! There is inspiration to be found in the 18 collections and gardens scattered along the miles of paths. Keep in mind that if you see it growing in the arboretum, you can probably grow it in your yard. On a recent walk during a break in the storms I found many shrubs and perennials in flower.

The Mary Wattis Brown Garden of California Native Plants

As I stood admiring the subtle flowers of native currants (Ribes), the high twitter of hummingbirds reminded me that many of our native plants draw birds and beneficial insects into the garden. Among perennials blooming now, hummingbirds love the native species of Coral bells (Heuchera) which are showing their first rosy spikes. The foliage of all Heucheras is attractive enough year-around that plant breeders have introduced many hybrids with golden, bronze, purple, and variegated leaves.

Evergreen low shrubs? Look no further than the Salvias: the many species and hybrids in this group of plants provide long blossom season, attract hummingbirds, and include some very tough garden plants. California native Salvias bloom in the spring to take advantage of mild temperatures and winter rains. These shrubby sages all have clean, attractive leaves with pungent fragrance. Salvia 'Bee's Bliss' is a hybrid between two native species, just coming into bloom. Other suitable California native Salvias for valley gardens include: White sage (S. apiana) with intensely aromatic leaves; Black sage (S. mellifera) with dark olive-green leaves; Hummingbird or Pitcher sage (S. spathacea), which has bold, crinkly leaves and big whorls of magenta flowers.

The Mediterranean Collection

There are several varieties planted en masse, and one big virtue of rosemary is that it blooms heavily in the winter with flowers ranging from pale blue to vivid violet. There is even a white- flowered type. Milder-flavored varieties are generally preferred for the kitchen herb, but any can be used: just squeeze a leaf to test the intensity of fragrance and flavor.

Rosemary can be divided into two categories based on growth habit: trailing and upright. Trailing varieties are most common in the nursery trade. Gardeners in more extreme climates need to know that these prostrate types are more tender, damaged at 20F, but that isn't an issue here. These types typically grow 1' – 2' high, spreading outward several feet. Irene, Lockwood de Forest, and Prostratus are good trailers.

Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis) is a plant of many uses: kitchen, garden, and landscape. The winter blooms brighten the pathways of the Mediterranean Collection in the Arboretum. The flowers (shown in closeup) attract honeybees, looking for pollen early in the season, and small songbirds like the cover provided by the fragrant branches.

The upright varieties are hardier. More important, they can become substantial sized landscape shrubs to 4' – 6' or more. Tuscan Blue, an upright cultivar, has exceptionally showy flowers and excellent leaves for roasts and barbecues. Next time you roast a chicken, stuff it with a whole lemon and two sprigs of Tuscan Blue. Blue Spires is even bigger and upright enough to shear as a hedge.

Another low evergreen shrub – actually, silver gray – is Bush germander (Teucrium fruticans). The small lavender-blue flowers resemble rosemary, and the silver foliage contrasts nicely with rosemary's dark green. Equally tough and even longer-blooming, germander makes a somewhat informal shrub. Light clipping every few months makes the shrub more compact.

A perennial Euphorbia has naturalized on a nearby slope. Euphorbia characias wulfenii has chartreuse flowers perched above grey-green leaves. Growers have several new varieties of Euphorbias to provide gardeners with colorful foliage and interesting flowers, and all are notable for drought tolerance. Note that this one has naturalized; that is nursery-speak for "has spread beyond where it was planted." Some Euphorbias can be invasive, while other garden varieties are well-behaved.

The Ruth Risdon Storer Garden
and the Carolee Shields White Flower Garden.

Lovely and easy. But my guests were drawn to the intense fragrance of the nearby Daphne odora. There are two of the pure white form in the Shields garden, and the intense lemony scent reached us many yards away. "Is this hard to grow?" they asked. No, it is just easy to kill. Daphne requires perfect drainage and is very susceptible to fungi that attack the roots and crown if you overwater it in the summer.

Winter-blooming perennials? In the Storer garden, winter-blooming bergenia (B. crassifolia) and Lenten rose (Helleborus orientalis) provide reliable winter color. Both are easy, adaptable, and long-lived, and both can tolerate partial to full shade. While other herbaceous perennials are just poking up from their winter dormancy, these two – along with our fall-planted bulbs and seasonal annuals – have attractive foliage and showy flowers even after weeks of fog and rain.

For more information about the UC Davis Arboretum, including a printable map showing the location of the gardens and collections, visit their web site at http://arboretum.ucdavis.edu/

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