Plant in the Winter?

If you live in California, it's not too late for winter planting!

Why plant in the spring in California? Some say this idea is a holdover from our ancestors, or perhaps ourselves, as gardeners in the Eastern United States. Most of us don't need to worry about freezing temperatures killing the new plants, why not instead plant in the fall, or winter so they can get a headstart in the rain, before the long dry summer begins?

Most of California is a Mediterranean Climate which means that we have temporate wet winters, long dry summers, wild fire danger,an ocean to the West, and live between 30 degree and 45 degrees North or South latitude.

Only 2% of the landmass in the world has a Mediterranean climate though 16% of the species diversity thrives in them. Where are these located? Most of California has a Mediterranean climate (but not the Sierras), much of Chile, the Cape Provence of South Africa, all the Mediterranean Basin (except the deserts),and two areas in Western and Southern Australia meet the criteria. Many gardeners in California take the plants from another Mediterranean climate and plant them here. I volunteer at such a garden, however, while one can conserve water and fertilizer this way, I am much more an advocate of native plants.

In either case, a gardener does well to consider the climate in his or her planting. Does it actually make sense to plant in the spring, knowing that water will be essential throughout the summer to keep the plants alive? A much more water conservative method is to plant in the fall - late October or November to take advantage of the winter rains to give the plants a huge start in their new locale.

Native plants, in particular, happily send down tap roots when the soil is moist and the air is cool. If you have experienced San Luis clay you know why - in the summer it can become hard as rock. It would seem impossible to grow roots through this medium. Many native gardeners even refrain from summer watering after the first two years, once the plants are well established.

Most of California doesn't suffer much from winter freezes so planting can even continue through December and January if one doesn't manage to get all of it completed in late fall. In our area, October usually brings a plant sale at the Nipomo Native Garden and the San Luis Obispo Botanical Garden. In November there is the California Native Plant Society (CNPS) plant sale.

It's not too late for winter planting to take advantage of the rains still to come, and there is always next fall.