\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Ever wonder why we have predominantly evergreen forests in the Pacific Northwest?\u00a0 Whereas, at our same latitude in the east, New Brunswick, Canada has mostly deciduous trees that exhibit brilliant colors in autumn.\u00a0 Most of the world thinks that it rains all the time in our region; but one of our secrets is that we have dry<\/i><\/b> summers.\u00a0 In regions with summer rains, trees that lose their leaves in the winter, have all summer to photosynthetically replenish their energy.\u00a0 Evergreens, however, are adapted to be able to photosynthesize whenever conditions are favorable.\u00a0 Therefore in the Pacific Northwest, evergreens that have limited moisture in the summer can grow at other times of the year.\u00a0 <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 We call our mild, maritime climate, with relatively warm, wet winters and cool, dry summers, a Winter-rain<\/i> or Cool Mediterranean<\/i> Climate.\u00a0 Most other Winter-rain climates are warmer, as found in parts of Chile, South Africa, and Australia.\u00a0 For plants that may be better adapted to drier northwest gardens, horticulturists look for plants from these regions.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Although native plants<\/b> are obviously the best adapted, plants from other winter-rain regions also do well in our drier landscapes.\u00a0 From Chile:<\/i> Escallonias<\/b> have glossy evergreen leaves and small pink flowers; Pernettyas,<\/b> (Gaultheria mucronata),<\/i> come in different varieties with shiny berries ranging from white, pink, red, purple to nearly black\u2014all with a metallic sheen; Darwin Barberry<\/b> (Berberis darwinii)<\/i> has fountain-like growth with showy yellow flowers and blue berries favored by birds; its spiny stems make it and excellent barrier shrub.\u00a0 From South Africa,<\/i><\/b> Cape Fuchsia, <\/i><\/b>(Phygelius capensis)<\/i> has loose clusters of red-orange flowers. From Australia,<\/i><\/b> some of the hardier Eucalyptus<\/b> trees such as the Cider Gum (E. gunnii) <\/i>may be successful in certain microclimates.\u00a0 Several familiar landscape plants come from the Mediterranean<\/i><\/b> <\/i>including true Cedars<\/b> (Cedrus sp.),<\/i> Mediterranean Heaths<\/b> (Erica x darleyensis<\/i> hybrids), Strawberry Tree<\/b> (Arbutus unedo) <\/i>and the ever-popular Lavender<\/b> (Lavendula sp.)<\/i><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Plants adapted to withstand dry periods usually have thick, waxy leaves.\u00a0 Hairy leaves provide protection against drying winds.\u00a0 Gray or silvery foliage reflect some of the sun’s rays.\u00a0 Look for these characteristics when choosing “drought-tolerant” plants.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Many regions such as the Southwestern U.S. are facing severe water shortages.\u00a0 Some conscientious, environmentally responsible citizens that are eliminating water-guzzling lawns and replanting with natives have had to battle homeowner associations because the new look of their landscape, didn’t fit the accepted standard! Currently, in the northwest, we rarely have water restrictions\u2014but we may find them occurring more frequently in the future. <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Add compost to soil to increase water-holding capacity. Mulch to keep the soil cooler and moist longer.\u00a0 Reduce turf areas by planting native groundcovers or try an “eco-lawn” that requires less irrigation.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 In order to irrigate efficiently, group all water-loving plants.\u00a0 Create focal points by planting colorful annuals in small areas or in containers.\u00a0 To determine how long to irrigate, measure how long it takes to fill a tuna can 1 inch deep, take an average of several places, closer and farther from the sprinkler head (different soil types may require more or less).\u00a0 It is better to irrigate deeply and less frequently to encourage plants to grow deep roots.\u00a0 Watering during the cooler, early morning hours prevents loss due to evaporation.\u00a0 Soaker hoses or drip irrigation systems deliver water just where it is needed.\u00a0 Some of the newest sophisticated irrigation systems have moisture sensors; some can even tie into the Internet and make adjustments using information from local weather reports.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Remember that any new landscape will have to be irrigated the first 1-3 seasons in order to establish good root systems!<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0(This article was first published in the Peninsula Gateway\u00a0<\/em>on Aug 5, 2009)<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Ever wonder why we have predominantly evergreen forests in the Pacific Northwest?\u00a0 Whereas, at our same latitude in the east, New Brunswick, Canada has mostly deciduous trees that exhibit brilliant colors in autumn.\u00a0 Most of the world thinks that it rains all the time in our region; but one of our secrets is that<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":122,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/habitathorticulturepnw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/119"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/habitathorticulturepnw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/habitathorticulturepnw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/habitathorticulturepnw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/habitathorticulturepnw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=119"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/habitathorticulturepnw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/119\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":120,"href":"http:\/\/habitathorticulturepnw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/119\/revisions\/120"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/habitathorticulturepnw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/122"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/habitathorticulturepnw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=119"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/habitathorticulturepnw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=119"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/habitathorticulturepnw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=119"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}