Wow! That is quite a project. I am not familiar with the "Northern California black walnut" - didn't know we had one. Can you tell us its latin name?

My town planted the Eastern black walnut (juglans nigra) all along our street as street trees about 105 years ago. I have pictures of two of them in front of our house from about 1910 - they were about 10 feet tall. Several of them still survive right near our house - they are over 100 feet. We call them part of the "traffic calming" system, because when they drop their walnuts (covered, of course, in soft green skin over the hard nut) all over the street, cars run over them and they either explode with a loud bang, or get squirted out by the tires, and sometimes hit parked cars hard enough to set their alarms off. Sometimes that happens just from walnuts falling from the trees onto the cars, because the trees are so tall. Anyway, this activity tends to make the traffic slow WAY down, as it makes quite a racket.

Our black walnuts are amazingly prolific in fertile nuts - the squirrels plant them everywhere (even in the flower pots on my front porch, which is one story off the ground - one year I found one to two walnut seedlings growing happily in each of my 6 or 8 inch pots!). The amount of nuts seems to vary from year to year, but in a heavy year, walnut seedlings become the main thing to weed in the garden - they come up easily with their nuts attached if you get them within a few months, but after that require a shovel. My next door neighbor once was paying her 8 and 10 year old boys 50 cents for each walnut they picked up or pulled up - they made quite a lot of money. So, you might end up with a walnut forest.

Jackie

Sounds lovely! Its so nice to hear someone in CA is planting trees instead of razing them for parking lots. When I was kid, the Bay area, I'd come every fall after summer camp in Washington to see yet another bit paved over. I left CA when the vacant land next to where I worked in Menlo Park was leveled for another office building. I used to have my lunch there, perched on a fallen log, sharing bites with birds and squirrels and even bugs.

You're creating a wonderful green haven, Rosefolly!

Love Valley Oaks. Love Valley Oaks. Toyon is native to my area and sprout in the yard. They eventually make a gorgeous small tree. Cedar Waxwings gather on them in the winter to eat the berries. They are also called "Coyote Berry" and "Christmas Berry" besides "Hollywood"s. Your property must be wonderful.

This is a gift to everyone. Those trees will clean the air and help every plant and animal on Earth. God Bless everyone who plants a tree.

GOOD FOR YOU!

Jeri

Rosefolly, your project sounds wonderful and rewarding. I feel so lucky to have three mature redwoods in our backyard. I planted two Ribes, as well---currents for those of you unfamiliar with the scientific name. Mine are "Claremont," I believe. Neat plants. I also have a couple of baby ceanothus (lilac). Blue Jeans and Concha. Another nice native shrub I have in my yard is a coffeeberry called "Mound San Bruno". I think folks use this as a foundation plant because it is not very exciting looking but I think it is quite nice and the berries are supposed to be loved by birds. I just got another coffeeberry called "Leatherleaf" which is another neat plant with leaves that curl under like a rhododendron. I bought most of my natives at Yerba Buena Nursery. Have you been there?

Anne

Rosefolly... so glad to here you are creating a piece of heaven. Trees are gorgeous when mature and wonderful to watch grow. A few you mentioned, I will have to look up as i'm not familiar.

June of 2011 we planted 2 redwoods 2 cedars, and one giant sequoia here in Westrn WA. Each were between 12" and 14". True monsters. The redwoods are between5 and 6 feet. The rest 3-4 feet.
We werent sure they would grow here let alone thrive, but they are. During the dry season, we water them once a week. Such fun.
Jeannie

Hey, Rosefolly - we are on the same page. Sure wish we could have Toyon here (guess we will be sticking with various cotoneasters). I always wanted an arboretum....but having finally got the space to go for it, I suddenly find myself being unusually circumspect. I mean, we are not just planting trees for ourselves, are we? It is for our children, their children and the huge array of flora and fauna depending on such treelife. So yeah, I may indulge in the odd ornamental (I must have prunus subhirtella autumnalis and various sorbus) but I think I too will be planting natives, at least in the ratio of 5:1. Are you going to have a go at growing from locally collected seeds? First year saplings are only pennies - it is staggering to think what these little twigs will grow into. Do keep us updated on this project - I will be following your progress avidly. Lucky us, hey?

Jackie, the northern California black walnut is Juglans hindsii. It was commonly used as understock for English walnuts. The nuts are said to be especially hard to crack, but it doesn't worry me. With all the squirrels around I don't actually expect to get any of them.

HoovB, valley oaks are my absolute favorite oaks, too. I love the twisted outline they create when they are very old. They remind me of old mystery novels I read as a child, mysterious and beautiful. The live oaks are very good trees, too; but it is the valley oaks I love. I hope they do well for me. I'm not sure how deep my water table is, and they like it to be no lower than 60 feet below the surface.

Anne SFBay, yes, I've been to Yerba Buena a number of time. Did you know that they recently moved to Half Moon Bay? Checking the tags I discovered that the three ribes I planted are all Ribes speciosum, the fuschia-flowered gooseberry, not three different ones as I had thought. I picked it because it is so thorny the deer are said to leave it alone. There is a herd of deer browsing on the hill every day.

Jeannie, earlier today I was down by the three redwoods and three pines at the base of the hill. There was a big windstorm a few weeks ago and I noticed that one of the pine trees had lost a couple of limbs. Taking a closer look I discovered that they are not pines at all, but cedars. What a surprise! I'd never seen cedars grow with that tall, narrow pines-in-a-forest form.

Campanula, I'm buying small trees and shrubs mostly in one gallon containers. There is a lot of interest in natives these days so I'm finding what I want pretty easily. Two of the toyons are small seedlings I collected elsewhere on the hill, waiting in pots to be planted after they get a bit larger.

Catsrose, Seil, Kittymoonbeam, Jeri, thank you for your nice comments. I am having a good time and look forward to the future as this area develops. Next year I fill in with an elderberry, a hollyleaf cherry, and a redberry, with perhaps more sages an a another ribes or two. After all, I will need something to amuse me next year as well! A friend of mine called me the Mrs Winchester of gardening the other day. Those of you from California will get the reference.

And once all the trees are planted and after the roses are pruned, there are a dozen-plus teas are awaiting their places in the ground, inside the fence.

Rosefolly

"The true meaning of life is to plant trees, under whose shade you do not expect to sit."
-- Nelson Henderson

Brava, rosefolly, Brava.

Thank you, Onderw. My father loved trees. I get it from him. In return, I got him interested in roses.

Love the Mrs Winchester theory of gardening! (I think a lot of us have this issue)

I love your list of trees to fill that space. Bet you find you have more birds in the future too

That's funny about being the Mrs. Winchester of gardening. I've never been to the Winchester Mystery House.

Yes, I just went to the new Yerba Buena HMB location. I bought a bunch of stuff but I miss their old location. The ribes I have are currents because they are near a pathway so I do not want prickles! Also, no deer to deter where I live--just rats!

Anne

Paula, This is really exciting. I'm so glad you are planting these trees. I am thrilled with the trees we have planted here. The ones that are 12 years old are gigantic. A tree is like a friend to me.

Pamela, I have long admired the magnificent trees in your garden. I am convinced that they enhance the beauty of the roses.

I just ordered half a dozen more trees today. I'm thinking that I may not get all the roses pruned this year....

The other thing I was thinking about is the idea of creating a landscape that you view from a distance with trees. From up on the driveway I can look at the Golden Cypresses growing in a sweeping line. last summer I planted the last two. I also put more Italian Cypresses out in the rambler area to make a continuity with the other ones.

That sounds lovely. I look forward to seeing them one day.

This post was edited by rosefolly on Fri, Jan 25, 13 at 20:45

Congratulations, Paula! Trees are the life and the future of the planet, and I wish mankind were planting more of them. And you've picked beautiful, sturdy, long-lived kinds.
We've been planting trees this winter too: seedling flowering ashes and hazelnuts, sturdy colonizing trees both, that we bought; and seedling native oaks from a natural nursery under the oak tree that shades our parking area. The oaks in particular are extremely slow-growing, but they're in place now and have decades and centuries ahead in which to grow.

A Q. lobata (Valley Oak) in Napa:
{{gwi:222711}}

Another beautiful California oak is Q. tomantella, the Island Oak.

It took me a while to find this, but finally I did.

God, what a joy it is to plant a tree,
And from the sallow earth to watch it rise,
Lifting its emerald branches to the skies
In silent adoration; and to see
Its strength and glory waxing with each spring.
Yes, 'tis a goodly and a gladsome thing
To plant a tree.

Nature has many marvels; but a tree
Seems more than marvelous. It is divine.
So generous, so tender, so benign.
Not garrulous like the rivers; and yet free
In pleasant converse with the winds and birds;
Oh! privilege beyond explaining words,
To plant a tree.

Rocks are majestic; but, unlike a tree,
They stand aloof, and silent. In the roar
Of ocean billows breaking on the shore
There sounds the voice of turmoil. But a tree
Speaks of companionship and rest.
Yea, of all righteous acts, this, this is best,
To plant a tree.

There is an oak ( oh! how I love that tree)
Which has been thriving for a hundred years;
Each day I send my blessing through the spheres
To one who gave this triple boon to me,
Of growing beauty, singing birds, and shade.
Wouldst thou win laurels that shall never fade?
Go plant a tree.

E. Wilcox

I am planting my Pink Lady apple this weekend before the rain comes.
A good long life to all our trees.

That is lovely, Kitty.

Yes, I do think it is a privilege to plant trees.

Rosefolly

Paula, I am reading your tree planting story like poetry, all these names of unknown California native trees. I looked them all up and I am amazed as always at the enormous richness and variety of the California flora, and North American flora in general. I spent a month in Palo Alto 12 years ago and my husband and I spent every weekend in the foothills and the redwood forest so I have seen at least some of your trees.

It's very different here. We have only one native oak, Quercus robur, one pine, one spruce, one juniper, one yew, one rowan, only one variety of maple and so on. I remember the many maples in Wisconsin and the infinite variety of fall colors. Birches may be the only exception as there are a couple of different kinds of them but still, our flora is poor by comparison. A small part of my garden is a piece of ancient woodland left by those who built my house. It contains only native trees, oaks, birches, pines, rowans and junipers, and after 18 years I have not been able to decide whether I should introduce some more interesting species or not. I have added a few rhododendrons in the lowest part but I can't make up my mind if I did the right thing. Nearly all neighbours have taken down the many birches, pines and spruces originally growing around here so I think I'd better keep what little there is left. I have planted a few non-native trees but not in the woodland, a Cornelian cherry, a Japanese cherry, a katsura and several fruit trees.

I feel quite ambivalent. When neigbours took down 8 tall birches along our eastern border it meant much more sun on the garden and more water for our plants as the birch is perhaps the most hard drinking of all trees. But we also feel much more exposed.

Yes, this is a dilemma, Marianese. As gardeners, we are terribly curious to grow different things. Growing the right plant in the right place, for me so far, has meant that my limitations were defined mostly by climate and soil conditions and somewhat less by stylistic conventions - colour themes, aesthetic whims, horticultural theories. Even gardening in public on the allotment allowed an enormous degree of freedom to experiment.
Trees and woodland in general, make a larger sweep on the landscape, over a life longer than mine....and suddenly, I found myself acting with a bit more ecological responsibility. Even so, I coveted many trees before I had any space to grow them - ranging from maples to sorbus, cedars and pines, magnolias.....oh, yes, this will take discipline to not run amok.

Driving the highways in southern California is odd sometimes. Looking to the side of the road and seeing a mix of everything with palms sprinkled everywhere. There is no harmony to it at all except on streets where the city has planted all the same kinds, or in a public park.

When I was young, there were orange groves all around us. In Irvine, massive eucalyptus grew in long rows along the fields of asparagus and strawberries and other crops. There are still some long lines of tall eucalyptus left in Irvine. The popular tree recently is the palm. They are everywhere and easy to trim. You can see some very odd looking trees here due to "tree service" men. I prefer the natural look.

My favorite California trees are the giant redwoods and sequoias. We have mostly native oaks in our local canyons. I always joke that birds are trying to make the wild fig the local tree of suburban southern California because I have to pull out at least 3 every year. This June will be my first visit to the Great Smoky Mountains and I'm really looking forward to seeing those forests.

Kitty,

See if you can at lead intersect the Appalachian Trail. The scenery is beautiful and you may be lucky enough to meet hikers who are hiking it and listen to their stories.

Cath

Tree planting, next phase:

Along with two of my sisters, I traveled earlier this month in Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine. We did not make it to Suzy Verrier's nursery but that is at the top of my list for the next trip.

While we were a bit too early for the fall leaf season, we did see trees, lots of gorgeous trees. Now all but one of the trees I planted this past January survived, but I do still see a few empty spaces remaining. I have ordered three more trees for planting this fall, one Pinus edulis (two-needled pinyon pine) and two Pinus brutia eldarica (Afghan pine). Both of these species can get by on our average 15" of rain per year once established, though they need to be watered for the first year or two. I may add a couple more pinyon pines if the first one does well. I like the idea of the pine nuts, and you need more than one to get them, kind of like apples.

I have been wanting more conifers in the landscape. We do have a some, mostly redwoods and cedars. The pine native to my area is Pinus sabiniana, (gray pine and other names) were long ago completely removed. I keep thinking of planting one. Who knows? Perhaps one day I will. There is still room for one.

Rosefolly

This post was edited by rosefolly on Thu, Sep 26, 13 at 17:16

It sounds as if you have a gigantic amount of space. One oak I love is the scarlet oak (quercus coccinea), which although native to the East Coast does great here. We have 2 of them which were planted by my husband's grandfather - they turn the most amazing colors in the Fall. Although they are huge, they are so tall that they fit in - here is the only pic I could find quickly - you can see about 1/3rd of the scarlet oak on the left of the pic, towering over the house.

Jackie

I too have been growing trees - or at least sowing trees. I have quercus coccinea, quercus petraea laciniata, pinus nigra var austriaca, pinus radiata, tilia cordata, acer saccharum, several sorbus species and various viburnums sown in deep pots, while have been busy taking hardwood cuttings of dogwoods, salix and hazel. Never been so excited - growing trees is truly epic.

Jackie, our plot of land is a little less than 3 acres, enormous for the Bay Area, but much of it a slope zoned against development or subdivision. I would love to plant trees like the scarlet oak. Unfortunately we get far less water than you do, an average 15" compared to your average of 30"+. Unlike other parts of the Bay Area, San Jose gets roughly the same amount of rainfall as Los Angeles does. I am selecting trees that require a year or two of hand watering to get established (or in one special case, five years) , but can get along on just natural rainfall after that. This is true for everything outside the fence. I am relying on a mix of native, semi-arid, and Mediterranean trees. The shrubs are all natives, mostly thorny ribes, taller manzanitas (to outgrow reach of the deer), toyons, and sharp-leaved ceanothus.

Campanula, it is an exciting project, isn't it! I wish you as much pleasure from yours as I am having with mine.

Rosefolly

Oh Rosefolly, I so wish we could grow toyons?
But yeah, planting trees seems somehow permanent, landscape-defining, legacy stuff - rather better than leaving a few veggies and rosebushes for posterity and contributing to the well being of everyone, not just our little family. A truly joyful and exciting project.....and acreage as well - are we not the luckiest, hey?

Rosefolly---this sounds so wonderful----I LOVE trees and we are coming into a most beautiful time of year---I read somewhere that the height of optimism is an elderly person planting a tree they will never sit in the shade of--

I love the song/poem------"I think that I shall never see a poem lovely as a tree---A tree that looks at God each day and lifts its leafy arms to pray" the rest is beautiful but can't remember all of it ---another line is"a tree that may in summer wear a nest of robins in its hair"-----the music is very pretty---I will check Youtube ----
Good luck with your project --you are helping mother earth survive------

Florence

the poem is by Joyce Kilmer-----I found an old recording by Bob Mcgrath but I don't know how to share it----ther was also one by Mario Lanza which I couldn't play---Hope you can hear the music.

Florence