THE COASTAL GARDENER:

Winners of the California Friendly Garden Contest will be announced Friday.

Now in its second year, the contest identifies and rewards local gardeners who are create and maintain beautiful gardens that are also water-efficient and resource-conserving.

Through the contest’s website, the public has voted for 10 semi-finalists. These 10 gardens will be visited by a panel of experts for the final determination of the best California Friendly garden in Orange County.

For the final judging, I am privileged to be accompanied by some of the best and brightest landscape and conservation experts in our region. By the time you read this, we will have just completed visits to all of these gardens, evaluating not only the gardens’ beauty, the most important element, but many more subtle factors.

Here’s what we will be looking for during the judging:

What plants are used in the garden and, especially, how are they arranged? Are any of the plant selections potentially invasive, damaging our native ecology? Water-efficient plants will be an important factor.

But, we know that most gardens already contain many low-water plants. What might make a winning garden is one where the plants are grouped according to their water needs.

A California Friendly garden doesn’t have to be a completely dry garden. But we do want to see the low-water, medium-water and thirsty plants grouped into different irrigation zones. This principle, called hydrozoning, is critical to a water-conserving landscape.

For instance, an olive tree with lavender and rosemary planted under it is terrific. Another area of the garden might have roses, annuals and a small turf area. This garden will score well, since the plants are hydrozoned. But if the thirsty annuals are under the olive and the water-thrifty rosemary is next to the roses, water efficiency is lost, and the garden will score poorly. The same plants are used in a number of gardens, but because of good hydrozoning, some gardens conserve water and others do not.

Of course, we’ll also be looking at the irrigation of the gardens. We’ll check the controller, first to see whether it is a weather-sensitive model or a “smart” timer. Then we’ll check the settings to see how often it operates and for how long. Finally, we’ll turn it on and see how well the system is designed and operating. Does water hit the sidewalks and driveway and quickly run to the gutter after a few minutes?

Out in the garden, we will look for efficiencies like rotator sprinkler heads, low-flow irrigation systems, surface irrigation techniques or drip irrigation.

We will evaluate water movement in the garden and how water might be conserved. In a rain event, where does the water go? Does it have an opportunity to percolate into the soil, or is it whisked immediately to a storm drain and out to sea? We’ll even take a look at what happens to rain falling on the roof. Is any of it captured or allowed to percolate into the soil, or is it likewise sent directly off the property?

Certainly, we will want to see exposed areas liberally mulched, to conserve water and reduce soil erosion. If the mulch is made at home with green waste and a compost system, all the better. We’ll even poke around and look for fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides and snail-bait residues and containers, preferring that these be organic formulations and that they are used intelligently.

It will be a long but exciting day for all of the judges, able to see some great examples of beautiful and “green” gardens.

The winners of the contest will be announced during Friday’s celebration at Roger’s Gardens. Wendy Proud and I will also present a brief illustrated program titled “Gardening Green in Orange County,” followed by a photo show and highlights of some of the gardens in the competition. Finally, the best California Friendly gardens will be announced and prizes awarded. If you would like to attend, please RSVP to (949) 721-2100, ext. 489.

ASK RON

Question: When is the Sherman Gardens tour?

Eric

Corona del Mar

Answer: For the 12th year, The Volunteer Association of the Sherman Library and Gardens is conducting its Annual Spring Garden Tour. This year’s event includes five stunning private gardens in Corona del Mar and Newport Beach. Tickets may be purchased in the Gift Shop or by phone at (949) 673-2261. The tour date is Sunday, May 18.

ASK RON your toughest gardening questions, and the expert nursery staff at Roger’s Gardens will come up with an answer. Please include your name, phone number and city, and limit queries to 30 words or fewer. E-mail [email protected], or write to Plant Talk at Roger’s Gardens, 2301 San Joaquin Hills Road, Corona del Mar, CA 92625.

RON VANDERHOFF is the Nursery Manager at Roger’s Gardens, Corona del Mar