The Backyard Gardener

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A Gardening Blog for the East Side

The climate of the Eastern Sierra is very different from most of California and so gardening here is different, too!

In this blog we examine some of the quirks of gardening on the East Side, and cover horticultural issues that are important locally. Note that if you're visiting our site from the outside our little corner of California, you may find this information may not apply to your area.

Articles are written by local UC Master Gardener volunteers or the local Farm Advisor.

And a website...

The Inyo-Mono Master Gardeners also have a website with local gardening and soil information. Visit it to learn more about our program and gardening.

Brazilian Spinach front with Okinawa Spinach behind.

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An Experiment with Brazilian and Okinawa Spinach

April 16th, 2018

In the constant search for green leafy vegetables that will do well in a hot climate I stumbled upon Brazilian Spinach (Alternanthera sissoo) and Okinawa Spinach (Gynura crepioides), and although a tropical plants I decided to give them a try in our dry high desert climate.

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Some Common Questions Answered.

April 9th, 2018

What do the numbers on fertilizer sacks indicate? The big three nutrients show on bags are nitrogen, phosphate, and potash which provide N, P, and K elements. They are the ones declared on a bag of fertilizer.

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A sprinkler spraying a driveway with water.

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Check Your Sprinklers

April 3rd, 2018

By Dustin W Blakey

As I was driving my kids to school recently, I noticed that a landscape on the way was irrigating its dormant turf. It had rained the night before. That seemed really unnecessary. Later that day I saw another landscape (with green grass) had a head spraying out into the street.

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Baptisia, A Historically Valuable Plant.

March 23rd, 2018

A question from a Horticulture Quiz 101 might be, What was the first subsidized agricultural crop in the United States? Possible answers of corn, tobacco, cotton and hemp might be given, none of which is correct.

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