UC Davis Arboretum and Public Garden spring 2016 Review
Hummingbirds in Your Garden
by Ellen Zagory, Director of Horticulture
Despite being the tiniest birds in the world, hummingbirds pack a lot of attitude. Feisty and noisy, these sparkling garden denizens are beautiful and entertaining. Our local year-round resident is the Anna’s hummingbird, a medium-sized hummingbird with an iridescent rosy-pink color on the neck and head (in males) that flashes brightly when exposed to sunlight at the right angle. Energetic and fast-moving, they can fly backwards, hover in place and fly upside down! Their wings beat on average seventy times per second; they fly at twenty-five to thirty miles per hour; and they dive even faster. All this activity means a typical hummingbird needs to eat a lot, seven times an hour. They are also smart about what they eat and when — they remember which plants give nectar, when they last drank from a flower, and how long that particular flower takes to refill its nectar. With all that showmanship, it’s no wonder hummingbirds are popular guests in any garden.
Like most animals, the way to a hummingbird’s heart is through its stomach! Encourage hummingbirds to visit your garden by selecting plants that will provide them with energy. That means nectar-filled flowers with little to no fragrance. These birds, like many, have a poor olfactory sense — the flowers that attract them tend to produce lots of thin, easy-to-drink nectar, but have little aroma. Flowers that hummingbirds pollinate tend to be tubular and hang down, making it hard for most insects to land in them while still being accessible to creatures capable of hovering in the air.
Hummingbirds drink from forked tongues that open up in the flower, trap the nectar, then pump it into their mouths through two grooves. While they frequently visit red flowers, hummingbirds will visit all sizes, colors and shapes of flowers — wherever they can get nectar, but hummingbirds do not survive on nectar alone. They’ll pick small insects from flowers, from the air, off leaves, or even off spider webs, sometimes along with the spiders themselves.
To get started on your hummingbird garden, plant a variety of species that bloom in sequence over the course of the year. It is also important to select plants that grow different heights and widths so these territorial birds can find a variety of locations to perch and place their nests. (Learn more about specific plants on page 3.) Planting willow, or other species whose seeds possess silken fibers, will be useful to hummingbirds for building nests. Also, remember that cats might predate upon the young birds or discourage nesting, so keep your cat indoors if possible or provide high branches where these birds can escape if needed.
Life After Lawn: Nature's hummingbird feeders
Create a year-round feeding frenzy with these popular hummingbird plants.
California fuchsia (Epilobium canum) with bright orange-red flowers are magnets for hummingbirds in spring, summer and fall. It needs little water once established and should be cut to the ground in winter for a perennial display.
In late winter and early spring (in part shade), look to the dark-pink clusters on the Ribes malvaceum ‘Montara Rose’ and Grevillea thelemanniana ‘Gilded Dragon’, an Australian native with silvery leaves, to provide nectar to our shiny friends.
Another dependable flower is the red autumn sage. Our favorite is Salvia × jamensis ‘Scott’s Red’, a heavy and early bloomer, dependable in demonstration beds as well as throughout many Arboretum collections.
hummingbird bush
Grevillea thelemanniana ‘Gilded Dragon’
Everett Butts California fuchsia
Epilobium canum 'Everett's Choice'
Montara chaparral currant
Ribes malvaceum 'Montara Rose'
Bee's bliss purple sage
Salvia 'Bee's Bliss'
Scott's red autumn sage
Salvia x jamensis 'Scott's Red'
You're invited: Hummingbirds in Your Garden
Sunday, April 17, 1 pm
Arboretum Teaching Nursery
To learn more about creating backyard habitat for hummingbirds, attend this free public program where Dr. Lisa Tell, avian disease veterinarian, professor and director of the Hummingbird Health and Conservation Program at the School of Veterinary Medicine, will briefly discuss her current research, and, along with Mary Patterson, a long-time Arboretum community volunteer and expert gardener, share tips for creating a backyard habitat for hummingbirds.
With nearly 15% of hummingbird species considered vulnerable to extinction, the research that she and her team conducts focuses on establishing the scientific data necessary to help sustain healthy hummingbird populations. As one of the few hummingbird master banders who lives and bands in California, Dr. Tell oversees four hummingbird banding stations around the state, including one along Putah Creek in Solano County.
Community support of our new hummingbird garden (see article below) will help share the importance of hummingbirds as part of a healthy ecosystem.
May 3: Help us building a new hummingbird garden
We have an exciting new project in the works: a Hummingbird Garden! The new garden will showcase plants that attract hummingbirds and demonstrate ideas home gardeners can use to create habitat for hummingbirds and other wildlife.
The Hummingbird Garden will be a centerpiece of new developments at the west end of the Arboretum, just north of the Arboretum Teaching Nursery. Phase One of the Hummingbird Garden project will include a semi-circular garden bed bordering an events lawn next to the new Veterinary Medicine Student Services and Administration Building (currently under construction). Phase One will be completed in fall 2016 in time for the dedication of the new building. Phase Two of the Hummingbird Garden project will follow with additional garden beds nearby.
The Hummingbird Garden project is made possible through a combination of campus and community support. For the community support side, we’ll be participating in the region-wide Big Day of Giving on Tuesday, May 3; this year our focus is on raising money to support the Hummingbird Garden project. Our goal is to raise $30,000 for the Hummingbird Garden in one day from community donors. You can help by making a gift online on May 3 during Big Day of Giving.
Community donations will be used to fund the garden’s plants and irrigation system and create the plant labels that are a key part of the Hummingbird Garden’s education focus. Community support will also help fund undergraduate student interns working with our expert horticultural staff to design, plant and establish the Hummingbird Garden.
This collaboration of the community, campus and students in creating new projects is a hallmark of the Arboretum and Public Garden’s focus on partnerships both on and beyond campus. Arboretum and Public Garden staff members have been working extensively with the School of Veterinary Medicine to collaboratively co-create the vision for the new learning landscapes at the west end of the Arboretum, including the Hummingbird Garden.
April 23: Arboretum Plant Sale
Spring Focus: LIFE AFTER LAWN
Saturday, April 23, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., Arboretum Teaching Nursery
We know that many homeowners are in the process of figuring out what to plant now that they have no lawn. Take this opportunity to create a low-water landscape that not only looks great, but one that attracts beneficial wildlife with our incredible selection of gorgeous Arboretum All-Stars, California natives, and other great drought-tolerant plants.
Check our website for more information (arboretum.ucdavis.edu). You'll also find our inventory posted a few days before the sale.
Become a member and save! Not a member? Call ahead or join at the door. Members receive 10% off their purchases; new members receive a $10 off coupon as a thank you for joining. (Learn more on our website: arboretum.ucdavis.edu/membership.aspx) Can't make the sale on April 23? We're going to be open to the public from 9 a.m. - 1 p.m. on Saturday, May 14 for our clearance and last sale of the spring season.
Winter Program Highlights
Over at ton of food was donated!
At the end of January, volunteers helped harvest over a ton of vegetables from a campus teaching garden for the Yolo County Food Bank thanks to the tireless efforts of our students. (See next photo.)
Learning by Leading student impact
A ton of food was donated to Yolo Food Bank thanks to the tireless efforts of Learning by Leading co-coordinator Carli Hambley (center), along with recent graduate Hanna Morris (not pictured). Their work laid the groundwork for many more gleaning events like this in the future.
Enlivening our outdoor spaces with art
In February, our Arboretum GATEways Outreach interns hosted an open mic night on Wyatt Deck. Ten talented participants, from a range of artistic backgrounds, performed for a large audience under the stars.
Asian new year event draws record crowds
For this year’s “Storytime Through the Seasons: Climbing the Ginkgo Tree,” our Arboretum Ambassadors invited the public to learn about the nature and culture of Asia.
Asian New Year celebration brings lions to Wyatt Deck
As part of our Arboretum Ambassador's "Storytime through the Season's: Climbing the Ginkgo Tree" event, UC Davis students in the Golden Turtle Lion Dance Association put on a special performance.
Biodiversity Museum Day introduces hundreds from our region to campus museums
Arboretum GATEway Outreach intern Liz Fundora assists attendees at UC Davis’ Biodiversity Museum Day in basic plant identification.
All-ages yoga in the Arboretum
Attendees at the Arboretum GATEways Outreach team’s “Relaxation Day” participated in yoga, guided meditation, and other activities known to decrease stress.
Students gain hand-on experience at Arboretum Teaching Nursery
Christina Elms, Learning by Leading nursery propagation student intern, shows off the tables of plants she has grown in support of our upcoming spring plant sale season.
New volunteers receive training from horticultural experts
Stacey Parker, GATEways horticulturist (plaid shirt), teaches our newest group of volunteer recruits the basics of weed identification.
The Eric E. Conn Acacia Grove glows with gold
Ryan Deering, GATEways Horticulturist (seen right) takes Dr. Eric Conn, namesake of the Eric E. Conn Acacia Grove, on a tour of his eponymous collection. Late February and early March are excellent times to visit this collection and experience these trees at the height of their bloom.
Donor Spotlight: Shirley Maus
Thanks to an endowment created by Shirley Maus — longtime Arboretum supporter and volunteer — you will notice a renewal of our California Foothills Collection.
Shirley’s ancestors resided in the foothills region of California since about the time California became a state in 1850. One side of her family lived north of the Consumnes River in the El Dorado area, the other side came from south of the river in Amador. With that history, it’s easy to understand why Shirley has always taken a particular interest in this collection.
“As a child, I loved visiting my great grandparent’s ranch where there were so many oaks on all the hills,” recalls Maus. “The California Foothills Collection reminds me of my childhood memories in Amador and all the gorgeous black oaks we admired and explored beneath.”
The California Foothills Collection, located between Mrak Hall Drive bridge and the La Rue Road bridge, is where the largest black oak in the Arboretum resides. The collection is also home to several majestic, 200-year-old valley oaks, pines, Ceanothus (California lilac), numerous species of native currants and gooseberries, as well as native grasses used as groundcovers.
This year, funding from the Maus endowment allowed our Learning by Leading students to refresh and restore the collection with new plantings. Next year, it will allow for the creation of a new sign to identify the collection and assist visitors navigating the Arboretum.
Mother of two sons, an active resident at University Retirement Community in Davis, member of the Board of the Friends of the
UC Davis Arboretum and Public Garden and various committees at the Mondavi Center for Performing Arts, Shirley is hard to pin down, but if you do, please thank her for helping reveal this lesser-known, yet iconic collection for generations to come.
About endowments. Endowments are a great way to provide ongoing support for our organization. The principal amount Shirley donated will be kept intact while the investment income is used year-to-year to support different projects. In addition to an endowment for our California Foothills Collection, Shirley and her late husband Ronald have also endowed a creative writing contest in memory of their daughter Pamela. If you would like to learn more about endowments, contact Garth Lindley at glindley@ucdavis.edu or (530) 752-8637.
Phase one of waterway renovations begins this summer
What we call the Arboretum Waterway is actually a large pond that is dammed on both ends. This nutrient-rich pond – home to both our campus’s recycled water and excess stormwater runoff – is loved for its seasonal beauty even in spite of the conditions that sometimes encourage unsightly duckweed and algae growth. To improve the overall aesthetics of this iconic part of our campus environment and combat the rapid growth of both these naturally occurring, water-loving organisms, we need to improve the water’s flow. With that said, we are excited to announce that this summer, phase one of our Waterway improvement project is scheduled to begin!
Phase one, of what we believe will be a total of four phases, begins at the far east end of the Waterway, and ends near Wyatt Deck. In order to create flow in this part of the Waterway, we will introduce small elevation changes via weirs – barriers across water that alter its flow characteristics. Picture a series of large, natural steps with water cascading down; the highest weir in this phase will be installed near the east end of the Waterway. A large pump will recirculate the water from Spafford Lake back to the east end to continue the circulation.
In July, this project kicks off with the creation of a small dam near Wyatt Deck to separate the water in the phase one area from the rest of the Waterway. The aquatic wildlife (turtles, fish, etc.) will be moved to Lake Spafford before the construction starts. Then, the east end will be drained, given time to dry out, and dredged to remove excess sediment. The elevation changes necessary for the weirs to function properly will be engineered, the weirs constructed, the waterway banks strengthened, and then finished with newly planted wetland vegetation.
But wait! There’s more! In conjunction with the Waterway improvements, starting later this summer, we will also be renovating the pathway on the south side of this area to meet ADA requirements and improve its quality. Look for the brick pathway that begins in the Arboretum GATEway Garden to extend all the way to the T. Elliot Weier Redwood Grove.
Both the weirs and new paths are currently scheduled for completion by the end of this calendar year. This phase of the Waterway project is made possible through deferred maintenance funds from campus.
To stay informed about this project and its progress, as well as future phases of the Arboretum’s Waterway improvement project, please be sure you are signed up to receive The Leaflet, the UC Davis Arboretum and Public Garden’s e-newsletter. Visit the Arboretum’s website at arboretum.ucdavis.edu to learn more.