Even with all of the rain we received late last week, the moisture near the surface of the soil is rapidly drying out, but it’s still soft enough to go after those tough weeds like the pernicious grasses with thick fibrous roots that have been growing dangerously close that golden barrel, or the palo verde and mesquite seedlings from last year that are all but impossible to remove unless the ground is saturated—even then, they’re buggers to pull out.

I have great method for tackling these woody weeds while you still can, but first, I need to set it up with a story.

Togas

It is not widely known, but back in the olden days, when Arboretum staff wore togas of animal skins rather than monogrammed shirts in a plethora of trendy colors, none of the plants on the grounds were formally mapped. [Read more…]