Seasonal gardening Tips: making the most of monsoons

Planting. Without question, monsoon season — early July through mid to late September — is the best time to plant in Flagstaff. The rains supplement your watering, and the humidity greatly reduces the stress on your new plants. It’s also an ideal time for sowing grass. Mulch new seed beds well to avoid puddling and runoff. Grass plugs establish themselves easily during monsoons and do better in small areas on slopes where runoff will be a problem.

Weeding. Moist soils make weeding easier and better. It’s the best time to remove weeds that haven’t yet one to seed. Manual removal is always best for smaller areas. If you need to till or mow large areas, seed them with native grasses; over time, these grasses can compete with, and displace, many weeds.

Drainage. Does your landscape retain the water delivered from monsoon? If you haven’t had the opportunity to evaluate your place do so now. Does water accumulate in areas where plants cannot benefit? Are there opportunities to capture water with some regrading before next monsoon?

Microclimates. During this season, visit some of the canyons that surround Flagstaff. Pumphouse Wash, Walnut Canyon, Oak Creek, and East Clear Creek are good examples. The beauty of the native plant communities in these canyons is striking. Urban areas provide “pseudo canyons” between buildings that you can landscape with the local canyon plant community if these areas are not sheltered from the monsoon rains.

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