Tom's Garden

MY CLIMATE ZONE. Tom's Garden focuses on information specific to my region, a Mediterranean climate that is about USDA Zone 9B, or, more narrowly, Sunset Zone 16, a region identified in the Bay Area with the Berkeley hills (although I'm half-way up a south-facing slope in less fashionable nearby El Sobrante).
    Around the Mediterranean Sea the climate is characterized by mild, rainy winters and dry summers. The same pattern is found in mainly four other regions: Northern coastal California, central coastal Chile, the West Cape Province of South Africa, and western and southern Australia. All of these regions lie between the lattitudes of 30° and 45°. All of these regions are known for wine and fruit.
    According to Sunset, "Zone 16 is considered by many to be one of the finest gardening climates in California. It includes thermal belts, which means it gets more heat than areas right next to the coast (Zone 17), but warmer winters than those in Zone 15. It can grow more subtropicals than 15 with less danger of winter frost. It includes areas around the greater San Francisco Bay Area, and portions near the coast south to Santa Maria."
    For more, see my survey of the ecological biomes of the San Francisco Bay Area at my companion site, Frisco Vista.

ON THE SEASONS AND THE CALENDAR. Click here for some thoughts about seasonality, from my Book of Days.

PHOTOGRAPHY. I will use only my own photography. The image at left is a photo taken March 2006 of a few things I had started in clay pots.

THE PLANT FILES. Plant images are mostly optimized to 225 pixels wide. I only have a few pages up so far::


			Gardening in the San Francisco Bay Area

	home search xensen divert latest publish scribble cultura vision verdant meta contact		MY CLIMATE ZONE. Tom's Garden focuses on information specific to my region, a Mediterranean climate that is about USDA Zone 9B, or, more narrowly, Sunset Zone 16, a region identified in the Bay Area with the Berkeley hills (although I'm half-way up a south-facing slope in less fashionable nearby El Sobrante). Around the Mediterranean Sea the climate is characterized by mild, rainy winters and dry summers. The same pattern is found in mainly four other regions: Northern coastal California, central coastal Chile, the West Cape Province of South Africa, and western and southern Australia. All of these regions lie between the lattitudes of 30° and 45°. All of these regions are known for wine and fruit. According to Sunset, "Zone 16 is considered by many to be one of the finest gardening climates in California. It includes thermal belts, which means it gets more heat than areas right next to the coast (Zone 17), but warmer winters than those in Zone 15. It can grow more subtropicals than 15 with less danger of winter frost. It includes areas around the greater San Francisco Bay Area, and portions near the coast south to Santa Maria." For more, see my survey of the ecological biomes of the San Francisco Bay Area at my companion site, Frisco Vista. ON THE SEASONS AND THE CALENDAR. Click here for some thoughts about seasonality, from my Book of Days. PHOTOGRAPHY. I will use only my own photography. The image at left is a photo taken March 2006 of a few things I had started in clay pots. THE PLANT FILES. Plant images are mostly optimized to 225 pixels wide. I only have a few pages up so far:: Pieris japonica (Lily of the Valley Shrub) Trachelospermum jasminoides (Star Jasmine) Viola etain GENERAL Photo of my seed germinating station and of my potting tables Granny Smith apples Keeping cats out of the garden RELATED Bouquets to Art Conservatory of Flowers Japanese garden, Portland Oregon
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