Fall is the Time to Plant!

The fall season, with its shorter days and cooler weather, is the best time of year to plant. In the fall and winter, the soil is moist, weeds are not as prolific and cooler temperatures put less stress on new plants.

As you plan your landscape, consider creating a climate-ready landscape that is more environmentally friendly, uses less water, requires less maintenance, generates less yard waste, reduces water run-off, improves wildlife habitat, includes trees and fosters healthy soils.

Here’s some tips to consider:

• Add compost to your soil to improve soil health and productivity.
• Add an organic mulch (like bark or wood chips) to conserve water by reducing moisture evaporation from the soil. Mulch can also reduce weeds, prevent soil compaction and keep soil temperatures moderate to protect growing plants.
• Harvest rainwater to reduce stormwater runoff and keep water onsite for general gardening uses.
• Consider using water from your washing machine to supplement your irrigation needs.
• Choose the right plants for the right place and watch them grow!
• Select climate-ready trees that can be successful in a hotter, drier climate.

More information on climate-ready landscaping

Keeping Rainwater Onsite

When planting this fall or when refreshing your landscaping, make sure your plans include keeping rainwater onsite to protect stormwater quality.

Stormwater is the water that runs off roofs and hardscapes when it rains. While some landscaping practices tend to direct water off properties and into the street, sustainable landscaping practices aim at retaining as much of that water onsite as possible.

Keep rainwater onsite:

• Redirect downspouts to landscape areas so that rainwater can infiltrate into the soil.
• Consider using rain barrels to capture rainwater for later use.
• Incorporate rain gardens, dry creek beds or vegetated or rocky swales into your landscape rather than using pipes to carry rainwater from gutters directly to the street.
• Add permeable pavement that, unlike concrete or asphalt, allows water to percolate through and soak into the ground.
• Place borders around your front yard landscape to prevent wind and water from washing away soil and mulch into the street and down a stormdrain.

More information on protecting stormwater quality and keeping rainwater onsite.

Free Compost Available at the Yolo County Landfill

Free compost is available at the Yolo County Landfill until October 31, 2025, (perfect for fall planting!). You will need to bring your own shovel and proof of Yolo County residency. The landfill is open Mon.-Sat. from 6:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sun. from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. This program is not available to businesses or professional landscapers. For more information, contact the Yolo County Landfill.

Let's Talk About Cardboard

If you have large cardboard boxes, please don't place them in the trash or even in the recycling cart! Large cardboard boxes that do not easily fit into the recycling cart are collected separately for recycling (but only if they are prepared properly!):

1. Remove all packing material, and make sure your boxes are completely empty.
2. Flatten the cardboard boxes.
3. Place the flattened boxes on the ground next to your recycling cart for pick-up. Please do not wedge them upright in between your trash, recycling or organics carts, as this makes it difficult for Recology to empty your carts.

Recology Davis will collect properly placed cardboard boxes on your collection day. Cardboard will not be collected if it's filled with packing material - even if it's paper. Paper packing materials should be recycled with other papers and not with cardboard.

We created a short video to show how easy it is to recycle cardboard, check it out: https://youtu.be/VzP18N97I5A

For more information on waste reduction and recycling, visit: DavisRecycling.org

Wildlife Spotlight: Northwestern Pond Turtle

If you find yourself walking near permanent water bodies in and around Davis (ex. the Northstar Park Pond and UC Davis Arboretum), you might be lucky enough to see one of California’s few native freshwater turtles, the Northwestern Pond Turtle (Actinemys marmorata). This turtle is moderately sized reaching up to 9.5 inches long. They are dark brown to olive in color and have light yellow markings throughout their shells. Their heads have yellowish streaking or spotting that has a uniform and mottled appearance. A more common turtle at these sites is the non-native and invasive Red-eared Slider. The sliders are slightly larger than western pond turtles and have a tell-tale red stripe behind the eye.

The northwestern pond turtle is semi aquatic, spending most of its day in or close to water. They are opportunistic omnivores and will eat just about anything they can fit into their mouths, but they prefer aquatic vegetation and aquatic invertebrates like tadpoles and leeches. Typically from May to August, females will seek nesting sites in adjacent upland areas, digging out a nest and laying up to 13 eggs. Depending on air temperatures, the nestlings hatch out in about 90 to 130 days, sometimes overwintering in the nest burrow after hatching to emerge in the spring.

Northwestern pond turtles are protected as a Species of Special Concern in California and are a Candidate Species for listing under the Federal Endangered Species Act. Habitat loss and invasive species such as the red-eared slider and American bullfrog are the primary reasons for their decline. Efforts to restore aquatic habitat and control invasive species helps support northwestern pond turtles.

More information about Northwestern Pond turtles

California Coast and Creek Clean-Up Day

California’s annual coastal cleanup day will be Saturday, September 20 from 9 a.m. to noon. Every year, on the third Saturday in September, people join together at sites all over California to take part in the state's largest volunteer event. Since the event is part of the International Coastal Cleanup, organized by the Ocean Conservancy, it is the largest volunteer event on the planet!

You can participate here in Davis! The City of Davis will oversee clean-up sites at the West Area Pond, the Julie Partansky Pond and the Putah Creek Channel (from Drummond to Mace). Wear long pants, closed-toe sturdy shoes, lightweight gloves, a hat and sunscreen. Bring a full, refillable water bottle (additional water will be available). If you have one, bring a bucket or reusable bag for trash (additional bags and buckets will be available). For additional information at each site location, please visit www.coastalcleanupday.org.