Green Wednesday: Exploring the Petrified Forest and Growing Figs
By Cindy Watter, U.C. Master Gardeners of Napa County / Kathleen Scavone, Environmental Contributor
Green Wednesday: Gardening and Ecological Insights
Every Wednesday Napa Valley Features brings you Green Wednesday, featuring articles from environmental voices and the UC Master Gardeners of Napa County. These contributors share research-based horticultural advice, insights on sustainability, ecology and climate topics relevant to our region.
Summary of Today’s Stories
In "Have Fun With Figs," Cindy Watter explains how to grow, propagate and care for fig trees in Napa County, from planting techniques to managing pests and pruning decisions.
“Figs are fun.” — Cindy Watter
In "A Walk in the Inimitable Petrified Forest," Kathleen Scavone explores the geologic and ecological wonders of Calistoga’s Petrified Forest, which is currently for sale, reflecting on its volcanic origins, rich biodiversity and hopes for future stewardship.
“Each season shows off in its own way.” — Kathleen Scavone
A Walk in the Inimitable Petrified Forest
By Kathleen Scavone
NAPA VALLEY, Calif. — Stepping into the beauty of a wholly unique forest that has been family owned and operated since 1914 is a treat. The Petrified Forest, located in Calistoga at 4100 Petrified Forest Road, provides visitors with examples of a Pliocene redwood forest turned to stone. Here in these woods history speaks to us across time, thanks to Charley Evans, aka Petrified Charley, who unearthed the behemoths in 1871 for all to enjoy.
Majestic valley oaks, sometimes called white oaks, are sentinels at the entrance to the park, shading a historic building and its notable gift shop. That shop holds a treasure-trove of sparkling specimens of the forest's petrified wood, gems and minerals from around the world, nature books and more. I was there to drop off some of my stoneware pottery jars with petrified wood handles that owner Barbara Angell had purchased for the gift shop. Angell and her sister and co-owner, Janet, who has now passed, have purchased my pottery, books and photo note cards for years. As we have written about in Napa Valley Features previously, the forest is up for sale, and Angell hopes the forest will end up in the hands of stewards who will continue to care for the lands and allow walks and tours here.
It felt as though I had the 500-acre property to myself, but occasionally I met others along the trails who were also enjoying the quiet, cool woodlands and their offerings of nature's textures — mosses, lichens and thick grasses along with views of undulating hills and valleys. I stood still to listen to the songs of the woods. I couldn't identify the first bird's song, but I soon recognized the calls of crows, Stellar's jays, and also noted a symphony of light breezes in the treetops. The main trail is a half-mile loop that shows off the attention-grabbing petrified trees with interpretive panels that address the petrification process and the discovery of the forest in the 1800s.
Another equally short trail called the Meadow Trail takes you through the madrone, manzanita, Douglas fir and other flora along sometimes sparkling walkways. Known as tuff deposits, the formations throughout the land here formed as rhyolite ash erupted from a nearby volcano quite violently. Then lava, gas and steam prevailed. Soon enormous clouds of volcanic ash, scoria and pumice formed. When lighter material showered down, it buried the trees while the red-hot and heavier material melted and stuck together to form tuff deposits or ash falls.
I meandered slowly and was rewarded with views of some sparkling specimens of petrified wood called druzy that contains crystals. Druzy petrified wood is created when the wood has been buried for years and fills with quartz crystals. The giant petrified tree specimens along the trail have to be seen to be believed. The Giant, for example, is a 60-foot-long petrified redwood tree that has been determined to have been around 2,000 years old at the time of the geologic processes of around 3 million years ago. Another tree called Queen of the Forest has an 8-foot diameter and is an astounding 65 feet long.
Sweet, small juncos dot the forest near some of the clearings. These small, dark-headed birds busily ignored me, allowing me to spy on their busy morning of foraging in the forest. Juncos consume fruit, insects, spiders and seeds. While they usually feed near shrubs, they sometimes fly after insects. Other birds I encountered or heard along the trails were scrub jays, California quail, acorn woodpeckers, turkey vultures and more.
A juvenile lizard posed on a rotting log, his weblike toes gripping the wood while he surveyed his surroundings. He was colored lighter than most western fence lizards, so I asked Angell and one of her assistants, Merridith McBride, about the flora and fauna of the Petrified Forest. It turns out that the amount of flora and fauna here is staggering. They have produced guide book after guide book and lists of the diverse plants and animals. They post their new discoveries for everyone to see on Instagram and Facebook.
Each season shows off in its own way. Fall at the Petrified Forest is gearing up with decorative Douglas fir tree pinecones all along their boughs, while acorns and galls ornament a variety of oak species. Red-hued poison oak joins in with its festive color that shouts, “Stop! Don't touch!” A plethora of wildflowers in springtime is accompanied by animal encounters all across the seasons. Here in this wild world it is possible to see western gray squirrels, striped skunks, rough-skinned newts, ring-necked snakes, coyotes, gray foxes and even the occasional mountain lion, black bear and bobcat.
In this ancient California landscape your imagination will run wild while you view 3-million-year-old fossil trees that were blasted across the forest due to a massive volcanic eruption. Here is where they once lay buried in ash, becoming fossilized as the wood's minerals soaked in the ash and were swapped for stone. Here is where Robert Louis Stevenson explored and then wrote about his Napa Valley visit in his book “The Silverado Squatters.” American botanist and horticulturist Luther Burbank (1849-1926) enjoyed studying the plants and took part in the dedication of a significant piece of petrified wood from the forest in New York's Central Park. Come to where the scenery soothes and allows you to breathe deep of a storied past.
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Kathleen Scavone, M.A., retired educator, is a potter, freelance writer and author of “Anderson Marsh State Historic Park: A Walking History, Prehistory, Flora and Fauna Tour of a California State Park,” "People of the Water" and “Native Americans of Lake County.” She loves hiking, travel, photography and creating her single panel cartoon, “Rupert.”
Have Fun With Figs
By Cindy Watter, UC Master Gardener of Napa County
NAPA VALLEY, Calif. — When I first moved to Napa many years ago, I was surprised by the abundance of fig trees. My next-door neighbors had two. The house across the street had one. My house had one. I was told that we have lots of figs in Napa because many Italian immigrants settled here. The first thing Italians would do when they bought a home would be to plant a fig tree — and a few rows of grapes, too.
The fig (Ficus carica) is an ancient plant, even older than grapes and olives. It is native to the Mediterranean area and was brought to California in 1769 when the Spanish were establishing the missions. The most popular variety in California is the dark purple Mission fig, followed by the pale green Kadota. The many varieties of figs are grouped into four types — common, Smyrna, San Pedro and caprifig. Most figs we see in Napa are common figs, which do not require pollination.
We consider the fig a fruit, but it is really a modified stem that forms a case for hundreds of tiny flowers, which you can see when you cut the fig open. The “common” variety of fig does not require pollination, unlike the other types. It is easy to propagate and, once established, will produce figs for decades.
Plant your fig tree in full sun. In my neighborhood — downtown Napa — you can plant them in the fall, but if you live in parts of the county that get colder in winter, wait until early spring. Dig a hole somewhat deeper and wider than the root ball. Add compost to the hole, add the tree and fill with soil. If it’s a bare-root tree, soak it in water for a day before planting so you can spread the roots out in the planting hole.
Fig tree roots can grow quite long. I had a volunteer fig appear in a half-barrel of blueberry bushes, and its roots split the barrel and nearly choked the blueberries.
Give your new fig tree a good watering. You can fertilize it a few times during the growing season, using a balanced fertilizer. Do not apply a lot of nitrogen unless you want a heavy leaf canopy and fewer figs.
You can top-dress the area around the tree with compost and put mulch on top of that to keep the soil from drying out. Once the tree is established, water it every two weeks during the growing season. Overwatering results in figs that are less sweet because the sugar is diluted.
Figs are easy to propagate. Cut off a dormant, hard branch about 8 inches long below at least two nodes. Use a sharp knife to lightly score the bottom of the branch, cutting just through the thin bark to the cambium. This scoring encourages root formation.
Dip the bottom end into rooting hormone and put it in a pot filled with damp potting medium. Place a plastic bag with a few holes over the branch and place a rubber band around the bag to secure it to the pot. Place in a sunny location. The goal is to keep the soil moist so roots form.
I know people who have successfully rooted a fig branch in a canning jar filled with water, but you risk root rot. When the branch feels rooted or is putting forth leaves, you can plant it in the ground or in a large pot or half-barrel.
Figs are fun. You can weave stems together in a braid when they are young and flexible and create an ornamental plant. My fig “self-espaliered” when the hawthorn next to it grew enormous and shaded it. The fig stretched out for sun and now looks eccentric but produces lots of figs.
Regarding pruning, opinion is divided. Some people believe in regular pruning, and they have handsome ornamental fig trees. Others leave their fig trees alone and have a rustic, original ornament for their garden.
If you are going to prune your fig for shape, do it early in the spring and wear gloves because fig sap can irritate your skin. Take a good look at a fig tree that hasn’t been pruned in a long time. My neighbor’s fig tree was enormous, and its limbs were heavy. It hadn’t ever been pruned. It split down the middle during a storm, and a beautiful landscape tree was lost.
Figs don’t attract many pests unless you consider birds and rodents pests. The neighbor’s cats keep the rats down, and my dog chases off possums and racoons. I imagine the critters still get a few figs, but I have plenty.
Thankfully, I have not been visited by the scourge of Napa County: gophers. If you do have problems with pests, go to this website and you will find solutions.
In most parts of the country, figs are a luxury crop. With their thin skins they don’t travel well, and they really are best fresh off the tree. Pick them when they begin to droop on the branch. They will not ripen after being harvested.
A century ago, my West Virginia great-grandfather traveled the country on business, and his favorite place to stay was the St. Francis Hotel in San Francisco. He said it was the only place he could get his favorite breakfast — figs in cream. We are fortunate to live in a place where we can grow so many delicacies.
Events
Library Talk: Join UC Master Gardeners of Napa County for a free talk on “Invasive Species: Your Knowledge Is Your Key to Control” on Thursday, Oct. 2, from 7 to 8 p.m. via Zoom. Invasive species can be insects, plants, animals or pathogens. Learn how to keep invasive species from ruining your garden and California’s wildlife and native-plant communities. Register to receive the Zoom link.
Workshop: Join UC Master Gardeners for a workshop on “Catch the Rain: Slow It, Spread It, Sink It” on Saturday, October 4, from 10 am to noon, at Yountville Community Center, 6516 Washington Street, Yountville. Explore many strategies to catch rain at home and adapt to the climate’s natural rhythms. Register on the Yountville Community Center website; scroll down to Events and UC Master Gardeners for registration.
Tree Walk: Take a guided walk through Napa’s historic Fuller Park on Sunday, Oct. 12, from 10 to 11:30 a.m. with a UC Master Gardener docent. Discover some of the many exotic and native trees there and learn some park history. Meet at the corner of Oak and Jefferson streets. The walk is free, but registration is required for each participant.
Help Desk: The Master Gardener Help Desk is available to answer your garden questions on Mondays and Fridays from 10 a.m. until 1 p.m. at the University of California Cooperative Extension Office, 1710 Soscol Ave., Suite 4, Napa. Or send your questions to mastergardeners@countyofnapa.org. Include your name, address, phone number and a brief description of the problem. For best results attach a photo.
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Cindy Watter is a UC Master Gardener of Napa County.
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O, the sweet figs!