Plant Propagation,
February 2025

Germinating California snowdrop bush seeds. M.A. McCrary.
Some germinating California snowdrop bush, Styrax redivivus, seeds. Photo taken January 28, 2025, by MaryAnn McCrary.

Come kick off your Super Bowl Sunday celebrations by joining us for a morning plant propagation session: 10 AM, Sunday, February 9, 2025, in the Shasta College Nursery Area. We will be working with shrub cuttings, and finish up well before the game begins. No experience is needed; we are happy to teach! And we will provide clean gloves for you. Be sure to dress for the weather in case we are working outdoors! Please email us at shastacnps@gmail.com to let us know you are coming—we look forward to seeing you!

As you may know, funds raised through plant sales support scholarships for students going into in fields related to botany.  Thanks to everyone for your help and support! ~Susan Libonati-Barnes

Here are a few photos of some of our nursery’s newest and most tender recruits. All photos taken by MaryAnn McCrary.

Valley oak acorns germinating. M.A. McCrary.
And they’re off to the races! Getting that root down 3 feet deep by the end of the rainy season. These are valley oak Quercus lobata, acorns, oriented approximately as a scrub jay would tap them into the leaf litter and the top inch or so of soil. Oaks have been here millions of years and are likely survivors of climate change. Making a positive effect on the future may simply be a matter of planting native oaks now.
Photo taken January 28, 2025.
Brewer's oak acorns germinating. M.A. McCrary.
Some germinating Brewer’s oak, Quercus garryana var. breweri acorns. Photo taken January 28, 2025.
Rooted Lemmon's ceanothus cutting. M.A. McCrary.
A rooted Lemmon’s ceanothus, Ceanothus lemmonii, cutting, after 2.5 months of making sure that they did not dry out too much or freeze. Photo taken January 25, 2025.