Mountain Views News          Saturday, March 7, 2015

SIERRA MADRE WISTARIA FESTIVAL

SUNDAY - MARCH 15, 2015 

Section B

SATURDAY, MARCH 7, 2015

 


AROUND SAN GABRIEL VALLEY

WATER WISELY FOR A BEAUTIFUL 

GARDEN AND LANDSCAPE By Melinda Myers

HILLSIDES UNCORKED! RAISES 

MORE THAN $580,000 FOR 

PASADENA-HEADQUARTERED CHARITY

 Too much or not enough water and never when 
you need it. That seems to be the long time plight 
of gardeners. Add to this extended droughts, 
flooding and watering bans. What is a gardener to 
do? Become a water-wise gardener.

 Water wise is not just about growing drought 
tolerant plants or eliminating plantings. It is a 
holistic approach to managing water to avoid 
flooding that overwhelms sewer systems, improper 
watering that wastes water, and poor landscape 
designs that generate too much work and require 
too many resources.

 Make this the season that you incorporate a few 
waterwise habits into your gardening. You’ll find 
it is good for your garden, the environment and 
your pocketbook. Start with one or more of these 
strategies this year.

- Select the right plant for the growing conditions. 
Plants that thrive in normal growing conditions 
for your area will be healthier, require less care and 
need less water. Look for drought tolerant plants 
that require less water once established.

- Keep water out of the storm sewers and in the 
garden instead. Prevent flooding while improving 
your garden. Adding several inches of compost 
to the top 8 to 12 inches of soil increases the soil’s 
ability to absorb and retain water. This means less 
runoff into the storm sewers and less frequent 
watering.

- Use plants to prevent runoff and conserve water. 
Plant trees, shrubs, and groundcovers to slow the 
flow of rainwater, increase the amount of water 
that stays in your landscape for your plants, and to 
filter water before it enters the groundwater. Install 
one or more rain gardens to intercept surface 
water runoff for use by rain garden plants and to 
help recharge the groundwater.

- Provide plants with a healthy diet. Use a slow 
release non-leaching organic nitrogen fertilizer 
like Milorganite (milorganite.com). You’ll 
encourage slow steady growth, so your plants will 
require less water and be less prone to insect and 
disease problems. Plus, the slow release nitrogen 
encourages healthy growth and does not prevent 
flowering and fruiting.

- Water wisely. Water plants thoroughly and only 
when needed. Water the soil, not the plant, using a 
watering wand, drip irrigation or a soaker hose so 
less water is lost to evaporation. Water early in the 
morning whenever possible to reduce water loss 
during the heat of the day and diseases caused by 
wet foliage at night.

- Manage your lawns to reduce water use. Select 
drought tolerant grass varieties to reduce watering 
needs. Prepare the soil before seeding or sodding 
or aerate and spread a thin layer of compost over 
existing lawns to increase water absorption and 
reduce runoff. Mow high to encourage deep roots 
that are more drought tolerant and pest resistant. 
Allow lawns to go dormant during hot dry weather. 
If irrigating, water thoroughly when needed, that’s 
when your footprints remain in the lawn.

- Conserve water and reduce time and money 
spent on plant care. Mulch the soil around trees, 
shrubs and other plants with several inches of 
woodchips, shredded leaves, evergreen needles or 
other organic material. Mulching reduces watering 
frequency, prevents soil compaction from heavy 
rainfall thus increasing water absorption. It also 
adds organic matter to the soil as it decomposes.

- Repair leaking faucets, fittings and garden hoses. 
A slow leak of one drip per second can waste up to 
nine gallons of water per day. 

- Look for and use wasted water. Collect the 
“warming water” typically wasted when preparing 
baths and showers. Use a five-gallon bucket 
to collect this fresh water and use it for your 
containers and gardens. Collect water from your 
dehumidifier and window air conditioners for 
use on flowering plants. Do not, however, use this 
water if environmentally harmful solvents have 
been used to clean this equipment.

- Check with your local municipality if you are 
considering using gray water. Once you wash 
clothes, dishes or yourself, water is classed as gray 
water and most municipalities have guidelines or 
regulations related to its use.

- Harvest rainwater if your municipality allows. 
The ancient technique of capturing rainwater in 
jugs, barrels and cisterns has made a comeback. 
Collecting rain when it is plentiful and storing it 
until it is needed is one way to manage water for 
the landscape. But first check local regulations 
before installing a rain harvesting system. Several 
states have banned rain harvesting, while others 
offer rebates or rain barrels at a discount to 
gardeners. 

Gardening expert, TV/radio host, author & 
columnist Melinda Myers has more than 30 years 
of horticulture experience and has written over 
20 gardening books, including Can’t Miss Small 
Space Gardening and the Midwest Gardener’s 
Handbook. She hosts The Great Courses “How to 
Grow Anything” DVD series and the nationally 
syndicated Melinda’s Garden Moment segments. 
Myers is also a columnist and contributing editor 
for Birds & Blooms magazine. Myers’ web site, 
www.melindamyers.com, offers gardening videos 
and tips. 

Left to right: Robert Simon, Deborah Simon, Fritz Coleman, Susan Pinsky, and Dr. Drew Pinsky. Robert 
and Deborah were co-chairs of the gala, Fritz Coleman, NBC4 weathercaster, was the live auction emcee, 
Susan Pinsky was last year’s gala chair, and her husband Dr. Drew is a long-time Hillsides supporter. 

(Pasadena, CA) Hillsides, a premier provider 
dedicated to improving the overall well-being and 
functioning of vulnerable children, youth, and 
families, raised an estimate of more than $580,000 
from its annual gala, Hillsides Uncorked!, held 
Saturday night, February 28, at The Langham 
Huntington, Pasadena. More proceeds are still 
coming in so the amount may go higher. A sold-
out crowd of 425 enjoyed an evening devoted to 
fine wine and food that included a live auction 
hosted by NBC4 weathercaster Fritz Coleman, a 
moving speech by a former Hillsides resident, and 
dancing.

 Part of the funds raised were from a paddle 
auction for the agency’s $12 million capital 
campaign to improve its Pasadena campus that 
raised more than $87,500. This amount was 
doubled due to matching funds for a total of more 
than $175,000. Paddle auction amounts are still 
coming in, so this amount may go higher as well. 

“We are thrilled by the success of Hillsides 
Uncorked! and I would like to thank all of those 
people involved who helped make it so successful,” 
said Joseph M. Costa, Hillsides chief executive 
officer. “This is our biggest fundraiser of the year, 
and the funds raised will go a long way to create 
lasting change in the lives of the almost 9,000 
children and families that Hillsides serves.”

 The gala was co-hosted by local restaurateurs 
Robert and Deborah Simon, owners of Pasadena 
restaurants Bistro 45 and a/k/a Bistro. They 
collaborated with The Langham executive chef 
Denis Depoitre to create a delicious menu of fresh 
and sustainable organic meats, produce, and 
seafood.

 Guests were greeted with a signature cocktail 
of ginger beer and Selvarey White called “The 
Dancing Juice,” a cornucopia of artisan cheeses, 
crudités, dried fruit, and nuts, and a seafood 
station as well as several passed appetizers. Dinner 
was heirloom tomatoes and sliced burrata, grilled 
organic asparagus with garlic aioli, slow braised all 
natural beef short ribs, celery apple puree, Brussels 
Sprouts with tarragon, oven baked spaghetti 
squash, and a Pinot Noir reduction. A selection of 
desserts were served family-style, and in addition 
guests were offered a donut station with chocolate 
and caramel dipping sauces.

 One highlight of the evening was a speech by 
former Hillsides resident Briana Elliott, who lived 
at Hillsides residential treatment program from 
2003-2005. Elliott spoke about a traumatic past 
filled with multiple foster care placements when at 
the age of 13, she came to live at Hillsides. “When 
I got to Hillsides, I was refreshed with the friendly 
staff that were real and loving from day one,” 
she said. “Hillsides brought back hope, trust and 
compassion for the world around me.” She also 
thanked the volunteers and donors in the room, 
concluding, “You are all such beautiful, kind 
people.”

 The live auction emceed by NBC weathercaster 
Fritz Coleman was another high point of the 
evening. Under Coleman’s comedic banter, guests 
bid on 10 spectacular packages. One – a week-long 
stay at a Deer Valley mansion that accommodates 
up to 18 guests – was so spectacular that it was 
auctioned off twice. Lucky winners also took 
home an oval tanzanite pendant set in white gold 
with diamonds and a pink sapphire created by 
Barbara Poer Designs, a cocktail party for 20 in 
the rose garden at the Maarse estate, a week stay 
in a penthouse condo in New York City, a signed 
guitar by Nancy Wilson of the rock band Heart, 
and two front row seats to the Elton John “The 
Million Dollar Piano” show in Las Vegas with 
accommodations and dinner for two, among other 
live auction packages.

 Sponsors of the gala included Los Angeles 
County Supervisor Michael D. Antonovich, Avery 
Dennison, Bolton & Company, Don and Sally 
Clark, Beth Gertmenian, Linda and Stephen Gill, 
The Havner Family Foundation, Jacob Maarse 
Florists - Mrs. Jacob Maarse and Hank Maarse, 
Kaiser Permanente, Brent and Leah Mason, 
Nordstrom, Paul Rusnak/Rusnak Auto Group, 
Sherm and Marge Telleen, Swanton Family 
Foundation, The Walt Disney Company, and 
Western Asset Management. 

 Tickets to the event were $300 per person. The 
Langham Huntington, Pasadena is located at 401 
South Oak Knoll Avenue, Pasadena, CA 91106. 

 Hillsides provides high quality care, advocacy 
and innovative services that promote safe, 
permanent environments where young people 
can thrive. Hillsides has locations in 19 Southern 
California sites, ranging from the Hollywood Hills 
to Echo Park to Baldwin Park to Pomona. For 
more information on Hillsides, please visit www.
hillsides.org.

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FOOTHILL AREA WATER USE DECREASES IN JANUARY

Water use in the Foothill Municipal Water District 
service area has decreased by 37 percent since 
January 2007 – a year that reflects the highest 
demands in the last decade for the District. 
Demand fluctuations over the years demonstrate 
the sensitive response of the FMWD service area 
to dramatic variations in weather. However, the 
water demand trend for Foothill residents during 
this period reflects an overall decrease in water 
usage.

 This reduction in local area water use continues 
to show the large strides area residents are 
making in conservation in what experts have now 
identified as a fourth year of drought.

 “We are thankful to our customers for 
understanding the gravity of the situation and 
taking actions to reduce water use,” said General 
Manager Nina Jazmadarian.

 Continued local area decreases in water 
consumption reflect a statewide trend of growing 
concern about the adequacy of water storage and 
supply. On February 26, 2015, The Field Poll, an 
independent and non-partisan survey of public 
opinion, released results that nearly 94% of all 
California voters felt the state is currently faced 
with a “serious” drought.

 “Nearly all California voters agree that we are 
up against a serious drought,” stated FMWD 
Board President and Metropolitan Water District 
of Southern California Director Richard Atwater. 
“Residents in the FMWD service area rely on 
both imported water and local water to meet their 
needs. Both sources of water supply are being 
impacted as statewide allocation of imported 
water remains low and local groundwater levels 
continue to decline.”

 FMWD officials maintain that nearly 70% 
of water use in the area goes toward outdoor 
irrigation. One incentive that FMWD offers to 
assist residents in conserving water is the turf 
removal rebate. Residents are eligible for $2 per 
square foot of turf removed and are encouraged 
to visit www.bewaterwise.com to learn more. 
Residents and businesses must register and 
prequalify for rebates prior to starting any work.

 Foothill Municipal Water District provides 
imported water to Crescenta Valley Water 
District, La Cañada Irrigation District, Mesa 
Crest Water Company, Valley Water Company, 
Lincoln Avenue Water Company, Las Flores 
Water Company and Rubio Cañon Land & 
Water Association. Kinneloa Irrigation District, 
another retail agency, takes no water from 
Foothill.