Yelena Tischenko \u2014 June 7, 2016<\/p>\n

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From New Mexico to California and up through Oregon, drought continues to challenge growing conditions. According to the North American Drought Monitor, southern coastal California is considered to have exceptional drought and eastern parts of Oregon are distinguished as moderate to severe drought. How are growers coping?<\/p>\n

\nCalifornia<\/h3>\n

According to the National Centers for Environmental Information (NOAA), the first decade of the 2000s saw extensive drought and extensive moisture. As of May 2016, the U.S. Drought Monitor (USDM) reported that some moderate drought was alleviated in the northern portion of California.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe learned to operate with minimal water,\u201d said Reiner Kruger, Technical Services Coach at Monrovia, located in Azusa. \u201cWe weren\u2019t affected by the drought but we are sensitive to it. Through good fortune, we use efficient sprinklers and a lot of drip irrigation.\u201d<\/p>\n

Replacing plants with xeric native plants or waterwise groundcovers and irrigating properly are two examples of how to get ahead of the curve. Kruger recommends plants that would root deeply and pull more water out of the ground.<\/p>\n

\u201cYucca-type plants and grasses and succulents are great,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Kruger did see a shift in which plants are being purchased by customers.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs we respond to customer needs, we change the plant palette,\u201d he said. \u201cWe\u2019re going in the direction of smaller shrubs and waterwise plants.\u201d<\/p>\n

As for transporting plants across states, there aren\u2019t any noticeable problems.<\/p>\n

\nOregon<\/h3>\n

About 15.1 percent of the United States was classified as experiencing moderate to exceptional drought at the end of March 2016, according to the USDM. The agency also reported that abnormally dry conditions will be introduced over central and northeast Oregon as of early May.<\/p>\n

With drought being moderate to severe in Oregon, Chuck Pavlich, Product Director for Terra Nova Nurseries, explained that some haven\u2019t felt the drought conditions facing the rest of the west. Terra Nova deals with drought conditions differently.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe conserve in our daily lives and we carry this forward to our livelihoods,\u201d Pavlich said. \u201cWe do always make an effort to be efficient in our water usage.\u201d<\/p>\n

Consumers have become much more aware of the drought conditions. Pavlich mentioned that Terra Nova works with the most drought-tolerant species of Echinacea and Agastache that are invaluable in landscapes.<\/p>\n

Does Pavlich see the drought affecting the business one year down the road? Not really.<\/p>\n

He doesn\u2019t foresee noticeable change in the coming year, and the company\u2019s expectations are for wider acceptance and expansion of smaller shrubs and waterwise plants. With plant transportation across states, Terra Nova Nurseries hasn\u2019t noticed any adverse conditions with shipping.<\/p>\n

Thankfully, Pavlich noted that drought-affected areas are just now discovering their native-bred perennials and that the market share of such plants will increase within the next few years.<\/p>\n

Summer of 2016 will really show how much damage last year\u2019s weather has caused, he said. \u201cOregon has been having record high temperatures earlier every year, and the prediction for the near future is more of the same,\u201d Pavlich said. \u201cOregon and Washington are facing longer, drier summers and shorter, more mild and rainy winters.\u201d<\/p>\n

\nSnowpack and El Ni\u00f1o<\/h3>\n

Snow is crucial in the equation of drought. According to a Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) 2014 report, snowpack serves as an important natural storage reservoir since California receives most of its precipitation during the winter months. The same NRDC report claims that snowpack is projected to decline by 25 to 40 percent by 2050.<\/p>\n

Pavlich also noted that Oregon has recovered from the record low snowfall from the winter of 2014 and 2015.<\/p>\n

What does it mean for the western United States?<\/p>\n

The Natural Resources Conservation Service\u2019s report noted that the snow water equivalent was at or above normal for most of the basins in the western United States. Snowpack in the Sierra Mountains was below normal, according to a report from the Congressional Research Service.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe state of California has taken a very proactive direction with an eye toward water,\u201d Kruger said. \u201cThe state is mandating all new construction to have waterwise plants, for example.\u201d<\/p>\n

El Ni\u00f1o also has a significant effect on drought in the West. The effects of the storm are most dramatic in the winter, according to the National Drought Mitigation Center. The storm brings a warm winter in the northwestern regions of the United States.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was predicted to be an El Ni\u00f1o year and it has rained a little more than the last four years, but that\u2019s not enough to break the drought,\u201d Kruger said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt has increased the awareness of water and water supplies,\u201d he continued. \u201cThere\u2019s also a larger awareness of snowpack and mountains.\u201d<\/p>\n

However, with El Ni\u00f1o falling short this year in ending California\u2019s drought, residents must still keep conserving water as they have been.<\/p>\n

\u201cA lot of times people don\u2019t know what\u2019s going to happen,\u201d Kruger said. \u201cYou can\u2019t see the storm coming in California compared to other states. Out here, it can be a complete surprise. We\u2019ve gone through several droughts and we\u2019ve learned from it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more: The beauty of waterwise plants<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Yelena Tischenko \u2014 June 7, 2016 From New Mexico to California and up through Oregon, drought continues to challenge growing conditions. According to the North American Drought Monitor, southern coastal California is considered to have exceptional drought and eastern parts of Oregon are distinguished as moderate to severe drought. How are growers coping? California According […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-815","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-nursery"],"yoast_head":"\n