No matter where you live and regardless of the weather in your area, your property and gardens will have their own specific microclimate which is created because of several different local factors. Among many influences, these factors include the direction your property sits, it's protection from wind, how sunny or shady the property is, and how much slope there is. Planning your landscape with microclimates in mind could be an important element in how successful your landscaping or garden turns out to be.

A structure or building placed on your lot can cause a number of different effects on the microclimate. All your landscaping plans could easily be effected by just one placement. A house can create a windbreak that alters the flow of air around it. Different areas on either side of the house will be cooler or warmer than others. There will also be shady spots in different places around the building at different times of the day. Walls and fences both have an effect on a property just the same as natural elements like trees and hedges.

Local temperature changes depend a lot on the composition of the ground surface. Some surfaces get so hot that you cannot walk on them in warmer summer months and the heat is also felt in the air above. A concrete surface, by contrast, keeps cooler. All landscaping designs will be effected differently by different elements. Turf grass is always cool. However, the temperature of the soil under the grass is influenced by how long the grass is growing over it. You can use such temperature changes to help you grow warmth-loving plants – for example, semi-tropical plants grow well in front of a brick wall, or you can espalier fruit trees against a wall facing the sun if you live in a cool area. Exposed surfaces that heat up in the daytime will transfer the heat back out throughout the night. This effect can help protect some susceptible areas from frost damage.

To help reduce wind in any landscape or garden, a barrier or block of some type is usually necessary. It's been noticed that solid wind barriers such as solid wood fencing makes areas of turbulence on both sides of the barrier. This is common knowledge to most professional landscaping contractors. The best sort of barriers are the ones that allow some air flow. Such a barrier will act as a filter. Lightly foliaged trees or a spaced board fence will often provide an effective wind barrier.

A pond or pool can have different effects on microclimates. It stabilises the temperature of the air to a greater or lesser extent depending on the size of the pond. A pond reflects light, so plants around a pond will tend to get more light as well as water than those planted in other areas. However, even though a pond has a cooling effect on its surroundings in the heat of Summer, it can also have a very chilly effect in Winter. Keep this in mind when you're considering where to place a pond.

People and plants will both do better when you give your microclimates some real thought and planning.

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Bay Area Gardening: 64 Practical Essays by Master Gardeners $6.71 San Francisco Bay Area gardeners know that the region has its own unique rewards and challenges. The mild weather is ideal for year-round gardening, but chilly fogs, frequent droughts, heavy clay soil, and a host of microclimates can vex even the greenest of thumbs. Written by local master gardeners, this collection of articles addresses the subject of Bay Area gardening in a no-nonsense manner that places an emphasis on environmentally friendly solutions. The book covers important issues ranging from garden design and landscaping to improving soil and managing garden pests with minimal toxic chemicals. Topics include fire safe landscaping; planting under oaks and redwoods; drought tolerant plants; gardening for butterflies and songbirds; as well as individual garden species, including ferns, heucheras, fuchsias, and California native bulbs.

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