I’m writing this from my outdoor office, surrounded by shrubs, trees, vines, perennials and one giant night-blooming cactus. It’s hard to be a gardener and not prefer the out of doors. But it’s hot. Barely summer and it’s already hot. And dry. Not brown in my courtyard, thank heavens! But brown on the hills surrounding… Continue reading Summer is Here (no kidding)
Tag: CA Native Plants
March in the Garden
March was the first month of the year in the original Roman calendar. That feels right to me: March is a month of flowers and growth, the first full month in which almost everything in the garden is bursting with energy. Even the weather gets in on this act: March may be hot, cold, dry,… Continue reading March in the Garden
Spring must be here
It’s not unpleasant to be out of doors in a light March rain, but working the soil at all when it’s this wet can easily cause compaction problems, which means drainage, root growth and root health problems later.
Autumn arrives
A busy year! And we’ve barely begun begun our busiest season, which is autumn, the best time of the year to plant almost everything here in the Southern Sierra and southern Central Valley of California. Challenges: I need to hire another landscaper! Quick!* Joys: I have great clients, customers, colleagues and team members! The plants… Continue reading Autumn arrives
Visiting Denver Botanical Garden
One of the reasons I love to travel is to visit public lands and botanic gardens, both to admire and discover plants that I am unfamiliar with, and to bring ideas back that might work in our Southern Sierra and southern central valley areas. I’m always interested and delighted when I see California native plants… Continue reading Visiting Denver Botanical Garden
A garden of another color
Our newer, water-saving landscapes are helping us break free of plain old green in the garden. With many plants, the traits that make them water-thrifty, also give them interesting foliage color and form. We can use this to our advantage by creating a “wow!” garden based on the monochromatic style. Monochromatic gardens have been around… Continue reading A garden of another color
Spring in the CA native plant garden
Late-winter is one of my favorite seasons in the garden. Plants that were dormant in summer and fall look refreshed and green now. One of the showiest is silver bush lupin (Lupinus albifrons), with great stalks of purple or pink flowers that you can see from a distance. Bush lupin like to grow in colonies,… Continue reading Spring in the CA native plant garden
A New Era
This article first appeared in the April 4 edition of the Porterville Recorder newspaper. You’ve probably heard that on April 1, the state Water Quality Control Resource Board announced new state-wide water restrictions. This was no April Fool’s joke, however. Stricter restrictions were expected, so there was nothing surprising in the announcement, and nothing… Continue reading A New Era
Native Plant Fall Festival
Nov. 17 & Nov. 18 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. both days — River Ridge Ranch, Springville, CA Wow! Our first day of the Festival was fantastic. Warm, fall beauty, no rain (cloudy and breezy, but just right). We listened to poetry and prose sitting around the fire pit, walked trails, planted some Cleveland… Continue reading Native Plant Fall Festival
CA Native Plants & Fresh Veggies at Market Tomorrow 6/2
Howdy & Happy Friday! Springville Ranch Marketplace “First Saturdays” tomorrow, 6/2. I’ll be there in person with CA native plants for sale (and some other great summer-blooming plants like “Dark Knight” Butterfly Bush and “Lipstick” Sage), and Fresh Springville-Grown Greens from Auntie’s Home Grown Farm: Kale, Chard, Broccoli, Collards and Beets. Hope to see you… Continue reading CA Native Plants & Fresh Veggies at Market Tomorrow 6/2