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
Tag: Sierra Nevada
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
Making use of all this rain
After years of dry winters, 2015/16 wasn’t bad. But nothing like this winter. In almost all of California, we receive the overwhelming majority of our annual precipitation in the winter months of December and January, with good amounts still possible in February. This year’s above-average amounts so far, combined with saturated soils and warm storms… Continue reading Making use of all this rain
Promising new (to me) California native plants
Like every other gardener I know, I love to try out new plants. And, lucky me; I get to call it part of my job! Here are some promising new plants we’ve been growing this year in my Springville garden. Some of you may have been growing these already, but they are new to me… Continue reading Promising new (to me) California native plants
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
Planting in winter
Our season of fall planting is nearing its conclusion. But if you need to finish off the landscape this year, or are like me and want to add “just a few more” new plants to the garden, here are some ideas and tips to ensure success with your new transplants. In fact, there are some… Continue reading Planting in winter
Autumn is here, but do we care?
I should have paid more attention to the Autumnal Equinox, the day when day and night are the same length. For a few months, until the solstice, there will be a little more night than day. I should have posted something on facebook, sent out a tweet, posted pictures on Pinterest of what a typical… Continue reading Autumn is here, but do we care?
Winter in the California native plant garden
What do you need to do in winter to keep your California native plant garden thriving? The following tips are geared towards gardens in California’s Central Valley and Southern Sierra Nevada. These ideas can also apply to gardens that share similar traits: 1) Inland – Little or no ocean influence means cold winters and long,… Continue reading Winter in the California native plant garden
Summer arrives with a roar –
How is your garden weathering this heat wave? The best care is prevention, watering extra up to a week ahead of an anticipated hot spell. But if you didn’t have the chance to do this, here are some tips for during and after the hot weather: 1) Overhead water your plants in the early morning… Continue reading Summer arrives with a roar –
Spring 2013
Howdy, March 1 – weather is warm – rain is scarce – the bush lupins & early wildflowers are blooming, and it’s hard not to want to plant something! But it’s early days yet, and if all goes well, we’ll have another few storms–maybe even cold ones–before spring really settles in. I know this, I… Continue reading Spring 2013