Western spice bush (Calycanthus occidentlias) under some severe heat stress in this part sun foothill garden. Is more water the answer? I’ve been receiving several questions over the past month or so about plants that have been doing fine for years, but suddenly this summer are looking ragged. This is …
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 …
When I was a younger, idealistic college student, I participated in Earth Day activities every year in the Southern California city where I lived. I don’t remember thinking I was making a big positive change to the environment. It seemed more like something I should do, and it was …
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 …
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 …
This article first appeared in the Porterville Recorder newspaper Dec. 7-8, 2013 and was written with mainly the Southern Sierra and Central Valley gardens in mind, but hopefully it’s useful to native plant gardeners across California. Cold, cold, cold Frost periods like the one we’ve just had make me glad …
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 …
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 …
If you’re just getting started with discovering how wonderful, rewarding and easy-to-care-for (most of the time) our own State’s native plants are, you’re probably just falling in love with Cleveland Sage (Salvia clevelandii), Deer Grass (Muhlenbergia rigens), Toyon (Hetermeles arbutifolia), Howard McMinn Manzanita (Arctostaphyllos desiflora ‘Howard McMinn’) and Concha Ceanonus …
Here in the Southern Sierra signs of imminent Spring are everywhere. Ceanothus are budding, and a few of them, like the ones at the Springville Native Plant park, are beginning to bloom. Heuchera and Hummingbird Sage also are sending out or opening flowers. Manzanita have been blooming for almost a …
