Garden

Last month I got all mushy over the California poppy (Eschscholzia californica). But it isn’t my only poppy love. I’m just as nuts over the Matilija poppy (Romneya coulteri), which is at its peak right now. There’s a large clump in the park near ...

In Sacramento, mid-century modern is a hot seller. Tickets are going fast for Saturday's second Sacramento Mid-Century Modern Tour, featuring seven homes and dozens of points of interest. "We'll have some limited tickets available the day of the tour...

Everybody knows that I'm not a girly-girl, right? These fingers haven't seen a manicure in years, and I'd rather be in the garden than sitting under a dryer in foils to get my color "just right." While that's the path I've chosen for myself, I want Li...

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The SCSS show and sale took place on May 4th and 5th.  What a wonderful show it was.  Full of wonderful succulent specimens of every shape and size.  Gerhard Bock has already done a really great blog post on the show.  You can see i...

About five years ago an online plant seller included a freebie in an order I’d placed. It was labeled Agave parryi and it was a bit of an ugly thing from the beginning—the runt of the litter, you might say. I stuck it in a pot and even though I gav...

I can’t speak for other states or countries, but schools in California are suffering from ever tighter budgets, forcing cuts to programs that are deemed expendable. Often these are disciplines like art and music which have a far lower priority than E...

Test Bed: Bird Back 40I dread the month of May. I really do. I shouldn't. This is my "can't miss" gardening month. I should love it to death. But, instead I dread what the change in seasons brings. Now I know how full-time farmers must feel. I must fig...

Every year in mid-May there’s a spellbinding sight not far from our house. Yesterday I grabbed my camera to capture this fleeting beauty. Planted in front of a nondescript apartment building is a blue jacaranda tree (Jacaranda mimosifolia) and itâ€...

Almost a year ago, I shared a disappointing attempt to make balsamic vinaigrette from scratch. Everything seemed right--it tasted fine--but I just couldn't get over the look of it. See what I mean? After gathering your advice in the comments and on...