It’s August. Drought or no drought, August is hot and dry in interior northern California and in most cases, our gardens are looking a little…worn, a little worse for the wear of our long, hot, dry summers. Every gardener I… Continue Reading
Today I am joined by Michael Kauffmann co-author of the new Field Guide to the Manzanitas of California, North America and Mexico, published this year by Backcountry Press. Michael last joined me in 2012 after the publication of his first… Continue Reading
PHOTO: The “poinsettia house” at the Plant Barn in Chico, where (including the many years under the umbrella of Chico Propagators) poinsettias have been cultivated for a dozen winters or more. Most good nurseries and garden centers will have greenhouse… Continue Reading
as I eat a persimmon? the bell starts ringing? at Horyuji Temple Masaoka Shiki (1867-1902) PHOTOS above: firm rounded persimmon ripening at the Genetic Resource and Conservation Center, also known as the Tree Farm, in Chico. Persimmon have long represented… Continue Reading
As I compose this month’s calendar piece two things are foremost in my mind. The first is that it is raining. Really raining and the sound and smell and light of this much anticipated seasonal weather has a forceful and… Continue Reading
On Sunday September 14th, 2014 the Mt. Lassen Chapter of the California Native Plant Society will host a day-long symposium on designing your garden space to include more native plants while at the same time using far less water, creating… Continue Reading
“I hear my mother calling when the summer wind blows, Go out into the garden in your old, old clothes…” Rosemary Wells, “First Tomato” The garden in the height of summer is a source of deep comfort for me despite… Continue Reading
Ahhh, despite heat and drought, these tough-as-nails beauties are in bloom again….enjoy revisiting this summer garden treat: oreganos. I’m a big believer in Beauty for its very own sake, but in a gardening life where choices must be made as… Continue Reading
Sometimes I’m really organized as a gardener and sometimes I’m just not. Take for instance the deadheading that is now in progress among my early summer blooming perennials – sometimes I get everything in order in advance: I get my… Continue Reading
PHOTO: Rosa ‘A Shropshire Lad’ April has me left considering the total inadequacy of the word Sweet. I have happily filled my house this past month with old roses, hybrid tea roses, musk roses and climbing roses, with Salvia fructicosa,… Continue Reading
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