Photo: A mossy rock along a riparian corridor. Identification of mosses is complex and technical, requiring microscopy in most cases. For the photos in this essay, I will not attempt to identify the individual species, but merely appreciate the beauty… Continue Reading
Ahhh fragrance….all I can say is “thank you” to the universe of sweet scents. With all these plants soon to be in bloom again, they count high among things to look forward to, so while we wait for winter to… Continue Reading
By some powerful synchronicity New Year’s Day 2014 arrives on the same day as the New Moon. A fresh start in the stars and in our daily planning. A traditional time for letting go of the old and welcoming the… Continue Reading
Photo: The Mother Orange in Oroville, CA. Winter in the North State brings several seasonal luxuries, among them, citrus. There’s nothing quite like a prolonged and hard cold snap for a gardener’s true colors and true priorities to show. In… Continue Reading
Winter can mean rain or snow, wind or stillness, sun or darkness. But in the valley and foothill portions of our region – winter also means ferns. From the first late fall rains through to the heat of summer gardens… Continue Reading
My Daphne odora began its seasonal bloom this past week –delicate, pink-edged, four-petaled florets opening one at a time among larger clusters. I was working nearby – absently cleaning leaves out of and re-filling a bird bath, plucking weeds mindlessly… Continue Reading
In February we continue to prune out the old and plant seeds for the new. Brian Marshall and Nancy Heinzel of Sawmill creek farm in Paradise wrote this beautiful description of February on their market farm: “February is often the… Continue Reading
Winter in the garden involves – or is supposed to involve – a lot of pruning. In January of 2010, I recorded an interview with horticulturist and arborist Rico Montenegro, working with the Fruit Tree Planting Foundation, about the pruning… Continue Reading
This week In a North State Garden has the pleasure of interviewing Drs. Carole Burr and Roger Lederer, a husband and wife team based in Chico who in 2010 published a lovely little handbook entitled “The Birds of Bidwell Park.”… Continue Reading
With the rain and snow having returned to our region for their turn in the cycle of our seasons, I thought I would re-run this interview with Phyllis Clark-Kirkman of Gringo Dave’s in Redding on rainwater harvesting and storm water… Continue Reading
Recent Comments