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In a Vase on Monday: Moving toward spring
Spring arrives early in coastal Southern California. We don't have much of a winter season to begin with. My area doesn't experience freezes, much less snow. Our nighttime temperatures rarely dip...
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It's looking like they're here to stay...
Peacocks, generally juvenile males recently kicked out of their family's nests, used to pay us brief visits on an infrequent basis on their way to settle in more peafowl-friendly areas. Last year, a...
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Spending time among the Aloes
Before the atmospheric rivers moved in this week I paid a visit to South Coast Botanic Garden specifically to tour the garden's aloe collection. Several years ago, SCBG expanded its Desert Garden,...
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In a Vase on Monday: Getting ahead of the the curve
The "curve" referenced here is the weather. The Los Angeles Times is predicting what could be an epic atmospheric river will hit Southern California this week, beginning as early as Wednesday. Both...
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More changes to the front succulent bed
I did an extensive job of renovating the succulent bed in front of the garage last March, pulling out almost half the plants that had been there. New plants were added but while some plants were...
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Bloom Day - February 2025 (Early Edition)
With a significant rainstorm in the forecast, I took advantage of clearer skies before it arrived to take photos for my February Bloom Day post. I'd hoped to squeeze more photos in between showers but...
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In a Vase on Monday: Spring prelude
The atmospheric river came through as predicted last week, delivering nearly two inches of rain here. Our total for the 2025 "water year" (counted from October 1, 2024) now stands at 4.81 inches....
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The upside of drought
When the soil is as dry as ours was for more than eight months, there are far fewer weeds to pull! As much as I yearn for rain, it does generate a plethora of weeds. Try as I can to keep weeds under...
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Friends, plants, and lunch
Is there a better way to spend several hours than meeting up with friends while wandering among plants on a sunny day, then tying things up with lunch? Denise of A Growing Obsession proposed the...
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In a Vase on Monday: It's all about the anemones
It's feeling more like spring with every passing day. While our overall rain total is still woefully low, the rain we got earlier this month has given the garden the boost it needed. Temperatures...
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An inability to tolerate empty garden space
I've never had much tolerance for empty spaces in the garden. If I don't have something on hand or at least in mind to fill a space when it opens up, I'll fill in with "temporary" plants. That fact...
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Spring has arrived!
I don't care what the calendar says, spring is here! In coastal Southern California, it isn't unusual to see the signs of the seasonal change well in advance of March 20th but, given the drought we're...
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In a Vase on Monday: Plenty of flowers to choose from!
With spring already off to a roaring start here, there were plenty of flowers to choose from on Sunday. However, with the wind blowing and the skies showing the possibility of rain, I hustled to cut...
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Spring: This week's new arrivals
Spring is a busy season - for both me and my plants. I'm spending more time working in the garden and have less time to pull together blog posts. And the garden seemingly produces new blooms every...
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March foliage standouts, heavy on the Agaves
Although I tend to focus on floral displays in early spring, I also feel I need to give the garden's foliage a shout out. When all is said and done, foliage is and always will be the backbone of my...
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In a Vase on Monday: Dutch Iris blooms signal spring
In my view, spring isn't defined by a date on the calendar. My garden tells me when it's spring. It does creep in slowly, with one bloom here and another there. I ask myself if this or that flower...
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Spring: New arrivals (week 2)
New spring flowers continued to roll out this week. I'm making things easy on myself and simply introducing them in alphabetical order.Alstroemerias flower off and on here but they emerge in greater...
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Bloom Day, the big picture - March 2025
My Bloom Day posts can be obnoxious even during the less flowerful times of the year. In spring, it's hard to keep up with the new arrivals. Since the end of February, I've been highlighting these in...
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In a Vase on Monday: The blues and bright spots
I tend to favor blue over every other color in my garden and, at this time of year, there are plenty of blue flowers available to fill a vase. This week I downplayed the sharp contrast of blue and...
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New spring arrivals (week 3)
There are fewer showstoppers in the new spring arrivals category this week but even those that shine in the background are worth sharing as they all contribute to the big picture. I don't know about...
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One mail order delivery after another
I went more than a little crazy late last year in placing mail orders for plants. Over the past couple of weeks, they've started arriving on the front porch one after another. Pre-sales are...
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In a Vase on Monday: A mystery solved!
As every single Iris 'Pink Panther' bulb I planted in 2022 appears to be blooming simultaneously, many bearing two buds flowering at once, they were an obvious choice to fill a vase this week. I...
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New spring arrivals (week 4)
It's already been a very busy - and surprisingly warm - week. I nonetheless have another round of recent spring blooms to share.I haven't had much luck growing Anigozanthos (aka kangaroo paws) in my...
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Drought tolerance and fire resistance don't go hand-in-hand
Since assuming stewardship of my garden over fourteen years ago, I've focused on selecting plants for drought tolerance. In the early years, that effort involved eliminating water hogs like the lawns...
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In a Vase on Monday: Dark & dramatic or light & bright?
There's still a lot to choose from and more than enough in my garden to fill two vases. We even had a tiny amount of rain this past weekend. It was just 0.07/inch over two days but every little bit...
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