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Wide Shots - December 2014
I'm joining Heather at Xericstyle once again this month in posting wide shots of my garden. Unlike virtually every wide shot post I've done since I began this monthly exercise last year, photos for...
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The Fun Part Begins
It seems as though I've been working on the front garden forever. We made the decision to remove our front lawn in late August. It had never looked good and drought conditions had made it look worse....
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In a Vase on Monday: A little of this and a little of that
There's quite a bit in bloom right now during Southern California's "second spring" but it still wasn't easy to put together a bouquet this week. Much of what's available doesn't combine well and most...
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The best laid plans
As the saying goes "the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry." In my last wide shots post, I mentioned my husband's desire to dispatch the Yucca elephantipes (aka Y. gigantea) sitting along...
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Do I need this?
Maybe. I can't decide. I saw Metrosideros collina 'Springfire' (aka as Ohia Lehua in Hawaii) on a recent shopping expedition with friends and backtracked to take a closer look at it. Would I have...
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Bloom Day - December 2014
We got our second solid rainstorm of the season last week, a so-call "Pineapple Express," which did indeed roar through our area like a freight train, complete with lighting effects in the form of...
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Foliage Follow-up - December 2014
This month's foliage follow-up post is a bit of a grab bag. The plants I've selected to highlight have little in common but for the fact that they're all looking very good at the moment. Some are new...
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Christmas Wreath
On a recent shopping trip with friends to Roger's Gardens in Orange County, I checked out the wreaths on display.Wreath with Banksia - I thought the flowers were fake at firstMost years I buy an...
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The Fun Continues
Work on the front garden continues between rainstorms. I thought I'd provide an update, although I'm far from done with planting (and don't expect I'll be done until spring, if then).The biggest...
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In a Vase on Monday: The Berries Steal the Show
I have to confess that my vases this week were created Saturday night as decoration for a small family gathering on Sunday. I wandered about in the half-dark collecting flowers to fill two vases,...
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Almost Wordless Wednesday - Christmas Eve Late Edition
View from our backyard looking northeast - the closest we'll ever get to a white Christmas is the view of those white-capped mountains in the distanceHappy holidays from our house to yoursMay your...
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My favorite plant of the week: Pyrus calleryana
We don't get much in the way of winter color. While that's due in part to the selection of plants on the property, the comparatively warm winter-time temperatures here are the main culprit. This year...
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In a Vase on Monday: The Berries Share the Stage
When I pulled up my photos to prepare my post for "In a Vase on Monday," the weekly meme hosted by Cathy at Rambling in the Garden, I was surprised to find pictures of the morning sunrise. My husband,...
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Second Blogiversary Retrospective
Yesterday was the second anniversary of my first blog post. In 2013, blogging was mostly a distraction from turbulence in my personal life. In 2014, it became more pointedly about the garden itself:...
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Wide Shots - January 2015
The monthly wide shot meme was launched by Heather of Xericstyle in 2013 and I have joined in with photos from my garden since September of that year. This month I thought I'd change things up a...
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Liebster Award!
I opened the comments section of my blog yesterday afternoon and discovered that I'd been nominated for a Liebster award by Anna of Flutter & Hum. I was thrown. I have an awkward relationship...
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In a Vase on Monday: Peppermint Packs a Punch
I really hadn't a clue what to cut for a vase this week. We've had a cold snap, with nighttime temperatures closing in near freezing but never quite reaching that point. But that's cold for us!...
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Do you love succulents? May I suggest a book?
I have well over 200 garden books, despite the fact that I donated a substantial number to a local library when we moved 4 years ago. I love each and every one but I've never felt the urge to gush...
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Homage to a Yucca
Last month I published a post recounting the sad story of the Yucca elephantipes (aka Y. gigantea) seated at the bottom of our back slope on the boundary between our property and that of a neighbor....
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