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Sunrise (Wednesday Vignette)
I was out and about early yesterday morning as I had a dentist appointment and wanted to take care of a few things in the garden before I made my 50-minute schlep to the dentist's office. (I love my...
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Too much of a good thing? (Foliage Follow-up)
I featured Acacia cognata 'Cousin Itt' in May's Foliage Follow-up post, crowing a bit about how well these plants were doing in my garden, particularly the cluster of 3 plants underneath an Agonis...
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In a Vase on Monday: No shortage of flowers now
In my bloom day post, I bemoaned the absence of some of my usual October blooms. Well, those blooms may have arrived late to the garden party but they're making up for lost time now, even if it feels...
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Help or hindrance? (Wednesday Vignette)
The raccoons are back. They've left pilot holes all over the garden as they continue their relentless quest to remove the grubs from my soil. The lawn we inherited with the garden is long gone but...
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October 2017 Favorites
This week's heatwave has tried my patience and once again made it difficult for me to look at my garden without a jaundiced eye. Nonetheless, I found plants that stood out and I'm joining Loree of...
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In a Vase on Monday: Nothing to be scared of
Tomorrow is Halloween but I couldn't get myself to do much in the way of decorating this year. Turning on the morning news is enough to send chills down my spine so I don't need to add anything else...
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A Trip to The Huntington Gardens (& Wednesday Vignette)
Last week was miserably hot. The temperatures soared above 100F and it cooled down very little at night. The only gardening I do in weather like that is watering early in the morning or late...
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Project Update: My pocket bromeliad garden
Work on my garden projects slowed but never entirely stopped when summer returned with fury in October. In late September, I posted photos of a succulent bed renovation that was mostly done. I'm now...
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In a Vase on Monday: Red and Blue
When I asked my husband what he thought of today's vases, he said, neutrally, "red and blue." Not much of a comment, is it? But as he's severely red-green color blind, perhaps he was just pleased...
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Wednesday Vignette: Perfect moments
Early Sunday morning, when the sun was barely up, I woke to rain. It was light and didn't last long but I appreciated the moment. Everything was suddenly cleaner, fresher and brighter.Rain clouds...
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Ch ch ch ch changes...
I've a laundry list of projects to accomplish in the garden this fall. I'd been making good progress, feeling that I'm finally beginning to see the garden as I envisioned it. And then I get thrown a...
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Teapot & Driftwood (In a Vase on Monday)
Today is the fourth anniversary of "In a Vase on Monday," the addictive meme hosted by Cathy at Rambling in the Garden. I joined in several months after Cathy launched these weekly posts challenging...
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Bloom Day - November 2017
Caught up in fall planting exercises and a backlog of projects after October's scorching heat, I almost lost track of Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day. Did we fast-forward to mid-November, or have I just...
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Foliage Follow-up - New Plants!
I recently posted photos of a dramatic change to the southwest corner of my garden resulting from a neighbor's removal of several large oleanders suffering from leaf scorch. As plans were afoot this...
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In a Vase on Monday: Not simple enough
As I was preparing last week's Bloom Day post, I was surprised to discover that my New Zealand tea trees were sporting a heavy flush of pink blooms. They were a natural choice for this week's edition...
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More plant shopping
Since the weather cooled at the end of October, I've been making up for lost time shopping for plants. The weekend before last, a friend and I visited 3 garden centers in Santa Barbara County and last...
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Sometimes you just have to look harder
With the persistent heat we've experienced since the fall season began, I'd assumed that I wasn't going to see any fall color here. Not that coastal Southern California is known for its leaf color in...
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In a Vase on Monday: Maybe I just need bigger vases?
Last week, I rued the fact that I'd crammed too much into my vases, yet this week I've once again stuffed them to the gills. Apparently, I can't help myself. Looser arrangements usually show off the...
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Pleasant surprises (and a Wednesday Vignette)
Unless I have a very early appointment, I usually stroll through the garden every morning. My most common discoveries are uprooted plants and holes dug by raccoons, skunks or squirrels. But...
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A lot of work but not much to show from it
During the long Thanksgiving holiday, after the worst of our freak heatwave had diminished, I tackled 2 projects I'd been dreading: leveling out a dip in the backyard pathway and tidying up the back...
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