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Plant shopping!
The weekend before last, a friend and I headed north to visit two of our favorite plant nurseries. As my friend wanted to connect with her nephew and his fiancee while they were in town for a wedding,...
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Fall is the time to plant
In my part of the world, fall is the very best time to plant. The soil is still warm but air temperatures are cooler so plants can develop good roots underground without getting stressed above ground....
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In a Vase on Monday: Iceberg ahead!
After a VERY long wait, Dahlia 'Iceberg' has produced its first blooms just as the other dahlias in my garden are finishing up. I pulled several dahlias out of my cutting garden on Saturday, dumping...
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Wednesday Vignette: Rain fell in SoCal!
Agave attenuata 'Raea's Gold' looks lovely decorated with raindrops. I planted this pup in the south-side succulent bed shortly before the rain started.The Renga lily (Arthropodium cirratum) nearby...
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This week's projects
It's been another busy week in my garden. I addition to collecting rainwater on Monday, I addressed a host of small projects.Last weekend, I scrambled to get more plants in the ground in advance of of...
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In a Vase on Monday: Variations on a theme
This post marks what is probably the final farewell to the dahlias in my garden for this year. I've already pulled some and I've cut back others in preparation for storing the tubers for use next...
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Wednesday Vignette: Moss, mushrooms, berries & bells
The garden responds to rain - even when it's not much - with subtle embellishments. Moss and mushrooms probably aren't very exciting to most people but they aren't something I've seen much of...
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Before the Christmas tree takeover...
In late November, just before Thanksgiving is celebrated in the US, Christmas trees are trucked into some of my favorite garden centers in large numbers. In many cases, that means that wide areas are...
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In a Vase on Monday: Cut & Dry Challenge
Today, Cathy of Rambling in the Garden is celebrating the eighth anniversary of her popular "In a Vase on Monday" meme. Last week she posed a challenge, encouraging contributors to do something...
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Succulent Expansion
In response to our persistent drought, I've been trading out thirstier plants for more drought-tolerant ones where I can. That's involved the introduction of more succulents. In some areas, that's...
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Thwarted by Santa's Helpers
My ongoing effort to scout local garden centers for plants to fill various vacancies in my garden reached an impasse this week as I discovered that the Christmas tree takeover I described in last...
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IAVOM and Bloom Day collide (again) - November 2021
In a Vase on Monday, hosted by Cathy of Rambling in the Garden, and Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day, hosted by Carol of May Dreams Gardens, merged in February and March this year and the memes have...
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Wednesday Vignette: Enveloped in fog
After nearly a week of summer-like temperatures, our marine layer returned on Tuesday morning, enveloping the garden in fog. As is usually the case with fog, it seemed as though sounds were muted,...
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Fall Foliage - Southern California Style
Temperatures have gone up and down this fall but, despite periodic blasts of summer-like heat, we have some touches of fall foliage color. It's nothing like what the northeastern part of the country...
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In a Vase On Monday: Warm & Cool
The title of this post could reflect our weather, which continues to flip-flop between warm and cool temperatures, but instead it refers to the colors of the two arrangements I have to offer this week....
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Wednesday Vignette: Time to feed the birds
Early this year, when word of a salmonella outbreak among song birds spread, I stopped filling my bird feeders. After the risk dropped, I held off on filling the feeders as I hosted periodic...
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Small garden projects
I've stayed close to home for the past week, taking advantage of comfortable temperatures to tackle several small garden projects. The project with the biggest impact involved harvesting a large agave...
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In a Vase on Monday: Flowers are in short supply
My flower supply is greatly diminished but I resisted falling back on my Grevilleas this week. The Camellias are still plentiful but they shatter easily, especially when the air is as dry as it's been...
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Wednesday Vignette: Right place, right time, right lens
Certain hummingbirds are year-round residents in coastal Southern California, most notably the Anna's and Allen's hummingbirds. They're a constant presence in my garden. Flowers that appeal to them...
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A Week of Flowers 2021, Day Two
Last year, Cathy of Words and Herbs launched a celebration of flowers to brighten the gray days that characterize December for many gardeners in the Northern Hemisphere. She invites garden bloggers to...
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