What happens if you don’t trim lavender? You all may know I like garden experiments. For the last two years I’ve been experimenting with my Spanish lavender field and NOT trimming the blooms off. This is the field a week ago that I’ve not trimmed OR watered and as I went up to inspect, I…
The Highly Valued Manzanita Manzanitas are typical and beautiful Chaparral plants in the Sierra foothills. They, and the chaparral as a whole, have long been here in California before we so how can we think it is good or bad? My thought is that manzanita is not any more flammable or less flammable than any…
Some of our deer friends… I still like the deer better than any one plant. They are the best sort of ‘lawn ornaments.’ I watch, don’t you, when they’re passing by and it’s gratifying when they pass by my carefully chosen ‘deer-resistant’ garden? List of what I plant: Acer palmatum, Japanese maple Acer negundo,…
Our ‘bad’ soil…? I get comments all the time from discouraged local gardeners about ‘our bad soil’ in the Oakhurst, Coarsegold and North Fork areas. Giving this some thought, I’m wondering if gardeners are making use of the natural ‘mulch’ we have in pine needles and oak leaves? Using the resources we have here was…
It is a commonly heard in casual remarks on gardening topics and maintaining a landscape in the Sierra Foothills that Manzanita and other chaparral plants must be cut down and removed because they are so very flammable. Yes, it is important to clear 100 feet of defensible space around your home, and yes, Manzanita can…
or …Why I remember a Sunset Magazine article from 1999. A few months before we bought our place here in the shadow of Peckinpah Mountain, I read an article called ‘What to plant under native oaks and pines?’ Do you still have the September 1999 issue of Sunset magazine? No? Well, if you live in…
Many of us here in the California Sierra foothills have gravel driveways, paths and roads. This can be a help or a hindrance to gardeners searching for more space in which to garden. Gravel gardens could have their origin in formal Japanese ‘dry landscape’ gardens located on the grounds of Zen Buddhist temples. The raked…
Our adventure We had a dream to move out of Southern California away from the congestion and stress and switch from the daily commute to living in paradise in the Sierra foothills. Here is how we made the big move! Our Move: From Fullerton, CA to the foothills just south of Yosemite in 2005 Old…
Have you ever noticed a striking color combination when planting flowers together by chance? You suddenly see that the hot pink rockrose bloom looks stunning with lime and burgundy euphorbia. Or you see that an orange Monkey flower contrasts wonderfully with an iridescent lavender-blue Cleveland sage ‘Pozo’. I recently became aware of this particular combo…
What is a rain garden? It’s a garden specifically designed to take advantage of where water naturally collects. In dry climates, this extra water allows a wider variety of plants to be grown. Rain gardens can also be planned just to direct water away from certain areas, like home foundations or low spots that collect…
One of my favorite color combos is cobalt blue and turquoise. That is why I like this picture! These are Western Bluebirds, Sialia mexicana, and have appeared here in my Sierra foothill garden for the first time this Fall. I’ve never seen them here in the ten years we’ve had the property. The Western Bluebird is…
Field Trip: Hornitos On a recent photo trek through the area between the Sierra foothills and the Central Valley of California, the little tiny town of Hornitos was found, baking in the 105 degree heat. My brother Ken accompanied me. Quiet and deserted now, the one-street town once had 15,000 people living there, Mexicans who…
Learning about watering for California natives …and some Mediterranean plants in a home garden in the Sierra Foothills. I like to hand water. It’s relaxing, …cool on a hot day, I can watch over the newly-establishing plants and weed a bit in the wet, soft soil. I like a hose sprayer that doesn’t leak…
Studying the singular Soap Plant As the season passes, the Soap Plant is on the wane, still over 7 feet tall, waving over the drying meadow and garden. Here is a record of its life cycle here in the Sierra foothills. Wavyleaf Soap Plant, Chlorogalum pomeridianum Startling at first, this strange plant is really very interesting.…
My friend, Diane, of Oakhurst area, CA, has long dreamed of having a real glass greenhouse, and now after many years and a few obstacles, has it standing majestically in her rural garden, ready for use in all seasons. On my visit, she showed me this and future projects in her garden.
Diane's greenhouse
Diane grew up with a Dad who loved roses, so spending time in the garden was a time for them to do something together. She says, “At the time I believe it was the idea of just being with my dad, but the love of gardening bloomed inside me and I have loved it ever since. My love of roses has not changed either. I think it is the challenge of keeping something beautiful alive.…
June’s Blue Haze, Brodiaea This is a picture story of Elegant or Harvest Brodiaea in the Sierra foothill garden. This is its native area, just south of Yosemite National Park. This and Pretty Face are the two main wild flowers existing here on the land we settled ion near the Sierra National Forest. Until starting this…
Euphorbia is one of the most diverse family of plants, with many different shapes, sizes and colors, from shrubs to cactus-like succulents. The common name for the perennials and shrubs is spurge, a not very glamorous name to be sure, I have learned to pronounce the Latin, ‘You-for-bia’. You may already know one type, Poinsettias!…
These three plants, well, you’ll notice a few similarities and a few differences. Two are California natives and one is new to me, and if you keep track of this blog, you know that I love finding new plants here on our place. Dandelions Everyone knows this one, ,…edible, annoying in lawns, tolerable to most. Dandelions in…
