Winter gardening Forever, I have loved the tiny flowered Johnny Jump Ups, Viola tricolor, which seed themselves happily around the garden. You can plant any violas or pansies from October to December for a head start on Spring! They bloom right through the snow! “The sweetness of the Violets deep blue eyes, Kissed by the…
How we garden
Normally, gardeners have only had themselves to please when creating a plant world around them. And that’s one of the best things about gardening, it can be so personal. You don’t have to follow any plan or design, you can use your favorite colors and plant as many flowers or vegetables as you want. Beauty and functionality have been most important.
California mule deer
There are cottage gardens, woodland style gardens with shade, and the ever popular herb gardens. But what about a wildlife garden? A wildlife garden is one meant to attract the native wildlife that would be living near your home if the original native plants were still there upon which they naturally thrive.…
“Hmmm. Wonder where that goes?” My husband says as we pass by a hidden trail heading into the forest. Those are familiar words to me and a joy to him as a new trail is a treat to explore with his friends where they’ll find new routes long ago forgotten through the spectacular Sierra National Forest. I know he’ll file that bit in his mind somewhere and go back later to check it out.
Central Camp Road, near our place
It was my husband’s work that brought us here to these woods and a particular joy to me to be able to get up high on granite peaks and deep into pine forests where the pines get shorter as you get higher.…
A new video has just been released today by Steve Bumgardner, who has lived and worked in Sequoia and Yosemite Park for over 20 years. I recommend this whole series highly because of his filmmaking skill using new timelapse techniques that bring the park to life. I keep a page with the entire series of Yosemite Nature Notes in the Cool links tab. Thanks, Steve!…
How the wind blows here… Here by the national forest, when you don’t hear anything unless there is something, you pay attention to change in sound. Tucked in bed last night with a book and just one small light, I did not hear, as much as became aware, of a soft steady sound like a…
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…
First Views is a meme that Town Mouse started to show seasonal view of larger areas of your garden, rather than more focused photos of certain plants. She has a Mr Linky widget on her page so others can enjoy this idea, and add links to their blogs. Please visit her page to see her…
Color in the garden Not only plants provide color in the Sierra foothills… On certain days in the fall, the setting sun focuses its light in a strip of light on the mountain. All these views are looking east onto the Peckinpah Ridge. It’s a sign of the changing season to me. Even on stormy…
First Views is a meme that Town Mouse started to show seasonal view of larger areas of your garden, rather than more focused photos of certain plants. She has a Mr Linky widget on her page so others can enjoy this idea, and add links to their blogs. Please visit her page to see her views and add yours: September First Views (Town Mouse). Now on to this month’s views at the Sierra Foothill Garden.…
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…
Butterfly magnets and how they grow Butterfly bush, Buddleia davidii, is a fast growing, vase-shaped, usually gangly shrub growing 6 to 10 feet tall. They attract several types of butterflies like crazy and do well in the Sierra Foothills because they need little water, bloom when most flowers are fading and grow to an impressive…
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.…
Oakhurst’s official flower? When I arrived here in the mountains of Central California, I slowly became familiar with some of the individual plants living here. Right now the Mule’s ears are at their peak and here is a look at how they grow. Hall’s Mule Ears, Wyethia elata These are wonderful sunny flowers to encourage in…
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…
A Backyard Habitat is a transformation of your garden into a place that provides the things wildlife need to live there. You also ‘reduce the civilization’ there to make it more welcome and safe for small, beautiful creatures. My mother did this in 1970 in the suburbs of LA and I have established a wildlife habitat…
