We took this photo up on the hill above our house, in the California Sierra foothills on Tuesday. There is still fire danger out there and you can see the burned trees from 12 years ago. This smoke above was from a stolen car set on fire. Fire slowly spread through our property in August 2001 before we…
Snapdragons in January It may seem past the point where you would want to do any planting here in the Mountain Community around Oakhurst. But there is hope for a little color especially in pots close to the house and sheltered flower beds under the eaves. Even some bedding perennials can bloom right now…
In each month of the year, on the first few days, we post wide views of what our gardens look like in that month. Town Mouse of Town Mouse and Country Mouse, started this series of posts, called a meme, and any garden bloggers can take part. Go here to post a link to her blog.
Indian Summer. Those words sound wonderful when, I remember shivering into my coat when coming in and out of the house in other Januarys. Now, not only am I not shivering, but I am out in the garden watering and weeding,…even planting with the sun hot on my back.
An Indian Summer is a period of considerably warmer temperatures than normal, usually in the Fall. While mostly associated with an Autumn event, in colonial times the term may have referred to a December or January thaw when tracking Indians after a raid was more difficult without snow on the ground.…
Decorating with natural elements for a fresh New Year!
After the holidays, I like to decorate my house in a fresh new way sometimes. I bring out my favorite cobalt blue and aqua glass combination and if it’s snowy and cold, I lay the furry sheepskin over the back of the couch. This year I’m using the insulators that I found last spring at a yard sale and mixing them with a new color,.. red!
Bowl of berries
These Pyracantha coccinea or Firethorn berries are a bright spot on the steep bank to the south of the house. Why not bring some inside, I thought? I put on gloves and gathered a few sprigs along with some cedar and a bit of blue to match the Rainbow bowl used as a low vase. I also spotted some myrtle berries I could try.…
“In the woods.., a man casts off his years, as the snake his slough , and at what period soever of life, is always a child. In the woods, is perpetual youth. Within these plantations of God, a decorum and sanctity reign, a perennial festival is dressed, and the guest sees not how he should…
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…
Winter solstice 2011
The winter solstice — which marks the beginning of winter and the shortest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere — comes tonight at 12:30 am EST. Afterward, the days will get longer. Celebration time!…
Ornamental Pear 'Aristocrat' under a stormy sky
Mahonia aquifolium Oregon Grape
White daffodil, unknown variety
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I Meant To Do My Work Today I meant to do my work today, But a brown bird sang in the apple tree, And a butterfly flittered across the field, And all the leaves were calling me. *And the Buttercups nodded their smiling heads, Greeting the bees who came to call, And I asked the…
Becoming stewards of our forest For some of us, here in the California foothills, especially those who live near the national forest, nature provides the perfect landscaping. Using the existing trees and native plants can help your garden design blend smoothly into the surrounding landscape. Caring for a large forest property has its challenges and rewards.…
As some of you know, I live very near Yosemite National Park, a place where my family has vacationed since I was a small child. My parents traveled here in 1950 and fell in love, as a young married couple, with the incredible granite walled canyon and the Merced River running thrugh it all. We camped,…
Maggie says, "Let's go."
Today, Maggie and I walked all the way to the bottom of the property, where it’s fairly wild.…
Come into the snowy garden
Everything in life is speaking, in spite of its apparent silence.
~Hazrat Inayat Khan
Come in,...sit down, I want my garden to see you.
Icy bird bath, no bathers today.
There is a way that nature speaks, that land speaks. Most of the time we are simply not patient enough, quiet enough, to pay attention to the story.
~Linda Hogan
What I am really doing in the garden
Daffodils, only thing left in beds formerly full of Mexican primrose
Sunny January weather is lasting into February, and although chilly, by mid morning, it’s possible to putter in the garden with the sun to warm me. After a few weeks gone, a walk around the garden reveals welcome progress, and that there is a lot of work to be done. My heart lifts as I see daffodils showing their grey green shoots from under the winter leaves.…
Sunday- Rarangi Beach Monday-Blenheim Wineries and Gardens Tuesday-Totaranui and Abel Tasman Nat’l Park Wednesday-Birds of Abel Tasman Thursday- Nelson, New Zealand Friday- Picton and the Marlborough Sounds Saturday-Native Plants of New Zealand The wild and wonderful plants of New Zealand So many plants, exotic and commonplace, native to NZ and native to California! First of…
Picton, the gem of the Marlborough Sounds Sunday- Rarangi Beach Monday-Blenheim Wineries and Gardens Tuesday-Totaranui and Abel Tasman Nat’l Park Wednesday-Birds of Abel Tasman Thursday- Nelson, New Zealand Friday- Picton and the Marlborough Sounds Saturday-The Plants of New Zealand Picton is where you land, if traveling by car or campervan from the North Island, which we…
