With these hot August days, it seems way too early to start thinking about a cool season garden, but if you want to grow your own plants from seed, now is the time to start them! In areas with mild winters, October is the prime month to plant cool season veggies and flowers to enjoy […]
Favorite August Flowers: Rudbeckia
Rudbeckia, also known as ‘Gloriosa Daisy’ or ‘Black-Eyed Susan’, is just ‘glorious’ in my garden right now. Thanks to its generous habit of self-sowing, there are bright yellow/orange patches of color throughout the flower beds. They also provide bright spots of color in the house as they make great cut flowers with their long stems […]
Meyer Lemon
‘Improved Meyer’ lemon blossoms and mature fruit My Meyer lemon tree is my favorite plant in my garden. I use the fruit almost daily in cooking and in my tea, and to make killer lemon bars! See recipe below. Everyone who lives in southern California and other mild winter areas should consider planting a lemon […]
Lovely Lavender!
My lavender has been in full bloom for the last month and what a treat to walk by and enjoy the wonderful fragrance! History: For centuries, lavender has been used to perfume linen and bedding. It not only smells good but its essential oil is an antibiotic that destroys the bacteria that causes tuberculosis and […]
Favorite July Flowers: Crocosmia
I recently hosted a potluck for Master Gardeners at my home (talk about peer pressure!) and the most asked about flowers in the garden were the crocosmia. The variety I grow is ‘Lucifer’ which is bright red, blooms in July and reaches a height of about 4′. They are especially striking planted toward the rear […]
Favorite Gardening Books for Southern California
I love almost any gardening book, but finding those that address the specific needs of southern California gardeners can be challenging. The majority of books are written for climates that have colder winters than ours and so don’t have appropriate seasonal advice. Here are my four favorite books for gardening in our area: 1. Sunset […]
Peaches!
I just finished my peach harvest. Sadly, they all seem to ripen over a two week period and it is a mad rush to get them picked before the deer, birds, squirrels and rats get them. But for that two weeks, we have our fill of fresh peach cobbler, crisp, sliced peaches with cinnamon or […]
Pest Control Tips
Now that the weather is nice and warm and plants are growing like crazy, the pest population is growing as well and feasting on our beautiful gardens. It’s ok to have some pest damage, remember without bugs there are no birds, usually nature will balance itself! But when the pests are out of balance, here […]