The Benefits of Rain
How long has it been since we had rain like this? A long, long time. So long, in fact, I had forgotten what a significantly rainy winter could do for a garden. The beneficial effects of this wet wi...
Category Archives: Gardening Practices
Gravelscaping & The Emperor’s New Clothes
“To Create a Garden is to search for a better world. In our effort to improve on nature, we are guided by a vision of paradise. Whether the result is a horticultural masterpiece or only a modes...
Beware of Transplant Shock
Q: My problem is an angel’s trumpet that I received as a gift. It is a large potted plant, full of buds that I believe will be flowers, but the old leaves turn yellow and even the new little le...
Gardeners are Propagators, too
Step across the threshold of a garden, and you may never be the same again. Spend regular hours in the garden, and you will certainly begin to view the world differently. You start out just wanting t...
Leaf Blowers
“The answer, my friend, is blowin’ in the wind. The answer is blowin’ in the wind.” – Bob Dylan In human affairs, the truth is never simple. The proposed ban of leaf blo...
Manure Worth It’s Weight
If you could purchase only one product at your garden supply store to make your plants grow, what would it be? (Hint: If you have a cow or a horse, you won’t need to go to the store.) I have a ...
Red Wrigglers vs. Night Crawlers
I have been privileged to receive many interesting letters from readers of this column. Some of their questions are printed here. Q: I buy night crawlers (earthworms) and put them around my plants. D...
April Showers Bring May Flowers
“April showers bring May flowers” are words whose truth has been amply illustrated this year. Our late rain has brought an abundance of blooms and a massive wave of first roses in May, an...
Early Morning is Best Time to Water
Q: My girlfriend and I asked our gardeners which time of the day is best for watering lawns and landscapes. Hers said in the evening, and mine said early in the morning. I have my front sprinklers co...
Meadow Gardens & Queen’s Wreath
The idea of a lush woodland meadow garden in Los Angeles sounds as far-fetched as growing cactus in Manhattan until you visit Manhattan and notice how many apartments have a cactus plant or two perch...
