Category Archives: Winter Gardens

Laurustinus for full sun to semi-shade

August 15, 2016 no comments
In Los Angeles, February is known as the month when winter merges into spring.  The Super Bowl, in early February, coincides with a major botanical event:  the onset of flowering — known scient...

Mulch, Fertilizer, & Tomatoes

August 26, 2014 no comments
“I dumped quite a bit of redwood mulch on my tomatoes, roses and annuals. The tomatoes are thriving, but the others are just doing so-so. Why the difference and what can I do to improve the con...

Rain is Good for Your Soil

November 24, 2013 no comments
Rainy weather is a welcome sight to anyone who lives in a Mediterranean climate such as our own, where gardening is a year-round pursuit. But a good downpour is not only an opportunity to rest from t...

Winter Garden Favorites

November 24, 2013 no comments
In Los Angeles, plants that bloom in winter, although recurring, remain somehow surprising annual delights. In the midst of winter’s pale, they arrive as unexpectedly as an undeserved new year&...

South Africa Brings Winter Color

November 22, 2013 no comments
Despite the overcast skies of January, winter landscapes in the Valley need not be drab and gray. Through judicious plant selection for your garden, you will witness a variety of flowers adorning you...

Fourth of July in January

November 19, 2013 no comments
To see Fourth of July colors in January, we need only take a hike in the hills and canyons around us. The red berries of toyon together with the white and blue flowers of ceanothus comprise the patri...

Winter-Blooming Grevilleas

November 18, 2013 no comments
The bright flowers of a few select perennials and annuals are called upon this time of year as an antidote to slate gray skies and assorted winter doldrums. “Border” is a word with specia...