sunflowers – The Smarter Gardener

How to Protect Fruit from Birds and Squirrels

March 15, 2018 2 comments

How to Protect Fruit from Birds and Squirrels We have some fruit trees and they do bear fruit. However, the birds and the squirrels eat the fruit and then leave it half eaten on the ground. I am sure...

King Palms, Throatworts, & Sunflowers

August 8, 2014 no comments

It was nearly 20 years ago that I paid my first visit to the Virginia Robinson Gardens in Beverly Hills. Many of the plants that I saw on that visit have disappeared but the Iochromas remain. Iochrom...

Asparagus & Sunflowers

August 3, 2014 no comments

Two queries involving edible plants are the focus of this week’s column. Q: I recently moved into a new home and have discovered all the wonders of spring. Many items have emerged in the former...

Sunflowers and Elephant Ears

October 24, 2013 no comments

What the sunflower is to the plains of America, elephant’s ear is to the rain forests of tropical Asia. Depending on whether your outlook is artistic or gastronomic, you will look at a sunflowe...

Recent Posts

A Glimpse of Paradise

Visitng Sherman Gardens is like spending time in a great museum. After an hour or so, you reach a saturation point and sigh, “There are just too many treasures to absorb in a single visit. I’ll just have to come back again to fully appreciat...

Why not to Plant Magnolias and Jacarandas

Peruvian Lilies

Peruvian Lilies

Japanese Garden in Los Angeles

California Native Ground Covers

Dragon Trees

Dragon Trees

Oxalis: Strong as an Ox, Sour as a Lemon

There is a certain plant that has remarkable strength. I always think of an ox when reading about it or hearing its name and for an obvious reason: it’s called oxalis. Yet the etymology of oxalis has nothing to do with an ox. The word is derived f...

A Living Fence of Pyracantha

I’m looking for some kind of bush or shrub or vine that will help to create a security barrier over a 3 foot high chain link fence, that will grow to around 5 or 6 feet or so, will look decent maybe with some nice blooms and if I’m lucky I can get aw...

A Living Fence of Pyracantha

Larkspur/Annual Delphinium

Larkspur/Annual Delphinium

Red Monkey Flower

Red monkey flower (Diplacus puniceus) is an evergreen perennial that you ignore all year long for the sake of its arresting spring bloom, although it may flower on and off throughout the year. Water it more than once a month — even in fast-dra...