We love them, we fear them, and some of us obsessively hover over them as we wonder if we're caring for them properly. Meanwhile, out in the wild native plants - in our case, California native plants - manage to establish themselves without any human intervention. What gives? What can we do to …
California Natives – Plant Sales!
Note: People in areas outside So CA, please check here for California native plant sales, and elsewhere, look up your state's native plant society. Plants native to your areas make the best habitat gardens, which usher in butterflies, birds and other vital critters. Fall is such a great time here …
Collecting Native Seed
Note: this info may also apply to non-natives but depends on the seed. Many California seeds typically last a long time, while certain edible plants may not last as long in storage. See the Seed Saver's Exchange for more info. My husband and I subscribe to the ‘if a native plant propagates, it …
Please Water your Trees
Note: Even though it's cooler, the West is not getting much rain so below still applies. For those of us in the West particularly, our trees need extra care during this hot time of year. In California, 100+ degrees (up into the 110s for us in SoCA) became the uncomfortable norm this past week. …
Appreciating Our Natural World – now that we have more free time…
Gardens and the nature surrounding us certainly offers benefits to being stuck at home during this crazy coronavirus crisis. After all, our natural world proceeds as if nothing has happened. Birds have fledged and are discovering our natives. Butterflies are migrating through and tiny lizards …
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You’re Invited to (Virtually) Visit Four California Gardens
Good news! Although Covid-19 shut down our planned free tours of California Native Plant Gardens in Redlands CA last month, you can visit four of them through videos below. We purposely planned yards in different stages, each one replacing some former water-thirsty lawn. There's also a Spring …
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