The Science Behind Nature - in Layperson Speak
For a steep hike in a favorite preserve -- and a wonderful example of California native plants and the wildlife they attract - check out the Chaparral Vistas to Preservation Point Trail in Oak Glen Preserve (Oak Glen CA). If you have extra time, the preserve has other fun and easier trails for …
Continue Reading about Favorite Hikes: Preservation Point in Oak Glen
As the weather cools (lovingly for us in Southern California!), it's the time for local plant sales -- especially for our important native plants that can be hard to find in regular nurseries. Note: Non-Californians: I have 'when to plant' guidelines for my Midwest and Eastern friends (see …
Continue Reading about It’s Time to Plant Native Plants! (plus local plant sales)
Ten years ago we replaced our dying grass lawn with a California native garden. Photos best illustrate the transformation, the rich habitat it has provided, and our happiness with our new front yard. Before Photos and Planting Prep (late 2008 - Jan, 2009) Immediately Post-planting and the …
Continue Reading about Our California Native ‘Lawn’ – 10 years old!
We continue to love our property and our trips for the natural world lessons they bring us. Here are 2018 highlights! Curious Bighorn Sheep. On a visit to Joshua Tree National Park, my friend Nancy and I observed these bighorn sheep observing us so curiously. It started with one and then …
Continue Reading about Highlights from our Natural World – 2018
It’s finally cooled down here in California and fall is a great time to reflect on what’s done well and what hasn’t in our yards. And also ponder what we might do differently. In Southern California - unlike in the Midwest where I grew up - there’s no rest for the weary since fall through winter are …
It seemed a no-brainer to grab an opportunity to explore two of the Channel Islands with ecologist-extraordinare Kurt Leuschner, a professor at College of the Desert in Palm Desert. Anacapa Island, the barren rookery for hundreds of Western Gulls, and Santa Cruz, the lushest and largest, offered two …
