Drought means less water for our landscapes and less water in the soil. And with the high heat events we’ve been having, any moisture in the soil or that’s applied to plants gets sucked out quickly. We’re in a “megadrought” …
Dappled shade is what most of us have here in Nevada County. And dry shade at that. Since we’re in one of the driest years in decades, and we’re in what’s being labelled a “megadrought”, we need to plant the …
Have you noticed the California lilacs blooming this spring? Many are a beautiful blue, and some are white. The white ones that are abundant around here are still blooming and stand out. Erect, fountain-shaped shrubs with lilac-like clusters of white …
But have patience. It’s because of the pandemic. We’ll recover. Last spring nearly everyone became a home gardener. There are two basic reasons. During the COVID-19 lockdowns people spent a lot more time at home and had the time to …
Grasses are popular landscape plants, offering a wonderful variety of textures, shapes, and colors. But we have unique California native grasses that offer more options for our landscapes. While the rest of the world is planting from the same palette …
In my two previous articles I described natural meadows and meadows you can make in your own landscape. Comprised of grasses and flowers, or even just flowers growing and reseeding with wild abandon, you can create a space that helps …
“A meadow is a field which has grass and flowers growing in it.” Collins Dictionary A meadow can be a low-maintenance, low-water area full of grasses and flowers to attract and provide for friendly wildlife like pollinators, birds, and toads. …
Grow Your Own Meadow Garden at Home When we think of meadows we think of grassy, open spaces, often with wildflowers. They play an important role in the environment. Creating meadows in home landscapes is becoming quite a trend, as …
This Still May be a Dry Year for Us—or a Megadrought I’m so happy to see rain again. Ever since the drought of 2011-2015, I worry about the next one. And while we’ve had a few good rain years, we …
Of the many pretty ferns we can grow in our gardens here, one of the nicest ones we can plant is a native one that grows here already. The western sword fern (Polystichum munitum) grows throughout the western states from …