Book Review: Discovering Dahlias
Karen Meyers Erin Benzakein, author and farmer-florist, presents a guide for growing and arranging dahlias, in her book, Discovering Dahlias. After introducing the great variety in dahlia size, form, and color, the…
Garden Tools: Weeder Trowel
Although called a weeder trowel, this garden tool has several features that make it especially good for several garden tasks. It has a narrow blade that is smooth on one…
Plant Profile: Spiny Redberry (Rhamnus crocea)
Karen Also called hollyleaf buckthorn, this evergreen shrub is native to Baja California, California and Arizona, where it grows in dry washes and canyons in coastal sage scrub, chaparral, and various…
Plants for a Plant Zoo: Snapdragon (Antirrhinum majus)
Snapdragons are one of the best plants for a plant zoo because they are as interesting as they are beautiful. To seize the interest of your kids or grandkids take…
Plant Profile: Chaparral Mallow (Malacothamnus fasciculatus)
Also called Mendocino bushmallow, this evergreen shrub is native to Sonora, Mexico, northern Baja California, and California where it is associated with chaparral and sage scrub vegetation and is especially…
Book Review: Floriography: The Myths, Magic & Language of Flowers
For thousands of years people have used flowers to communicate and author Sally Coulthard’s book, Floriography, delves into the ways different cultures and societies have used flowers to convey meaning…
Plant Profile: Chamise (Adenostoma fasciculatum)
Also known as greasewood, this evergreen spreading or prostrate shrub is native to California and Baja California and is the most abundant species in the California chaparral. It is a…
Old Time Recipes for Home Made Wine: Root Beer
The root beer made famous by the A&W Restaurants, is a non-alcholic, caffeine free, sweet, carbonated soft drink made using the root bark of the sassafras tree . A similar…
Plant Profile: Purple Sage (Salvia leucophylla)
Also known as San Luis purple sage and gray sage, this semi-deciduous shrub is native to coastal Southern California and Baja California where it grows on dry open hillsides. It…
Book Review: Trees in Trouble: Wildfires, Infestations, and Climate Change
Author and natural historian, Daniel Mathews, draws attention to the alarming plight of the conifer forests of the dry American West, from British Columbia to New Mexico. He discusses the…