Textures for a Los Angeles garden

Southern California’s mild climate creates an opportunity to go wild with plant color, texture and shape. All manner of subtropical plants from arid climates jump onto the plant palette, and more are introduced every year. This garden has one zone adjacent to the main living area that receives moderate irrigation; the rest of the gardenContinue reading “Textures for a Los Angeles garden”

Down with binders!

The office bookcase sagged under the weight of years of accumulated binders filled with catalogs, promos, product information, new plant announcements, those samples of fake grass that arrived one day long ago… Binders are part of an old paradigm, where companies kept everyone up to date by periodically visiting, throwing out the old data and replacingContinue reading “Down with binders!”

Lights, Camera, Landscape!

What do you think about reality TV landscape programs? Are those landscapes dreams come true or nightmares waiting to happen?  It’s amazing how in a matter of days an overgrown, weedy wasteland can become a beautiful new landscape. It’s nothing short of incredible. A brawny guy walks up with a plan, everyone squeals with pleasure,Continue reading “Lights, Camera, Landscape!”

Time to cut back the California asters

After months of steady growth, the asters were reaching for the sky, with an average height of about 54 inches. Time to act. Last year, some of the asters were trimmed too late, almost completely eliminating their flowers. Others were done earlier, resulting at a solid floral display held below eye height. Untrimmed, the plantsContinue reading “Time to cut back the California asters”