Aloe hybrids certainly are not a new phenomenon. Aloes have been successfully hybridized for decades. Recently, a trip to a friend’s garden just reconfirmed my belief that many true species won’t have a place in nurseries much longer. Frankly, many of the new hybrids that are coming out at an alarming rate are big improvements over the…

While admiring the various agaves I have planted around my garden on a 85 degree February day, it became quit noticeable that the one I buy the most is Agave ‘Blue Glow.’ To me, it really is the perfect agave. The blue-grey foliage edged in maroon growing on a beautifully symmetrical 2′ x 3′ solitary rosette just can’t be beat. Yes, I…

The top of my outside fireplace has been bare for way too many years. It was time to put the effort into correcting that. It was time to create mirroring planters to give the fireplace greater appeal. Due to the fact I am terrible about remembering to water my planters, I almost always use succulents…

Just last week I wrote a blog post on my visit to the San Diego Cactus and Succulent Society Summer Show and Sale. In that post I showed a box full of plants I had purchased while there. One of those plants was an Ariocarpus agavoides, commonly known as the Tamaulipas Living Rock Cactus. I didn’t waste anytime planting…

This past weekend the San Diego Cactus and Succulent Society (SDCSS) had their annual Summer Show and Sale at the Casa Del Prado in Balboa Park. A year and a half ago I went to the Winter Show and Sale and really enjoyed myself. One of the highlights of that first meeting was that I was introduced to so many…

It is not very often that we get cloudy days like most have been this week. In fact, statistically there are 258 sunny days per year in Vista, California, where I live. Thirty-five days per year are what they call precipitation days. These infrequent cloudy days can prove beneficial, as it is the best time to photograph boutique agaves…

A few weeks ago I wrote a blog post showing off a bunch of my larger aloes that were in bloom. I mostly included the stem-forming varieties along with a few larger, non-stem-forming types. This week I will show some of my small aloes that were in flower around the same time. When growing dwarf or…

While aloes have been planted in Mediterranean climate gardens for centuries now, they have started to explode in both abundance and variety thanks in part to homeowners’ desire to plant more water-wise plants in their gardens. Here in Southern California we have seen water shortages lead to large water rate increases. With the current drought showing…