Not long ago I decided to join the San Diego Horticultural Society (SDHS). I have been told by a few that it provides a great opportunity to view some amazing gardens and meet some interesting people from the world of plants. The first garden I would tour with the SDHS turned out to be a doozy. Dubbed…
Welcome to the new year. Welcome to Bob’s garden. Last year I wrote a post about aloes, with a spotlight on hybrids. Those plants were all from the exceptional garden of Bob De Jong. That post received a lot of positive feedback and came with many private requests to see more. Wanting to oblige, I have waited…
I have been holding on to this post for over a year now. Figured it was about time that I showed readers the most impressive Encephalartos cycad collection I have seen in a private garden. Of course it had to be in South Africa, the land of Encephalartos. This garden I am about to show is only…
“Sneak-in” plantings? That is a term I use for any placement of a small plant into an unusual or random part of your garden. A place where most plants would fail or where one wouldn’t expect to see a plant. It is in these areas I like to place smaller-growing rare plants. I find that these types of plantings…
Sadly summer is coming to a close here in Southern California. Starting next month many of the plants in my garden will start to show the effects of the shorter days and cooler weather. To combat this I have planted a lot of winter growing and flowering plants to steal attention away from the plants…
Two years ago I bought a plant at Home Depot that I had not seen for sale before. It was a new cultivar of Society Garlic (Tulbaghia violacea) called ‘Purpleicious.’ At first it looked to be one of those plants that would be too good to be true. Society Garlic with purple leaves? No way. So I decided to purchase one…
There has been one particular area in my garden that has bugged me for quite some time now. It is a highly visible spot that receives a lot of sun year round and is occupied by some of my favorite plants. Lately, in an effort to further meet the water restrictions the drought in California has imposed,…
Over the last few years I have become an admirer of the smaller growing Agaves. When most people think Agave the first plant to come to mind is likely Agave americana (Century Plant). The Century Plant can grow to have a spread of 8 feet; it suckers profusely, and in certain soils can spread with…