When I started my garden 12 years ago I had no idea that such a colorful and tropical plant as a croton (Codiaeum variegatum) would grow, let alone excel, in Southern California. Through the years I have been fortunate enough to test close to 25 different cultivars to the garden. Some cultivars did in fact prove…
So you say you wish you had a bigger garden? Every one does, right? Well, at some point in all our gardening lives the desire for more land comes up. Frankly, you wouldn’t be a good gardener or true plant lover if the thought never crossed your mind at least once. How ironic is it…
Perhaps it’s just me, but I love potting stuff up. I enjoy watching the plants I grew from seed, seedlings or cuttings get too large for the containers they are in and require a new home. I also realize that with each new pot I put them in, they come closer to being able to live outside in…
There are three ways your average gardener can propagate an agave. It can be grown from seed, removed as a pup or sucker, or it can be done from pulling off bulbils (also called plantlets). Seed takes too long and in some cases you might not even end up with the same plant once grown up. Suckers are…
Starting a new business is no easy task. Fellow business owners will tell you that if you want to run a successful small business and enjoy what you do at the same time, then you should turn your hobby into your business. That is exactly what happened to a friend of mine that got bitten by the palm…
I love growing tropical hibiscus. The many challenges that come from the endeavor are certainly subdued once you witness them in flower. The beautiful blooms attract attention from a great distance in the garden and some flowers have such unique colors and patterns that you’d think only an artist could come up with them. Currently my two favorite…
This is the second of two blog posts that are being published to showcase an article that was written by myself and another palm lover; the article was intended for the Palm Society of Southern California’s quarterly journal. As I stated in the first post, an unscrupulous treasurer robbed the PSSC coffers and left them broke. So the journal is…
This week’s and next week’s blog post are going to be a bit different for me. Some might find them a little too content heavy and scientific. So I will just warn you now. A while back I was asked to write an article for the Palm Society of Southern California’s quarterly journal. A fellow palm lover and…