Author Archives: Denise

Patrick Blanc in “Contemporary Designers’ Own Gardens”

Posted on February 9, 2014 by Denise

I’ve been scanning this book by Barbara Baker since December and haven’t come near to finishing it. There are two reasons to stop reading a book; either because you find it uninteresting or because you find it too interesting. Too … Continue reading →

Posted in artists, books, design | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

aloe, unidentified

Posted on February 7, 2014 by Denise

I foolishly took down a listing on the blog of “Recently Purchased Plants,” because its length was getting embarrassing. Now I find I’ve simply traded one annoying sensation for another, and that is chagrin at not knowing the name of … Continue reading →

Posted in succulents | Tagged | 3 Comments

riad means garden

Posted on February 6, 2014 by Denise

It’s February, so thoughts naturally turn to travel, escape, adventure. But I’m not going anywhere at the moment, so I look harder, stare longer, at local scenes, hoping to squeeze something new and startling out of familiar sights. But walking … Continue reading →

Posted in climate, design, Occasional Daily Photo | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

shelves again

Posted on February 6, 2014 by Denise

It’s true, I’m fixated on shelves. I love how they can lend a veneer of intention to one’s magpie tendencies. With the spring plant sales not far off, I’m getting ready to make some new shelving to hang on the … Continue reading →

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Hardenbergia violaceae, the Happy Wanderer

Posted on February 4, 2014 by Denise

This smallish evergreen vine, also known as the Happy Wanderer, is in bloom around town, always a surprising sight for February. It’s a tough little number in the pea family from eastern Australia that lays low all year, unnoticed, in … Continue reading →

Posted in plant nurseries, Plant Portraits | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

the new courthouse

Posted on February 2, 2014 by Denise

Governor George Deukmejian Courthouse, Long Beach, California The old, crumbling, brutalist-era courthouse where I did a lot of jury duty time was finally, mercifully shuttered, its broken escalators never to confound us again, and the new courthouse went up a … Continue reading →

Posted in agaves, woody lilies, climate, design, driveby gardens, succulents | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

just another acacia

Posted on January 27, 2014 by Denise

At plant nurseries, I’m often a hapless Mr. Magoo, peering and squinting at new shapes and wildly filling in the blanks with extravagant theories. For example, the twisted, contorted stems of this mystery tree, or shrub grown on standard, reminded … Continue reading →

Posted in climate, Plant Portraits | Tagged , , , | 5 Comments

cowboy corgi and the giant hesperaloe

Posted on January 25, 2014 by Denise

The corgi got a bath, the hesperaloe got away. Bathed and brushed and made to wear a silly bandana, which he bears with his usual dog grace. Just like cowboys, everybody gets a bath here for the weekend. A recent … Continue reading →

Posted in agaves, woody lilies, creatures | Tagged , | 8 Comments

Crassula ovata ‘Undulata’ (‘Jitters’)

Posted on January 23, 2014 by Denise

I get acclimated to many of the plants I once just couldn’t live without. Novelty fades. Maybe living with splashy variegation turns out to be a bad idea, or the perfect focal point turns out to be too domineering, a … Continue reading →

Posted in plant crushes, pots and containers, succulents | Tagged , | 7 Comments

a gift from Rancho Reubidoux

Posted on January 20, 2014 by Denise

My flea market buddy, Reuben, stopped by recently to pick up some odds and ends left over from the flea, but very, very kindly left behind a few of them, including this wrought iron orb that I was particularly smitten … Continue reading →

Posted in garden ornament | Tagged | 5 Comments