Category Archives: Department of Instruction

A River Runs Through It; A New Landscape Paradigm April 7/8

Day 1, Speaker Forum: Saturday, April 7th, 9:30 am-4:30 pm, Descanso Gardens. Day 2, the 3rd Annual Garden Tour: Sunday, April 8th, 9:30 am-4:30 pm. There could not be a more well-timed moment for the Association of Professional Landscape Designers’ … Continue reading

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Natural Discourse: Fire! 9/30 & 10/1/16

I’ve lived long enough to have experienced the dispersal of information about plants move from paper to the computer screen, and it seems I rarely have the sense anymore that I’m cut off from an essential stream of information on … Continue reading

Posted in artists, climate, Department of Instruction, design, garden travel, garden visit, science, shop talk | Tagged , | 6 Comments

Natural Discourse: Flora & Fauna; A Day at the Natural History Museum 10/17/15

From the Natural Discourse event registration page: “Natural Discourse has been invited to explore the Natural History Museum! The Museum opens its doors for a day-long conversation about gardens, art, science, and collections. Natural Discourse is an ongoing series of … Continue reading

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Natural Discourse: Light & Image 2014, an epilogue

Ever wonder when our buildings are going to have the photosensitivity and photoreactivity of plants? Dale Clifford, with his focus on biomimetics applied to architecture, is on the case, investigating the possibility of designing a photoreactive brick inspired by the … Continue reading

Posted in agaves, woody lilies, artists, Department of Instruction, MB Maher, photography, science, succulents | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

a diamond in the rough

I need to get my hands into some crete this weekend. From A Merry Mishap, instructions and template included at the link.

Posted in Department of Instruction, design, garden ornament | Tagged | 4 Comments

“Gardens: An Essay” by Robert Pogue Harrison (reposted from 10/7/11)

I’m more than a little overexcited at the prospect of hearing Professor Harrison speak at the latest iteration of Natural Discourse entitled “Culture & Cultivation,” to be held October 10, 2013, in Berkeley, California. The previous Natural Discourse programs were … Continue reading

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kokedama for slackers

If you keep up with just a few design blogs, there’s probably no need to explain kokedama, or Japanese mossed bonsai strung up like plant puppets, which I posted about here. Those expert creations involve carefully calibrating a plant’s light … Continue reading

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staining concrete

One of the more excruciating projects this past summer involved the tiled patio on the east side of the house, photo taken 10/3/10. The indoor tile left over from a friend’s DIY project was a mistake the day we laid … Continue reading

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Succulent Experiments: A Tutorial

What a surprise that Apartment Therapy liked the hanging planters for succulents I blogged about recently. The ones made from…um…car jack stands. Which we just happen to have in abundance here at home because there’s a couple 1970’s Volkswagen vans … Continue reading

Posted in Cinema Botanica, Department of Instruction, MB Maher, pots and containers, succulents | Tagged , , , , | 16 Comments

March is Women’s History Month

Let’s keep to the theme of horticulture, shall we? And just to make it easy, we’ll choose a famous and flamboyant practitioner of the garden arts, Vita Sackville-West, creator of the garden at Sissinghurst Castle in Kent. I doubt there’s … Continue reading

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