Category Archives: MB Maher

catching up with Dustin Gimbel

Posted on April 14, 2017 by Denise

This has really been Dustin’s year, and I think a recap is in order. Dustin Gimbel, Second Nature Garden Design In early 2017 Dustin and Potted launched his Point Pot. Long Beach’s own “communal dining space,” Steelcraft, let us play … Continue reading →

Posted in artists, design, garden visit, MB Maher, pots and containers | Tagged 2017 Southern California Spring Garden Show, ceramics, Dustin Gimbel Second Nature Garden Design, Fermob, Malcom McLean, Mary Lou Heard Memorial Garden Tour, shipping containers, Steelcraft, The Point Pot | 19 Comments

a garden visit with bixbybotanicals

Posted on February 16, 2017 by Denise

It all started with a very sweet and generous offer of some foliage for vases. Via bixbybotanicals Instagram, I learned that his Leucadendron ‘Wilson’s Wonder’ was in full winter dress, and he was willing to share some of the largesse … Continue reading →

Posted in agaves, woody lilies, creatures, garden visit, MB Maher, pots and containers, succulents | Tagged Acacia cognata, Aeonium 'Sunburst', bixbybotanicals, Certified Wildlife Habitat, Dahlia imperialis, Dombeya, H&H Nursery, Helenium puberulum, Jeremy Glatstein, lawn removal, Leucadendron discolor 'Pom Pom', Leucadendron ‘Wilson’s Wonder’, Long Beach, Salvia canariensis, Senecio mandraliscae, Yucca rostrata | 11 Comments

Digital Nature at the Los Angeles County Arboretum 10/21 & 10/22/16

Posted on October 22, 2016 by Denise

When: 6-9 p.m. Friday and Saturday, October 21 and 22, 2016 Where: Los Angeles County Arboretum & Botanic Garden, 301 N. Baldwin Ave., Arcadia. Tickets: $16 adults and $14 children 5-12. Information: 626-821-4623, www.arboretum.org. Read more here. Digital Nature opened … Continue reading →

Posted in artists, garden visit, MB Maher, photography | Tagged "Digital Nature", "Natural Discourse", Los Angeles County Arboretum & Botanic Garden, Shirley Watts | 4 Comments

Senecio glastifolius

Posted on March 8, 2016 by Denise

I posted this photo Mitch took back in April 2010 under the title “Unidentified Giant Composite.” Garden designer Kelly Kilpatrick (Floradora Garden Design) helpfully provided its true name. Annie’s Annuals & Perennials has been an off-and-on source for this giant … Continue reading →

Posted in MB Maher, plant nurseries, Plant Portraits | Tagged Annie's Annuals & Perennials Nursery, Floradora Garden Design, San Francisco Botanical Garden, Senecio glastifolius | 5 Comments

Happy Val Day

Posted on February 14, 2016 by Denise

Interesting, isn’t it, that one of America’s most notorious authors of books banned under then-existing obscenity laws had the middle name Valentine? All true. Henry Valentine Miller. “The publication of Miller’s Tropic of Cancer in the United States in 1961 … Continue reading →

Posted in clippings, edibles, journal, MB Maher, photography | Tagged Henry Valentine Miller, International Food Policy Research Institute, sunflower oil, Tanzania | 8 Comments

roll out the barrel(s)

Posted on November 11, 2015 by Denise

I know spiky agaves in the garden make some people nervous, but lovers of architectural plants for the dry garden can get into a lot more trouble than an agave. The golden barrel cactus has recently gotten under my skin, … Continue reading →

Posted in MB Maher, succulents | Tagged Crassula pubescens ssp. radicans, Echeveria agavoides, Echinocactus grusonii, Huntington Botanical Garden, Sherman Library & Gardens, The Ruth Bancroft Garden | 13 Comments

postscript to Natural Discourse; Flora & Fauna

Posted on October 28, 2015 by Denise

It’s been such a pleasure to see what shape and expression each successive Natural Discourse has taken. Developed by Shirley Watts and Mary Anne Friel for the Berkeley Botanic Garden, a group of artists were invited to make site-specific work … Continue reading →

Posted in artists, design, MB Maher, science | Tagged "Late Harvest", Craig Krull Gallery, Desert Garden Conservatory, Folly Bowl, James Corner, James Griffith, Jim Folsom, JoAnne Northrup, La Brea Tar Pits, Maura C. Flannery, Mia Lehrer, Mitch Maher, Natania Meeker & Antonia Szabari, Natural Discourse; Flora & Fauna 10/17/15, Natural History Museum of Los Angeles, Nevada Museum of Art, New Presidio Parklands Project, Rania Reyes, Rosamond Purcell, Shirley Watts, Stapelia gigantea, Susanna Dadd, University of California Botanical Garden at Berkeley | 9 Comments

Agave ovatifolia

Posted on May 13, 2015 by Denise

Treasured for being on the short list of agaves hardy to zone 7, this imposing agave is no less desirable in warmer zones. My recently planted ‘Frosty Blue’ has a ways to go before it looks like this: Photos of … Continue reading →

Posted in agaves, woody lilies, MB Maher, Occasional Daily Photo | Tagged Agave ovatifolia, MB Maher | 8 Comments

a Shirley Watts’ garden

Posted on March 9, 2015 by Denise

Monday features two long-time friends (and family) of AGO. Oldest son Mitch took these photos of a Shirley Watts-designed garden a few years back and kindly agreed to let me share them here. The garden had a lot of formal, … Continue reading →

Posted in artists, design, MB Maher, photography | Tagged garden designer Shirley Watts, MB Maher, Shirley Watts | 12 Comments

Saturday clippings 2/14/15

Posted on February 14, 2015 by Denise

Valentine’s Day would seem to demand a quote on love, and this one by Rilke sums it up well: Love consists of this: two solitudes that meet, protect and greet each other. No, I didn’t grab a book off the … Continue reading →

Posted in agaves, woody lilies, clippings, MB Maher, pots and containers, succulents | Tagged Agave 'Blue Flame', Agave americana var. medio-picta 'Alba', Agave vilmoriniana 'Stained Glass', Bowiea volubilis, mangaves, Rainer Maria Rilke, Russell Woodard Sculptura chairs, Russell Woodard spun fiberglass table and chairs | 9 Comments