Author Archives: Denise
Orange Is A Color You Either Love or Hate
The front gravel garden is aglow in orange. Dyckias, Spanish poppies. Personally, I’m on very good terms with orange. Some good plants refuse to come in any other color.
Le Prince Jardinier
Véritable chaise des jardins parisiens restaurée. Google translation: “Chair of the true Parisian gardens restored.” The Parisian shop Le Prince Jardinier is mentioned by Natalia Hill in her piece “Get Stuffed — The Animal Wonderland of Deyrolle,” found on the … Continue reading
The Bee Report
Plenty of bees on these poppies. (You weren’t expecting hard science, I hope. ) But this is a subject too serious for flippancy. The short version is that bees are still in serious trouble (and by symbiotic association, so then … Continue reading
Posted in creatures
Tagged bees, Colony Collapse Disorder, Ed Wood, neonicotinoids, pesticides, pollinators, science fiction, Tilda Swinton, Tim Burton
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Some Plants to Forget
You won’t be rushing home from work to check on how these plants are holding up on a hot, dry summer day. Just forget about them. Aeonium with a nice, snaky curve, ballota, sedum, golden sedge, and a little pelargonium … Continue reading
Posted in Plant Portraits, succulents
Tagged Aeonium arboreum, Ballota 'All Hallows Green', Ballota acetabulosa, Ballota pseudodictamnus, geraniaceae, Marrubium bourgae, nutmeg geranium, Pelargonium x fragrans 'Joanne's Spring Clover', Robin Parer, scented geraniums, Sedum rupestre 'Angelina', Valerie Finnis
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Man-Eating Corydalis
There’s a man-eater loose in the neighborhood Image found here. Not a tawny blur of shadowy stripes, but a flutter of ferny glaucous leaf, 4X4 feet. Big enough for a tiger cub to hide behind. Corydalis heterocarpa, Corydalis heterocarpa var. … Continue reading
Posted in Plant Portraits
Tagged B&T World Seeds, Corydalis heterocarpa var. japonica, Plant World Seeds, zone 10
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Occasional Daily Photo
California poppies and agave at sunrise in an Altadena, California garden designed by Sue Dadd.
Gladiolus communis ssp. byzantinus
Some byzantine glads opened while I was out of town a few days. Flowers have that unerring sense of timing, don’t they? As I’ve written before, these bulbs are an inferior strain, in that they are not the desired deep … Continue reading
Posted in Bulbs
Tagged Beth Chatto, Gladiolus communis ssp. byzantinus, Old House Gardens
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Marina District, San Francisco
There’s a particular pet-friendly motel we like in this district near the Presidio in San Francisco, the Marina Motel, which is where we stayed for the recent garden show. Ein with his garden show face on. Plants are a big … Continue reading
Garden Show Road Trip 2011
Smashing two of my fingers in a car door just before leaving San Francisco hasn’t helped to speed up the process of posting a few measly photos from the show. Not quite the airtight excuse, since having two fingers turning … Continue reading