Author Archives: Denise

mail order summer plant sales

Posted on June 27, 2017 by Denise

A couple of nurseries in my inbox are having massive summer sales at the moment. Agave titanota ‘Banana Peel,’ photo from Plant Delights. I was surprised at how many agaves they’ve included in their sale. It’s a great way to … Continue reading →

Posted in agaves, woody lilies, plant nurseries | Tagged ' Plant Delights Nursery, Agastache 'Blue Boa', Agave titanota 'Banana Peel', High Country Gardens Nursery | 4 Comments

leaning cussonias

Posted on June 25, 2017 by Denise

Right up there with rampant vines, another example of one of my current garden anxieties is the sharp northward lean on my Cussonia gamtoosensis. Will it ultimately do a face plant or won’t it? And if it does, will it … Continue reading →

Posted in Plant Portraits | Tagged Alexander von Humboldt, Cook pines, Cussonia gamtoosensis, Eryngium pandanifolium, Gamtoos River, South African plants, The Invention of Nature by Andrea Wulf | 8 Comments

Solanum valerianum ‘Navidad, Jalisco’

Posted on June 19, 2017 by Denise

I just don’t know what to think about this vine. First of all, let me be clear that I love the opulence of this solanum’s pendulous, grape-cluster-like performance. With its ropy swags of purply bloom, it is truly like living … Continue reading →

Posted in plant nurseries, Plant Portraits | Tagged Annie's Annuals & Perennials Nursery, Cupressus macrocarpa 'Citriodora', International Garden Center, Solanum valerianum 'Navidad Jalisco', Suncrest Nurseries, vines | 25 Comments

clippings 6/14/17

Posted on June 14, 2017 by Denise

Some quick odds and ends. This is an old photo from the Theodore Payne tour a couple months back, of Artemisia ‘David’s Choice’ and clarkia, one of those fleeting moments in spring that indelibly sears the visual cortex. Last weekend … Continue reading →

Posted in agaves, woody lilies, clippings, pots and containers, succulents | Tagged Aechmea bromeliifolia var. rubra, Kenton J. Seth "I Need A Cup of Tea", Leucadendron 'Jester', Lysimachia atropurpurea 'Beaujolais', Matt Maggio, Neomarica caerulea, Sherman Library & Gardens | 14 Comments

a May visit to the Denver Botanic Gardens

Posted on June 4, 2017 by Denise

“If you want to have an easy life as a weather forecaster, you should get a job in Las Vegas, Phoenix or Los Angeles. Predict that it won’t rain in one of those cities, and you’ll be right about 90 … Continue reading →

Posted in climate, garden travel, garden visit, journal | Tagged Acanthus syriacus, Coryphantha echinus, Denver Botanic Gardens, Erodium castellanum, Lauren Springer-Ogden, Nate Silver, Panayoti Kelaidis, rock gardens, South Coast Botanic Garden | 4 Comments

Rancho Reubidoux up close

Posted on May 30, 2017 by Denise

Continuing the documentation of Rancho Reubidoux now that Reuben and Paul are moving on from their widely loved home and garden, as promised, here’s a companion piece to the previous post, a parting look at how Reuben styles the sitting … Continue reading →

Posted in artists, climate, design, garden ornament, garden visit, MB Maher, pots and containers, succulents | Tagged Rancho Reubidoux, Reuben Munoz | 7 Comments

the light is left on at Rancho Reubidoux

Posted on May 24, 2017 by Denise

I’ve been dreading completing this post, but since Reuben and Paul have officially decamped from their house and garden at Rancho Reubidoux as of last week and moved into their new home, it’s time to unpack these last images and … Continue reading →

Posted in agaves, woody lilies, artists, climate, design, garden ornament, garden visit, MB Maher, pots and containers, succulents | Tagged Rancho Reubidoux | 9 Comments

Bloom Day May 2017 (and assorted garden projects)

Posted on May 16, 2017 by Denise

Photo taken last night, when I still hoped I could squeak this post in under the Bloom Day deadline, the 15th of every month, and be righteously on time, but it was not to be. Flash of red is from … Continue reading →

Posted in agaves, woody lilies, Bloom Day, climate, creatures, cut flowers, design, MB Maher, pots and containers, shop talk, succulents | Tagged ' Amicia zygomeris, Aloe 'Kujo', Alstroemeria 'The Third Harmonic', Aristida purpurea, Gaillardia 'Mesa Peach', Melianthus 'Purple Haze', Melinus nerviglumis, Passiflora 'Flying V', Pennisetum 'Fairy Tails', Pennisetum 'Karley Rose', Phlomis 'Sunningdale Gold', Salvia uliginosa, Strobilanthes gossypinus, Verbena bonariensis | 11 Comments

a Hollywood Hills garden in three acts

Posted on May 2, 2017 by Denise

(This Sunday, May 7th, you have another opportunity to visit this extraordinary garden. Details here.) The recent APLD watershed garden tour was exemplary in every way that such tours should be; lots of interesting and pertinent design solutions for SoCal … Continue reading →

Posted in agaves, woody lilies, artists, design, garden visit, MB Maher, pots and containers, succulents | Tagged Aloe marlothii, APLD 2nd Annual Watershed Approach Garden Tour, dry gardens, Gingko biloba, Hollywood Hills, Johanna Woollcott Wild Gardens LA | 13 Comments

weekend clippings 4/29/17

Posted on April 29, 2017 by Denise

Feel like talking yourself into more plants this weekend? There’s lots of opportunities, whether at the Huntington Spring Plant Sale, the South Coast Plaza Garden Show, and/or even the Long Beach flea market on Sunday at Veterans Stadium. Some motherly … Continue reading →

Posted in agaves, woody lilies, clippings, garden travel, plant nurseries, pots and containers, succulents | Tagged Alcantarea 'Odorata', Aloe 'Hellskloof Bells', Aloe 'Kujo', Cal State Fullerton Arboretum Green Scene, Crassula perfoliata v. minor 'Lime Green', Emma Marris, Garden Consevancy Open Days, Huntington Botanic Gardens Plant Sale, Mangave 'Lavender Lady', March For Science 2017, Natalie Angier, Pelargonium 'Atomic Snowflake', Pelargonium acetosum 'Peach', Pitzer College, plant sales, Rancho Reubidoux, Robin Parer's Geraniaceae plant nursery, South Coast Plaza Spring Garden Show | 13 Comments