Category Archives: succulents

caudiciform plants for the win

Posted on October 22, 2024 by Denise

I confess the loss of Beaucarnea ‘Gold Star’ was one I dreaded the most during our extended absence. It was one of the first plants I rushed to check upon return. Survival of caudiciform plants was a theme. Right up … Continue reading →

Posted in agaves, woody lilies, journal, pots and containers, succulents | 10 Comments

taking stock of the runaway garden

Posted on October 16, 2024 by Denise

I know “runaway garden” is an oxymoron, but even so the SoCal garden (zone 10) seems to have been on a journey without me, cycling through various caretakers, some benign, some less so. The last few days have been the … Continue reading →

Posted in agaves, woody lilies, journal, pots and containers, succulents | 11 Comments

Hoffman’s Center for the Arts: The Wonder Garden

Posted on September 3, 2024 by Denise

The Hoffman Center for the Arts in Manzanita, Oregon, celebrated its 20-year anniversary Saturday August 31. Out of their many programs — clay, writing, visual arts — I became acquainted with the HCA through their horticulture program. The Hoffman’s Wonder … Continue reading →

Posted in garden travel, garden visit, Oregon garden, plant sales, succulents | 7 Comments

Moir Garden, a Hawaiian succulent garden

Posted on May 30, 2024 by Denise

My one-year-old granddaughter Domino is already a seasoned traveler. She obtained a passport not long after birth and had it stamped for Tunisia by three months. Her parents are committed vagabonds, so her budding wanderlust is no surprise. Recently Domino … Continue reading →

Posted in garden travel, MB Maher, succulents | 3 Comments

checking in on the zone 10 garden

Posted on October 2, 2023 by Denise

The Long Beach, CA zone 10 garden had a caretaker in residence for almost a year while we’ve been on the Oregon coast. I think they may have been watering the containers before decamping in July, but I’m not really … Continue reading →

Posted in agaves, woody lilies, climate, garden visit, pots and containers, succulents | 6 Comments

catching up with the zone 10 garden

Posted on February 1, 2022 by Denise

We arrived last Friday, and other than sleeping, I don’t think a broom has left my hand since. The informal team of neighbors and friends who took turns watching over the garden since we left the second week of October … Continue reading →

Posted in agaves, woody lilies, journal, pots and containers, succulents | 6 Comments

clippings 9/30/21

Posted on September 30, 2021 by Denise

A self-sown manihot made an exquisite canopy of uniform growth to 4 feet in its first summer — consolation for the loss of a similar but shorter-lived performance from a young Schefflera taiwaniana, which unlike the manihot had a strong … Continue reading →

Posted in Cinema Botanica, clippings, journal, succulents | 7 Comments

garden clippings 9/7/21

Posted on September 7, 2021 by Denise

Yes, that is a box full of chrysanthemums. Let me explain why such a wildly uncharacteristic flower, for me, is blooming in my otherwise mostly austere and dryish garden. It’s part of the ongoing experiment of trying cut flowers in … Continue reading →

Posted in agaves, woody lilies, clippings, cut flowers, journal, pots and containers, succulents | 10 Comments

the path not taken (August fidgets)

Posted on August 16, 2021 by Denise

There are as many ways and reasons to design a garden as their are gardeners — but Im with Billie. Its all about the feet (and paws). I love to play with the varying scale that moving through a garden … Continue reading →

Posted in agaves, woody lilies, design, journal, pots and containers, succulents | 7 Comments

while I was away

Posted on August 4, 2021 by Denise

We have a new member of the family, so of course I had to immediately become acquainted with little Hannah, who resides in a foggy coastal Oregon town. And even though she’s only days’ old, I began deliberating before leaving, … Continue reading →

Posted in agaves, woody lilies, journal, succulents | 4 Comments