Category Archives: climate

crushed oyster shells and chanterelles

My new mantra, apparently borrowed from an old Swedish proverb, loosely translated: There is no such thing as bad weather, only inappropriate clothing. To put it in gardener’s speak, we left frostless, drought-ridden zone 10b in early October and are … Continue reading

Posted in climate, journal, MB Maher | 11 Comments

dispatch from the Oregon coast

We’ve been at the Oregon house a little over two weeks, and this Tillamook Rainforest coastal area is now settling into a comfortable steady rain. Late October and November bring some of the heaviest rainfall to the yearly total over … Continue reading

Posted in climate, journal, plant sales | 7 Comments

swept away

Busy week, weather-wise, democracy-wise. There was a sweet piney scent to the air the morning of the 19th, which meant the wind had shifted and was coming from the east. I smelled it before checking the weather vane, which confirmed … Continue reading

Posted in agaves, woody lilies, climate, design, journal, Occasional Daily Weather Report, succulents | 5 Comments

Fearless Gardening by Loree Bohl; a review/giveaway

I’ve been following Pacific Northwest gardens and nurseries for decades and often fantasize about having a garden in a modified-mediterranean, 40 inches-of-rain-a-year zone 8. There’s lots of plants I’d be able to grow for the first time, but there’d have … Continue reading

Posted in artists, books, climate, design, inspire me, pots and containers | Tagged | 12 Comments

clippings 6/22/20

Hope you find lots of interesting and diverting things to do this week. I’m tending new seedlings and waiting for another seed order to arrive — there’s got to be more empty pots around here somewhere…

Posted in agaves, woody lilies, Bulbs, climate, clippings, Plant Portraits, pots and containers | 6 Comments

sweat it out

It’s great to see the garden “sweat” again. Whether glistening from morning dew or transpiration, it’s a sight for sore (dry) eyes. The leaves of the tree aloe ‘Goliath’ were a grimy, sooty mess just a few days ago. Hosespray … Continue reading

Posted in climate, Occasional Daily Weather Report, science, succulents | 4 Comments

James Griffith @Craig Krull Gallery

Never mind Halloween, it’s been a scary week, and overnight more fires erupted, many much closer to home. Checking the Los Angeles Times for the grim wildfire updates brought some unexpected and sorely needed happy news: “La Brea tar is … Continue reading

Posted in artists, climate, science | 3 Comments

low humidity, high winds, pink houses

“The Santa Ana winds were blasting through the streets, bristling and smelling of desert, of white sunlight, of sharp, wiry plants and white rock…A hot madness was enclosing the city.” Kate Braverman, Lithium for Medea (February 5, 1949 – October … Continue reading

Posted in climate, MB Maher, science | 6 Comments

so many salvias

I love the buzz of excitement of trying out new plants. In my garden, a good share of the newcomers always seems to include a few salvias, which isn’t surprising considering these multivarious members of the mint family number almost … Continue reading

Posted in climate, plant nurseries, Plant Portraits | 7 Comments

letter from sagehen creek field station

(Shirley Watts’ series of symposia entitled Natural Discourse, bringing scientists and artists into botanical gardens to make site-specific work, has taken on an even fiercer urgency seven years after its inception in 2012, as scientists and artists grapple with the … Continue reading

Posted in artists, climate, essay, MB Maher, photography, science | 4 Comments