Tuesday, November 30, 2010

The Princess Gardener


My granddaughter insists on spending time with me in the garden when she comes to visit for the holidays and watering is her favorite pastime. You can tell she is a gardener by her eclectic choice of clothes and you can tell she is a princess by her headgear. She 'waters' the flower heads "because that's where their mouths are!"

Monday, November 29, 2010

Soooo Cold!

The weather here has been unusually cold this week with nighttime temperatures dipping down into the 30's. There is a threat of frost which will play havoc with the tropical plants like this banana tree that finally has started growing this year. Although it will recover and put out new growth from the base, if the temperatures do get down to freezing it will most likely lose these lush green leaves that have been flourishing with all the rain we have been having. We'll just have to wait and see how cold it gets!

Saturday, November 13, 2010

Thursday, November 11, 2010

Colorful Ivy

I have always wanted Boston Ivy growing on my house. For many years we lived in a house with cedar shingle siding and that is not where you want to grow any kind of clinging ivy that can pry off the shingles. Our home in SJC is stucco and in my opinion can benefit from a little softening that comes from growing ivy on it. I know there are some people that would cringe when they see this because it can ruin a paint job, but I don't care, I love it. I especially love it in the fall when the leaves turn color and signal the changing seasons, like now. Makes me happy!

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Permeable Pavers

One of the most environmentally sustainable attributes of our SJC house are the permeable surfaces. There is a long driveway and motor court that uses these charming pavers that allow the rain to penetrate to the ground below and return to the water table as opposed to a solid surface that forces the water to drain to the street and into the storm drains, taking any environmentally unfortunate debris along with it. I also like the way the moss grows happily in the cracks creating a pleasing pattern. It took me a while to convince my gardener that this was acceptable and even encouraged because he was so accustomed to clients that wanted their "cracks" to be plant free and austere. Little by little!

Tuesday, November 9, 2010

One Confused Perennial

I have dozens of agapanthus that grow in my gardens and bloom throughout the early summer. This little guy has decided that November might be a good time to make a showing. Maybe it figures there is less competition for pollinators?

Monday, November 8, 2010

A Cooperative Vine

I do love vines however it is important to know the nature of the vine and where it will live before choosing one to plant. One thing I like about this passiflora (passion flower vine) is that it will offer some of its blooms on the underside of the plant so that when you look up going through the arbors it resides on, there are flowers to enjoy. Some vines have a tendency to bloom only on the sunny side of the plant so they would all be on the top of the arbor, out of sight when walking under. I like a cooperative plant!

Monday, November 1, 2010