The other night, late at night, when I was reading a creepy book in bed I kept hearing this strange tapping noise. What the heck? It seemed to be coming from outside… all over outside. It took me a while to realize it was rain. Oh yeah, I remember that sound. That’s when we got Read More…
theGardenPages Gardening Blog
Wisteria Pods Popping Over My Patio, It Must Be Fall
Here’s a beautiful photo of my wisteria in bloom. I need it to remind me why I love that vine on my patio. After the flowers set seed they turn into giant seed pods. Right about now is when the seed pods dry out and start popping. They explode, sending out four or five seed Read More…
Blue Flowering Sage Herb Plants for #FloralFriday
The sage is blooming now, it is so pretty I just had to share it with you.This is regular culinary sage. I must say I am very impressed with how drought tolerant it is! It is growing with some lavender and artemis plants. Both plants are known to be drought tolerant bloomers, but I was Read More…
Yellow Flowering Cactus Pear Blooming
My cactus pear is flowering! I can’t wait for the pears. Here’s a little piece I wrote for my main garden website: Prickly pear cactus (Opuntia ficus-indica) are useful in the landscape for dramatic impact, adding a southwestern feel to any landscape. Opuntia cactus also have edible pads and provide the red cactus pears of Read More…
Plant Profile: Crassula Tetragona Easy Succulent Plants for Dry Gardens
Crassula tetragona are drought tolerant succulent plants that look like pine branches with fat needles sticking out the sides, or perhaps a green bottle brush flower. These unique crassula are often used in bonsai containers to look like pine trees. In the ground, they grow up to 4 feet tall. The plants will branch at Read More…
Pomegranate Trees and Pests
Pomegranates are good choices for drought tolerant gardens. They can take regular garden watering, but will grow in drought conditions once established. These deciduous trees can grow up to 20 feet tall and across, forming a large round shrub. They can also be trimmed and formed into multi-trunk trees. But sometimes there can be trouble Read More…
Acacia tree is blooming
Here are a few photos of my acacia. Acacia trees can grow up to 20 feet tall. I planted mine because it is drought tolerant, will cover the back fence (and my neighbor) and they bloom! Beautiful giant yellow flowers. I have heavy clay, alkaline soil and no water. So I was looking for something Read More…
Batton Down the Hatches! The Santa Ana Winds are in Town!
Yikes! Anyone living in the Los Angeles basin is enjoying the Santa Ana winds right now. Yes, it IS over 70 degrees outside, but it’s the winds that get you. It’s like being in a wind tunnel that has a glitch in the system. One minute it’s 70 mph wind gusts, then it’s quiet. The Read More…
Texas Ranger; Brave Bloomer in Hot Dry Gardens for #FloralFriday
This brave plant currently blooming in 100 degree heat is called Texas Ranger or Leucophyllum frutescens. It is also one of the oddest plants I have grown, but more about that later. After a few years of getting established it is really blooming this year. Most Leucophyllums have purple flowers with more of an open Read More…
Friday Floral: Red Climbing Rose Flowers
I am happy to report that my climbing rose has forgiven me for last summer. It is on a south facing cinder-block wall. Normally it does fine in the heat, but this summer just got too hot. My poor climber has a few brown, sunburned canes. At one point it even lost all its leaves Read More…