Chickens in the Garden

February 4, 2010

Even if you provide your chickens with a chicken coop “extroadinaire” and an adjoining spacious outside pen, their preference will always be out roaming free in your yard and garden. So much garden to explore, bugs and worms to forage, dirt baths to indulge in, and plain ol’ sunshine and breeze to enjoy.
I encourage you [...]

Read the full article →

Garden Circle of Sweet Peas

February 1, 2010

Nothing says “spring” like a dainty bouquet of fragrant ruffled sweet peas. There are so many colors to choose from like elegant whites, soft pastels, and even vibrant reds to purples. You might just have to grow several varieties.
Many types of sweet peas are the old-fashion kind, which need a fence or some type of [...]

Read the full article →

The Green Way to Lose a Lawn

January 28, 2010

When I saw this piece recently highlighted on the witty garden blog, Garden Rant, who in turn, saw it originally on Sunset’s fabulous garden blog, Fresh Dirt, it was another “aha” moment for me. It is worth mentioning yet again. How many of you want to “lose your lawn” and transform it into [...]

Read the full article →

Sunset’s New “Book of Edibles” is Released

January 25, 2010

Here is a new and notable book for you to enjoy along with your seed catalogs, while curled up next to a warm inviting fire waiting out the Southern California winter rains. It is the highly anticipated newly released, Sunset Western Garden Book of Edibles.
Who better than Sunset to illustrate and thoroughly explain the virtues [...]

Read the full article →

Wintertime Beauty in the Vineyard

January 22, 2010

Southern California has been experiencing wave after wave of rain storms this past week, complete with high winds, thunder, lightning, and lots of rain. It doesn’t take long for innate nettle seeds in our sandy soil to come alive as a vibrant green carpet in our backyard Domaine de Manion vineyard.
This is a point in [...]

Read the full article →

Ten Ways Compost Benefits Your Soil

January 18, 2010

As gardeners we all know without healthy soil, there will be no beautiful healthy garden. It’s just that simple. What better way to ensure healthy soil then backyard composting. Don’t laugh, but there is something magical about backyard composting. It is something akin to the “sum is greater than the parts”, or two separate delicious [...]

Read the full article →

January Garden Notes

January 13, 2010

It’s January now, but fast forward to the month of August. Wouldn’t you love to harvest a basket of tomato beauties for yourself this summer. That means you should be selecting your favorite tomato seeds now, and preparing to start your seedlings for this spring.
Your gardening friends, Gary Ibsen and Dagma Lacey, tomato heirloom seed [...]

Read the full article →

Go Green With Gophers

January 7, 2010

I can’t say enough about the effectiveness of combating gophers “the green way” with bulbs. I owe my good friends at Easy To Grow Bulbs for the “aha” moment, when I learned that planting any type of jonquil, paperwhite, or daffodil bulb, in a somewhat strategic mass planting in your yard and garden will [...]

Read the full article →

Increased Daylight Signals Chickens To Lay

January 4, 2010

Wishing Everyone The Best 2010! What better way to start the New Year, writing about newly laid eggs, a symbol of fertility and new life through the ages.
My French Marans hens have started laying their beautiful chocolate eggs once again, only six days after the winter solstice, December 21, which marks the commencement of [...]

Read the full article →

Modern Day Barn Raising

December 28, 2009

My husband, John, wanted two things out of our remodel, a garage and a wine-making room. Just kidding. Part of our remodel involves a stand alone barn which will house a two-car garage, wine-making room, and a guest apartment upstairs. Our architect, Bill Bocken, was very clever to cloak all of this into a barn. [...]

Read the full article →

← Previous Entries

Next Entries →