GardenBook

 Either Sara Malones' extraordinary garden is an unknown, or I am not hanging out with the right crowd. Maybe combinations thereof. Back in June my friend Denise of A Growing Obsession arranged for a visit to Saras' garden at the tail end of a mini garden-blogger get together in Mendocino County. Sarah generously agreed to our Monday morning visit and escorted us enthusiastically through the garden. You can read Denises post here- .   I wasn't really sure what to expect-my understanding was that Sarah collected conifers (how I would love to collect conifers) but the reality is that Sara collects everything-trees, shrubs, perennials and succulents. For me what defined the garden was the trees. I am a admitted tree-ignoramus-it's my weakest link in horticultural knowledge. I have no room for trees in my own garden so I don't concentrate my hort education efforts in that direction. It's not that I don't know any, but I don't know many.  I am probably a ...

 Mornings have been a mixture of light marine overcast and smoke. This casts a golden glow on the landscape and muffles that harsh summer sunlight. I decided to drive down to Cornerstone in Sonoma county this morning to see if I could take advantage of the ethereal light and get some nice images of the gardens. Naturally the day dawned without a hint of fog or smoke. I have been looking forward to seeing nice clear blue sky but on my terms. My terms were disregarded by Mother Nature. Who does she think she is ? I went anyway and I'm glad I did. It wasn't great for photos but the gardens were in great form, at the height of glory before the late summer doldrums set in.  Cornerstone has for the last few years been the site of the Sunset Magazine test gardens after they sold their legacy property in Menlo park and moved the offices to Oakland. I have set aside my disappointment with the current iteration of the magazine and still subscribe even though the content is not alway...

 I was driving somewhat aimlessly around Sonoma County in search of a fall vineyard  photo opp, and it was pretty clear that the light was bad and I should have gone out an hour or two earlier. We are  expecting  some weather next week, so I have hopes for next weekend . Nevertheless , it can be fun to motor around wine country back roads early Sunday morning before the tourist traffic commences, making note of potential photo spots for another day. By 9am  was within a couple of miles of Sonoma Mission Gardens , a nursery I had not visited in a couple of years- besides I was at the end of a one week vacation and the awful truth was I had not visited a single garden center or bought a single plant . My god, how could  this be ? What was I thinking ? And I had left home without my plant list. Never  under any circumstances leave home without your plant list, for a garden center could be stumbled upon at any moment.  It had been so long since I'd ...

  Last weekend I attended the 2016 Pacific Horticultural Society Summit in neighboring Sonoma County. I've been a PHS member for many years , decades in fact, but have never attended the annual Summit. What was I waiting for ? Granted this years event was close to home , required only 1 hour of car travel and no lodging. The speakers were first rate , and I would be hard pressed to pick a favorite. Every one of them were passionate and knowledgeable  about their topics - I wish I'd taken more notes ! Exploring the PHS website will lead you to content relevant to the theme of the summit 'Changing Times, Changing Gardens' . Climate , drought and the appropriate regional plant palette is something many west coast gardeners are struggling to adjust to while still giving ourselves permission to push the zone envelope and plant what we love .  Sunday was garden tour day and carpooling with Gerhard of Succulents and More ,  3 gardens were visited  before the 4pm close...