When young succulent horticulturist Matthew Wong, 11, visited, we cut down the bloom spike of my octopus agave and harvested bulbils. Octopus agave (Agave vilmoriniana) grows to about 4 feet in diameter and 5 feet tall. A “soft” agave, its leaves lack teeth and its tips come to a point but are not sharp. In[...]
Why has rain gardening become so popular over the past decade? Because it offers a beautiful, low-maintenance garden, provides food and shelter for wildlife, and helps the environment. Viewed in general, a rain garden seems much like any beautifully landscaped garden consisting of bushes, perennials and trees. But the approach involves deliberate planning beyond that[...]
The best time for garden photography is the soft light of early morning after dawn, or late afternoon at dusk. However that is not always possible, especially if you are visiting a public garden. I wrote a post here a couple years ago “Photos on the Road” about a trip to Norfolk Botanic Garden when[...]
I was pairing some newly acquired succulents with containers I had kicking around, and discovered that one plant in particular, Euphorbia meloformis, looks great in just about anything. It’s symmetry, ridges, stripes and red-green-brown hues make it the Naomi Campbell of succulents. Similar to spherical Euphorbia obesa (baseball plant), Euphorbia meloformis is whimsical, visually appealing, easy to grow,[...]
“Sometimes we need others to remind us that much of what we desire is, in fact, possible; all we need to do is dig down into our courage, embrace the unknown, and invite our creative minds out to play. It is then that we can access our infinite possibility and grow into the fullest[...]