What do Halloween and succulents have in common? They’re sometimes creepy and delightfully sinister. I’m challenging my Instagram followers to post photos on a page I created: #scarysucculentsdlb. On Oct. 31, my 8-year-old grandson will choose the creepiest, scariest images. Four winners will be notified Nov. 1 and can select as a prize one [...]
A garden club at which I’ll be speaking later this month asked if I’d donate “an arrangement for the raffle.” Sure, why not? I have several self-imposed criteria: It has to be a “wow” so attendees will buy tickets; it needs to be innovative and incorporate succulents; and it should be autumn-themed. Inspired by numerous colorful succulents in my garden, [...]
Never mind how practical they are for waterwise gardens, what we really love about succulents is how they LOOK. The eye simply revels in symmetry, and no category of plants do it better. So, of all the succulents that are symmetrical, which are over the top? These are from my latest YouTube release, “Favorite Scenes from the Succulent [...]
While my garden baked in summer heat, I tackled three indoor tasks: (1) paint 12 watercolors for my 2017 calendar, (2) edit video footage that’s been piling up for YouTube, and (3) clean and organize my office. I finished #1, got halfway through #2, and am still working on #3. Can you guess which I enjoy doing most? [...]
Agave snout weevil is a half-inch-long black beetle with a downward-curving proboscis that enables it to pierce an agave’s core, where it lays its eggs. Grubs hatch, consume the agave’s heart, then burrow into the soil to pupate. The weevil (Scyphophorus acupunctatus)—once prevalent only in desert regions and Mexico—is spreading rapidly throughout the US and [...]