In 1918, 12,000 people congregated in Sierra Madre for the first ever Wistaria Festival. It’s more than 90 years later, and we Sierra Madreans still love our big purple plant, planted in 1894 on what is now West Carter Avenue. It is, undoubtedly, an impressive specimen: over an acre in size, weighing 250 tons and [...]
Tonight we received a phone call from our Realtor, Jackie Watamura (the hardest working real-estate agent on the east side) with the news that the deed on our new house recorded. By “new house” what I mean to say is, “A 90-year-old cottage with a collapsing roof, severe water damage, uneven foundation, no electric or plumbing and busted-out window, which has become the de facto residence of most of the neighborhood’s feral cat population.” My wife, Sheryl, and I were, of course, ecstatic.
I sniff camellias every chance I get. My reward? A delicate fragrance — and a nose dusted with yellow pollen. It’s fun to poke your nose into camellias — and at the week-long Descanso Gardens Camellia Festival beginning Saturday, visitors will not only be sniffing, they’ll also be tasting camellia teas and cocktails, showing off prize homegrown blooms, [...]
This time of year we residents of the San Gabriel Valley are reminded daily of why our predecessors struggled and took risks to move from the frozen midwest or the chilly east: Citrus fruit. It blew their mind that here in the U.S. was a fertile land where frost was as rare as tornadoes, and [...]
I know I’m not alone, because I see it in others at Trader Joe’s and Vroman’s. That ashen, weary look that comes from doing your darndest to keep up with life’s demands. Plenty often, our heads are down, eyes focused on the mountain of work blocking the emergency exits. Sure, on the [...]
We made our way over to Armstrong’s with the idea of getting a live Christmas tree as a gift for some newlyweds to enjoy and transplant to ever larger pots, until they were ready to plant it permanently outside. But crack nurserywoman Elizabeth quickly disabused us of that idea, making it perfectly clear that the [...]
As we roll into the harvest and holiday season, or the fourth quarter, depending upon your altar of worship, this is a time to reassess. Not only are we clearing the beds and fields of debris and remnants of summer’s growth, but the wise gardener is looking ahead. It’s not too late for winter lettuces, [...]
Our garden gal Sandy Gillis is here to share two essential fall outings for San Gabriel Valley gardeners:
The San Gabriel Valley Chapter of the California Native Plant Society is holding its annual plant sale, “Under the Oaks 2009: Native Plants for Foothill Gardens,” at Eaton Canyon Nature Center in Pasadena on Saturday. The canopy [...]
RSS Feed