Tag: horticulture
The Mountain Gardener | Lessons for the Fourth of July
Earlier this year I designed the new planting area in front of the Ben Lomond Fire Station. It hasn’t been planted yet, but I...
The Mountain Gardener | Looking for Horticultural Heritage in the Santa...
I was talking to someone recently who said she lived in Bonny Doon. When I told her I used to live on Robles Drive...
The Mountain Gardener | A Day in an Enchanted Garden
I’ve visited this garden in Bonny Doon many times, including when my friend Kate was part of the Valley Churches Garden Tour back in...
The Mountain Gardener | Watering the Right Way
Think like a plant. The weather might be cool one day, really hot the next day. And your plants are growing like mad in...
The Mountain Gardener | Grow Flowers for Year-Round Bouquets
Want to be able to walk outside and pick some flowers to take to a friend’s house or bring inside to enjoy yourself? Not...
The Mountain Gardener | Best Native Plants for Containers
A couple weeks ago I wrote about including California native plants in your garden. Since I have limited ground to garden, I mostly have...
The Mountain Gardener | Gorgeous Rhododendrons in the Garden
Every garden I visit these days has at least one gorgeous rhododendron in full bloom. They can’t help but be spectacularly covered with those...
The Mountain Gardener | Native Plants Offer Many Varieties
Most of us would love to have a garden containing all California native plants growing happily in an ecosystem where everybody wins—birds, bees, insects,...
The Mountain Gardener | 1,000 Columns and Still Growing Strong
It all started back in 2005 when my first column was published in the newly combined San Lorenzo Valley Press and the Scotts Valley...
The Mountain Gardener | Flowering Dogwoods for the Santa Cruz Mountains
I don’t know if I like the pink ones or the white ones best. A flowering dogwood in any shade is stunning. My friend...
News Briefs | Published Nov. 6, 2026
Scotts Valley water supply returns to normal
San Lorenzo Valley Water District has returned the Pasatiempo No. 5 well to service, allowing water quality in...
