Garden
The Accidental Salad Bar Garden
I let some of my shade vegetables go to seed and now I have a year-round salad bar garden with nearly a dozen types of leafy greens, root crops and herbs in it.
Botanical Bento Box Salsa Garden (Part 1)
Maximize your harvest in 7 sq feet! Discover the "Botanical Bento" trend with a guide to planting a high-density, Salsa Garden in Zone 9. Perfect for small spaces and big flavors.
Best Heirloom Zucchini for Zone 9 Vegetable Gardens
I grew three heirloom zucchini varieties and rated them based on space, productivity, and flavor to find the best combo for our zone 9 vegetable garden
The 5 Best Tomatoes for Zone 9
I tested 40+ varieties to find the 5 best tomatoes for Zone 9. Discover the high-yield, heat-resistant winners I grow every year in my garden.
The Great Gopher Spurge Scam
Think gopher spurge is a natural way to repel pests? Think again. Here's the truth about Euphorbia lathyrus, why it fails as a repellent, and how it can become an invasive weed in your Southern California garden. Learn the real way to control gophers without poisons.
Bee Hotels Aren’t Just Garden Decor
Bee hotels do work in Zone 8-10 gardens. Learn how I filled mine with native bees and pollinators using weathered wood, deep tunnels, and smart placement.
Italian Frying Pepper Review: Flavor, Yield, and Growing Tips
The Italian frying pepper (Friggitello) is a Zone 9 standout! Get 5/5 stars for high yield, long production season, and a delicious, savory-sweet flavor.
Fall Keyhole Garden Maintenance
Late-autumn is a great time to do maintenance on raised garden beds like a keyhole garden, especially if you grow year round or want an early start next spring
It’s Only November and The Creek is Rising
A series of Pacific storms came through this past week and dropped several inches of rain—the most we've had in November in almost 50 years. So now we have a muddy creek flowing
The Pumpkins Come Down from The Hanging Garden
I removed the last of the pumpkins from the hanging garden trellises yesterday. While overhead pumpkins looked interesting, I won't grow them this way again.