Garden
A Five Star Bee Hotel
I built a bee hotel to shelter the native bees of California and the Southwest. This fall, it's proving to be a very popular spot. Here's what I learned.
Fall Keyhole Garden Maintenance
Mid-autumn is a great time to do a little maintenance on the keyhole garden and get it loaded up and ready for the next growing season.
Squash Parents Mystery Solved
Strange offspring from a perfect pumpkin created a mystery as to what squash was the papa of these odd babies. There were 3 suspects. The answer was a surprise.
Banana Surprise
Banana Surprise! is something you can legitimately shout when you discover a 15' banana tree loaded with bananas hidden in your garden. (Maybe other times too.)
That’s Good Compost
That's no simple pile of dirt! That's a mound of super rich, composted chicken manure and straw "bricks" to recharge the spent beds in the vegetable garden.
The End of a Long Dry Spell
Tropical Storm Kay broke the dry spell and washed the plants in the garden. No rain since March, so tho was only 1/2-in, we'll take the full rain barrels!
Monarda fistulosa aka Wild Bergamot or Bee Balm
While Monarda (wild bergamot / bee balm) isn't native to California, it'll make itself at home even in the dry, desert like climate of my San Diego foothills
The Difference a Month in the Vegetable Garden Makes
Before & After photos of the south vegetable garden in June and July of 2022. Despite heavy losses to ground squirrels, the garden is still going strong.
Remembering Less Squirrely Times
This year we're overrun by ground squirrels, but we used to have the best squirrel control ever -- dachshunds! Check out the video to see why.
The Incredible Productivity of the Keyhole Garden
I get almost 5 pounds of fresh vegetables and herbs per square foot from this simple, organic, and sustainable keyhole garden, and you can too!