Grow Guides
A Backyard Gardener’s Approach to Powdery Mildew
Welcome my friends! If you are battling powdery mildew, you aren’t alone. In fact, this year more than most, I’ve had people approach me about what to do with all the powdery mildew in their gardens! The absolute truth is that powdery mildew is nothing to fear. In...
Dahlia Growing Tips for Hot Climates
The best gardening tips I ever learned came from failure---ideally, failure followed by success. Growing dahlias in Southern California comes with its own set of challenges, but it hasn’t stopped me from truly enjoying these flowers and being fascinated by their...
My Favorite Crops for Fall Seed Starting in SoCal
It’s quite hard to believe we are discussing plans for the Fall and Winter garden while it is scorching hot outside, yes? I’m not going to sugar coat this, Fall seed starting starts in August for me. Truthfully, many people talk about how it is too hot to start seeds...
Grow Spring Bulbs in Containers
Do you want to join me this Fall and grow some bulbs in containers? Let me share how incredibly fun it is to create a gorgeous spring bulb display for your garden! Planting flowering bulbs in containers or pots comes with many benefits, but first and foremost your...
How to Deadhead Roses After Blooming
Despite a gloomier than usual Spring, the roses bloomed in a magnificent display of color this year. While I consider roses to be fairly low maintenance, there are some things that just need to be done if you’re looking forward to another flush of blooms---one of...
Pros & Cons of Growing a Multi-Graft Fruit tree
It’s the beginning of June, and we have been harvesting enough peaches to enjoy chopped over cereal every morning for a few weeks. But guess what?! We also have some peaches that are still green and won’t ripen until mid-July. How is it possible that we will have...
Planting a Strawberry Patch from Scratch (Bare Roots)
Today I’m sharing with you my “strawberry patch from scratch” adventure. This was my first time planting strawberry bare roots, and I’m hooked! Basically, this project was jumpstarted by my sudden desire to increase the amount of berries we grow at home after a...
Trying a Traditional Stuffed Artichoke (carciofi ripieni)
As a backyard gardener with at least six (and counting) perennial artichoke plants, it's probably no surprise that I'm always looking for new ways to eat them. This Spring I set out to try some version of a stuffed artichoke, and this traditional stuffed artichoke...
Meet Randi
