Gardening Archives – Page 17 of 33 – Strength Of The Small

Spring Birds Insects Flowers Shrubs & Trees Gardening High Desert

New Season of Regrowth

By JM PerezMarch 20, 20141 min read1.1K views

It’s the first day of Spring and a lovely day. I took pictures of a few lovelies blooming in the garden this morning. Some Freesias, which are said to symbolize innocence and friendship.

According to Teleflora.com, the 7th Wedding Anniversary Flower, Freesia, is a symbol of trust and fidelity. Freesia is an antidote to the proverbial saying that the seventh year of marriage provokes restlessness. Representing faithfulness through the seasons, it’s a traditional reminder of love’s honorable character.

A lovely lone Purple Tulip amongst Freesias.

The Purple-Leaf Cherry Plum is blooming with beautiful delicate scented light pink flowers.

The Martini Tea Trees are starting to produce reddish-pink flowers.

For about a minute, I watched a pair of Crows perched on a wire share a moment of tenderness.

This first day of Spring wouldn’t have been complete without the sound of the Female Nuttall’s Woodpecker drilling holes in a utility pole. Click here or here to learn more about this bird.

A White-Lined Sphinx Moth resting on a wood fence panel.

“It’s Spring fever. That is what the name of it is. And when you’ve got it, you want – oh, you don’t quite know what it is you do want, but it just fairly makes your heart ache, you want it so!”
― Mark Twain

From my Garden to yours: Happy Spring and Gardening!

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By JM Perez

Insects Flowers Shrubs & Trees Gardening High Desert

Fighting Plant Pests

By JM PerezMarch 13, 20141 min read584 views

Today in the backyard garden, I was a little sadden to find out that one of my Stella D’Oro Daylily wasn’t thriving as the rest and I knew the soil was infested with a bunch of Cutworms since I made a similar unpleasant discovery on another Stella D’Oro Daylily last month when I noticed that the leaves were getting eaten by something. The moth larvae hide under the soil during the day and come out in the dark to feed on the plant leaves.

I sprinkled GardenTech Sevin at the base of the plant and then I deeply watered it. The product label states that it can be used on vegetables, fruits, flowers, shrubs and lawns up until harvest and it kills 65 varieties of insect pests. There is about a three weeks gap between the before and after picture below and I now have a healthy plant.

I have seen ants fighting others ants, but I had never seen ants fighting their queen before this morning.
According to the article Queen Ant Will Sacrifice Colony to Retain Throne written by Jeanna Bryner it looks like this ant colony had more than one queen and the worker ants are attempting to eliminate this queen. The article states that soon after the young workers hatch, the little ones begin to slaughter surplus queens until only one remains, but occasionally they are so revved up that they kill all the queens.

Happy Gardening!

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By JM Perez

Birds Insects Flowers Shrubs & Trees Gardening High Desert

Blooms In The Garden

By JM PerezFebruary 26, 20141 min read811 views

As I sit here typing and watching television, all I hear is Storm Watch in California on all the News Channels. It is a relief to know that California is finally set to get some much needed rain, which will help relieve the ongoing drought we’ve experienced since last Summer.

I put my gardening plans aside due to the cold and windy weather. What I did however, was walk around my property, taking pictures of plants, flowers as well as some creatures.

My Grape Hyacinth are coming up around the base of my Rose trees.

*Crimson Sparaxis (Sparaxis Pillansii).*

Orange Sparaxis. — *Orange Sparaxis (Sparaxis Tricolor).*

Crimson, Orange and Red Sparaxis, the first of the hybrids to bloom. Click here to learn to grow Sparaxis.

Hyacinths have started blooming in the backyard.

I spotted a bird perched on a Mulberry branch, which is the last tree to bud on my property.

A White-Lined Sphinx Moth resting on a leaf of the Pendula Yucca.

Yesterday we had beautiful skies and a lovely view of the mountains. Today is somewhat cloudy with thick clouds surrounding the mountains. Will it rain? Will it snow? Everything is possible though hard to predict as the weather here in the High Desert has a mind of its own. I, for one, am always hoping for the best.

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By JM Perez

Garden Decor Home Decor DIY: Projects Gardening

Decorate with Pinecones

By JM PerezFebruary 24, 20142 min read2.1K views

I have a fondness for Pine Trees and I love their refreshing scent. For so many years I have decorated my Home with Pinecones and for the past six years I started using cones around my yard using a variety of shapes and sizes. I use them all year round and not just for special events.

We live in an area with an abundance of pine cones as most of our neighbors have Pine Trees in their yards always full of cones with so many of them all over the ground. I planned to stock up on pine cones for some garden projects and also to replace the ones which got damaged by wind and rain.
On Friday afternoon we suited up and went Pinecone picking around the neighborhood and returned home with four large heavy duty plastic bags full of cones. We were lucky to find a few acorns as well. Because some cones have sharp thorns, you should always use gloves when picking and handling them.

Since I wasn’t planning on using the cones indoors, I just checked to insure that their scales were free of pine needles and debris and then I spray painted them with different colors. The main reason why I didn’t rid the cones of their thorns is to discourage squirrels and stray cats from digging into my garden beds.

*A few Pinecones around my Water Fountain.*

Jeffrey Pine Cone (left) and ... Pine Cone (right). — *Jeffrey Pine (left) and Red Pine (right).*

Here are some ideas to decorate with Pinecones:

Picture Frame
Earrings
Curtain Tiebacks
Ground Cover
Wreath, Branches, Trees
Place Cards
Boutonniere
Bouquet
Basket Arrangement
Holiday Gift Wrap
Topiary
Basket

Chandelier, Mobile
Garland
Table Display
Candlestick Holders
Ornaments
Centerpiece
Potpourri
Cake Topper
Stocking Hanger
Bird House & Feeder
Pinecone Mulch
Fire Starter

All the pinecones we found contain pine nuts, the edible seeds of pine trees and are quite hard to extract. There are usually two nuts nested in each scale of the cone. While Crows are struggling to crack open the hard shells, Squirrels on the other hand have shown no interest in them. According to the Temperate Climate Permaculture website, it takes anywhere from 5 to 75 years for some Pine trees to begin producing seeds.

*Pinecone & Pine Nuts (unshelled and shelled).*

Possibilities and ideas are endless when decorating with Pinecones.

Click here to learn about Preparing and Preserving Pinecones.

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By JM Perez

Yard Sculptures Fun Activities DIY: Projects Gardening

Topiaries Art & Sculptures

By JM PerezFebruary 18, 20142 min read1.6K views

The weather is beautiful, Spring is nearing and I am so excited. My entire property is now 100% weed free as of last Sunday. The Mini Pergola is up and by next weekend we will begin building a Dry Creek Bed next to the structure. One of the many good things I did in my backyard was use shrubs as well as entertaining areas as dividers for different sections. With the weeds gone it’s easier to look at the backyard and imagine the possibilities for landscaping and designing since that’s where most of the magic is waiting.
This Spring, I will be creating a Mosaïculture piece of artwork (also known as Living Sculpture) which I know my kids will enjoy. For the first project I will be starting with something fairly small and simple using Chicken Wire to form a shape. My backyard is ready for the next stage in its evolution.

Mosaïculture, according to Mosaïcultures Internationales de Montréal, an international Mosaïculture competition held in Montréal, Canada, is a refined horticultural art that involves creating and mounting living artworks made primarily from plants with colorful foliage (generally annuals, and occasionally perennials).

I love Living Sculptures. They are inspiring and incredibly beautiful thanks to the talented Gardeners who work hard to nurture and shape them. Out of everything I have seen so far, I love the Garden Bed Topiary best.

Easter Island Heads, Montreal Botanical Gardens. Image Credit: Deanna Young — *Easter Island Heads, Montreal Botanical Gardens.*
*Image Credit: Deanna Young.*

*Mother Earth, Montreal Botanical Gardens. Image Credit: Guy Boily.*

*Montreal Botanical Gardens. Image Credit: Guy Boily.*

Owl Topiary. — The Giant Flower Owls In Nantou County, Taiwan.
Image Credit: Ernesto Huang.

'Sleeping Chicken' by Claude Ponti, Jardin des plantes, Nantes Image Credit: InTheSideCar.com — *‘Poussin Endormi (Sleeping Chicken)’ by Claude Ponti, Jardin des plantes, Nantes*
*Image Credit: InTheSideCar.com*

'Monsieur et Madame Génie', Claude Ponti, Jardin des plantes, Nantes. — *‘Monsieur et Madame Génie’, Claude Ponti, Jardin des plantes, Nantes.*

Just like growing Moss, growing and maintaining a living sculpture is time consuming and requires dedication. In the end, the hard work which consist of preparing and shaping the soil, growing the plants, pruning and training them to give shape to the desired art is a rewarding work of art to any gardener.

Click here to learn about creating your own living sculpture.

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By JM Perez