Raven Ridge Gardens: garden

Showing posts with label garden. Show all posts

Saturday, June 07, 2008

In The Garden: Cauliflower

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Looking almost too pretty to eat. But we will.

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Tuesday, January 08, 2008

Winter In My Garden #2 - Pieris Japonica

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Pieris japonica is getting ready to bloom in my garden. This is a great landscaping plant with showy leaves and color that changes with the seasons. Slow growing, it stays within a compact 4-foot square frame. The soft pink of the bud stems is a nice color this time of year when the sky is gray and stormy.

Friday, December 14, 2007

Autumn in My Garden #20 - Clematis

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In late autumn it looks like this; so very Dr. Seuss-ian.

From its pristine beginnings in spring; a sweetly-scented clematis.

Saturday, December 08, 2007

Autumn in My Garden #17 - Paw Prints in Frost

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Although officially it's still autumn, it's beginning to look, and feel, a lot like winter around here.

Tuesday, November 06, 2007

Praying Mantis

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Holy Moly! A praying mantis. In my garden. I've never seen one here. Nor anywhere else in this damp coastal area.

Preferring dry, warm to hot weather, there were hoards of these in my Sacramento Valley garden. They're wonderful to have around because they eat so many bugs that are harmful to plants.

There is a downside to having too many praying mantids: they have voracious appetites and will eat just about anything they can get there "hands" on, including beneficial insects and the occasional small bird. Click on this link for just such a documentation but, I warn you, it's not for the faint of heart.

Me, I'm rejoicing in the fact that one of them has found my garden.

Monday, August 06, 2007

A View From My Summer Garden

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Taken from our back deck, the Goodyear blimp mostly can be heard rather than seen in the summertime as it floats low over the coastline, behind the curtain of trees that separates us from the ocean. So I felt lucky to have spied it as it prepared to turn around and head back down the coast. Click here to view the web site. The Goodyear blimp that flies the California coastline is called Spirit of America and is one of three that are in operation today.

Tuesday, July 24, 2007

Summer In My Garden #5 - Buddleia

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Buddleia, also known as butterfly bush, loves our coastal Mediterranean climate and will readily sow itself all over the place unless kept in check. I'm always enchanted when I encounter one blooming along side a country road. In my garden, Buddleias attract the Swallowtail butterfly - another enchanting creature.

Monday, July 23, 2007

Summer In My Garden # 4 - Crocosmia 'Lucifer'

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Crocosmia 'Lucifer' grows to a height of about 4 feet and is not as invasive as its cousin, Crocosmia 'Ember Glow', which grows prolifically here on the north coast.

Friday, July 20, 2007

Summer In My Garden #2 - Trumpet Lily

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Perched atop a 5-foot stem, these seductively scented Trumpet Lilies are blooming right on schedule as one approaches our house. Photos taken early evening.