New Book Alert! Air Plants: The Curious World of Tillandsias
New book alert! There was a blurb today on Air Plants: The Curious World of Tillandsias
Bodacious Buckwheats
Check out this fun video primer on buckwheats (Eriogonum) from UC Davis Arboretum Manager Taylor Lewis. He discusses several cool varieties thriving in display gardens at the arboretum and available for purchase at upcoming plant sales. Some are tight little ground covers; others are towering giants. In general, buckwheats prefer well-drained soil and low to moderate water.
Fall is a great time to plant natives and their cultivated relatives, so don’t miss upcoming UCD Arboretum plant sales!
Fall 2014 Plant Sales
PUBLIC SALES, UC DAVIS ARBORETUM
THE NEW FRONT YARD: Prepare your landscape for long-term water conservation with attractive, drought-tolerant, easy-care, region-appropriate plants including a large selection of California natives and Arboretum All-Stars.
Saturday, October 11
9 – 11 AM: Members only
11 AM – 1 PM: Open to the Public
Saturday, October 25
9 AM – 1 PM: Open to the Public
These sales are open to the public during the times specified above. Members save 10% off their purchases. Become a new member at the sales to receive 10% off your purchases AND an additional $10-off coupon! Find out more about becoming a member here.
Bee Swell Campaign
Bee Swell’s mission is to promote awareness of the problems our pollinators are facing today, including pesticides and a lack of habitat and food sources, and to encourage bee friendly gardening practices that support these essential members of our garden community.
Free downloadable, Printable Posters!
Here’s the partial list of products Bee Swell recommends avoiding…
Avoid products that contain:
- Acetamidprid
- Clothianidin
- Dinotefuran
- Imidacloprid
- Thiamethoxam
Acetamidprid
- Foliar spray for garden fruits and vegetables, and ornamental flowers, trees, and shrubs.
- Ortho bug B Gone Garden Insect Killer
- Ortho Flower, Fruit, and Vegetable Insect Killer
- Ortho Rose and Flower Insect Killer
- Ortho Rose Pride Insect Killer
Clothianidin
- Granules for turf, and ornamental flowers, shrubs , and trees.
- Bayer Advanced All-In-One Rose & Flower Care granules
- Green Light Grub Control with Arena
Dinotefuran
- Granules for turf and ornamental flowers, shrubs for trees, soil drench for ornamental flowers, trees, and shrubs.
- Green Light Tree & Shrub Insect Control with Safari 2 G
- Safari
- Ortho Tree & Shrub Insect Control
- Plus Miracle Gro Plant Food
Imidacloprid
- Foliage spray for turf and ornamental flowers, trees, and shrubs; soil drench for garden fruits and vegetables, ornamental flowers, trees, and shrubs; trunk injection for trees; granules for turf and ornamental flowers, shrubs, or trees.
- Bayer Advanced 3-in-1 Insect Control
- Bayer Advanced 12 Month Tree & Shrub Protect & Feed
- Bayer Advanced Fruit, Citrus & VegetableInsect Control
- Bayer Advanced All-In-One Rose & Flower Concentrate
- DIY Tree Care Products Multi-insect Killer
- Ferti-lome 2-N-1 Systemic
- Hi-Yield Systemic Insect Spray
- Knockout Ready-To-Use Grub Killer
- Monterey Insect Control Once A Year II
- Ortho Bug B Gone-Year Long Tree & Shrub Insect Control
- Surrender Brand GrubZ Out
Thiamethoxam
- Foliage spray for turf and ornamentals, flowers, trees, and shrubs; granules for turf and ornamental flowers, trees and shrubs.
- Amdro Qiuck Kill Lawn & Insect Killer
- Amdro Rose & Flower Care
- Maxide Dual Action Insect Killer
I Heart Zucchini Salad
If you’re growing zucchini right now, you’re probably wondering how you’re going to use this abundant summer staple. Even seasoned zucchini growers start running out of ideas, recipes, and bewildered friends and neighbors willing to take home boat-sized zukes.
Recently, I had the pleasure of dining at Mother Sacramento for the first time and decided to try the Avocado and Summer Squash Salad (V, GF). It was mind-blowingly delicious. Zucchini can be a bland “vegetable” (actually a fruit), and can quickly turn soft when cooked. Slicing it thinly and serving it raw in a salad maintains some of its natural crispness and allows the dressing to infuse each slice with incredible flavor.
I’d never had the pleasure of eating zucchini this way and it was fantastic. Brilliant, actually.
I’ve since done some “zucchini salad with avocado” Googling and have come across several promising-looking recipes. Some of them instruct you to slice the zucchini into ribbons, others spiralize it, and a few tell you to dice it. I think thinner is better for salads, so I’m gravitating toward ribbons, potato-chip thin discs and spirals.
Zucchini Ribbon Salad with Sweet Corn & Avocado recipe from Maria and Josh’s Two Peas & Their Pod blog looks pretty close to what I enjoyed at Mother and it’s the recipe I plan to make. I’ll be using the ripe garden zucchini I just harvested. Just waiting for a lovely looking store-bought avocado to ripen. Sweet corn is readily available right now and I need to pinch back my basil plant, so I may add basil to the recipe below… just like Mother does. I’ll probably skip the cilantro and the queso fresco.
Zucchini Ribbon Salad with Sweet Corn & Avocado
Author:
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 4-6
I found this delicious looking recipe on the Two Peas & Their Pod blog. http://www.twopeasandtheirpod.com/zucchini-ribbon-salad-with-sweet-corn-avocado/
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- 2 medium zucchini
- 2 medium yellow squash
- 2 ears cooked sweet corn
- ¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
- 1/2 red onion, sliced
- 2 medium ripe avocados, peeled, pitted, and sliced
- 1/2 cup queso fresco (optional)
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whisk the olive oil and lime juice together. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Trim the ends of the zucchini and yellow squash. With a vegetable peeler, shave lengthwise into long, wide strips about 1/16 inch thick.
- Put the zucchini and yellow squash ribbons in a large bowl. Cut the sweet corn kernels off of the cob, cutting close to the cob. Discard cobs. Add sweet corn, cilantro, red onion, and avocado slices to the squash ribbons. Pour olive oil and lime dressing over salad and toss until coated.
- Crumble queso fresco over the top of the salad and season with salt and pepper, to taste. (Angela’s note: I will probably skip the cheese since I’m avoiding dairy most days.)
V = Vegan
GF = Gluten Free
‘Firebolt’ Lily from B&D Lilies, Year 2
What a lovely dark red lily. It’s even taller in its second year, and seems quite happy out front with an eastern exposure. This one is planted in the ground, and I’ve found it very beneficial to use bamboo stakes and green stretchy tape for added support.
Angela’s Stock Photography
