by angela@diggingbliss | Jun 22, 2014 | Uncategorized
I enjoyed this article by Don Shor about planting for pollinators. It’s good reminder for me to plant a few more varieties that are especially good at drawing bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds to the garden. By taking a few simple steps to provide habitat, food, water and nectar sources and avoiding pesticide use, I’ll be rewarded with a beautiful garden that is buzzing with life.
As of right now, I have ordered plenty of milkweed for the nursery, but I haven’t planted any at the home. And closer to Fall when natives are more readily available, I need to be on the lookout for native pipevine (Aristolochia californica). I’ve got lavender, Dicliptera, CA poppies, Echium… a birdbath… hummingbird feeder… and some untouched areas where nature can do its thing.
I’d also like to add a native bee house. It’s all about working with nature, not against it.
by angela@diggingbliss | Jun 21, 2014 | albany, annie's, annie's annuals & perennials, East Bay, flowerland, nurseries, nursery, succulents, summer, vegetables, veggies
“You are the garden”, professes the entry marquee at Flowerland Nursery in Albany, CA. Heck, yeah, I am. I am often in need of weeding, have untapped potential, and every now and then in the right light and after a lot more work than should be necessary, am tinged with loveliness.
This was my first visit to Flowerland Nursery, another wonderful East Bay nursery with a unique hook– its own airstream trailer coffee shop on site. The coffee shop is operated by Local 123, serving espresso, coffee and pastries. Being able to buy coffee and plants in one place is a marriage of two of my favorite things in life. Add in the mellow music and delicious gluten-free peanut butter cookie I bought and I am one happy camper.
Flowerland is a magical place. My hurried phone pics don’t do the place justice. I’d love to see the nursery in the early morning or late afternoon when the light is softest; I must return with the intent to have no intent.
We visited on a Friday, a time when many nursery workers have that frenzied, “gearing up for the weekend” look. Believe me, I know the feeling. Customers also tend to be task-oriented on Fridays at many nurseries.
“Gotta get those bags of mulch before the party!”
“Gotta replace that broken hose!”
“Gotta feed those tomatoes!”
Gardening can sometimes feel like a chore, and it can take on an edge of competitiveness at times; It needn’t. At Flowerland, I’ve never seen a more mellow-looking group of employees and customers. It’s a place where you can buy stuff to feed your plants, but it’s also a place where you can feed your soul; where you can sit down in the retro chair of your choice and just chill the heck out. Catch up with a friend. Read a book.
A great big thanks to East Sac Edible for recommending this gem of a nursery. I can’t believe it didn’t register on my usually keen nursery radar before now. An added bonus is that it only took about an hour and nineteen minutes to get there from my house. (more…)
by angela@diggingbliss | Jun 17, 2014 | container gardening, spring, succulents, Uncategorized
They’re inexpensive, elegant and magical. What’s holding me up? Magic? No, Pot Klips!
by angela@diggingbliss | Jun 9, 2014 | Uncategorized
It was 104 degrees in Sacramento yesterday, which made it a great day to get out of Dodge! I recently purchased two cycling books in an effort to burn more calories while seeing new sights. Kim and I chose a fun (i.e. brisk, but not death-defying) bike ride around Tiburon, CA.
Northern California is a staggeringly beautiful place and I’m way behind in exploring it. What I (and poor Kim) hadn’t anticipated was all the braking we’d be doing for flowers and succulents. You have to be a gazillionaire in order to live in a place like Tiburon, but all you need is a bicycle and a smart phone camera in order to enjoy its flora. Doable!
This 10.5-mile ride came from Moon Bay Area Biking: 60 of the Best Rides for Road and Mountain Biking (Moon Outdoors). With an elevation gain of 700 feet, the “Tiburon and Belvedere Loop” is described as “easy riding with stunning bay views”. It delivers even more to the gardener’s eye as you cruise by colorful front yard gardens, hanging baskets, overflowing window boxes, super-saturated flower colors you see only along the coast, whimsical mailboxes (is that a thing here?) and liberal use of succulents in the landscape. We ended up doing two loops… about 20 miles.
Tiburon and Belvedere Loop
(more…)
by angela@diggingbliss | Jun 4, 2014 | book, books, botanical garden, Cacti, nursery, orchid cactus, spring, succulents
When my friend Cheryl told me she had some Byzantine glad bulbs for me… which I had originally shared with her years ago from my old Carmichael garden… I pondered when I’d see her next and seized the opportunity to invite her on a day trip to Berkeley to visit two places neither of us had ever been– The UC Berkeley Botanical Garden and Mrs. Dalloway’s Literary & Garden Arts Bookstore. The botanical garden and bookstore happen to be fairly close to each other, with the garden being just north of the bookstore, which is nestled in the quaint Elmwood neighborhood in Berkeley.
The drive from Sacramento to Berkeley usually isn’t too bad… about an hour and thirty-five to forty-five minutes. This time, I decided to take 80 to 680 to 24 to 13, which I think of as coming in “the back way” to Berkeley. My aim was to find the most efficient route to our destination and avoid the interchanges and traffic on 80 near Berkeley. This turned out to be a good alternate route, as traffic was pretty smooth and we made it in an hour and thirty-five minutes.
Have I mentioned how much I love maps and GPS systems? I’m literally lost without them.
Google Map It!
Destinations
The Round Trip
“Where’s a public restroom?” is probably the first thing you’ll ask yourself upon arrival. We asked at nearby Lulemon and they offered theirs, which I must say was delightfully clean and luxurious. I perused the yoga garb earnestly for a moment while waiting my turn, but thankfully didn’t feel pressured to buy $98 yoga pants in return for loo privileges.
Next, we were off to silence our growling stomachs. A bit of Yelping and Urban Spooning showed me in advance that I’d have plenty of gluten-free-friendly lunch options. This time, I decided to try sandwiches from Ashby Marketplace. I had a hazy notion of getting sandwiches “to go”, but forgot we still needed to hit the bookstore before the garden, so we ended up wandering Elmwood looking for a place to sit down. Having spotted no shady benches or picnic tables anywhere nearby, we ended up carrying our lunch bags back to the car, which was parked in a cozy metered parking lot behind the shops on College Ave. With all the amazing bungalows and blooms in the neighborhood, Cheryl and I risked not ever making it to the garden. We stayed admirably focused on our turkey and pastrami sandwiches.
I want to mention that there were several other sit-down cafes and restaurants we could have tried, including the Elmwood Cafe next door to Mrs. Dalloway’s. Word of warning: the upper wall of the cafe is open to Mrs. Dalloway’s, so don’t go to the bookstore hungry unless you want to be tortured by the sounds of clinking dishes and the wickedly wafting scent of syrup and coffee and bacon.
I’m glad we got to try Ashby Marketplace this time. It’s a charming deli/grocery store, with options for both carnivores and herbivores and lots of gluten-free options. I even brought home a yummy gluten-free cherry chocolate cookie for later. (more…)
