A walk back in late April

Metasequoia glyptostroboides

Dawn Redwood

Make sure you click on the pictures to see them bigger!

A Henry Coe Backpacking Trip!

 OK folkas! It's been a while hasn't it? A little.... well not to worry! Your insatiable craving for fascinating pictures and unbelievably attractive banter will finally be satisfied. I will now regale a tale of unbelievabail hike via trail wherein we turned tail to civilization and bailed from all the hubbub of stale life (did you catch all those rhymes? Seven? That's right! Good for you!). OK I'm thinking this will be more of a tour of images rather than a whole rehashing of adventures. I wish I had the patience right now to provide all sorts of wordy.... um... words. well I think the last sentence explains why I am not doing that right now. Also I'm going to try put the pictures in a handy little expandable link. This is better yes? No? Yes?

Summertime Catchuptime!

Well I think it's about time to get this party started! Don't you? How is YOUR summer going? Personally my free time made me lethargic, lazy and unmotivated. Could NOT get myself to update this blog! Too much effort.... But ah ha! I have overcome! Because here we are right?

(By the way most of these pictures were taken in June?ish?)

I haven't gotten as much done this summer as i wanted to but my bum didn't get TOO soft (is that what happens when you sit on it too much?). This is something i have been trying to find a place for for a while and it looks really pleased with itself now. Like somehow it managed to plant itself! Sheesh! Smugness aside i really adore this Helenium autumnale (Edit: thanks to Digital Flowers for the correction).

Two in the Garden, Three in the hills

This is one of my favorite combinations in the garden. This wonderful Alstroemeria with Salvia 'Waverly'. The Mimulus also adds a lot as well as the white Floribunda Rose to the left that's out of shot.

Ok, I just couldn't help posting another picture of this guy. The Deutzia 'Magicien' is blowing me away!
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A breathe of fresh air right up the street!

If there is a more wooing and exciting tree than the California Buckeye (Aesculus californica) then- well- there's NOT!

RIGHT!?

A mixy pixy post!

In the spirit of procrastination here are some pictures!

YESTERDAY:

This is the Acacia melanoxylon in my parents garden (well technically it's in the neighbor's yard but it's cozy enough to everyone). It's a weedy tree that usually doesn't get this huge. It seeds itself about freely but not enough to be a big problem. The roots are everywhere in the garden, though at least they have nitrogen fixing nodules. (Of course i would rather do without them). It has been limbed up so it's not too overbearing while still adding grandeur to the yards. When I was but a very wee lad, us kids would draw on the bark of the main trunk with crayons so it was always very festive. Even though it's intrusive to the garden in a lot of ways i would be crushed to see it go (it is a pretty short lived tree unfortunately).

Ta-da! Deutzia 'Magicien' finally bloomed! This 5' deciduous shrub that was a freebie from back when i worked at Berkeley Horticultural Nursery has been sitting around in its 5gal can, not doing anything for a couple of years. I was expecting it to be really gaudy but it's just plain old gorgeous! Now it just needs a spot to go in the ground....

DAY BEFORE:

This was the last day of the semester for my "Design evaluation of bay area landscapes" class. A great note to end on! This was an awesome home in Sunol with an insane green roof (the main focus of the day), a small vegi garden with fruit trees, a pond, swimming pool and an awesome view overlooking their private vineyard (I know i hate them too).

6 DAYS AGO:

I only just heard about the Oakland Rose Garden the other week. I've passed by here many times without realizing such a gem lay hidden right around the corner.
This is the the Rose 'Circus' introduced in 1956. In this particular picture you can't fully appreciate how variable the colors of this rose are. Pinks yellows oranges whites peaches and everything in between. No commas! I'm serious!

On the way back to the car were some great little front yards. Well, OK- this was on a side porch, not a front yard.

But THIS on the other hand... Full frontal.

The lack of posts

OK- now, i can tell everyone is just on the edge of their seats for another exciting and fun filled post.... unfortunately i am so busy these days either freaking out about my project or as is today's case (a rare one) actually working on it. This is my grandparents garden that I'm designing for my class and actually getting to install. So hold your breaths while i try and pass my class(s)...
I also got a magnificent new camera(!) and i have so many hundreds of pictures to post it's a little overwhelming... bear with me. Rawr! (a bear)

P.S. hello new follower Bangchik and Kakdah! Woohoo!

Santa Barbara trip: Part Two: The Orchid Nursery.... ACTION!

THE ORCHID NURSERY

In this titillating tale, our protagonist Emerson the Bold departs on an epic journey to the southern lands of Santa Barbara.