A Trip to Annie's Annuals

Annie's Annuals is an incredible nursery in Richmond, California. They have the largest selection of rare and unusual annuals and perennials anywhere. Some rarities they carry include a double-flowered nasturtium, a large, blue-flowered form of scarlet pimpernel, and a freakishly amazing South African spider iris.

Although Annie's is a veritable gardener's heaven, you need to drive through some rough neighborhoods to get there. That didn't prevent me, however, from stopping by and loading up on California native wildflowers such as baby blue eyes, tidy tips, bird's eyes, and 'Apricot Chiffon' California poppies.

Annie's Annuals is definitely worth a visit if you live in the Bay Area or are ever passing through.

Anyone else have excellent nurseries nearby?

State of the Garden - December 9, 2008

Well, it's December and the garden is still going.

Fog comes in regularly, and the temperatures don't usually go above 60, but the basil still has a few green leaves. The bell pepper plant looks like it did in summer, and I just harvested a large crop of 'Thai Hot Dragon' chile peppers. The morning glories are putting out 1 or 2 flowers a week, a little bit of a change from the 50 or so they put out every day during the summer.

The lettuce is growing quite well, as are the cool-weather herbs like parsley and chervil.

To the other gardeners out there: how are your gardens doing? Under the snow, or still creeping along?

Making Coq au Vin

Making Coq au Vin, originally uploaded by ParsecTraveller.I finally got around to making the French coq au vin. After browning the chicken in a pan and putting it in a French oven, I poured in two full bottles of Burgundy wine. I threw in a few sprigs of rosemary from the rosemary Christmas tree we just bought, as well as some fresh thyme.

The chicken will marinate in the wine overnight, and will be cooked tomorrow!

P.S. Those rosemary Christmas trees are a great deal - you can get a 2-foot tall tree for about $10 at many home improvement stores. If you go to a professional nursery and buy a similar-sized plant, it can easily cost you $25.

December Mesclun Harvest

The mesclun mix is growing very well despite the cold, foggy weather. Tonight, I filled a big colander with fresh lettuce, chicory, escarole, arugula, and frisée (curled endive). It's so nice to have fresh greens when the store-bought lettuces often wilt into mush, which is not exactly appetizing.

Does anyone here have experience growing lettuce and mesclun? I am having aphid problems and could use some advice.

Gearing Up for Waterfall Season: '08-'09

This winter, hunts for waterfalls will include further exploring in Las Trampas and Mt. Diablo. I will also attempt to find the elusive, little-known Tehan Falls, which is supposedly 60 feet tall. If we're lucky, we'll get a lot of rain this year, as it is both necessary (to combat fires) and enjoyable (for waterfall hunters).

Significant Rainstorm Coming Next Year (Well, Next Week, Anyway)

The National Weather Service is saying that a huge storm is coming to California later next week. It looks like we may get several inches of rain, and the Sierra Nevada may get ten feet of snow.

Ten feet.

That's quite a bit of snow.

Hopefully this storm will recharge all the streams, waterfalls, and rivers in Northern California, which will make for some great photo opportunities...

Rain

Today we got the first rain of the season, and it was enough to make everything wet and clean the air. Here's some moss that greened-up quite quickly once the rain started.

Autumn Approaches...

As the summer days grow shorter, I can't help but start thinking about my fall garden. I am hoping to plant several varieties of lettuce in containers, as well as arugala, Swiss chard, and radishes.

I have only grown cool-season vegetables once, but my experience was a success. I had hundreds of bright-red radishes, along with carrots and lettuce. I had so much lettuce I was able to make several huge bowls of salad.

This year, I'm thinking about possibly growing mesclun, a mix of different greens. I am considering growing the plants in wide containers, but I have never done this before.

Anyone got any tips?

Tropical Heliconia Seedling

Here is one of the long-awaited heliconia seedlings. So far three have germinated out of about 20 that were planted. If the weather gets warmer, the seedlings should start to grow a faster pace, and maybe they'll bloom in time for summer. We shall see...

Paperwhites in February

A duo of paperwhite narcissus flowers photographed today.

Fog City?

San Francisco and the Bay Bridge on a particularly sunny January day.

Illuminated Camellia

A camellia flower at the UC Berkeley Garden.

A Stark Contrast

A healthy king palm frond set against the background of a defoliated sycamore. I must say that palms are my favorite trees for winter!

Frozen Moss

A patch of moss covered in water from a leaky faucet frozen by the night's cold temperatures.

Major Freeze Heading for California...

Temperatures are expected to drop by at least ten degrees over the next few days. Lows in the mid-20's are forecast for parts of the Central Valley and San Francisco Bay Area. Even San Diego and Los Angeles may experience freezing temperatures.

Chasmanthe in the Garden

Some beautiful Chasmanthe plants at a local garden of palms and other tropicals.

Happy New Year

May you have a good 2007 filled with exciting discoveries.

December Green

NorCal does have its advantages: the trees are green all year.

Hard Frost

Northern California has experienced a bit of a shock over the last few days. The temperature yesterday morning was 27 degrees Fahrenheit! That's the coldest I have ever seen it get here in the Bay Area. However, my tropical plants are failry fine; the banana plant has some shriveling leaves and so does the colocasia, but everything else is okay, including the "non-tolerant of frost" king palm.

At least the next few days are the shortest of the year: after that, the sun stays out longer and signs of spring start to emerge...

End of the Season

My tropical garden winding down a few weeks ago after the addition of a small bamboo.