May 27, 2020
Hello neighbor! I am new to this space, but have lived and pushed shovels into Northern California soil my entire life. I imagine you have done some digging, deadheading and maybe even turned a compost pile. As gardeners, we have much in common.
Have you noticed unusually high numbers of joggers, walkers and cyclists in the neighborhood? Sheltering in place during the COVID-19 pandemic has inspired more time outdoors, including gardens where we’re soaking up vitamin D, weeding beds and borders, planting vegetables, and becoming reacquainted with hummingbirds and honeybees.
Apr 1, 2020
Bill Harms is an artist and craftsman who studied with a master in Germany. In 1957, Harms migrated to New York with his parents and siblings. A year later, they crossed the country by bus and landed in Sacramento.
“We got out on L Street where the Greyhound bus station was,” Harms says. His first impression was a sleepy village. But the family soon found an apartment at 23rd and G streets, and “that’s when we started loving the area.”
Mar 28, 2020
The renaissance of the Sacramento Historic City Cemetery is a remarkable volunteer success story. In the words of the Cemetery Master Plan, the cemetery was “barren and lifeless” until volunteers transformed a “neglected burial ground to a vibrant historic cemetery that is a horticultural attraction.”
The plan states a vision for the historic cemetery, recognizing three major areas devoted to gardens: Historic Rose Garden, Hamilton Square Perennial Garden and California Native Plant Demonstration Garden.
Feb 26, 2020
It’s bad enough that we have to fight weeds or deal with unsuitable plants that we inherited when we bought our properties. It’s worse if you are the one who innocently planted something that has turned into a monster. Plants that are described as “vigorous” may be ready to take over your yard. Some grow too big, too fast. Others have roots that spread aggressively. Still others spread by seed.
I don’t really consider plants “invasive” that are easy to remove. California poppies, sweet peas and other plants that self-seed can be readily pulled out if they pop up in unwanted places.
Feb 26, 2020
Similar to a scene in a Nancy Drew mystery novel, homeowner Cathy Skeen pushes open a secret door concealed within a library bookcase and walks through the hidden passageway.
What’s on the other side? Another complete house.
