The industrious buzz of bees tackling the dregs of cherry blossom was lawnmower-loud, accompanied by back off peeps from blackbirds nesting in the ivy.
Join the San Francisco Environment Department, in partnership with the Yerba Buena Gardens Conservancy and Climatebase, for a day of sustainability, community, and action at the official kickoff event for SF Climate Week.
Bergs Potter takes the cake for me, closely followed by the majolica-like planters at Williams-Sonoma and a few stylish designs from Ferm Living and Pottery Barn. These planters lean home decor over plastic planters, making them weather-resistant, durable pieces even on a wind-whipped balcony or hurricane-sacked home garden.
These are Scilla sardensis, the common name is Glory-of-the-Snow. They are native to the mountains of Western Turkey but are really comfortable growing in almost any condition, as you can see. They are, for us, the real harbingers of spring. We know that once we start to see this electric blue color, the season is starting for us.
The new Kusuma Nature Play area designed for kids includes a wooden jetty, slide, climbing webs, lookout points, log steps, timber balance beams, and a den building frame.
Crushed clean, dry eggshells, when scattered over the soil, are intended to stop adult gnats from laying eggs and potentially add natural fertilizer. However, they merely sit on the surface, collecting dust, while the gnats remain attracted to the damp compost.
Countertop gardens allow individuals with limited outdoor space to grow herbs and vegetables indoors, providing fresh ingredients that enhance cooking. They are particularly beneficial in cold climates or during winter months.
Around a third of UK gardeners use pesticides, and our studies found that house sparrow numbers, for example, were nearly 40% lower in gardens where the pesticide metaldehyde was used. By reducing pesticide use, you can actively encourage birds back into your outdoor spaces, as they rely on invertebrates such as slugs and snails as natural prey.
Starting plants from seed extends your relationship with the garden, gives you more control over seed sourcing, and saves real money compared to buying nursery starts, sometimes as much as 90% per plant.
To see where the moon melts over the garden,or where the bats flit, or where the air sweetens with pollen and moth-frenzy, I recommend a night walk to discern the perfect patch for it. Under this glow, we could all use a distraction-dig with a silver shovel and choose colors that swoon and moan under our satellite: dusty pinks, baby blue, lavender, white, and butter yellow gems unfurl at dusk until dawn.
Garden angelica, Angelica archangelica, belongs to the Apiaceae family, the same botanical group as carrots, celery, fennel, and parsley. Like its relatives, it produces a large, distinctively umbrella-shaped inflorescence, or flower cluster, called umbels. In its first year, the plant forms a lower mound of bright green leaves. In the second, a thick, hollow stem shoots upward and unfurls the broad green flower heads that resemble wild carrot or Queen Anne's Lace.
