Horticulture

Gardening is fun. Furthermore, gardens are pretty. Some gardens also produce fruits and vegetables. Not very long ago, production of fruits and vegetables was more of a priority for more gardens. Some big gardens generated firewood and a bit of forage for livestock. Contemporary...

Spring is when most rodents are most active. Although they do not hibernate locally, they are a bit less active through winter.  Their activity increases with warming spring weather. Their progeny increases their population. Assorted fresh vegetation that sustains them is most abundant. Their activity...

Home gardens are becoming shadier. Modern homes are taller to fit closer together. Modern fences are taller to compensate. Densely evergreen trees and large shrubbery compensate more. Taller homes and fences, and denser vegetation, shade more of their smaller modern parcels. Not much sunlight...

In May, the Los Gatos Town Council decided it was going to use $2.9 million of the money Washington gave it to make it through the pandemic toward various capital projects. And on Tuesday, Los Gatos’ elected officials (minus Vice Mayor Maria Ristow, who was...

Home gardens are components of the homes that they serve. They are the exterior of the interior. They are the environments in which homes exist. Some provide vegetables and fruits. Many provide flowers. Ideally, gardens enhance domestic experiences. Therefore, their design is as relevant...

Bare root season begins as the year ends for a simple reason. That is when deciduous plants are dormant. They are unaware of the otherwise distressful process of relocation. This is also why winter is the season for dormant pruning. Such pruning would be...

Fads come and go. Many can be good, even if only briefly. A few might be bad enough to later stigmatize the object of the fad. For example, the formerly esteemed crape myrtle is now familiar as a mundanely common tree. Flashy bloom and...

As you approach former Saratoga mayor Jill Hunter’s front door, you can’t help but notice her blooming backyard garden basking in the sun. Step inside, and her keen eye for plants is obvious. They are the center of attention. What else would you expect from someone...

Oleander that inhabits freeway medians is poisonous enough to be hazardous. Two tons of Buick cruising at 65 miles per hour past such oleander has more potential to be hazardous. The risk associated with toxic plants within freeway medians is as limited as their...

Halloween seems to be an appropriate time to bury early spring bulbs in shallow graves. The season begins about now, and continues until about the end of the year. Installation of new bulbs might initially be ungratifying. There is nothing to show after their...