The March Garden
March in the Garden Get Ready for Spring — Nan Sterman March is such a busy month for gardeners. There’s so much to see, so much to learn, and so much to do. Where to begin? Here’s my list for getting...
View ArticleWild and Wooly: Native Bee Pollinators
By Nan Sterman Here’s something I’ve long wondered about. There are more than 4,000 species of bees native to North America, all of which are pollinators. With the problems that European honeybees have...
View ArticleHow to Water Your Trees
–Nan Sterman Once established, trees still need from deep, periodic irrigation throughout the year. In these hot days of summer, we take pleasure in watering vegetable gardens and fruit trees but we...
View ArticleRespect the Insects
— Nan Sterman Bees hard at work collecting pollen from a poppy flower. On the last garden tour I led to England, I was impressed to see how all the gardens, both formal and informal, included spaces...
View ArticleGrowing a Greener Golf Course
A number of years ago, I was touring gardens in Shady Canyon, then a brand new development of grand homes in Irvine, California. The homes wound up and down the side of a hill – each property with a...
View ArticleNative Plants Give Your Garden a Sense of Place
There’s no better way to give your garden a sense of place than by using native plants. Still, it can be challenging to decide what is truly native, and figuring out how to use those plants in a garden...
View ArticleHelp Save Endangered Plants: Grow Them in Your Garden
California has more rare, threatened, and endangered plants than any other state. Plant populations disappear as homes, shopping centers, schools, and other developments replace habitats. Native plants...
View ArticleWaste Not…
We all do it. We plant fruit trees and don’t manage to pick all the fruits as they ripen. We buy produce at the farmer’s market or the supermarket and let some of it go bad — not intentionally — but...
View ArticleFire Followers in the Mountains
One of the things I love most about my work is the opportunity to explore the staggering beauty and complexity of nature – like how habitats recover from devastating massive fires. Why “massive”...
View ArticleThe Adventures of a Plant Explorer
His name may not ring a bell, but his plants probably look familiar. You’ve may have seen plant explorer and breeder Kelly Griffin’s wildly popular aloes, agaves, and other succulent plants in...
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