Blue Planet Garden Blog

Wordless Wednesday: Marcia Donahue's Garden

 Recently I had the opportunity to visit Marcia Donahue's amazing Berkeley garden during the Garden Conservancy's Open Day tour. But you don't have to wait until the next one, because Marcia generously opens her Garden of Earthly Delights and gallery every Sunday from 1-5.

My one minute highlight reel:

 

If you'd rather linger, here's the gallery.

And if you want more photos and a thorough analysis of Marcia's vertical garden style, visit this Fine Gardening post by Billy Goodnick. Since its Wordless Wednesday, I'm letting someone else do the heavy lifting.

Wordless Wednesday: UC Davis Arboretum

Nick and I took advantage of a sunny Saturday last April to spend a day in Davis, California. The highlight was biking around the spectacular arboretum located on the University of California campus.

 

We started with the Australian plant collection:

 

Grevillea

 

Anigozanthos

 

Callestemon 'Little John', one of my favorite small space shrubs

 

Then we moved onto California natives:

A path through the redwoods

 

Ceanothus sets off bright yellow Fremontodendron

 

Douglas Iris

 

Not sure what this is, but it's certainly lovely. A native form of Cape Mallow?

 

 

And finally, the East Asian Collection

 

Toona sinensis 'Flamigo'

 

Chinese Fringe Tree

 

Rosa x odorata 'Mutabilis'  - Butterfly Rose is a UC Davis All-Star selection

 

Chinese ground orchard (letilla striata) is also an All-Star selection

 

Thanks for joining me on my tour!

Wordless Wednesday: A Visit to Playful Digs in Napa

 

Last week I had the privilege of speaking at Playful Digs garden shop in Napa. How cute is this store?

 

 

Birdhouses made out of books

 

Cool succulent art

 

In the window

 

 

Good advice

 

The actual presentation was held upstairs. ss ss A good turnout, considering the pouring rain!

 

Mimi Glavin, owner of Playful Digs and new friend, had everything set up so nicely for the book signing.

 

As always, hanging out and signing books after the presentation is the best part! Thanks for the opportunity and a truly fun day, Mimi! I'll be back to shop soon!

 

Wordless Wednesday: Hiking the Marin Headlands

On Sunday, Nick and I joined my sister and brother-in-law for an eight mile hike beginning at the Marin Headlands visitors center and ending at Stinson Beach. Beautiful weather and incredible views, though my sore calves beg to differ with the guidebook's statement that this is a leisurely stroll. Here's a taste of what we saw.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wordless Wednesday: The Gardens of Yountville

When you live 40 minutes away from the Napa Valley and are blessed with an unusually beautiful Saturday in January, there's really no better way to spend it than lunch, wine-tasting and garden-hoping in Yountville.

We began at Domain Chandon, which has extensive grounds punctuated by majestic oaks and whimsical artwork. (FYI we only tried the bubbles, not the oysters.)