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Huntington Revisited

As a guilty pleasure, or let’s say…a business expense, I renewed my long-lost membership to the Huntington Library and Gardens this spring. I haven’t been in years (since gas prices went up – it’s a bit of a drive to get there from where I live). In fact, I hadn’t been back since the Huntington opened their Chinese and Children’s’ Gardens. I was really looking forward to seeing the “new to me” installations, and sauntering through the rose garden and other old stomping grounds.

Let me tell you, it didn’t disappoint. My first stop was the Shakespeare Garden, which …

An Ailing Meyer Lemon

A desperate plea came in this week that sounds like a 911 call:

“New meyer lemon dwarf tree doing poorly, yellow leaves, flowers dropped off. So sad….Help! Suggestions?”

You said the magic word – new. I’m guessing that your lemon tree is suffering from transplant shock in some way. It can take around 3 weeks for a plant to show signs of it, but chances of survival are pretty good , especially in winter, if you address it right away. Here’s what I can say about it and other possible problems your tree might be suffering from:

Yellow leaves – There are a …

What’s a Fig to Do?

A savvy gardener writes in:

“My young mission fig tree has very few fruit forming, can I use an organic fertilizer now to encourage more fruit output?”

In general, the best time to fertilize fig trees is in spring and as needed until late summer (which is now for Californians) – so go ahead and fertilize your fig. Many fig trees don’t require
fertilizing at all, but there may be some conditions that are contributing to your low fig yield:

Fig trees can take up to two years to produce fruit from their planting date. You mentioned that your fig is young, though I …

Squirrels: Cute and Fuzzy, or Destructive Rats in Pretty Coats

A desperate gardenerd writes in:

“Help! Squirrels are devouring the fruits (or vegetables) of my labor. My sweet little tomatoes, my succulent squash–all gone. They’re cute little animals and all, but they’re not that cute. How can I deter them?”

Alas, I hear your cries. I’ve gone toe-to-toe on a few occasions with our well-dressed woodland friends, and my mother has shared stories of the same decimating her yard as well. They stare defiantly at me (sideways out of one eye) as I threaten them with death, seeming to say, “bring it on.” There are many reported techniques that work – some better than …

Winter Solstice

Today, December 22nd, is Winter Solstice in the northern hemisphere. The shortest day and longest night of the year. From here on out, the
days get longer until Summer Solstice in June. What a glorious thing to look forward to.

In celebration of the solstices and equinoxes, I try to spend time out in nature, and today was no exception. I spent the morning in my garden at Ocean View Farms. Since the last few
days included heavy rain and wind, I was wondering what I’d find when I got there. To my surprise, everything was still in …