Learning to See the Beauty of Nature in Our Gardens
An Amtrak train announces its arrival at Grand Avenue Station. The familiar whistle tells us it is 7:10 am. At the same time, I can hear the waves of the Pacific Ocean crashing in. I take a walk on the Boardwalk.. it is early… fog is drifting in from the Ocean in large sweeps. Silver [...]
After my stay in Butterfly Town near Monterey Bay, my travels took me to the High Desert, to Joshua Tree National Park, located Southeast of Los Angeles. Going from the sea to the desert, I felt like a lizard warming up. No fog here; no gray clouds. Sunshine & breezes greeted me instead. I was [...]
Walking along a trail with my camera, I was hoping to come upon some wildlife to photograph, when I felt eyes upon me. I looked up and there, right in front of me, were the warm, gentle eyes of a deer! I couldn’t believe how close I was to him! I thought, “Please don’t move; [...]
I had a visit from Cammie Donaldson, the Executive Director of the Florida Association of Native Nurseries (FANN) this past week. It’s an exciting time for them as the first national all Native Plant Trade Show is scheduled to take place right here in my very own county. That event will occur starting on April [...]
I discovered that I miss lizards. The other day I was visiting the Top of Topanga Overlook, a park owned by the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy. This was my first step back in Topanga since I set out travelling the Central Coast of CA some 4 mos ago! I walked through the small native garden [...]
“Walk as if you are kissing the Earth with your feet.” Thich Nhat Hanh I found this quote around the dawn of the new year, and was immediately taken with it. Do you ever read a quote and then are instantly inspired? Well this is one that has profoundly affected me to my very soul. It [...]
It’s the Winter Holidays, that Magical Season when we celebrate the wonder and beauty of Nature, the balance of life on earth: between plants & animals, people & trees… It is also a time for reflection, as the days grow shorter & cooler and we spend more time looking out the window at the landscape [...]
I thought it was a bad news day at the old corral. While out and about on a recent blustery Hurricane Sandy day, I saw the “great reptile hunter” go on alert and then dive in some brush at the fence line. October can be a time for box turtles and I thought Chili had [...]
I climbed down from 7000 ft elevation, to camp on the beach. It was starting to get down t0 32dgs at night in the San Bernardino Mtns, and the beach would be more temperate. And to my delight, I found a treat waiting for me on the Coast. I discovered a park that was a [...]
When I think of wetlands, the image that first comes to mind is cattails (Typha angustifolia). Our home and property, which I named Marshview, is surrounded on three sides by wetlands. A wetland is a land area that is saturated with water and is a distinct ecosystem. Our wetlands do not support fish since they [...]
This summer has been one of extremes – extreme house makeover, extreme heat and drought, extreme fires and extreme wildlife visitors to our yard. It’s been a summer that we like to hope does not happen on a regular basis. It’s also been a summer that has shown me just how interconnected our wildlife friends [...]
News from Team Native Plants and Wildlife Gardens
