Napa

Orchids (Phalaenopsis) are readily available this time of year in nurseries and even grocery stores. They are popular hostess gifts. I find them quite beautiful and I am always tempted to add another one to my collection.

By Yvonne Rasmussen, UC Master Gardener of Napa County Growing plants from seeds rather than from nursery starts has many advantages and can be an awe-inspiring experience. By using seeds, you have more options than nurseries offer.

My mother adored pepperblack, red, green, hot, sweet, any kind. She used so much cracked pepper in our meals that most of them looked as if they were dug out of a gravel pit. I used to sulkily scrape it off while she told me I didn't know what was good. Times and tastes have changed, though.

By Cindy Watter, UC Master Gardener of Napa County Amaryllis is a popular Christmas gift and decoration. I have received many over the years, and they are long lasting and beautiful. However, they are not true amaryllis.

Bringing Nature Home: How You Can Sustain Wildlife with Native Plants was first published in 2007 and set off an enthusiasm for native plant gardening. This practice is now known as rewilding in horticulture circles. Author Doug Tallamy is an entomology professor at the University of Delaware.

Hey, everybody, it is deadhead time at the Rose Corral. No, I am not talking about a gathering of slow-thinking people. Nor am I talking about followers of a famous rock group, or about delivery trucks that travel without any cargo.

by Tom Hixson, UC Master Gardener of Napa County Most Napa Valley residents recognize the plant known as tree of heaven when they see it sprouting wild in fields, taking over their gardens or defiantly establishing itself in sidewalk cracks.

Did you know that 17 different types of bats live in Northern California? Some are pollinators; others are insect eaters. Both are important to our environment. Much has been written over the last few years about the loss of pollinators. Bats are an important pollinator.

Okay, maybe I am cheap, but I hate to waste stuff. Even when I can buy something for a specific purpose, I try to make it first, just to see if it works--sort of like a Rube Goldberg machine. I come from a family of immigrants, which is true of almost everyone in the U.S.

As nighttime temperatures cool and we pick the last of our summer crops, it is time to prepare the garden for winter and next spring. Many activities done now can make your late winter and spring gardening easier and your garden more beautiful and productive.