Angel with Dirty Fingernails - Low Water Landscaping Blog

Spring is here in San Diego

2010-03-06T09:23:00.000-08:00

I got this great email from one of our design/build clients this week and thought I would share it with you all:

Thank you to our great client, and I cant wait to stop by next week and take more pictures.

Have a wonderful weekend all.

Diane

Diane E Downey is the owner of The Yard Fairy Inc, a North San Diego County based award winning landscape design and installation company creating low water, low maintenance landscapes that are as functional as they are pleasing to the eye. To arrange your consultation with The Yard Fairy, please call 760 804 1661 or email info at yardfairy.com today.

Wordless Wednesday - The Huntington Library and Gardens

2010-02-24T16:58:00.001-08:00

My family took me to The Huntington Library last weekend for my birthday tea. It was wonderful as usual. I thought I'd share some pictures as part of the 'Wordless Wednesday' meme borrowed from my fellow gardening bloggers at flowergardengirl and BGgarden:

Diane E Downey is the owner of The Yard Fairy Inc, a North San Diego County based award winning landscape design and installation company creating low water, low maintenance landscapes that are as functional as they are pleasing to the eye. To arrange your consultation with The Yard Fairy, please call 760 804 1661 or email info at yardfairy.com today.

The Ten (Gardening) Truths About Me - My Honest Scrap Post

2010-01-17T19:42:00.000-08:00

My good friend Jenn from Facebook and Twitter has passed this joyous piece of scrap to me! She has two blogs, one called Jenn's Gardening Spot and the other ~Recycling Gardener~. Both show her passion for her family, her garden and the environment.

Recipients of the Honest Scrap award are supposed to reveal ten truths about themselves, and then extend the award to seven other bloggers. I feel honored to have had this bestowed upon me, and though I'd use the opportunity to tell you a bit more about my path to becoming The Yard Fairy. Thank you Jenn, for giving me this wonderful opportunity.

Truth #1: I was taught to garden by my Grandmother when I was 7 years old and visiting her in the Summer in Bedfordshire. My first planting plan included snapdragons and marigolds. She taught me how to build a compost heap and how to layer greens and browns with some horse manure to accelerate it all, and how to over it in straw and plastic sheeting to cook it. She showed me how beneficial it was when she used it in her own garden to improve the soil and grow wonderful, fragrant roses. She and my Grandfather took me for long walks around the woods where he would come across a 'chocolate tree' just as the going was getting a bit tough. I remember seeing carpets of bluebells, and picking them to bring home, with their slippery, stringy stems and their haunting fragrance. My grandparents were my inspiration for learning about nature.

Truth #2: In 1974, my step father built his own vegetable garden from a bare piece of earth that was our back garden in our new house in Wigan, Lancashire. We kept a small flock of Bantam hens and Rhode Island Reds in a converted garden shed with an enclosed run. They gave us lots of fresh eggs, and much amusement as we watched their antics. I remember him pouring over seed catalogs trying to work out which exotic species he was going to try his hand at next spring. He taught me how to see possibilities in a piece of land.

Truth #3: My high school had a stags horn fern hanging up somewhere between the Biology department and the sixth form common room. It was the first time I had ever seen such a plant and it became one of those plants that I just had to have. I finally got two of them when I moved to California, some 20 years later. This was the beginning of me learning that the plant world was full of delights beyond my very limited experience to that point.

Truth #4: My A level (last two years of high school, for US readers) Biology teacher taught me botany, among other things. That's when I first learned about macro and micro nutrients, nodes, internodes, growing tips, stomata, xylem and phloem. I remember being so excited to see onion cells under the microscope for the first time, and doing the experiment that measured how much starch was in a leaf that had been masked from sunlight for 24 hours. This taught me the value of science and gave me a glimpse into the chemical reactions that surround us.

Truth #5: I spent my undergraduate days collecting sad looking, discounted house plants from places like Woolworths in Worcester town center. I would bring them home to my dorm room, prune, re-pot and nurture them into large, beautiful specimens. I would water them all by placing them in one of the communal bath tubs and letting them sit in water for an hour or so. Another hour or so to drain, and they would be just right for another week. When I moved into my first shared flat (apartment) with my best friend from college, I somehow forgot that trick and would water them with a small watering can. I always managed to over water them and had to run round with a cloth drying up after myself. Still do to this day! Watering plants is not as easy as you think and water needs to be managed.

Truth #6: My first real garden was in Faversham, Kent when my husband, our good friend Debbie, and I bought our first house. The back garden was long and thin, with a high red brick wall all the way around. When we moved in, the garden was in a really sorry state, so we came up with a design and set to work with a rototiller. We created new pathways using gravel, and we curved the planter beds to disguise the shape. We planted goldenrod, honeysuckle and a small flowering cherry tree. Good landscape design is key to getting the best out of any garden.

Truth #7: My favorite English garden was in Eythorne, Kent where we lived from 1994 until 2001. When we bought the house it came with a small greenhouse, a pond, and a detached garage. I would spend my weekends pottering in the greenhouse, starting vegetable and bedding plant seedlings. I recycled one of our old kitchen cabinets and some old worktop to make a potting bench, and my husband built me some greenhouse staging. I converted two old coal bunkers into compost bins, and used a shredder to chop up all the tree trimmings to add to the heap. I created an herb garden in the front by taking out a small area of lawn, and I 'hedged' it with thyme. One of my favorite plants was a ceanothus or California Lilac, and the other was a clematis (Nelly Moser) that just grew and grew and grew. Now it was my time to pour over seed catalogs and work out how to limit my seed order to a manageable budget!

Truth #8: My current Californian garden is now my favorite. Its not as big as I'd like it to be - we got that warning quite early on from our Realtor - but its where I try out ideas and plants. And boy, what a learning curve I had when I got here. The soil was just the wrong color - kind of yellow-brown, not dark brown I'm used to. The plant choices available were mind blowing and I felt like a kid in a candy store. It didn't take much time for me to realize that just because we can grow all sorts of exotics here, it doesn't mean we should. Once I had started improving my own yard, taking out the lawn, piece by piece, I realized that I needed some education to make this all work. I enrolled in the horticulture program at my local junior college, Mira Costa, and took a range of classes from Soil Science, Irrigation, Plant Science, Pest Control, and others. That experience shaped my thinking about our use of water, our guardianship of the environment, our impact on the ecosystem and our plant choices.

Truth #9: When I started The Yard Fairy in 2003, I knew I wanted to become part of the professional group for landscapers, the California Landscape Contractors Association (CLCA). After being a member for a year or two, but not really being very active I realized that the association could offer me much more if I became involved. I set myself a goal of attending the monthly board meetings, and while walking into that first meeting was not easy to do, I have found the CLCA to be a major influence on my business. The friendships and camaraderie in both the local San Diego chapter, and in the last two years, up and down the state, have provided me with support, professional development and leadership training. I have been exposed to landscape business of all sizes and flavors; I have met and talked to politicians and policy advisers; we have won multiple awards for our work and for our website; and I have learned business skills from a wide range of green industry experts. As I start out 2010 as Chapter President, I am so grateful that the group were so welcoming when I took those first faltering steps to that first board meeting.

Truth #10: My family have been a very important part of this whole journey - my grandparents, my parents, my husband and my two boys. They have been very tolerant of my need to visit garden centers, botanical gardens and nurseries. My husband, in particular, has been very good about handing me a towel on the way to the shower after a long and dirty day in garden. I'm so proud of my sons as they become more involved in the garden and the business, and they start to see why I'm so passionate about my profession. I hope this continues to grow for them, and they too have a life time of gardening joy ahead of them.

Now it is time for me to pass on the Honest Scrap award to 7 lucky folks. I have picked these seven people because they accompany me on my daily travels in the form of their podcasts, and they provide inspiration in their writing and pictures on their blogs.

Emma Cooper creator of The Alternative Kitchen Garden podcast and blog
Dori and Val creators of the More Hip Than Hippie podcast and blog
Charlotte mastermind behind The Garden Book of Days
The famous Crafty Gardener
The mysterious 'Weeping Sore' and her blog 'Grow This'
Laura Z's blog, The Garden Pages
Yyvette Roman and Fred Davis' blog Beyond the Lawn

Thank you again to Jenn for awarding me this honor, and well done to Emma, Dori and Val, Charlotte, Crafty Gardener, 'Weeping Sore', Laura Z, Yyvette and Fred. Thank you for all you do to brighten my day!

Diane E Downey is the owner of The Yard Fairy Inc, a North San Diego County based award winning landscape design and installation company creating low water, low maintenance landscapes that are as functional as they are pleasing to the eye. To arrange your consultation with The Yard Fairy, please call 760 804 1661 or email info at yardfairy.com today.

January Garden Blooms in Carlsbad, California

2010-01-16T19:34:00.000-08:00

On the 15th of each month gardeners around the country post pictures of what is blooming in their gardens, so here's what is blooming in my garden today (January 16th, 2010) - Pink Bower Vine (Pandorea pandorana), Gerbera daisy (this one is a perennial, low water variety from Proven Winners), Star Magnolia (Magnolia stellata), Alysum, Azalea, Epidendrum radicans, Carolina jasmine (Gelsemium sempervirens).

I spent a very relaxing day in my garden today. I planted some vegetable seeds - Broccoli Raab, radish and carrots, and some more sweet peas (my favorite). I also took some cuttings of a Manzanita Arctostaphylos manzanita) that had been damaged while the new pathway and steps were being installed.
This vegetable garden doesn't get much sun, so I'm a little concerned about how well things will grow. It also doesn't have any irrigation so this will all need to be water by hand until I can fix that up. Good job we have lots of rain predicted for this week.

I moved the lighthouse today and found this spot for it. My eldest son built me this in his high school metal shop. I love its rustic finish, and the contrast with the rough bark of the pepper tree suits it really well. Just need to figure out how to get some lights up there.

The new block walls at the top of the bank are something I have been thinking of doing for quite a few years. They give me a new planter bed that no longer slopes down, so hopefully it will be easier to water and keep good soil in there. They also give me a small walkway and two lots of steps up there that are much safer than the little stepping stones I installed 7 or 8 years ago. We also created a small 'pad' for the area where we hang the hammock for the kids. Last summer, our nephew and niece loved being up there but without steps the plants just got walked over and they created a dirt path that just eroded the soil.

I cleaned out the pond so now most of the string algae is gone, and I switched on the pump for the first time since the summer - water restrictions. A wonderful soothing sound. Tonight the California Tree Frogs are loving it.

My glimpse of what is to come came when I looked at my collection of cymbidium orchids that I keep under a magnolia tree in the shade of the fence. The flower spikes are forming and within a month they will be in full and glorious bloom.

The perfect end to a day in the garden!

This garden blog event is sponsored by : May Dream Gardens at http://www.maydreamsgardens.com/2010/01/garden-bloggers-bloom-day-january-2010.html

Diane E Downey is the owner of The Yard Fairy Inc, a North San Diego County based award winning landscape design and installation company creating low water, low maintenance landscapes that are as functional as they are pleasing to the eye. To arrange your consultation with The Yard Fairy, please call 760 804 1661 or email info at yardfairy.com today.

Edible Landscaping - Winter Veggies for SoCal

2010-01-08T15:50:00.000-08:00

Out and about this week getting back into the swing of work and we got to pay a visit to one of our gardens that was finished in November last year. We built raised vegetable beds for them out of dry stack stone from KRC Rock , and filled them with yummy soil from Great Soil. The clients got busy over the holidays and started planting up their herbs and vegetables. What a lovely sight for us to find.

Seeing their vegetable garden coming together inspired me to pull together a list of good crops to be planting at this time of year in San Diego County. Although its winter here, we still get great temperatures in the 60s and 70s, with the lows in the 40s to 50s. We may get a very occasional frost in inland areas, but it is usually very localized to low points in gardens, or low points in canyon areas.

Here is my list:

1. Artichoke
2. Arugula
3. Beetroot
4. Blueberries
5. Broad beans or fava beans
6. Broccoli
7. Brussels sprouts
8. Cabbage
9. Carrots
10. Cauliflower
11. Chard
12. Chicory
13. Chives
14. Cilantro
15. Collards
16. Cress
17. Dill
18. Endive
19. Garlic
20. Kale
21. Leeks
22. Lettuce
23. Mustard
24. Onion
25. Parsley
26. Parsnips
27. Peas including sugar snap, English peas and snow peas
28. Radishes
29. Rutabagas
30. Salsify
31. Sorrel
32. Spinach
33. Turnips

Good sources for vegetable seeds and starter plants would be:

My own personal vegetable gardening success story was being able to pick fresh salad leaves over the holidays. They tasted yummy and it felt so good to be eating fresh salad to balance all the rich food of the season.

Diane E Downey is the owner of The Yard Fairy Inc, a North San Diego County based award winning landscape design and installation company creating low water, low maintenance landscapes that are as functional as they are pleasing to the eye. To arrange your consultation with The Yard Fairy, please call 760 804 1661 or email info at yardfairy.com today.

Christmas Day Flowers

2009-12-25T22:14:00.000-08:00

I got a new camera today so I had to take it out for a spin. What a better subject than the flowers in my garden. Paper whites, iceburg roses, fuschia, and lorapetalum... how lucky we are to live in such a beautiful world!

Diane E Downey is the owner of The Yard Fairy Inc, a North San Diego County based award winning landscape design and installation company creating low water, low maintenance landscapes that are as functional as they are pleasing to the eye. To arrange your consultation with The Yard Fairy, please call 760 804 1661 or email info at yardfairy.com today.

The Alternative Garden Tour

2009-12-23T08:37:00.000-08:00

We recieved a lovely email today from one of our Garden Tour clients:

Such a great picture, I just had to share it with you all.

Happy Holidays!

Diane E Downey is the owner of The Yard Fairy Inc, a North San Diego County based award winning landscape design and installation company creating low water, low maintenance landscapes that are as functional as they are pleasing to the eye. To arrange your consultation with The Yard Fairy, please call 760 804 1661 or email info at yardfairy.com today.

The Yard Fairy's Garden Tour

2009-12-21T21:18:00.000-08:00

Here are some more pictures of our garden tour today. Bananas in December anyone? Thanks to all our Yard Fairies - Ciaran, Natalia, Amy, Aleksandra, Presciliano, Melissa and Juan.

Diane E Downey is the owner of The Yard Fairy Inc, a North San Diego County based award winning landscape design and installation company creating low water, low maintenance landscapes that are as functional as they are pleasing to the eye. To arrange your consultation with The Yard Fairy, please call 760 804 1661 or email info at yardfairy.com today.

Here's what's blooming in our gardens in December

2009-12-21T18:02:00.000-08:00

We just finished our annual Yard Fairy Garden Tour of 2009 - we take the whole Yard Fairy team on a tour of six gardens that we have completed over the last few years to see what has become of them.

As you can see, the cooler weather has really brought out the color in the succulents. Just a beautiful sight and so much better than ho-hum lawn would be. More pictures to follow!

Diane E Downey is the owner of The Yard Fairy Inc, a North San Diego County based award winning landscape design and installation company creating low water, low maintenance landscapes that are as functional as they are pleasing to the eye. To arrange your consultation with The Yard Fairy, please call 760 804 1661 or email info at yardfairy.com today.

Frost Warning for San Diego County - December 8th, 2009

2009-12-08T15:08:00.000-08:00

I just received this email from The County Farm Bureau regarding possible frost tonight. Seems to be mostly for Northern inland areas:

Special Frost and Freeze Warning for San Diego County
Issued 1130am PST 12/8/09
Valid Midnight - 9 am 12/9/09

Conditions favorable for freeze are expected tonight in San Diego
County. The greatest risk will be north county from Ramona north thru the
Riverside Valley. Valley cold spots: lows 26 to 29, sloped areas and low
hills 30 to 34, and foothills 33 to 34. Palomar Mtn at 5500 feet L20s. Fans
will help little due to the cold dry unstable air mass aloft. South county
won't be as cold (mostly mid 30s due to clouds). Prelim lows:
Fallbrook Nurseries area 30, Fallbrook Valley 27, Escondido 31, Valley
Center 28, Rainbow 26, Riverside March 26, Pendleton 27, Oceanside AP 30.
Freeze risk is likely between midnight and 9am PST Wed in colder areas.

Diane E Downey is the owner of The Yard Fairy Inc, a North San Diego County based award winning landscape design and installation company creating low water, low maintenance landscapes that are as functional as they are pleasing to the eye. To arrange your consultation with The Yard Fairy, please call 760 804 1661 or email info at yardfairy.com today.

Yard Fairy Wins Cybersoil Award from California Landscaping Magazine

2009-11-20T07:28:00.001-08:00

California Landscaping Magazine Awards Yard Fairy Website for "Best Content" in their 2009 Cybersoil Awards

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

November 18, 2009
San Diego, CA--

San Diego landscaping contractor Diane Downey was granted a Cybersoil Award for "Best [Website] Content" as celebrated in the 2009 November/December issue of California Landscaping Magazine. Her low water landscaping website, http://YardFairy.com, beat out 21 other competing websites for its exceptional content that includes organic gardening advice, Smart Irrigation tips and an extensive photo library showcasing her award-winning low water landscaping designs.

California Landscaping Magazine is published by the CLCA (California Landscaping Contractors Association). According to the publication, the CLCA's chosen winner for best content was based on the ability to "tell the company's story through text, images, and client testimonials," as well as "'up the ante' with podcasts, video and more."

Diane, a.k.a. "The Yard Fairy" excels in this category with her up-to-date blog and online newsletter; fresh, informative and engaging articles and endorsements from satisfied clients. She also is a willing social networker, giving readers a way to get to know her via multiple means - her Angel With Dirty Fingernails blog, Facebook and Twitter accounts, and even YouTube where she regularly creates beautiful "slideshow" videos of her garden designs and explorations set to music.

Click here to read the rest of "Yard Fairy Wins Cybersoil Award..."

Diane E Downey is the owner of The Yard Fairy Inc, a North San Diego County based award winning landscape design and installation company creating low water, low maintenance landscapes that are as functional as they are pleasing to the eye. To arrange your consultation with The Yard Fairy, please call 760 804 1661 or email info at yardfairy.com today.

Best of Our Low Water Landscaping Articles

2009-11-05T08:12:00.001-08:00

Thanks for visiting The Yard Fairy's blog! In case you were not aware, this blog is part of The Yard Fairy Website at http://yardfairy.com.

Over on the website, we have amassed a sizeable collection of Low Water Landscaping articles. We've helped many residents of north San Diego county as well as gardeners and landscapers all over the world use eco-friendly landscaping methods to create backyard works of art.

In case you are not on our newsletter mailing list, here are some of the more popular landscaping articles we've featured:

Water Features for Your Garden: Ponds, Fountains and Waterfalls

5 Steps to a Low Maintenance Yard

Beautify Your Yard, Simplify Your Life, Save Water

Winter is for Landscape Planning

Top Tree Choices for San Diego

A Water Wise Garden in Escondido, CA

If you'd like these types of articles mailed directly to your inbox each month, sign up for The Yard Fairy Low Water Landscaping Newsletter!

Diane E Downey is the owner of The Yard Fairy Inc, a North San Diego County based award winning landscape design and installation company creating low water, low maintenance landscapes that are as functional as they are pleasing to the eye. To arrange your consultation with The Yard Fairy, please call 760 804 1661 or email info at yardfairy.com today.

Recycling Rain

2009-11-01T17:04:00.000-08:00

Predictions of an increased chance of an El Nino this winter have me thinking about how best to advise my clients on capturing rain water for recycling in the garden.

There seem to be two schools of thought on rain water. One is that it is our enemy and needs to be removed from our property as quickly as possible. The second is that water is our friend, and we need to capture it and let it sink back into the soil. Clearly, moving it away from the house is important, but shipping it out to the storm sewer system causes problems in the ocean and wastes a natural resource.

Seeing rain water in this positive way, and adapting our approach to our landscaping projects is also known as Rain Water Harvesting, and in his book of the same title, Brad Lancaster, outlines several techniques that we recommend here at The Yard Fairy.

1. Create planting beds that are lower than walkways and patios (hardscape) so that water drains from them into the soil, giving the plants extra moisture....

Continue reading "Recycling Rain" featured on the Yard Fairy Landscaping Website!

Diane E Downey is the owner of The Yard Fairy Inc, a North San Diego County based award winning landscape design and installation company creating low water, low maintenance landscapes that are as functional as they are pleasing to the eye. To arrange your consultation with The Yard Fairy, please call 760 804 1661 or email info at yardfairy.com today.

Contemporary Sustainable Private Landscapes

2009-09-27T21:56:00.000-07:00

Day Three of the Pacific Horticulture Gardening Under Mediterranean Skies VII: Lessons in Sustainable Gardening, in Santa Barbara.

We visited four private gardens today, designed by local landscape architects and designers, including Isabelle Greene (great grand daughter of Henry Maher Green, and great grandniece of Charles Sumner Greene), Puck Erikson, Sydney Baumgartner, and Lynn Marie Woodbury.

In the first garden we met Isabelle Greene and saw the very beautiful garden there that used a series of swales to collect rainwater from both the garden and the roof of the house. The swales collect the water from around the property and help slow its passage down so that the soil can be recharged. The lawn was planted using Carex praegracilis, which is much more drought tolerant and slow growing than regular turf grass...

Continue reading the rest on The Yard Fairy Website.

Diane E Downey is the owner of The Yard Fairy Inc, a North San Diego County based award winning landscape design and installation company creating low water, low maintenance landscapes that are as functional as they are pleasing to the eye. To arrange your consultation with The Yard Fairy, please call 760 804 1661 or email info at yardfairy.com today.

Lotusland, Santa Barbara Botanical Garden and Casa Nueva

2009-09-27T07:06:00.000-07:00

Day Two of the Pacific Horticulture Symposium, Gardening Under Mediterranean Skies VII: Lessons in Sustainable Gardening.

The day started with two really interesting, challenging and though provoking lectures on sustainability. Pamela Berstler was a lively speaker who asked us to push the envelope in our thinking about landscaping. She challenged the magazine ideal of a perfect back yard, and showed pictures of her own work that she felt "disappointed in" because of its lack of sustainability. Bernard Trainor's lecture was entitled 'Ecological Design - Connecting with the Place' and he showed pictures of his work that were truly stunning. He talked about the time taken to really get a sense of the natural place of a site, using a range of tools including satellite images to see the natural geography. His projects were larger and at 'drop dead' locations, but he showed how native vegetation and the use of native stone can really make a landscape blend into the natural landscape... click to read the rest of this article on our website.

Diane E Downey is the owner of The Yard Fairy Inc, a North San Diego County based award winning landscape design and installation company creating low water, low maintenance landscapes that are as functional as they are pleasing to the eye. To arrange your consultation with The Yard Fairy, please call 760 804 1661 or email info at yardfairy.com today.

Wine Country Tour - Santa Ynez Valley

2009-09-25T18:27:00.000-07:00

My first day at the Pacific Horticulture Symposium, Gardening Under Mediterranean Skies VII: Lessons in Sustainable Gardening, in Santa Barbara. We visited Santa Ynez Valley Historical Museum followed by visits to two private gardens, and three vineyards - Buttonwood Farm, Alma Rosa Winery & Vineyards, and Lafond Winery. Saw some beautiful plants and gardens. Drank some great wines. Met some awesome people - Puck Erikson, Patrick Anderson, Barbara Paul, Pat Brodie and many others. Having lots of fun.

Diane E Downey is the owner of The Yard Fairy Inc, a North San Diego County based award winning landscape design and installation company creating low water, low maintenance landscapes that are as functional as they are pleasing to the eye. To arrange your consultation with The Yard Fairy, please call 760 804 1661 or email info at yardfairy.com today.

Unusual Objects In The Garden

2009-09-22T08:23:00.000-07:00

I like to use unusual objects in the garden to break up the appearance of fences or walls. They don't have to be expensive items - I usually find mine at discount stores. We are very fortunate in San Diego to have the kind of weather that is fairly kind to things left outside. As long as you realize that its not going to last forever, and that over time the color will fade, there is a lot of enjoyment to be had from inexpensive and uncommon items. In harsher climates you could always protect the item with a coat of spray-on acrylic sealer.

Mixing these items with plant material gives interest and depth to the items. For vertical surfaces I like to use vines such as Bougainvillea, Jasminum, or trumpet vine (Campsis radicans).

These wings caught my eye last spring - a Yard Fairy has to have a pair of wings - and I paired them with an old gold picture frame. Simply attaching them to the fence it now creates an eye catching focal point from one of the windows in our dining room.

Lose that lawn

2009-09-21T15:45:00.001-07:00

These before and after photographs of a California friendly woodland style front yard setting went from same-old lawn and tree to raised planter areas and low water color. The latest set of pictures were taken in 2009, two years after installation. What a wonderful transformation.

Worms - nature's recyclers

2009-09-19T18:37:00.000-07:00

In her recent post about recycling, my good Twitter, Facebook and Farm Ville buddy, Jenn Hammer, over at Recycling Gardener, got me thinking about the recycling we do when we're working on client's yards. We recycle the pots we use at The Yard Fairy by returning them to the nursery, we recycle our green waste by separating it out from the general trash, and we re-use materials of all kinds as much as we can (here's a picture of our recycled concrete retaining wall). It's really important for any landscaping business to take care to minimize the waste it produces; it's part of respect for the land, and it shows that we care.

But what about in my own yard? Well, we have a worm composter and we recycle all our kitchen waste and our junk mail. Yes, junk mail. We seem to get a lot of that - do you? Here's how we do it.

First we take the ingredients. The kitchen waste is our fruit and vegetable peels, coffee grounds, tea bags, egg shells, kitchen roll (so long as it doesn't have cleaning materials or fat on it), in fact most everything but meat and fish We try to avoid citrus (too acid) too. We have a compost pail by our kitchen sink that is great for collecting it all in....

Continue reading "Worms: Nature's Recyclers," posted on The Yard Fairy's Website!

Diane E Downey is the owner of The Yard Fairy Inc, a North San Diego County based award winning landscape design and installation company creating low water, low maintenance landscapes that are as functional as they are pleasing to the eye. To arrange your consultation with The Yard Fairy, please call 760 804 1661 or email info at yardfairy.com today.

SoCal Water$mart Update: Regionwide Program Re-launch September 21, 2009

2009-09-11T09:41:00.000-07:00

News Just In:
"We are pleased to announce that Metropolitan Water District’s SoCal
Water$mart residential water efficiency rebate program WILL RE-LAUNCH ON A
REGION-WIDE BASIS ON SEPTEMBER 21, 2009, beginning at 9:00 a.m. At that
time, rebates will be available for a limited time to all residential
customers of participating water agencies within the Metropolitan Water
District service area. (Residential water customers are those living in
houses or apartments, townhomes, condominiums or mobile home complexes with
less than five dwellings that are not represented by a homeowners
association or property management company.)

Upon re-launch, THE PROGRAM WILL NO LONGER REQUIRE REBATE RESERVATIONS for
qualifying product purchases. Rebate applications for purchases made on or
after September 21 may be submitted by mail or via the program website.

PLEASE NOTE THE FOLLOWING KEY PROGRAM CHANGES:

- Program period is from September 21, 2009 through May 31, 2010, or until
funds are depleted (whichever comes first).
- As stated above, rebate reservations will no longer be required; mail-in
or online applications will be accepted starting September 21, 2009.
- PURCHASES MADE PRIOR TO SEPTEMBER 21, 2009 ARE INELIGIBLE FOR REGION-WIDE
REBATES.
- Rebate checks will be issued only to the residential water customer
directly.
- Customers of participating water agencies that are offering funds during
the current interim period may continue to reserve rebates through the
SoCal Water$mart program through September 18 at 5:00 p.m.

As noted above and with the previous program period, funding for the new
fiscal year is limited and on a first-come, first-served basis. We are
committed to providing effective program support for your high-efficiency
products and will keep you apprised of the program status throughout the
year. In addition, we will work with you to create opportunities for
collaborative promotional efforts.

PRODUCT COVERAGE AND REBATE AMOUNT CHANGES:

We are updating program materials and will be supplying the retail network
with rebate applications and point of purchase marketing materials. Any
retailers, distributors, or contractor groups interested in setting up
program training may submit an email request to
contractor@socalwatersmart.com.

REBATE AMOUNT CHANGES:
- High-efficiency clothes washers (4.0 Water Factor or less): $50 (Please
note the change in the clothes washer requirement from WF 5.0 to WF 4.0 as
of July 1, 2009.)
- High-efficiency toilets (WaterSense qualified, 1.28 gpf or less): $50
- Weather-Based Irrigation Controllers (Smart Water Application
Technologies™ or “SWAT” tested; add-on devices are not rebated)
-- (<1 acre): $80
-- (1+ acre): $25/station
- Rotary nozzles, new requirement to include pressure regulating heads:
$4/nozzle
- Synthetic turf: $0.60/sq ft (not available in all areas as local water
agencies must now match funds and retrofitted area must be less than ½
acre; check the website for details)

As always, local water agencies have the option to add funding and increase
rebate amounts for their customers. Agency funding updates will be provided
on a monthly basis.

If you have any questions, please visit the program website at:
www.bewaterwise.com or call the SoCal Water$mart hotline at: 888-376-3314.
We look forward to working with you!

Sincerely,

The SoCal Water$mart team"

Diane E Downey is the owner of The Yard Fairy Inc, a North San Diego County based award winning landscape design and installation company creating low water, low maintenance landscapes that are as functional as they are pleasing to the eye. To arrange your consultation with The Yard Fairy, please call 760 804 1661 or email info at yardfairy.com today.

Small Tree Choices for San Diego County

2009-09-05T10:09:00.000-07:00

During my visits to clients throughout San Diego county, I am often asked about tree choices. My personal view is that planting a tree that will ultimately be too large for a space is wrong. Many justify it to themselves by saying 'We will be long gone by the time its a problem'. Others plant trees that grow to be giants because they just dont know how big its ultimately going to get. At The Yard Fairy we size our trees (and plants) according to the space you have in your yard. By drawing up your yard on paper, we can see exactly if something is going to fit.

Chinese Redbud or Cercis chinensis
Covered in green glossy leaves with pink or violet flowers
Can grow up to 20 feet tall and 15 wide if allowed
Does shed leaves for fall
Rather low maintenance
Prefers partial shade or full sun

Crape Myrtle or Lagerstroemia hybrids
Many different types
Deciduous tree, loses leaves in fall
Have hybrids that are resistant to many diseases.
Narrow trees that can grow to 25 feet tall and 12 feet wide

Lemon Bottlebrush or Callistemon citrinus
Can grow up to 20-25 feet
Has bright green leaves, flowers are bright red ‘brushes’ with gold tips
Available in Multi
Tolerant to heat and needs little water
Evergreen tree, does not shed leaves for fall

Mexican Redbud or Cercis canadensis mexicana
Can grow to 15 feet tall
Has glossy green leaves that slightly curl
Flowers can range from red to pink
Needs full sun, and fairly drought tolerant
Deciduous tree, will shed leaves for fall
Photo by Natalia Banaszczyk ->

Peppermint Willow or Agonis flexuosa
Can grow up to 25-35 feet tall and 15-30 feet wide
Has lance-shaped leaves and white flowers
Fragrant evergreen that won’t shed leaves for winter
Drought and heat resistant

Pineapple Guava or Feijoa sellowiana (Acca sellowiana)
Can grow up to 18-25 feet tall and wide
Has flowers that are red with yellow tips, and gives green fruit
Has moderate tolerance to temperatures within 80-80 degrees
Evergreen tree with glossy leaves, does not shed for winter

Purple Orchid Tree or Bauhinia veriegata
Can grow up to 25-30 feet tall and wide
Deciduous tree that sheds leaves for the winter
Has leaves that look like a cow’s hoof and orchids for flowers
Needs full sun and is picky about soil pH
Has a blooming period of late winter to early summer

Smoke Tree or Cotinus coggygria
Is also called ‘Purpreus’ or ‘Atropurpurea’
Can grow to 12-15 feet wide and tall, in some cases even 25 feet
Has flowers that cluster together to look like smoke
Has oval shaped, dark purple leaves that turn red in fall
Prefers full sun to partial shade

Strawberry Tree or Arbutus unedo
Is also called ‘Compacta’
Can grow up to 10 feet tall and wide, but seldom over
Is a evergreen shrub with white flowers and red drupe fruit
Prefers partial shade and does well in dry climates
Does not produce strawberries

Western Redbud or Cercis occidentalis
Can grow up to 10-18 feet wide and tall
Is a deciduous shrub or small tree
Has violet flowers and edible fruits
Tolerant of lime or acidic soils

Diane E Downey is the owner of The Yard Fairy Inc, a North San Diego County based award winning landscape design and installation company creating low water, low maintenance landscapes that are as functional as they are pleasing to the eye. To arrange your consultation with The Yard Fairy, please call 760 804 1661 or email info at yardfairy.com today.

Lawn Looking Stressed? Try the short run times tip

2009-09-02T14:05:00.000-07:00

Here's a tip from a good friend of mine, and fellow CLCA board member, Steve Jacobs, who runs Nature Designs. I just wanted to share this with you as it is great advice for our current drought conditions:

"I have noticed many homeowners with stressed lawns after implementing the required 10 minutes, 3 times per week watering schedule. I thought this was odd and found that the homeowners were using only one start time (watering 10 minutes in one cycle). I advised them to use 3 start times for 3 minutes each to minimize runoff and make better use of the water for the lawn and not the gutter. "

Here at The Yard Fairy, we love to install the new generation of 'Smart' irrigation controllers such as the Weathermatic Smartline. These controllers will automatically break up the run times, based on the type of soil you have - shorter run times for clay soil, longer ones for sandy soil.

Diane E Downey is the owner of The Yard Fairy Inc, a North San Diego County based award winning landscape design and installation company creating low water, low maintenance landscapes that are as functional as they are pleasing to the eye. To arrange your consultation with The Yard Fairy, please call 760 804 1661 or email info at yardfairy.com today.

Support New California Greywater Code with Us!

2009-08-24T20:11:00.000-07:00

California Greywater Laws Are in Review - Support the New, Less Restrictive Code in your Local Jurisdiction

August 24, 2009

The Building Standards Commission recently voted to pass the new California greywater code (Chapter 16 in the CA Plumbing Code) which will allow residents to dispel washing machine and shower greywater into their landscapes without needing a permit.

The new greywater irrigation code took effect on August 4, 2009, as a response to growing concerns over severe drought conditions and water shortages in our area. The Yard Fairy is in support of this new, less stringent code and encourages you to speak out in your community in favor of the changes.

Here is a summary of the new greywater code (as it's written now):

A permit will no longer be needed for a washing machine greywater system as long as the system follows health and safety guidelines outlined in the code
A permit will no longer be needed for a single fixture (one shower) if guidelines are followed
A simple, mulch drainage basin is now a permissible form of greywater filtration
There are less requirements for "simple" greywater drainage systems than there were before
Acceptable depth of greywater discharge is now 2" under mulch (it was formerly 9" under dirt)

Continue reading "California Greywater Laws in Review"

Diane E Downey is the owner of The Yard Fairy Inc, a North San Diego County based award winning landscape design and installation company creating low water, low maintenance landscapes that are as functional as they are pleasing to the eye. To arrange your consultation with The Yard Fairy, please call 760 804 1661 or email info at yardfairy.com today.

Magical Moon Gardens

2009-07-22T15:22:00.000-07:00

Ah, the cool breeze, the starlit night, and a bounty of colorful and fragrant plants that come alive in the silvery moonlight. Are you as fond of summer evenings as we are in my family? What a great reason to sit back, relax, and take in the picturesque scenery of your own back yard.

In case you missed it, The Yard Fairy ran a feature on how to grow your own moon garden in our July landscaping newsletter. Feel free to use these tips to cultivate your own, moon-friendly plantings, or explore our landscaping services and have us design one for you!

Want to receive your own copy of The Yard Fairy newsletter in time for the August issue? Sign up right here.

Diane E Downey is the owner of The Yard Fairy Inc, a North San Diego County based award winning landscape design and installation company creating low water, low maintenance landscapes that are as functional as they are pleasing to the eye. To arrange your consultation with The Yard Fairy, please call 760 804 1661 or email info at yardfairy.com today.

Heuchera

2009-07-10T10:37:00.001-07:00

Do you have a space in your yard that needs something to brighten it up? Who can not look at this little plant and feel like smiling?

Heuchera Dolce Key Lime Pie does well in full sun or part shade, although we find it does best in part shade. It does need regular water and free draining soil, so dig in some compost at planting time. We love to put it in pots.

Heuchera comes in a range of other colors too including a lovely orange/peach variety called Dolce® Creme Brulee, and a purple one called Purple Petticoats. These are all Proven Winners varieties so you know they have been put through their paces in the plant trials over in Rainbow.

Diane E Downey is the owner of The Yard Fairy Inc, a North San Diego County based award winning landscape design and installation company creating low water, low maintenance landscapes that are as functional as they are pleasing to the eye. To arrange your consultation with The Yard Fairy, please call 760 804 1661 or email info at yardfairy.com today.

Our Water, Our Future

2009-07-10T06:11:00.000-07:00

We are at a time in Southern California where it is critical to take action regarding our dwindling water supply. This is a major concern that will impact the future for everyone, including availability of clean drinking water, price of water, and so much more.

On Wednesday, July 8, I attended the launch of a in depth report about water sources and water usage called "Our Water, Our Future." The event was sponsored by the San Diego chapter of the CLCA (California Landscape Contrators Association) and located at Kit Carson Park Amphitheater, in Escondido, CA. I was thrilled to be asked to help put this event together, and as a professional landscaper with a responsibility to the environment, I am very supportive of all the hard work the CLCA does on the water issue.

Water supply and usage, and how this will affect the landscaping industry, was the primary focus of the discussion.

Below is a summary of key points, taken from the "Our Water, Our Future, Key Findings 2009" Handout.

Between 30 and 40 percent of water supply is potentially uncertain between now and 2020.
Scientists speculate a 30 to 50 percent reduction in the Colorado River supply over the next several decades.
There is concern as to whether there will be enough water available in the future to replenish agricultural stored water sources and other stored water supplies.
Water supply will be stabilized for the year 2020, pending further implementation of the Conservation and Transfer Agreement with the Imperial Irrigation District.
Water supply will also be determinant upon decisions to overline the Coachella and All-American canals.
Diamond Valley Lake reservoir offers an 800,000-acre-foot capacity that will assist in managing excess water during normal and "wet" years.
We are exploring our capacity to reclaim/recycle water as part of the potable supply, as well as establish a separate system for recycling non-potable water from irrigation and industrial sources.
63 percent of people surveyed favor the idea of adding treated, recycled water to drinking water supplies.
Cost of water will increase in the future.
Outdoor urban use of water is between 29 and 39 percent, which is more than landscape use.
Landscapers must continue to support regulations that implement water budgets based on plant needs and standards of water use in landscaped areas.
Other important concerns include: endangered species of fish in the Delta, damage to Delta levees, earthquake damage to aquaducts, climate change, population growth, Souther California perceptions about the delta, and lack of action.

Diane E Downey is the owner of The Yard Fairy Inc, a North San Diego County based, award winning landscape design and installation company creating low water, low maintenance landscapes that are as functional as they are pleasing to the eye. To arrange your consultation with The Yard Fairy, please call 760 804 1661 or email info at yardfairy.com today.

Sneak Peek at the San Diego County Fair

2009-06-10T22:49:00.001-07:00

I was honored to be asked to judge the landscape displays at the San Diego County Fair this week. I rubbed shoulders with the local Horticultural glitterati, and got a sneak peek at the wonderful display gardens.

There were some really creative landscapes that included edible landscaping and urban farming. I really want chickens right now and one display had a cute chicken coop. Planting in straw bales anyone? Oh, and re purposing cattle feeding troughs for raised gardens - I love it.

Many of the landscapes used rocks, gravel and boulders in very creative ways, cutting down on the area to be watered. When mixed with low water plants, we really can cut down our outdoor watering.

There was also a couple of very modern, clean and simple designs that were really eye catching. One gave the illusion of water by having succulents flow out of a large pot and on down a stream.

I had a wonderful time, talking plants and landscaping with my fellow judges.

I have a pair of Fair tickets, a Fair tote and a Fair cookbook available in a free drawing. Just sign up for my newsletter for a chance to win. Good luck and enjoy the summer!

Diane E Downey is the owner of The Yard Fairy Inc, a North San Diego County based award winning landscape design and installation company creating low water, low maintenance landscapes that are as functional as they are pleasing to the eye. To arrange your consultation with The Yard Fairy, please call 760 804 1661 or email info at yardfairy.com today.

My Top Five Podcasts For Listening To While Gardening

2009-05-16T17:38:00.000-07:00

#1: The Archers
A long running British radio drama that has been on the air since 1950. The story revolves around a fictional rural village in the West of England and a cast of farmers. Recent story lines have covered topics that are bang up to date - local food, wetland waste treatment and the financial fall out on property developers. I listened to this with my grandparents and my Dad, so its great to have that long standing connection with them, while I get my fix of familiar accents!

#2: More Hip Than Hippie
Love these gals. Every episode they review chocolate and beer, and teach me ways I can be kinder to the planet. They have a huge back catalog too, so it keeps me entertained while I potter around my yard on a Sunday afternoon.
#3: This American Life
"Every week we chose a theme...." A set of radio stories about regular American folk doing a range of amazing things. Ira Glass is the host of the show and he has a wonderful way of talking and introducing the stories.

#4: Planet Money
These guys (and girls) put a great podcast together 3 times per week looking at what is happening in the economy and explaining it a really easy to understand way. They got started doing a show for This American Life called 'The Giant Pool of Money' which explained the problems with the mortgage market back in May of 2008 - way before things went really crazy. Great source of credible and understandable economic news.

#5: Stephen Fry's Podgrams
Stephen Fry is a British actor/comedian (and probably does loads more) that I remember from when he did comedy with Hugh Laurie of House fame. His Podgrams tackle subjects in depth and his use of language is rich, deep and velvety. If you want to brush up on your vocabulary or just want to let his voice wash over and sooth your mind, he's your man!

Low Water Landscapes

2009-05-14T21:55:00.000-07:00

Given the pressures on our water supply in San Diego County, many are looking for ways to save water. The perception is that much of our water is used outside on our landscapes, and so this is where the main focus has been when the water companies and the city have been putting their policies together.

At The Yard Fairy, we have been creating low water yards for over five years, combining low water plant material with high tech irrigation systems. We start our clients with a landscape design so that we can be sure that we really understand what they want in their yards. Then we follow through with our installation service, and later our quarterly maintenance service. Over the years we have been able to adapt our approach to a range of styles, feeling that listening to our client's needs and wants is more important that imposing a 'cookie cutter' look to yard after yard.

I created this short video which gives a quick overview of just some of our yards. I hope you enjoy it!

Growing Tomatos Upside Down

2009-04-28T16:02:00.000-07:00

I love gadgets and gardening so how was I to resist when I came across this?
Its a Topsy Turvy Upside-Down Hanging Tomato Planter - basically a bag on a hook, with a hole in the bottom. It lets you grow tomatoes when space it tight or you just want to grow hanging things.

The procedure goes like this. You plant your tomato plant through the hole in the bottom of the bag, and attach the special foam collar around the stem. Tricky so you might need a helper.

Then you fill the bag up with potting soil. Getting heavy so your helper better be strong.

Hang the whole thing up on the sturdy hook supplied. I thought I could get away with a 'shepherd's hook' type device, but that just kept falling over. My trellis panel is strong, so the hook works well in that.

Then you water the soil until the water pours out of the holes in the bottom of the bag. Its very heavy now so you are really testing the place you are hanging it from.

So far, the results have been promising. I did connect it to my irrigation system with a small 1/4" drip line and an adjustable emitter because I know I will forget to water it.

I'll keep you posted with updates.

Update: May 3rd, 2009
Oh dear. Things not going well. Tomato plant looking pretty sick, even though there are two small, green tomatoes. Think I over did the watering. Swapped out drip emitter, with an adjustable one. I will wait to see if plant recovers.

Diane E Downey is the owner of The Yard Fairy Inc, a North San Diego County based award winning landscape design and installation company creating low water, low maintenance landscapes that are as functional as they are pleasing to the eye. To arrange your consultation with The Yard Fairy, please call 760 804 1661 or email info at yardfairy.com today.

Grey Water Compatible Soaps and Laundry Detergents

2009-04-27T12:56:00.000-07:00

Last May I worked with an educational group called Grey Water Guerrillas to run a workshop at our home to teach people how to design and install a simple grey water irrigation system.

The system uses our laundry grey water to irrigate two areas of the front landscape using 1" supply lines and half inch barbed outlets, all available from DripWorks USA. Each outlet has a small adjuster valve and the water is distributed over a mulch basin. The mulch basin is between 6 to 10 inches deep and the diameter varies according to the space available and plant size. The mulch filters the grey water and allows the soil microbes to work on the water and purify it. The mulch we used was just plain old wood chip. Nothing fancy - the cheapest and easiest to get hold of at the time.

The biggest change we faced was choosing the right laundry detergent. The first thing is to switch to liquid over powders as powders often contain sodium based bulking agents. Secondly, read the labels and avoid products that contain sodium, chlorine and boron.

Sodium is a salt that changes the pH balance and structure of soil, and since our soil is already quite alkaline, we do need to keep it to a minimum. Best not to try growing those finiky acid loving plants in our grey water irrigated area - azaleas and gardenias.

Chlorine is used in laundry detergent as a bleach, and it should really be avoided anyway since it is harmful to the environment. Hydrogen peroxide is a slightly safer alternative.

Boron is considered a plant micro nutrient, required in only very, very small amounts. Most soils provide adequate amounts of this chemical. Concentrations only slightly higher than those considered beneficial can cause severe injury or death to plants.

The recommended detergents include the following:

I was recently asked to give some recommendations about shampoos and conditioners that could be used with a similar system, and I found this list of suspect ingredients that should be avoided. The so called 'Dirty Dozen' include things like antibacterials, coal tar, and DEA which can affect hormones and cell functioning and development.

When we were looking for these grey water safe products we found we had to visit a number of stores before we found the right ones. To save you the trouble, I put together this store with Amazon where you can have the products shipped directly to your door.

For further reading, check out these great web sites:

Brad Lancaster's wonderful Rain Water Harvesting site is an inspiration for those of us wishing to use less water in our landscapes
Art Ludwig is a pioneer in the field of grey water, and his site is a wonderful resource
The Campaign for Safer Cosmetics is has an eye opening set of articles about what ingredients are in our personal care products.

Great Landscaping Resources for San Diego County

2009-04-21T19:12:00.000-07:00

I put this map together a while ago to share with my clients. It lists great nurseries, supply houses, our favorite rock supplier (KRC Rock) and great gardens to visit to get ideas. I'll post it here to share with everyone:

View Landscape Suppliers and Ideas in a larger map

Low Water Yard in Oceanside, California

2009-04-21T17:28:00.001-07:00

This is a wonderful courtyard with beautiful color and lots of great places to enjoy sun and shade

Getting Up To Speed with Social Networks

2009-03-18T22:08:00.000-07:00

Unless you have been hiding under a rock just recently, you will have heard some of the buzz about the web-based phenomenon called “social networking.” Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter have been creating quite a stir attracting lots of new users and providing us with services that we never guessed we needed.

Social networks are community web sites that appeal to different groups of people. They provide ways to chat with friends, post photographs, play games, find long lost friends, and make new connections. Each social network site has its own atmosphere, some catering to the fun aspects of life, while others are straight business. This article will review the big three so you can decide if you want to join in on the fun.

Facebook
According to Alexa, the web information company that keeps track of what’s happening online, Facebook is:

It is right up there in the web top 10, coming in at #5 for the number of visitors. Recently quoted figures put the number of users at 175 million, with another 5 million being added each month. User reviews give it high marks, and as a result it is the social network of choice for business and casual use.

While Facebook’s original demographic was college campus, 18-25 year olds, it has recently seen a huge growth in the 40-something crowd, and it has adapted very well. Its clean layout and colors appeal, and the limited advertisements are easy to ignore.

My favorite uses for Facebook are:

Being able to connect to long lost friends, colleagues, and relatives.
Staying in touch with people’s daily lives through their status updates is interesting and surprisingly informative. This allows you to share in their highs and lows, and offering encouragement and support where necessary helps you feel connected to people.
Sharing photos with family and friends, especially with those who are geographically distant. Group photo collections are fun where several people have attended the same event. Different people post their photos on Facebook and then ‘tag’ them with the name of others shown in the photo. This provides a wonderful record of the event and can be shared with those who did not attend.
Sharing links to useful Internet articles helps other’s keep up to date with important news and is a great way to identify friends who share your values

I really enjoy using Facebook to connect friends and family. I feel a little more uncomfortable letting clients and fellow business people connect to me there. On the other hand, if you really want to see the issues I find important, Facebook is the profile to check out. Knowing about the other person builds trust, and good business relationships are built on trust.

LinkedIn
Alexa calls LinkedIn:

While less popular than Facebook, LinkedIn comes in at #146 of the top 100 web sites out there. Launched in May 2003, recently published figures put the number of registered users at 35 million, spanning over 170 industries.

LinkedIn really is about business and business connections. Based on the classic idea that the person we need for our next business or job opportunity is just six connections away from us, LinkedIn lets you build a set of links based on your professional and educational experience.

Spending time initially building your profile really helps you make those connections. You can then link to those you currently work with, those you worked with in the past, and those you went to school or college with. This network quickly becomes impressive, and allows you to connect to others who are one, two, or three steps removed from you. This multiplying effect is the power of LinkedIn, and it is especially useful for those who benefit from an increased business “web” of connections.

My favorite uses of LinkedIn:

Listing your employment and educational history acts as a resume that potential employers, clients, or business partners can search. It shows where you come from and, hopefully, provides a summary of the skills you have built up during your career.
These same resumes give depth to people you have worked with, and by showing their backgrounds it helps to understand their strengths and weaknesses.
LinkedIn Groups helps you narrow your connections to a specific industry group, and to start discussions and share news items about your industry. I set up a group on LinkedIn for CLCA San Diego members – come join us and see what the talk is about.
LinkedIn takes online job searching to the next level. Most job search sites allow you to narrow down a specific field or industry, and then narrow further by a geographical location, giving you a company and a job vacancy. The magic for LinkedIn is that it can now tell you which of your connections, or which of your connections’ connections, currently works at that company. It also has a company summary page which lists others who are on LinkedIn that work there, what career paths are typical at that company and other key company statistics.

I like to use LinkedIn for my professional face. I think it provides me with a great way to keep my resume up to date, and to stay connected with people I’ve worked with in the past who may well have a role to play in my future.

Twitter
Twitter is the relatively new kid on the block, having been released in 2006. It is described as

Tweets are short text messages limited to 140 characters, somewhat similar to status updates on Facebook. Typical tweets give thoughts for the day, sociable shout-outs for meeting up, and useful links on the web. Web links are typically shortened using a number of online services specifically set up to do this. Photos can also be included, again using dedicated web services.

The number of registered users is not readily available, since the company does not publish them, but recent estimates put the range at 4-5 million. The Twitter.com website is ranked at 289, but this is probably low because many people never visit the web site to use Twitter, preferring to use a separate interface on their phone or desktop.

Signing up to use Twitter is easy, just go to Twitter.com and pick a user name that appeals to you. User names for those on Twitter always begin with @, so to send a message to a user called yardfairy you would type “@yardfairy” followed by your message. Just as with the other social networks, completing your profile helps others find and connect with you based on your interests.
The big difference between Twitter and the two other social networks is that your ability to ‘follow’, or connect to someone else, is not restricted. You do not need their permission to see their tweets. This makes it a very public stream of information, and indeed, you can view this public stream without even signing up for an account.

This unrestricted following means you can keep in touch with your favorite friends and celebrities very easily. Currently I am following celebrities such as Eddie Izzard (@eddieizzard), Stephen Fry (@stephenfry), and Sir Richard Branson (@sirdickbranson) (all British, how did that happen!). Other famous people who tweet – Stephen Colbert (@StephenColbert), Shaun White (@Shaun_White), and Hugh Laurie (@hughlaurie, oh, another British guy!).

Many news organizations, papers and radio shows now tweet their headlines. From local San Diego news from the Union Tribune (@sdut), to KPBS (@kpbsnews), to The New York Times (@nytimes).

You can direct messages at specific people using the Twitter web site, so not all your profound 140 character messages have to go to everyone. There are also many mini applications forphones, the web browser or just for your desktop that allow you send and manage your tweets.
My favorite things about Twitter:

The ability to find others with similar interests, and follow them for a while, helps you identify those you really do want to get to know. Just like hanging back at a social gathering and listing to what people say before jumping in.
Twitter allows you to keep up to date with rapidly breaking news stories. We found this very useful in the fires of 2007 when our local PBS station had their antenna knocked out. They were still able to tweet and direct readers to different parts of the web.
Since the messages are so short, the text is easy to digest and you can get a good sense of what is going on with a person or event without having to wade through lots of flowery language.

There is a great deal of talk about Twitter at the moment, and in my limited experience with it, I feel that there is a great deal of ‘noise’ out there. Just like the early days of email, when we were all constantly watching our Inbox for new messages, Twitter can prove to be a similar distraction. I think a better use of Twitter is to scan messages once or twice a day, once you have reduced the number of people you are following to a reasonable level based on them sending meaningful information.

Bringing you a smile

2009-03-16T21:26:00.001-07:00

see more Lolcats and funny pictures

Is it time you created your own Victory Garden?

2009-03-05T19:17:00.001-08:00

There seems to be a lot of interest at the moment in growing food in our own yards, and this harks back to the idea of a Victory Garden that was popular during the first and second world wars. Victory Gardens were encouraged as they were seen as a way of helping the war effort, involving ordinary folk in meeting the basic needs for their families and communities.
Read on...

Some lovely fairy themed handmade items from Etsy

2009-03-01T19:30:00.001-08:00

Frugal Holiday Gift Ideas

2008-11-08T16:59:00.000-08:00

The current economic situation reminds me of a time about 20 years ago when my family lived through our last recession. As a newly graduated, newly wed young couple, money was tight. We managed to get our first step on the housing ladder by going into partnership with a friend to purchase a shell of a house that took much sweat equity to get it to a just livable condition. Our first mortgage was adjustable and the repayments kept going up and up, hitting interest rates of 13% and 14%. We hung onto that house by the skin of our teeth, sweet talking the mortgage company and bank, and working hard to build up our careers so that we could increase our income. One of our lessons was to make the holidays festive but frugal. We made our own wine – rough stuff, our own holiday delicacies and decorations, and we made many of our own gifts too. Members of our family remember those gifts to this day. Thinking back it seems like now is the perfect time to revisit some frugal holiday gift ideas to share.

Chocolate dipped candied orange peel – living in California means that citrus are local produce, sometime as local as our back yard, which makes these an extra special treat. The sugar syrup left over makes a great clear orange jelly (jam) too. Last year I bottled it in small jars and dressed those up as gifts.

• We have a history of making mulled wine kits that goes back to the year we were married. That year I sewed small bags using our winter wedding colors of cream and dark green – I think they were leftover wedding favor bags. Then we put together small packages of cloves, nutmeg and cinnamon sticks bought in bulk from the local ‘health food store’ and wrapped in small baking parchment cones. A printed set of recipes on our wedding paper helped those who received these gifts through the mail add their own wine or apple juice to make delicious holiday party drinks. Local recipients received the kits tied to the bottle of inexpensive wine – we didn’t waste the good stuff when mulling!
• The slow cooker is my favorite kitchen appliance and it makes great home made jam or marmalade - there is a good recipe in ‘Not Your Mother’s Slow Cooker Cookbook’ by Beth Hensperger and Julie Kaufmann. What could be better than a beautifully presented jar of home made preserve with a hand written label.
• Homemade ‘thank you’ cards and gift tags always seem like a useful thing to have around the house at Christmas time. Made into packs of 4 or 6 and tied with a ribbon, they provide the receiver with a thoughtful and helpful gift. Recycled wrapping paper, calendars and magazines provide great source material. For ideas and really special extra touches check out Paper Source.
• This year I bought the book 'A Greener Christmas' by S. Goldsmith and I'm having fun making natural Christmas decorations using dried orange slices, cinnamon sticks and nutmegs.
• I might also have a go at making these microwave heating pads using very old rice from our pantry and my favorite essential oils.

Good luck with your frugal holiday ideas and please feel free to share. Who knows what will be this year’s memory making gift.

Gardening Gifts Part 1: Useful Gardening Gadgets, Tools and Clothes

2008-10-26T16:22:00.001-07:00

I love this time of year with all the holidays - Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas. We have lots of birthdays and anniversaries between October and December, and to top it off we have our annual snowboarding trip too.

Every year we try to get organized a bit earlier so that things don't get overwhelming. One of our favorite things to do is to sit down as a family and work out our gift list for everyone. Since this is a gardening blog, let me share my favorite gardening gifts for this year.

A great place for tools is Lee Valley Tools. They always have good gardening things and this year is no different. I love my Hori Hori knife. It is great for digging out deep rooted weeds, planting small plants and even cutting open bags of compost or mulch. It has got a sharp edge though so be careful!
I bought these watering bulbs for my indoor plants and I'm enjoying using them. You do have to keep an eye on the water in them as it seems to be used up pretty quickly, but they look nice in amongst the foliage.
Our family favorite is the compost pail which sits by our kitchen sink to collect vegetable peelings destined for our worm compost bin. Just mix vegetable waste, compost worms and shredded junk mail and you get wonderful compost and worm tea that creates a great free plant food.
Felco Pruners are always a winner. I love the #6 since I have smaller hands, but I also use the #7 if I'm doing a lot of pruning since the handle rotates with the cutting motion to "prevent blisters and fatigue".
The Glass Hummingbi rd Feeder is a hit with even non-gardeners, like my husband, since they can enjoy seeing the hummers come up close if you hang it near a window.

My other favorite place to shop is Smith and Hawkin. I get their catalogs through the year and I always take a quick browse to drool over the cool stuff. I love being able to solve client's landscaping problems and a typical issue is one of storing tools close to where they need them. The Cedar Hutch is a great solution as it is only 3ft wide by just over 2ft deep so it fits into the smallest yard, and yet is looks wonderful.
Another problem clients quiz me about is how to keep their garden furniture ready for use. The Teak Pool Box would be a great place to store colorful cushions to keep them out of the sun and rain, while keeping them handy to pull out at a moment's notice.

I find the Fiskars Kangaroo 30-Gallon Gardening Container to be really useful. I haul it around my yard when I'm doing weeding or trimming, and then fold it flat when I don't need it any more. The 10 gallon version is great to have handy too.

Many of us are trying to save water these days so a rain barrel is a very useful tool, even in places like San Diego county where we get very little rain. We installed these at a client's last winter and it surprised us how quickly they filled. Soft, natural rain water is so good for the plants and you will feel so virtuous not using the water out of the tap. Another great tool for saving water is a moisture meter. You can use it to check how wet your plants really are and adjust your irrigation system accordingly. They often come with the ability to test pH and sun light levels, but honestly I haven't found those readings to be really reliable.

My favorite gardening shoes are Krocs. They are light on the feet, easy to clean and soft to walk in. They come in fun colors and you can personalize them with little decorations to make them yours! Mine live outside my back door, just waiting for my pottering around the garden trips. For longer work sessions I like to protect my feet with hiking boots and I find these ones are really comfortable.

Gardening clothes are fun too. These tee shirts are organic cotton and the design would be good for men as well as women. For a more girly choice try this Garden Girl shirt. Playing in the dirt is what every gardener loves. I find I forget to put on sun block when I'm out in my garden, and a quick visit ends up being three or four hours, so a gardening shirt that is wicking and offers sun protection is great. This is the kind we give to our crew for the same reasons. A hat is always a good idea, as are a good pair of gloves. Pretty ones designed specifically for women help me use them more.

For clean up after gardening, we have several of these nail bru shes. They are soft on your nails but they really do a good job of getting rid of the dirt. I also love to use the locally produced lavender products from The Lavender Fields in Valley Center. The Muscle Gel is great for rubbing onto aching muscles and the Aloe Burn Jelly helps with sun sensative skin. The Lavender Body Wash helps me relax at the end of a perfect day in the garden.

Plant choices for narrow side yard - shady but gets afternoon sun (Sunset zone 24, USDA zone 10)

2008-09-11T17:43:00.000-07:00

What a wonderful time of the year to be out in the yard. The weather has cooled off a bit, and it reminds us that we might get some rain some time soon (December? January?). We could also get some hot, dry and dangerous Santa Ana's but lets not think about that right now!

I met with a new client today whose side yard was looking a little shabby. They want to spruce the yard up ready to sell the house and wanted some plant suggestions that would work for them. My advice is related to the size of their yard, but it could be adapted to yours too!

Typically when we are designing we look for height at the back of the bed, something medium in the middle and then a low growing ground cover at the front. On the right side of your side yard (looking from the back yard to the front yard) you have room to do these three layers. On the left, you probably dont, so just go for the low color in that bare spot we identified. Also, don’t forget to be restrained in your choice. Go for three different plants, and repeat them. Don’t use many more or it will just look messy.

For height my choices would be 2 or 3 plants from one of these:

* Abutilon or Flowering Maples. There is a red version called Fairy Coral Red that gets about 24" high, or a pink one called Kristen's Pink that gets 12-16" high, or a yellow/orange one that gets 10-12" high
* Calamagrostis acutiflora 'Overdam' or Pink and Cream Reed Grass - 15-30"
* Carex flagellifera or Toffee Twist - 18-24"

For medium height I would chose one of these, but get 5-8 plants:

* Euphorbia hybericifolia hybrid - Diamond Frost - this plant is just breathtakingly pretty with white flowers that hover like butterflies above green foliage. It would blend with anything and fill in the mid layer wonderfully. It gets 10-14"
* Euphorbia amygdaloides hybrid Efanthia has green foliage tinged with orange/red - the book says burgundy - Compact, bushy - 12-18"
* Helischrysum thianschanicum - Icicles - silver foliage, looks like miniature silver pine, says the book. 10-12"

For a low growing ground cover, I would recommend one of these choices, but get 24 to 30 plants:

* calibrachoa or superbells. The come in a range of colors and they are long lasting. You could use one color or a mix of two.
* Helichrysum peiolare White Licorice - easy plants and this one has silvered foliage - 8-12" I use this draped around the edge of pots, or over retaining wall blocks to hide them
* Verbena hybrids or Superbena - great long lasting flower in a range of colors

All the above plants come from the Proven Winners range. You can buy them in most retail outlets (Armstrong’s, Green Thumb, Home Depot and Lowes) - just look for the distinctive white pots and logos. The reason I'm going with this brand is that the plants are really high quality and have been taken through very rigorous tests. They really will perform for you.

I forgot to mention to my client that all of these plants, with the exception of the Verbena, are low water, so great choices for San Diego. Happy planting!

A good thunderstorm

2008-08-31T17:57:00.000-07:00

This is what I'm yearning for!

Having one of those days?

2008-05-14T06:58:00.000-07:00

Trip to the Huntington Library

2008-02-11T21:02:00.001-08:00

On a recent weekend in February, a good friend, Melissa, my grandmother of 93, Leila, and I went to The Huntington Library in Pasadena, CA for the day.
As we left Escondido, the sky was overcast providing us with a foretaste of the storms due to hit North County San Diego the very next day. But as we approached Pasadena, the clouds lifted and we were treated to the blue skies we were used to.
Since we are all gardening buddies, we completely ignored the wonderful art collection housed by The Huntington, and spent all our time browsing from plant to plant, oohing and ahhing over the wonderful specimens they have there.
The desert garden looked its best given the recent rains we've had. The flowers were stunning and the leaf colors were beautiful. Since we are always on the look out for low water planting ideas this was a perfect area of the gardens.
Once we left the desert gardens we wandered past the lily ponds, and through the Australian Garden where we found a Eucalyptus tree with very pretty bark.
The Japanese gardens were just coming into bloom with flowering cherries, magnolias and camellias. From there it was a short hop into the herb garden with its classical brick pathways and its formal layout.
No trip is complete without tea at the Tea Rooms, especially if you have English ancestry. As always, it was a wonderful treat.
Thank you Melissa and Leila for a wonderful day.

Our Trip to Santa Fe, NM

2008-01-29T17:22:00.000-08:00

Chris and I took our 20th Wedding Anniversary trip this last weekend to Santa Fe New Mexico. It was our first experience of the South West and it was a wonderful trip. Here are the highs and the lows:

We flew with Southwest Airlines and were bemused by their boarding procedures. Basically its a free for all. Each boarding pass comes with a number which is your boarding priority. But once you are on the plane its up to you to find a seat. I'm sure this works really well for most business travelers traveling alone, but it meant my husband and I had to sit apart for both legs of the journey. Not really a very romantic start or end! Ho hum.

We stayed at a bed and breakfast place called Hacienda Nicholas. Our suite was called the Nicholas and it comprised of a sitting room with fire place, a king sized bed and an en-suite bathroom. January in Santa Fe is quite cold, especially when you are used to the relatively warm and even temperatures of San Diego. But our suite was very cosy once the fire had been lit.
The service was wonderful. The innkeeper, Annie, was very attentive and suppled us with freshly baked goodies throughout the day. There was wine and cheese available between 5-7pm - a perfect before dinner treat.
The bed was very comfortable and the bathroom had charm and was very functional. They supplied the most luxurious robes I've seen or used.
To complete our wonderful stay they provided us with champagne and chocolate dipped strawberries when we arrived. Yummy!

We flew into Albuquerque's 'Sunport' about mid day on Friday and went straight to the Enterprise car rental desk. We were told we qualified for a free upgrade and were able to chose a Toyota Prius. It was really good to drive, and we did over 350 miles during the weekend on less than a single tank of gas. The on-dash computer shows very clearly where the power is coming from or going to (battery or engine) so it really helps you adjust your driving style to get the best performance from the car.

We were able to wander around Santa Fe on Friday afternoon and see the most amazing architecture. The sun was shining and the sky was really deep blue, even though there was snow on the ground.

We ate some great food while were there too. On Friday night we ate at The Shed - a family owned and run 'locals' place that serves traditional Southwest style food. On Saturday night we ate tapas at La Boca - exquisite dishes just the right size for smaller appetites. Then on Sunday we found a really great cafe and micro brew place called The Blue Corn Cafe where we ate the best green chili soup and chicken tacos.

On Saturday we visited Taos about an hour north of Santa Fe. This rural town has a great history going back centuries with the Native American population, but also in the more recent past as a community for artists and writers. Today its population seems to be primarily concerned with the tourist trade.

On Sunday we spent more time walking around Santa Fe. We visited the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum and learned some more about this very interesting and courageous woman. Saw some of her beautiful pictures too. We also visited The Railyard, an area that "transforms the historic rail yard into a sustainable and inviting public space ... that embraces Santa Fe's cultural and historic significance". It was cool! Lots of trains and warehouse shops and studios. Clearly more work to be done, but a great start. I was also thrilled to discover their aim to capture rainwater to help make the landscaping there self sufficient.

Overall we had a great time and would highly recommend a trip to Santa Fe.

Lets get this thing started

2007-09-13T20:44:00.000-07:00

I want to tell you about some cool things I find in my life as a landscaper. There are so many that its hard to know where to start. So, let's begin by putting a positive spin on wheelbarrowing 10 yards of compost around a job site that is probably 9000 square feet.

So, there it is, sitting on the drive way. You know it's coming. You know you need it. But it sure looks like a lot of stuff to move. Just back breaking, blister forming, hard work. Why didn't I call in an extra worker? Why didn't I rent a piece of equipment?

It smells - at first it's a beautiful smell, organic, natural. But by the last yard or so it's lost its charm. It's dusty - it gets into my boots and hangs around the top of my socks like a dirty tide mark. It gets into my hair, and up my nose. My shirt collar is filthy, and my nails get really dirty.

So why do I, the owner of this landscaping company who could chose to do it anyway I wanted to, opt to improve the soil at every job we do?
Here's why. When we start these jobs, our first task is to demolish stuff - plants and trees that are unhealthy, or that have grown too big for their space. We put our shovels into the soil and we see no life what so ever. No worms, grubs or insects. The soil is usually either heavy yellow clay or tan sand on top of yellow clay. The color just isnt right. Good, healthy soil should be dark brown, and smell wonderful, and be teeming with life. So, the compost is the best we can do to improve it.

And it works too! My best experiences are going back to jobs about 3 months later, pulling back the mulch and digging just a few inches under the soil. Its now full of worms and insects. The plants have lost that 'just planted' look and are starting to fill out.

The Yard Fairy creates award-winning, low-water landscapes that are as functional as they are pleasing to the eye. If you are interested in turning your yard into a low-water work of art, contact The Yard Fairy at info@yardfairy.com.

Diane E Downey is the owner of The Yard Fairy Inc, an award winning landscape design and installation company specializing in low water, low maintenance yards in North San Diego County. To arrange your consultation with The Yard Fairy, please call 760 804 1661 or email info@yardfairy.com today.