Garden
-
Gardening Styles :: The Butterfly Garden
How to Attract Butterflies to Your Garden: Butterflies are synonymous with wonder and delight. Their whimsical flight traced through the air with my ever-gazing eyes makes me recall childhood memories. These delicately winged creatures capture the merriment of life through their constant fluttering. Bringing butterflies into your garden can be equaled to the simplest pleasures of youth. To properly welcome butterflies and make them feel at home, several key steps and their preferred flora are required. It is important to plant your garden in full sun. Think of butterflies as sun loving divas basking on the beach; they definitely do not desire shade or cold. Butterflies are exothermic…
-
Family: Enjoy a Leprechaun Hunt on St. Patrick’s Day
Create Your Own Leprechaun Hunt: St. Patrick’s Day is a fun day to celebrate all things green which includes leprechauns. Last year my daughter’s pre-school teacher had used washable green paint and put little footprints around the classroom. When the kids arrived at school, they couldn’t believe that a little leprechaun had visited their school during the night. She explained that he was a bit naughty as he messed the room up – turning over chairs, leaving some papers on the floor, footprints on the floor – but he also left some gold chocolate coins for them. This year we plan to do a Leprechaun Hunt in our neighborhood and…
-
The Beauty of the Monarch Butterfly Spring Migration
There is something quite magical when you see a Monarch Butterfly up close. We had a chance to visit the Ellwood Butterfly Preserve in Santa Barbara last year and saw thousands of Monarch Butterflies sleeping and flying around the preserve . It was such a memorable trip and my daughter was able to hold one in her hand while the tour guide was describing how you can tell whether the one she was holding was a male or female. This is the time of year that you will see the first generation Monarch Butterfly start stage one of an amazing and long journey. With spring just around the corner this could make sure a fun and…
-
Garden Preparation: A Simple How-To
“Each spring…a gardening instinct, sure as the sap rising in the trees, stirs within us. We look about and decide to tame another little bit of ground”. – Lewis Gantt Preparing Your Garden for Springtime: With spring right around the corner, now is the opportune time to begin garden preparations. Whether you desire a plentiful vegetable garden or a welcoming bed of flowers, the basis of each have the same planting process. Design, flora choice, soil amendments and physical labor must all be thoroughly considered before a garden can be properly created. Your design choice will better familiarize you with your growing space, plants’ needs and optimal outcome.…
- Awareness, Creativity, Culture, Garden, Instagram Inspiration, Kids, Parenting, Play, Slideshow, Southern California
Instagram of the Week: The Getty Museum Garden
The Getty Museum Garden: It might seem hard to believe, but yesterday our family took it’s first trip to The Getty Museum up in Los Angeles. Hard to believe in that it is one of the more well-known and revered museums in our area – but as busy parents (you know how it is) we didn’t make time for this cultural trip. But am I glad we made the effort yesterday! The museum itself is quite amazing and they are currently featuring paintings from The Renaissance Era and the photography of Ray K. Metzer who is considered one of the most original photographers of the last half-century. If you are local or…
-
Gardening Styles : The Desert Garden
The desert is a mysterious beauty. At first glance, one might encounter harsh temperatures and extreme aridity; quite inhabitable to many. Yet, the desert teems with life. With an abundance of more that 400 plant species, the desert blooms in a variety of colors; thus, making the desert an inspiration for landscape designers and gardeners. The desert garden gained in popularity due to its low level of maintenance, eye-catching appeal and hardiness. In addition to flora, landscapers traditionally include water features, gates, benches and arches. Plants may be planted in a variety of ornamental containers or in layered beds to achieve multi-level dimensions. In the garden, paths are constructed…
