Reflections on 2015

What a dry year for gardens! We had a few good soakings here in the East Bay, and several light rains out of season, but that’s about it. Everything was DRY, DRY, DRY all year. Only in the last month has El Niño brought some much needed relief.

At Eden By The Bay, we spent the year delving into drought and water issues, and looking for ways to adapt our gardens. Like replacing thirsty lawns with ground covers; embracing native and drought tolerant garden designs; and recycling water. We visited botanical gardens to learn more about plants compatible with our climate, and found nurseries that specialize in native and Mediterranean plants.

Bay Area Botanical Gardens	Wild Landscapes
Landscape Movement Landscape with Polyphemus by Nicolas Poussin	Drought

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I did get dirt under my nails – planted some drought-tolerant plants in the front planter. They are thriving so far, with weekly water as their roots get established. I'm also covering some of the dry areas in the yard with mulch and bark, to save the soil as I transition to a new kind of gardening. I'm enjoying the challenge, but do miss the green, verdant rain forest of my childhood. Looking back, it was a great year for gardens and gardening, and learning something new.  CONTINUE TO PRAY FOR RAIN!
 

Christmas Joy

Life is full of gifts if you look for them. I mean the kind of gifts that you can’t buy from the glossy catalogs or the flashy web sites (although that can be fun too)! I mean gifts like family, a snug home, a good book, a beautiful plant, the Christmas Story. Here in the San Francisco Bay Area, rain is one of those gifts. After four years of drought, we are finally receiving some ongoing, noteworthy rain. El Niño has finally brought some relief.

Foggy, wet, beautiful rain!

Another gift – our son and his wonderful wife have arrived to celebrate Christmas with us, and their friend and colleague joins us tomorrow. They all met in Anchorage, Alaska while attending University of Alaska, Anchorage, and now live in Seattle, Washington. My husband and I have been in a whirlwind of preparation for the visit – cleaning, decorating, and stocking the pantry. Our visitors are all avid foodies and cooks, so we’re looking forward to delicious meals and dining experiences. I still remember the biscotti, blueberry scones, and bread pudding with rum sauce from their visit two years ago. Yum!

Hope you enjoy time with your family and a bit of rest and reflection amid the chaos, whatever your traditions. Enjoy all gifts, large and small, in your life.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Holiday Cooking – Anise

Our final holiday ingredient—anise—flavors both baked goods and beverages. Anise has a distinctive licorice taste that comes from the organic compound, anethole, but is not the true licorice from another Mediterranean plant – Glycyrrhiza glabra.

Pimpenella anisum is from the Apiaceae family (formerly Umbelliferae), the parsley plants. The seeds are used for cooking in meat rubs, sauces, sausages, and cookies. The seeds are pressed to yield aromatic oil used by the confection industry (think black jelly beans and licorice). The oil also flavors liquor (such as Greek ouzo), and root beer (like Virgil’s Root Beer in the United States). Anise is used as a digestive, and a tea.



Botanical illustration of Pimpenella anisum from Koehler's Medicinal Plants.
Published before 1923 and public domain in the United States.

 

According to Jan-Öjvind Swahn in The Lore of Spices, anise originated in the Eastern Mediterranean, so was available to the world’s oldest civilizations. The Romans used it to make after-dinner cakes for digestion. Pliny documented its virtues for improving breath, making you look younger, and keeping evil dreams away. Later it was used to make a calming tea, and used to mask the bad taste of medicines. The Southeast Asian tree, the Chinese or star anise (Illicium verum), has gained popularity over the years for its fruit, which also produces anethole, and is used like anise.

The common anise is an annual that grows to two feet tall, and has a long taproot. Basal leaves may be simple and pinnate; or ternately compound and entire or toothed. Flowers are white. Seeds are gray-green and downy, with five ridges. Propagation is by seeds.

Holiday Cooking – Wormwood

Our next holiday ingredient, wormwood, also flavors beverages, and has been used for cooking and medicine. The name sounds like an ingredient in a witch’s brew, but actually came from the false belief that it could eliminate stomach worms, and even protect the home or granaries from pests. An alternate name is mugwort, which has a definite Harry Potter ring to it!

Artemisia vulgaris is in the Asteraceae family (formerly Compositae), or composite plants. Wormwood originated in Europe and Asia, and has naturalized in North America. It was used by the Egyptians, to spice wine and beer as early as 1500 BC, and used by ancient Romans to promote good digestion and sexual health. Wormwood leaves were used to season pork, lamb, and turnips, and as a digestive in Europe, England, and Scandinavia. But its chief use was to season wine and beer. Jan-Öjvind Swahn, in The Lore of Spices, speculates this was done more to mask unpleasant flavors in these drinks, than to flavor them.
 

Botanical illustration of Artemisia absinthium (a relative of A. vulgarius) from Koehler's Medicinal Plants. Published before 1923 and public domain in the United States.

Vermouth was created in 1786, with wormwood as the primary ingredient. Today vermouth is flavored with many ingredients, including wormwood, and added to cocktails for its distinctive flavor. The French add wormwood leaves to the spirit, absinthe, for the mild narcotic effect. (Absinthe was banned in the United States for this reason, but was legalized around 2007).

Wormwood is a perennial that grows to six feet high. Plants are glabrous below the inflorescence, and distinctly downy-gray. Aromatic leaves are ovate or obovate, to four inches long; 1-2 pinnatifid into oblong, toothed or entire segments; and dark green above, and white-tomentose beneath. Inflorescence is reddish-brown, with heads to 1/8 inch across in dense leafy panicles. Propagation is by seeds and rhizomes.

Holiday Cooking – Hops

I love this time of year, with all the Christmas traditions, decorations, and music. I especially like attending candlelight services, singing Christmas carols, and finding special gifts for people I love. Also high on the list is baking and cooking favorite recipes, and trying new ones. For the past several years I’ve reported on spices, herbs, and ingredients used in these holiday recipes, using The Lore of Spices, by Jan-Öjvind Swahn. This year, the series title should be "Holiday Drinking," since all of the plants are used to flavor beverages. This year I’m starting with a flavoring used in beer – hops!



Botanical illustration of Humulus lupulus from Koehler's Medicinal Plants.
Published before 1923 and public domain in the United States.

Humulus lupulus is in the Cannabaceae family, the hemp plants. Hops originated in the temperate regions of Eurasia and North America, and were first cultivated in Eastern Europe, and then across Europe. Beer making was invented in prehistoric times, and beer spicing dates back to early Egyptian and Roman cultures. Spices were added to flavor the beer, and enhance the feeling of drunkenness. In Europe, during the Middle Ages, hops were added to beer to enhance foaming, add a bitter taste, and preserve it. Hops were used medicinally by the Greeks and Romans for its mild narcotic effect, and by monks to flavor beers brewed in monasteries. Today hops are an important ingredient in beer (“Imperial” in the label indicates a hoppy beer).

Hops grow 19-22 feet (6-7 meters) tall. They grow clockwise around a pole or tree, clinging with small barbs. Hops are dioecious, with male and female flowers growing on separate plants. The male flowers are small, loose, axillary panicles, with five sepals, and five stamens; female flowers are short, solitary, bracted spikes, each with two flowers, which are cone-like at maturity. The fruit is an achene with one carpel, a single seed, and indehiscent. The fruit excretes a substance called lupulin, which contains the bitter flavor. Foliage is yellow-green; leaves are 3-5 lobed, palmate, as broad as long, coarsely toothed, and opposite. Stem is coarse. Reproduction is by seed or rhizomes. Hops favor loose, limy soil and moist environments. Hop cones are harvested in the fall, dried, and sent to the brewery.

Living with Drought: Wrap Up

Living with the reality of prolonged drought in the Western United States, and the Bay Area, forces us to rethink our water-thirsty gardens and adopt new practices.

Dry field in the Central Valley

Getting Started 

Kick off the grand project of living with drought here in Northern California, and the greater Western United States

Living with Drought
Badge of Honor
Ahead of Their Time

Coping with Drought 

Learn about plants that thrive in low-water gardens, look for alternatives to the ubiquitous green lawn, and consider the merits of using gray water in the landscape.

Botanical Collections of the Bay Area
Replacing Lawns
Ground Covers
Grasses
Vines
Gray Water in Dublin
Dry Gardens in the Bay Area

Interesting Ideas

Some big ideas to help our gardens thrive in continual drought.

Where to Shop: California Natives
Dry Farming
Shopping for Water

Books, Mags, and Movies

Books, magazine articles, and movies with a drought theme.

National Geographic: When the Snow Fails
California Native Landscape
Chinatown (Jan 2016)
Young Ones (Jan 2016)
Dune (Jan 2016)

Thanksgiving Respite

My husband and I are just back from a four-day retreat in Moss Landing, CA, located on the beautiful Northern California coast halfway between Santa Cruz and Monterey. We wanted a vacation of rest and respite; and an opportunity to live in the moment, follow our whims, and live without schedule. This is unusual for us, with our Bay Area life styles and busy career schedules.

Comfortable accommodations in Moss Landing

This does not mean we lounged around the Bed & Breakfast all day, although we could have – with its front row proximity to the Elkhorn Slough and wealth of birds, beautiful vistas, and comfortable appointments. We did lounge, and we were intentional about how we spent our time (if by intentional you mean sleeping, reading, exploring, and eating fabulous local cuisine, which uses local produce and seafood).

Moss Landing Energy Facility, with its two signature stacks

I finally got a chance to taste huitlacoche, or black corn truffles (known as “corn smut” by American farmers, but considered a delicacy in Aztec, Mexican, and South American cuisine). I learned about huitlacoche while studying fungi a few years ago. The pathogen Ustilago maydis, in the phylum Basidiomycota, grows as a smut on corn, and makes a tasty, black sauce.

Moss Landing lending library in front of The Haute Enchilada

We visited some fun local boutiques (including one that imports soft goods from Guatemala and Nicaragua), and the Shakespeare Society of America headquarters (seriously). We also checked out a paperback book from the lending library.

Photo opportunity in the coastal scrub

Salinas River State Beach

 

The weather was unseasonably warm during the day – a lovely high 60s with cooling breezes. We explored the dunes, beach, and slough of Salinas River State Beach, and enjoyed the coastal scrub vegetation. Nearby are the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute, the Moss Landing Energy Facility, the Elkhorn Slough, a bustling marina, and fields of artichokes.

The slough at low tide, with the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute on the bluff

Whale watching in Monterey Bay

 

We also took a Blue Ocean Whale Watch tour on a warm, sunny Sunday. Our skillful captain and knowledgeable naturalist knew how to find action. We saw whales hunting in threesomes, breaching, water slapping, and sounding. At one point, our little ship was in the midst of a sardine feast, surrounded with several groups of humpback whales; water churning with porpoise and dolphins; and sea birds in the mix grabbing whatever bubbled up in the turmoil. Later we saw a mother humpback whale feeding calmly with her calf, and quite a few sea lions. It was glorious – one of those shows of a lifetime.

Feeding frenzy	Water slapping
Ice plant invasion on the dunes	Foggy morning on the dunes

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You have a lot of time to think while you are on retreat. Time to count your blessings; to be grateful for family, friends, and the beauty of nature; and to celebrate the joys, and hardships, of life.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Fall Outing to Lafayette Park

Lafayette Park is perched high on a hill in the Pacific Heights neighborhood in San Francisco, and commands views of the Mariana district to the north and city views all around. While my husband attended a conference on Schema Therapy at a nearby hotel, I gasped my way up the hill to explore the park. It was the Friday before Fleet Week, on a warm fall day, and perfect for exploring, and catching glimpses of the Blue Angels roaring overhead in tight formation.

Grand entrance to Lafayette Park in Pacific Heights

Land for the 11 acre park was set aside in 1855, and has been used for a private residence by a wealthy squatter (until disputed, and torn down in 1936), an astronomical observatory in 1879, and a refugee camp after the 1906 earthquake. Now it is a wonderfully maintained park with green lawns, an amphitheater, a playground with cool equipment, a forest of mature trees, park benches for enjoying the view, a picnic area, tennis courts, a dog play area, and clean rest rooms.

Accessible pathways through the forest

I especially enjoyed the 360 degree view, the cool shade of the forest, and the scattered company of folks enjoying the park. Several people practiced Thai Chi at the top of the hill, and a number of dogs explored with their human companions. Many of the mature trees are non-native, reminiscent of the Victorian era when folks collected plants from all over the world. In contrast, several newer areas are planted with Mediterranean and California native plants. I recommend this park for its views and ideal location – it is definitely worth the hike up the hill.

View north to the Marina district

California Landscapes

I learned about California landscape painter, William Keith (1838 – 1911), while on the Artists and Architects tour at the Mountain View Cemetery in Oakland. According to Michael Colbruno, in his blog post “William Keith, Painter & Mary McHenry Keith, Suffragette & Legal Pioneer”, Keith was born in Scotland and moved to San Francisco in 1859. He became a leading and prosperous landscape artist, and lifelong friend of John Muir, who shared his love of the California landscape. He married Mary McHenry Keith (1855-1947), who was the first female graduate of Hastings Law School and a prominent suffragette.

William Keith Gallery

About two thousand of Keith’s paintings were destroyed in the 1906 earthquake and fire, but a good collection is now housed in the Saint Mary’s College Museum of Art. A small collection of paintings is displayed on a rotating basis, and the complete collection is posted online. Keith painted people and places all over California and the San Francisco Bay Area, and even painted a couple of landscapes in Southeast Alaska (see 1886 - 1892).

William Keith, Oak Forest With Three Figures, 1906-1911

My husband and I spent a pleasant afternoon earlier this year, driving out to Saint Mary’s College in Moraga, and viewing the current pieces on display. They reminded me of the Italian landscape paintings that inspired the Landscape Movement in the 1600s and 1700s, but with California vegetation and geology. The paintings capture the California landscape of a bygone era, before so much growth and development. Afterward we stopped at Bianca’s Deli for sandwiches and conversation, surrounded by students from Saint Mary’s College.



William Keith, Glacial Meadow and Lake, High Sierra (Tuolumne Meadows), 1870s or early 1880s

Botanical Gardens: University of California, Berkeley

The UC Botanical Garden, which is associated with University of California at Berkeley, has over 13,000 plants from around the world installed in naturalistic settings on 34 acres. The plants are arranged in nine major geographic regions (such as Mediterranean, South Africa, Australasia, the Americas, and California); and in special collections (such as Chinese Medicinal Herb, old roses, cycads and palms, crops of the world, tropical, and carnivorous plants).




Printable version: http://botanicalgarden.berkeley.edu/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/GardenMapPoster.pdf

My first visit was on a class tour that was led by Dr. Lawrence Lee, one of my professors at Merritt College. Lee had worked at the UC Botanical Garden early in his career, so knew many interesting facts about the plants and history of the garden. The setting is spectacular—high in the Berkeley Hills overlooking the San Francisco Bay. I have visited the garden multiple times, in different seasons, and there is always something new and interesting to see.
 

Entrance to UC Botanical Garden, at Berkeley

Palm Collection

I always seem to gravitate to the trees and palms; to the desert plants in Arid House; and to the carnivorous plant collection. The California native plant collection is extensive, and a valuable asset as we all try to learn more about drought tolerant, and low water usage plants for our gardens.

Arid House

One of the many interesting specialty collections

The education program hosts lectures, such as iPhone plant photography, botanical painting, dyeing with plant materials, and native plants. Check their calendar regularly for interesting offerings.

Carnivorous plants	Needle grass
Yucca rostrata	Blueberries from New Zealand

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Docent-led tours are available, or you can explore the garden on your own. The gift store has a great collection of books and garden-related items (gift worthy, if you want to do a little holiday shopping while enjoying a beautiful garden). Their nursery offers many California native plants, and their fall and spring plant sales are legendary.

 

Address: 200 Centennial Drive; Berkeley, CA 94720-5045 Web Site: http://botanicalgarden.berkeley.edu Directions: http://botanicalgarden.berkeley.edu/directions/ For other botanical collections in the San Francisco Bay Area see: http://www.edenbythebay.blogspot.com/2015/02/botanical-collections-of-bay-area.html

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Shopping for Water

Another interesting idea is to use a market-based approach for supplying water in California and the West. In May, Michael Krazny interviewed Professor Robert Glennon on Forum (KQED) – Water Expert Calls for Market-Based Solutions to Supply Shortages. Glennon is professor of law and public policy at Rogers College of Law at the University of Arizona, and co-author of the 2014 report "Shopping for Water: How the Market Can Mitigate Water Shortages in the American West."

In “Shopping for Water”, Glennon and his coauthor explore the history of water in the Western United States. Basically, there is not enough water available to honor the water rights currently held (in fact, there never has been). Our whole system for water collection, distribution, and use needs to be overhauled, with consideration for all stakeholders (including the environment, farmers, business, and individuals). They offer some ideas for policy changes.

Glennon feels water is currently too cheap, so there is no market incentive to conserve water, or make wise water use choices. He proposes a more regulated approach, which is more equitable and enables stakeholders to choose how to use their water allocation. For example, a farmer may decide it is more profitable to leave a field fallow for a year, and sell the water he would have used to another stakeholder (under the current practices, you must use the water or lose it). A similar approach was implemented in Australia ten years ago, and has been very successful for handling their ongoing water shortage.

The program highlights the complexity of the water use issue. Glennon is quick to point out that we shouldn’t villainize agriculture and farming – we need them! In fact, a surprising amount of water is used in other sectors. By looking at the problem from a combined regulated and market-based point of view, we would change our priorities, and habits for how we spend out water.

Dry Farming

This year we’re following the drought in California. The snow pack is dwindling, the aquifers are being drained, and more and more people are competing for limited water. In response, we’re looking for ways to change how we garden. It won’t solve the greater problem of collecting and distributing water for multiple commercial, aesthetic, and personal interests, but it may help. Scientist recently offered hope that El Niño could bring rain this winter, but we still need sustainable solutions that extend beyond the next season. Until the rains and innovations come, I’m on the hunt for interesting ideas.

This story about dry farming in San Luis Obispo (SLO) grabbed my attention this summer; I heard it on The California Report: In Face of Drought, San Luis Obispo Farmer Advocates Dry Farming (by Lisa Morehouse for California Foodways, June 28, 2015). Dry farming relies only on rainwater. This is the old fashioned way of farming, using smarts, luck, and prayer. No irrigation.

Dry-farmed walnut trees in SLO (photo by Cynthia Wood/KQED)

 

Jutta Thoerner and Cynthia Douglas grow walnuts on Manzanita Manor Organics in SLO, using only rainwater. They use a variety of techniques for preparing the soil, grafting and planting trees, and retaining water in the soil; and maintain that the nuts are smaller but more flavorful. Mike Cirone dry farms fruit in SLO, and has a cult following of buyers for his small, sweet apricots and apples. Morehouse reports that a lot of crops are dry farmed across the state – wheat and grapes; tomatoes (Central Coast); potatoes (Marin); and squash (Humboldt). Dry farming works especially well in coastal and foggy areas, with good soil. Very inspiring – I think I’ll order some of those walnuts!

You can also read the article online: http://ww2.kqed.org/news/2015/06/28/in-face-of-drought-san-luis-obispo-farmer-advocates-dry-farming 

Where to Shop: California Natives

In the last few months we've decided to swap out our lawns for a drought tolerant alternative; researched native plants that thrive in Bay Area conditions; and spotted interesting dry garden examples. Now we need some plants. Luckily, we have some excellent native plant sources here in the Bay Area. Nurseries are one option.

Nursery	Details
Berkeley Horticultural Nursery	This nursery has been at the same Bay Area site since 1922, and has grown along with its community. "Berkeley Hort" carries a full line of plants, including California natives. Check the website for new arrivals, edibles, speakers, demonstrations, and plant care information. Address: 1310 McGee Avenue; Berkeley, California 94703; (510) 526-4704 Web: http://berkeleyhort.com/index.html
Annie's Annuals and Perennials	Annie Hayes, a former Berkeley Hort employee, started this nursery in the 1980s. They carry annuals and perennials, from all over the world, and California. Plants are sold in four-inch starters, to insure healthy roots, and useful plant care information is available.   Address: 740 Market Avenue; Richmond, CA 94801; (510) 215-3301 Web: http://www.anniesannuals.com/
The Watershed Nursery	This small nursery specializes in native plants, and restoration projects. They grow their plants in deep containers for healthy roots. Plant lists are published on their website. Check availability before you go, or order plants online and pick them up once they are available.   Address: 601 A Canal Boulevard; Richmond, CA 94801; (510) 234-2222 Web: http://www.watershednursery.com/
Bay Natives Nursery	This nursery, on Pier 96 in the Port of San Francisco, offers rare and endemic plants from the Bay Area, and drought tolerant plants from across the state. View their extensive online catalog for ideas, and order plants for pickup. They do not ship, but can deliver large orders (and they have parking)!   Address: 10 Cargo Way; San Francisco 94124; (415) 287-6755 Web: http://www.baynatives.com/

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Another source is the native plant sales held periodically at colleges, universities, and botanical gardens. For example, Merritt College hosts spring and fall plant sales, as does University of California, Berkeley. San Francisco Botanical Garden offers a plant sale most months.

Even hardware stores and nurseries offer native plants. You may need to march past the brilliant petunias and marigolds that beckon, to the back of the plant section, where you find the small-leaved, muted colored natives. But that is changing as gardeners get savvy about the drought, and distributors begin to offer exciting drought-tolerant plants.

Dry Gardens in the Bay Area

I am always on the hunt for alternative, dry garden ideas here in the San Francisco Bay Area. I think a lot of people are, because I am finding some really interesting, creative replacements for the obligatory lawn.

Bark is big. You can cover your dead lawn with bark to preserve the top soil, and help retain water in the soil. Plant shrubs, grasses, and ground covers in the fall to give roots a chance to establish; as the plants mature, the bark is not so dominating. Bark comes in a variety of sizes and textures from small to large, and smooth to shreddy, and comes in colors, such as red, brown, and black. The bark breaks down into the soil, so you do need to replenish it periodically.

Landscaping with bark

Rocks and gravel can perform the same function. They also come in multiple sizes and textures. Large, rounded rocks can look stunning, as can small flat smooth stones. Gravel can be used as a dry stream bed, and planted with seasonal plants, like self-seeding California poppies. A large rock used in isolation, or a group of rocks, adds variety and emulates nature. Some yards implement a “mixed media” approach – using native ground covers and plants, interspersed with hardscape such as railroad ties, slate, cement, rocks.


Landscaping with gravel

I miss the lush green lawns, but love seeing how landscape designers and home owner are coming up with alternatives. Some designs may be transitory to get through the drought, others are innovative and change the way we approach our yards.

Badge of Honor

After four years of drought, a green lawn is now suspect. It probably means you are using a lot of water. This is troubling to the rest of us with yards that now look like dead, spare lots. This does not seem fair, whether you can afford to pay for the water or not. It is not about the money, it is about the inequitable use of a scarce commodity.

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But, if you're using an alternative water source, like reclaimed, recycled, or collected water, this is a great time to proclaim it. These signs are like a badge of honor  for finding alternative way to keep the landscape green. Indirectly, this encourages the rest of us to get creative about maintaining our landscapes.

Gray Water in Dublin

A sign outside Home Depot in Dublin, CA grabbed my attention: Recycled Water Delivery. The Drought Savers website describes their services. They transport recycled water to your location in their tanker trucks, and offer a full line of storage tanks and pumps for managing the water. Their primary service area is Livermore, Pleasanton, and Brentwood. Pricing depends on water needs and location. This is a great idea – something for homeowners to help mitigate the drought.

Delivery service for gray water

I work in Dublin, and admire the city’s use of gray water for public landscapes (their beautiful street trees are irrigated with recycled water). The gray water infrastructure is managed by the San Ramon Valley Recycled Water Program, a partnership of two water districts. But currently, California regulations prevent single-family homes from tapping into the gray water infrastructure.

The Dublin San Ramon Services District (DSRSD) offers an alternative for residents in Dublin, San Ramon, and Pleasanton – free recycled water available for pick up at one of their fill stations. You bring your own containers, and get instructions on how to transport and manage the recycled water. One of the fill stations is in Dublin, near the Civic Center. Water is heavy, so you need the right rig and containment to manage the water.

Trucks line up to pick up gray water in Dublin

 

This is the kind of innovation we need to help solve our water shortage! Gray water is being cleansed and recycled for landscape use. An infrastructure is being built to deliver recycled water to large scale landscapes. Creative solutions are available for getting recycled water to small landscapes. A few hurdles need to be worked out. Could a less affluent area afford a gray water infrastructure? When will California codes support gray water for single family homes? But the program in the Tri-Valley area is a good start, and a good test case for learning.

Ahead of Their Time

My grandparents, Nina and Lionel, moved to Hemet, California in the late 1960s. They bought a top-of-the-line, double-wide mobile home, and purchased a lot in the Sierra Dawn retirement community. Hemet is located in the beautiful Hemet Valley, only an hour from Palm Springs and Joshua Tree National Park. It was a great solution for hard working folks ready to retire. Great weather, and a great community.

Many of these folks had decided to retire their lawn mowers as part of their retirement. Instead of lawns, they put in rocks and gravel. There were several popular colors, typically beige, rust, red, and green. They decorated with an assortment of lawn ornaments. A few people planted a tree or shrub, or some cacti and succulents for a little green. But most of them liberated themselves from the burden of yard work forever. 

Gravel replaces lawns for time and water savings

When our family visited Grandma and Grandpa, from lush rainy Alaska, we couldn't help noticing the gravel yards, decorated with flamingos, trolls, woodland creatures, and the like. Quite appealing to us kids: there was definitely a grandparent vibe going on. But we could not help snickering at the neighbors out in their yards reverse-vacuuming their gravel (this was before the era of leaf blowers). The whole scenario seemed hilarious to us – to be out in your tiny rock yard vacuuming.

Now, looking back over 50 years and with an adult perspective, I'm thinking these folks were ahead of their time! Sure, their motivation was cutting down on yard work. But they were on to something! Now, we're cutting back on lawns, to cut down on water use. Luckily we have more options for our lawn-free yards, but I think these forward thinking seniors paved the way for our activities today!

Patio Furniture Facelift

My husband and I bought a Brown Jordon patio furniture set for our first condo in Anaheim 32 years ago. The table, four chairs, and umbrella filled the entire patio, and provided a cozy circle for Sunday brunch, and meeting the neighbors. Later we moved the set to our rambling ranch style house in Garden Grove, and enjoyed the shade of the umbrella by day, and barbeques and long discussions under the stars by night. When we moved to the San Francisco Bay Area, we moved the table and chairs with us.

Original Brown Jordon after 32 years of service in three locations.

The set is indestructible, but had started to show some wear. The cushions were faded, the paint was oxidized, and some of the straps were disintegrating. Understandable after 32 years. We shopped around for something new, and then came upon the Patio Chair Care booth at the San Francisco Garden Show.

Lots of choices for powder coating and strapping.

Patio Chair Care came to our home, showed us samples, and carried off the set to their factory in Concord. They applied fresh powder coating in their massive ovens, and replaced the strapping.

Before

After

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A couple of months later, they delivered our refurbished patio set. We added some snazzy new cushions, and the patio set is like new. We’re back in business, eating Sunday brunch, working and researching, and enjoying friends and family around the table. I expect the set will last another 32 years!

Like brand new.