Reflections on 2019

Another year is drawing to a close (it really is true that time speeds up as you get older)! 2019 was full of professional and personal challenges, and sweetened by friends, family, and the natural world.

For Eden By The Bay, our main focus was "plants to dye for". I had a great time researching how plants have been used historically to dye fabric, revisiting four Linnaeus apostles to see what their research revealed about dyeing around the world, learning about the art and science of dyeing, visiting dyer's studios vicariously, and investigating sustainable dye techniques. Even better, I enjoyed trying it out for myself by dyeing cotton dish towels with walnut hulls, red cabbage, onion skins, and weld extract. See Plants to Dye For: Wrap Up for a summary.

Plants to dye for (weld)	Exploring nature (sugar bush)
Enjoying nature (in style)	Seasonal beauty (Bishop Ranch)

A special project for me in 2019 was trying my hand as a "filmmaker" using an older version of Movavi software to create videos, Audacity to record soundtracks, and YouTube for royalty-free music and hosting. I'm a definite amateur, but it is so much fun to experiment with different ways to tell a story. In addition to the videos created for "plants to dye for", see these links for posts with more videos from 2019.

• Palm Springs 2019
• Indian Canyons 2019
• Lake Day 2019
• Bautista Canyon 2019
• Into the Landscape (Pink Allee of Crepe Myrtle)
• Spooky (Garden) Spiders

We also continued some of our favorite activities like learning about plants, hiking in local regional parks (such as Redwood and Point Pinole), visiting Filoli for the holidays, appreciating landscapes in all seasons, and going to the movies (where plants are the movie stars). It's been a great year in the garden, the landscape, and in nature!

   

Christmas in the Bay Area

We've spent the last three Christmases in Seattle with our wonderful family and granddogs, but this year my husband and I are spending Christmas at home here in the San Francisco Bay Area. It may be low key, compared to all the fun and excitement of past years, but we're taking our time and enjoying each activity and project as it comes.

Christmas tree detail - decorations from the garden

Hope you enjoy your holidays, whether in high spirits or quietly reflective; with lots of activity or just a few main events; with all your friends and family or just a few; with lavish gifts or frugal fun. Try to get a little extra rest if you can, and spend some time doing something new and exciting.

Merry Christmas!

Thanksgiving Fun

I know we're deep in the throes of the Christmas season, and Thanksgiving is in the rear-view mirror, but I still wanted to share some of the fun of our Thanksgiving celebration here in the San Francisco Bay Area. My folks from Alaska, my aunt who lives locally here in the Bay Area, my husband and I enjoyed time together during Thanksgiving week. We went on some outings, did a little shopping in Montclair Village, ate well, enjoyed some entertaining DVDs, learned more about family history, and engaged in interesting conversations.

View from Merritt College

When it wasn't raining, we took a quick hike at Redwood Regional Park. I love how accessible it is (at least the first part, until the trail branches and heads up into the hills). It's definitely enjoyed by folks of all ages and stages of life. We saw some beautiful colored leaves, and found some native walnuts. We also stopped at Merritt College for fabulous views of the Bay.

Fall colors at Redwood Regional Park

Walnuts from Redwood Regional Park

For Thanksgiving dinner we tried Hotel Mac in Point Richmond.  The sky was dramatic on the way, and rain held off until later in the evening. I love Victorian architecture, and the whole notion of repurposing old buildings for modern use. The food was classic and delicious (some restaurants try to give a fancy spin on the Thanksgiving menu, but really, stick with the basics)! We had enough leftovers for turkey croissant sandwiches the next day. 

Hotel Mac Restaurant

Family fun

Hotel Mac

We enjoyed some very cozy evenings, with the fireplace going and rain outside, working crossword puzzles, and enjoying some good movies. Some of our favorites included It's All True, On the Basis of Sex, The Birder's Guide to Everything, The Art of Racing in the Rain, The Tomorrow Man, and The Hundred-Foot Journey. All are family friendly, at least at our age!

Relaxing by the fire

One big event was to experience Holidays at Filoli. We enjoyed the lights, decorations, music, garden and house. For details, see Filoli at Christmas. As mentioned, we have visited Filoli in all four seasons, and now Christmas (the fifth season). I suppose the only frontier left to explore, is the Filoli Nature Preserve!

Filoli during the holidays

My folks, husband, and I topped off our time together with a fine meal at Scott's Seafood Grill & Bar in Oakland. We have celebrated many occasions and enjoyed many delicious meals together at Scott's over the years. We enjoy the menu, the sunsets, the music, and the decorations this time of year.

Christmas tree at Jack London Square

Scott's Restaurant

Dinner at Scott's

I'm grateful for the time we spent together, and for friends and family who couldn't be with us, but are ever on our minds. There is always next year!

Filoli at Christmas

This year we kicked off the Christmas season with a visit to Filoli Historic House and Garden for the famed Holidays at Filoli. My folks from Alaska, aunt who lives here in the Bay Area, my husband and I all bundled up with scarves, jackets, and umbrellas and headed over the San Mateo bridge to Woodside, California under dramatic and threatening skies. Our time slot was 4:00 to 8:00 PM, so we timed it to enjoy the decorations in the light, before dark descended.

Courtyard entrance to the house

Lawn with decorated tree

Our motley crew

View of the house and terrace

We enjoyed our favorite spots, views, and vistas in the garden. Dark falls quickly this time of year, so we were able to witness the lovely lights increase in intensity against the nightfall. An outside kiosk with heating lamps sold hot cider on the terrace, and provided an opportunity to warm up while taking in the grand view of the garden at night. The lights were enchanting.

Sunken garden and garden house

Garden house

View of the clock tower from the pool

Sunken garden

This year the whole walled garden was lit in fun and imaginative ways. We learned that a team of 70 volunteers and staff spend most of November stringing lights and decorating inside and out. During our visit, a wedding party was preparing for an evening wedding. We caught glimpses of the bride and groom being photographed throughout the garden. Their wedding pictures should be wonderful.

Wedding terrace

Lights in the willows

Lovely boxwood hedges with lights

Rose garden

When we had taken in the gardens and the evening chill had set in, we headed inside, which was warm and welcoming with lights, decorations, and a Christmas tree in almost every room. We toured the rooms and paused to enjoy Le Jazz Hot in the Grand Ballroom, with the father-daughter Jazz duo Rebecca DuMaine and Dave Miller.

Outside looking in

Cozy room beckons

Tree decorated with materials from the Filoli grounds

Several highlights included seeing floral arrangements and a tree decorated with material foraged from Filoli grounds, as well as the 570 piece silver set with settings for 18 dinner guests and many serving pieces. I also loved the strands of glittering gold Ginkgo biloba used in the garland that decorated the main staircase, but unfortunately didn't find it in the Clock Tower Shop (nerdy I know, but any plants woman would understand).

Garland up the main stairs (note the Ginkgo in lower left)

Pink tree

Blue tree in the main sitting room

We ended our tour at one of our favorite places—Fentons Creamery and Restaurant—for hamburgers and crab sandwiches, cherry pie ala mode, and Black-and-Tan sundaes. We compared notes on what we had seen and enjoyed. Over the last seven years we've visited Filoli in all four seasons (winter, spring, summer, and fall), and now add the Christmas holiday as a fifth season!
  

Forcing Bulbs: Amaryllis

I love forcing bulbs to bloom out of season especially during the end-of-year holidays, like Thanksgiving and Christmas. Bulbs are easy to grow outside, and just as easy to grow inside. Amaryllis (Hippeastrum spp.) are native to tropical and subtropical Americas, from the Caribbean and Mexico to Argentina.

Amaryllis (Hippeastrum spp.) – day 42

The bulbs are quite large, and the flowers are big and bodacious in shades of red, white, pink, variegated, and more. Depending on the species, each bulb may produce one or two stalks, with each stalk producing two to four flowers. You can purchase bulbs from a variety of sources from hardware stores and garden shops to high-end floral shops. They usually come as a kit with a soilless planting medium such as shredded coir, a container, and the bulb. It is a good idea to opt for the special amaryllis flower stakes to keep the giant blooms upright. The bulbs have been prepped so you can plant immediately, and enjoy watching the fast-growing stems and unfurling blooms.

For this project you'll need:

• One bulb kit from your favorite source
• (Recommended) One amaryllis flower stake per stem 
• (Optional) Shallow bowl or tin, and an old fork

Tooling up – day 1

Stems and leaves – day 20

To grow:

1. Prepare the soil, which typically involves adding water to the compressed coir disk (for example, add 3 1/2 cups water to a three inch disk). Once the water is absorbed, loosen the soil with an old fork. 
2. Optionally, place the root end of the bulb in a shallow pan of water for about 20 minutes. Typically the roots are dry, so this helps "wake them up".
3. Plant the bulb with the pointed end up and just above the soil surface. 
4. Place in a warm room (70 to 75 degrees F. is ideal), but out of direct sun. Keep soil moist, watering more frequently as the leaves grow and flowers open. To extend blooming, try moving the plant to a cooler place in the evening (45 to 55 degrees F.).

Stem and leaves – day 29

Aftercare:

 When the flowers are spent, continue to water and fertilize. When leaves start turning yellow, water only as needed until the foliage dies. Maintain amaryllis indoors or bury pot in semi-shade outside when danger of frost has past. Let dormant amaryllis remain dry through summer. Cut off dry, yellowed foliage just above bulb. Repot every 2 to 3 years. Here in the Bay Area I typically repot the bulbs in large containers (several bulbs to a pot), and keep them outside year round on the covered patio. They typically produce lovely green shiny leaves, and periodically put forth a bloom when the conditions are right. I find the second bloom is not as big and dramatic as the initial bloom, possibly due to my laissez faire treatment, but still very enjoyable.

Instructions are a combination of info from Van Zyverden, Inc. literature, and personal comments.
www.vanzyverden.com (product of Israel)
www.digdropdone.com