Hi. Welcome to my GardenGates
Please check out these areas:
Gardening articles to help you grow your garden
Landscape design to make your garden beautiful, practical and eco-friendly
Garden videos, news and reviews
Wildflowers of Southern California
Member of the Garden Writers Association
Member of the Associationof Professional Landscape Designers
Gardening and Landscaping
Landscape design
Gardening is one of the top hobbies in the world. The look of your home can be altered dramatically by the landscaping that surrounds it. There are so many benefits from working in the garden that can help us physically, psychologically, socially, practically and even economically. Fresh air, exercise, absorbing vitamin D from the sun are all critical to keep our bodies functioning at their best. The brain relaxes and regenerates when working in the garden. Wandering around in nature or lounging in your outdoor space can reduce blood pressure and calm the spirit. Using your landscape for play, exercise, sports, for entertaining or other social activities will release endorphins to the brain. Setting up your garden for children and pets adds practicality and expands the usefulness of your living space. Growing fresh vegetables, fruits and flowers to cut and bring into the home improves your diet, decorates your home and saves you money. And these are just some of the benefits of getting involved with the landscape around your home.
Gardens
There are endless ways to set up the look of your landscape so it fits your lifestyle, compliments your house and offers you the benefits you want. Thousands of different kinds of plants can be used for different effects and exposures, each plant with individual assets and needs. Soil needs to be considered just as temperature, lighting and climate extremes do. And then there is the whole growing world of eco-friendly techniques and products that are helping our gardens serve us well while adding to the environment rather than damaging it.
Whether your interests lie in growing plants, designing beauty, setting up hardscapes (the permanent features in the garden), providing food, creating stress relief, getting exercise, extending useful living space beyond your house structure — whatever goals you have for your property — gardening and landscaping can pay back in so many ways, making your life a better place to live.
This looks gorgeous!
Great looking site here! I love gardening so this will be added to my favs. Many blessings on your work!
Jane, I love your new website! Great information and photos. I can see the work you put into it and I really appreciate the crisp clean lines !
Jane, I couldn’t view the video, as it said it was private. Maybe a setting needs to be changed.
Enjoyed browsing the very informative site.
Congratulations on your new site. It looks fantastic. Be sure arto go forth and leave comments on other gardening blogs to drive traffic and help your SEO efforts. All the best.
You’ve done a beautiful job with this site and thanks for including me in your blogroll.
Hi Jane – I love your new webpage! Do you have a widget so I can add you to my blog!
I look forward to hearing more about your gardens out West. I am in the Midwest so please stop by and take a look at some of my photos I enjoy to share!
Happy Gardening!
I learned about your website via Google search. I am trying to learn about Apricot trees.
Last summer I planted a 4 foot tall tree and in the early spring I had flowers. I did not expect fruit. After the flowers died I never seen any green leaves growing. Does that mean that my tree has died? How long after the flowers finished blooming I should be able to see leaves? I have several other trees with 15-20 feet from the apricot that all look healthy and a peach tree that also had flowers, now has fruit starting. My yard has an automatic irrigation system and the trees receive plenting of sun light.
It’s hard to say without seeing it, but leaves should follow flowering immediately. Nothing after flowering does not sound hopeful. If the twigs on your tree are dry and snap easily (without a trace of green inside) it sounds like you lost the tree. Sometimes the roots can dry out or get too wet and rot when a tree is small. Make sure your irrigation system is not clogged and the water is actually going deeply to the bottom of the roots of a tree. Trees need deeper and less frequent watering than lawns or most garden beds.
Hey we was just looking thru your website on my Jack Phone and I was thinking about how good it will work on the new ipad coming out . Fleeting thought…. Anyway thanks!
Hey man , thanks 4 posting but this page isn’t vewable when using Firefox it is showing only half the page.
Great tips! I will try it definitely
thanks for sharing this!
I just wanted to say your web site is one of the nicely laid out, most inspirational I have come across in quite a while. Thx!
hi I love your webpage
my working in drip irrigation sysytem in design engg. in india
Love that garden lovers all over the world can connect like this!
Thank you.
Recently, I didn’t give so much thought to writing comments on blog entries and have left comments even less. Checking out your informative page, will probably encourage me to do this more regularly.
Hi, I enjoy your website. This is a cool site and I wanted to post a comment to let you know, good job! Thanks kim
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Hi, I love your blog. This is a nice site and I wanted to post a note to let you know, nice job! Thanks Meia
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I will use your advice from now on. Jaap
Thanks for an idea, you sparked at thought from a perspective I hadn’t given thoguht to yet. Now lets see if I can do something with it.
Landscaping is very important in both the business offices and at home. it makes your yard impressive..”,