African Blue Basil is both an excellent source of garden color and an excellent plant for attracting an array of beneficial insects. Its green leaves transition to dark purple and its stems sprout long lavender blossoms. Gardeners can cut several stems to make a lovely small bouquet. Getting Started. African Blue Basil (Ocimum kilimandscharicum x […]

by Ann Clary and C. Darren Butler GardenZeus receives commissions for purchases made through links in this post. There is no additional cost to you. New Year’s Resolution 4: Grow California Native and Mediterranean Plants. Will plants sold at local gardening centers and nurseries thrive in your garden or landscape? Often they will, but in […]

Seeds can be scattered at the rate of one seed every 2-3 inches or about 20 seeds per square foot, ideally just before fall or winter rainy periods. Leave seeds at the soil surface undisturbed, or rake gently into soil. While counter-intuitive for many gardeners, it’s best not to cover California Poppy seeds with soil. […]

California Poppy needs full sun during cool-to-warm weather. It is perennial, but also grows as an annual in gardens and in wild areas where summer temperatures exceed about 90°F for long periods or where winter temperatures drop below about 15° to 20°F. It grows and yields best at daytime temperatures of about 55° to 80°F. […]

California Poppy (Eschscholzia california) is among the most care-free and lovely California-native flowering plants, and among the easiest to cultivate in urban landscapes. See Planting and Growing California Poppy (Eschscholzia california) for more info about planting, environmental needs, and benefits it provides. Watering: The best method for watering California Poppy is generally drip irrigation, especially […]

GardenZeus receives commissions for purchases made through links in this post. Many California native plants that are adapted or bred for urban landscapes have a reputation for being fussy with special needs, or being difficult to grow. California Poppy is the opposite. It requires little more than scattering seeds from fall through late winter or […]

Ceanothus is one of the most popular plant selections in California. Ceanothus are available in a wide variety of shrubs and groundcovers, most of which are native to California. Many produce copious “lilac” colored flowers in the spring, hence the popular name California Lilac.  Watering needs depend on the variety: some withstand some garden water […]

by Ann Clary and C. Darren Butler GardenZeus earns commissions on sales made through links in this article. There is no additional cost to you. Spring is a magical time of year in the Mediterranean garden: the first roses are perfectly colored and formed, lavenders burst forth with mounds of color and bearded iris provide […]

Are you growing sunflowers for use as cut flowers? How do you know when they should be harvested, or cut? And how should they be preserved to prolong their shelf life? Here are our tips: Cut sunflowers early, just when the outer petals or ray flowers are beginning to rise off the face, and the […]