What’s the deal with ivy? It climbs where it’s not wanted, chokes and kills most other greenery in its path and harbors bugs and spiders. Why would anybody plant this stuff? These are my thoughts as I work to get my home ready for painting. I practically need a crowbar to get ivy "ropes" out…
As you think about new landscape choices during this fall planting season, consider the story of Suzy and Rob Schaefer, whose Rancho Santa Fe home (pictured) seems to have been saved by the succulents surrounding it. While the couple’s once-plump, water-storing aloe did take quite a beating from the extreme heat of the fire that…
Isn’t technology supposed to make our lives better in ways our ancestors never thought possible? So why are we still simply fleeing from our unprotected homes as fire approaches, like people have done for eons, rather than fighting back in a high-tech manner? Specifically, I’m talking about homeowner-applied flame-retardant foams and gels, which we sometimes…
First, I want to defend myself: I am a tree lover, tree hugger, tree planter and tree waterer. Indeed, I’ll probably stay on my property until death just to be near the trees I’ve planted: California pepper, gingko, elm, pine and oak. But I must say, I don’t get this SoCal palm tree obsession, though…
Out walking this week, I came across two stylish gates that really caught my eye. There’s something so agreeable about the juxtaposition of the reddish wood and the lighter wavy panels. (Click on photos to enlarge.) As I got closer, I saw that the panels look like some kind of corrugated metal (not fiberglass), but…
One of Pardon Our Dust’s favorite landscape designers — Pamela Berstler of Flower to the People — will discuss "The Balancing Act of Sustainable Design" on Thursday, Sept. 20, at the L.A. County Arboretum & Botanic Garden. Pamela is known to TV audiences as an outdoor-living expert. She is a passionate promoter of landscaping that…
If you were among the thousands of unlucky Southlanders who lost power during the current heat wave, the thought of a backup generator probably sounds pretty appealing right about now. (See reader comments on power outages.) As far as I can tell, we’re heading into a time of radical weather changes, and so many events…
We’ve got to hand it to our ancestors, whose house-cooling strategies we’re only now beginning to appreciate: straw-bale and rammed-earth walls, sod roofs, cool cellars, even covered porches. Did you know there are straw-bale houses in this country that are more than 100 years old? Planting shade trees is another old-timey air-cooling strategy that needs…
I’m considering leasing a darling vacation cabin near Bass Lake, but I’m concerned that the neighbor’s trees across the street will eventually block the cabin’s mountain views. I guess I could ask the neighbors if I could pay to get their trees topped off to preserve my view, when the time comes. (It may take…
Question: My house was built 20 years ago with a second-story redwood deck that is about 250 square feet. The deck has been stained, power-washed and decently maintained. But some of the deck joists and all four uprights have been diagnosed with dry rot/fungus and dry-wood termites. Should I replace the damaged joists and uprights…