Under the Solano Sun

Miniatures and Semi-Miniatures One of my very favorite semi-miniature violets is Jolly Pepper, pictured here. Semi-miniature and miniature violets are much smaller than the standard size violets.

One of my favorite succulents is Crassula capitella 'Campfire'. The nursery tag describes it as a 12-inch sun to part shade plant. Here's a picture of a nursery purchase. As in all succulents, the leaves are plump and fleshy because they store water.

Does anyone else think this is the best time of the year for gardeners? I know you can't really see what's going to happen, but this is always the most inspirational part of the year for me.

Who remembers drinking from a snapdragon as a kid? When was the last time you stop to drink from your snapdragons? Snapdragons are two-lipped tubular flowers and are well-known as a symbol of strength and resilience. Snapdragon flowers (Antirrhinum) are from the Plantain family.

We master gardeners are in essence plant detectives. We try and suss out what the plant is, what damage is happening, who or what is causing the damage to the plant. Sometimes the damage was done and the culprit isn't there anymore. We can't always be there to witness the destruction of a plant.