- Author: Jennifer Baumbach
It's funny how things change over the course of 9 months. In just about a month, I'll be having a baby. It's our first. A boy-Ethan. It's definitely going to be something new for my husband and I.
I think about how I will be able to teach Ethan all of the wonders that happen in a garden. As a kid, I didn't have that same sort of wonderment or interest about plants, insects, the soil or anything related to horticulture. My parents aren't gardeners so I was the one elected to mow the lawn, but that was a chore way back then.
For Ethan, I want to be able to show him how to identify plants by touch, dig for worms, sniff the scented geraniums, and look for the crazy bees that come in the summer. This is just scratching the surface of the gardening world we will get to share. It will be all new to him. I can't wait!
- Author: Edward Walbolt
Many of us, me included, enjoy getting out of the office or house to go for a walk to get the heart pumping for a little exercise. My walks afford me a vacation from daily stress while providing me with the opportunity for an adventure through Solano’s garden oasis. I try to take a little different path each time I venture out so that I can feast my eyes on all the horticultural aspects my surroundings have on display. While I explore, I am tantalized by the immense creativity gardeners have and I am even more mesmerized by natural landscapes that somehow create art without much human intervention at all. I often forget I am “exercising” because while I move my thought stream around how visually captivating the landscape is. I enjoy the lingering uplifting effects that the gardens intrinsically inspire me. While I am out enjoying the landscapes, I find myself wishing that I was the proud parent of some of the more unique foliage I encounter. It occurs to me that the general public is an eclectic group, often times reinforcing the phrase “ignorance is bliss”. An example was seen when I walked past a front yard full of Hibiscus rosa-sinensis someone just planted in mid-October in Vallejo. I think that I have pretty liberal feelings toward gardening ignorance and personally give an A grade for those who display much effort at all. When someone plants their most favorite subject in the most incorrect place horticulturally-speaking, I tend to let it slide but sort of chuckle inside. So what if you have to pull them up in 45 days because the seasonal climate change slaughtered the whole batch? During those 45 days, I appreciated the graceful ignorance that killed them, but most especially those very first days when those Hibiscus rosa-sinensis were still in their warehouse store garden department prime.
- Author: Jennifer Baumbach
Thank you for joining the Master Gardeners (MGs) as they share with you their knowledge and experiences of gardening in Solano County.
If you aren’t familiar with our program, let me fill you in. The MGs are residents of Solano County. They are a diverse group of people who have been trained in horticulture for the purpose of volunteering their time to share that knowledge with you, the home gardener.
Each weekday, this blog will cover a new topic, something of interest to the writer or an interesting tidbit he or she has discovered in his or her home gardens or in other parts of our county.
We are excited about sharing this blog with you and hope you enjoy reading about everything Under the Solano Sun.