Today I am hiding out with some friends right behind the guide hut at the bottom of the Japanese Garden. The red spider lilies are standing on the edge of the road, screaming to be seen while I sit quietly behind them. This is their time for some attention, so I will let them have…
Today is Labor Day. It is a great day – the gardeners are off. That means a little deserved peace and quiet for me. I can relax here on Discovery Peak in the Children’s Garden, where I came to celebrate WOW’s 3rd anniversary. It was busy yesterday and Saturday, but today I get to enjoy…
Today I feel like a renaissance man (I’m really a renaissance plant, but that doesn’t have the same ring). Why? Because I am sitting in the middle of Renaissance Court. I don’t visit this garden often and it was a time for me to stop by for a look. This garden evokes a sixteenth-century…
With all the rain this week, I floated down the Garden path to the Matson Garden. From here I have a good view of the Tropical Garden across the canal. The Matson Garden is a nice garden with a good mix of plants. It is also kind of quiet with the exception of one eaglet…
I don’t really have a drinking problem. I just have a water problem. With over 5 inches of rain in the last week, there has been a lot of water coming down in the Garden. As usual, when it first started falling I got all excited and started drinking as much as I could. But…
Have you seen any flying insects lately that look like giant yellow jackets? If you have, they are most likely the eastern cicada killer, Sphecius speciosus. Actually it is considered a beneficial insect because it helps to regulate cicada populations. This wasp gets its common name from the fact that it hunts cicadas, which becomes…
Shiny coneflower I have spent the last couple of months hiding in the perfect spot. When things are going so well, you don’t want to jinx it so I’ve kept my mouth shut and not written a blog. Besides, when I am in paradise, writing is the last thing on my mind. Of course of…
Septoria leaf spot and early blight are two leaf-spot deases on tomatoes that start showing up about this time of year. Both of these diseases are characterized by brown spots on the leaves. Despite their names, Septoria leaf spot usually appears earlier in the season than early blight. Septoria produces small dark spots whereas the…
Carpenter bees may very well be swarming around outside your homes about now. They resemble bumble bees but have bare abdomens that are a shiny black to iridescent green. In the spring these bees, which overwinter as adults, are emerging and looking for mates. The male bees can be rather aggressive and may “dive bomb”…
We can all agree that some tomatoes certainly taste better than others. Science has now apparently determined why – a compound known as furaneol. Not only has this compound been identified, it is in higher concentrations in tomatoes that taste better – particularly heirloom varieties, but the gene that controls the level of furaneol has…