Disclaimer: This is a partial list of nurseries in the area
and is provided for as a convenience,
not as an endorsement or any other representation.
The independent nurseries tend to have long-term staff
who are typically knowledgeable and helpful.
Yerba Buena Nursery, 19500 Skyline Boulevard, Woodside
(map & directions on their web pages)
Carries exclusively California native plants.
Lovely and educational demonstration gardens---but it's on the
ocean side of skyline so of course
the microclimate is much different from ours.
A long drive, partly on unpaved roads; well worth it.
Almaden valley (south of San Jose): environs of IBM Almaden campus
CalPhoto.com page (of photographer) contains link to what is blooming where
Local Nurseries
Disclaimer: This is a partial list of nurseries in the area
and is provided for as a convenience,
not as an endorsement or any other representation.
The independent nurseries tend to have long-term staff
who are typically knowledgeable and helpful.
Barron Park Florist, 3876 El Camino Real, Palo Alto,
Really, they have garden plants, outside in the back.
Yerba Buena Nursery, 19500 Skyline Boulevard, Woodside
(map & directions on their web pages)
Carries exclusively California native plants.
Lovely and educational demonstration gardens---but it's on the
ocean side of skyline so of course
the microclimate is much different from ours.
A long drive, partly on unpaved roads; well worth it.
Los Altos Nursery, 245 Hawthorne Ave, Los Altos
Ladera Garden Center, 380 Ladera Country Shopper, Alpine Road, Portola Valley, 650-854-3850
Redwood City Nursery, 2760 El Camino Real, Redwood City, 650-368-0357
Closed Tue & Wed
Staff is typically readily available if you have questions.
Good breadth of stock (good place to check for unusual and hard-to-find plants).
For fall bulbs: especially good stock of daffodils
(tulips and others tend to be similar to what one finds at other nurseries)
Complete Garden Guide to Native Shrubs of California, by Glenn Keator, Chronicle Books, 1994.
Complete Garden Guide to the Native Perennials of California, by Glenn Keator, 1990
Brousseau Collection of California Wildflowers: Covers more native plants than just wildflowers.
Part of the UC-Berkeley Digital Library Project - brings together information from multiple databases
Comment (4/1997): Highly Recommended:
Pictures (often many), and habitat and range/distribution info (maps)
Zip Code-Communities - Las Pilitas - find the plant community in your zone and a list of plants for that zone.
Three plant communities occur in Barron Park in Palo Alto, CA 94306:
Article in The Bay Area Gardener on the Saratoga Horticulutural Research Foundation which is evaluating and adapting native plants for use in landscaping
Gardening with Natives by the Santa Clara Valley Chapter of the California Native Plant Society
The local Water Districts have a history of being useful sources of information on gardening with native plants (their focus is as a water saving technique)
Pollinator Partnership: Your Source for Pollinator Action Information
(and North American Pollinator Protection Campaign (NAPPC)): Use your ZIP Code to get a localized list of native plants that support pollinators.
Book: American Horticultural Society Pruning and Training, A Fully Illustrated Plant-by-Plant Manual, by Christopher Brickell and David Joyce,
DK publications; $34.95.
Book: Pruning and Training Plants, a Complete Guide, David Joyce, Firefly, $24.95.
Plant Amestry - Pruning advice and Examples of pruning atrocities
How to save seeds : includes the Vegetable Seed Savers Handbook by Seeds of Texas (free, in entire version)
Peaceful Valley Farm Supply PO Box 2209, Grass Valley CA 95945; (916) 272-4769, FAX: (916) 272-4794
As of June 1997, only info was a form to request a catalog.
The Natural Gardening Company "Oldest Certified Organic Nursery in the United States"
Located in Sonoma CA - some of the vegetables have comments that they do well in cooler conditions, such as San Francisco
Good Seed Company: targeting gardens for the northwest (eg, Washington state)
Garden Medicinals and Culinaries : "Offers over 175 varieties of medicinal and culinary herb seeds, roots, perennial onions, specialty garlic varieties, and select vegetables and flowers. All seeds are untreated and some are certified organic. Also included are supplies (including seed saving supplies), books, and equipment for gardeners, herb growers, and herbalists. Informative Web site with extensive link library of over 250 herb-related sites."
Anioleka Seeds For Rare & Unusual Heirloom Vegetables (located in United Kingdom, but they ship to US)
William R.P. Welch (a.k.a. Bill the Bulb Baron), P.O. Box 1736, Carmel Valley, California 93924-1736. Specializes in bulbs (esp Narcissus tazetta and Amaryllis) for warm regions such as central California.
The Southern Bulb Company - Rare, heirloom, naturalizing, native. Bulbs that have thrived in the South for over 100 years. Collection centers on Texas, but appropriate for a range of warm weather areas.
Profiled in the NY Times 2006-07-06: The Bulb Hunter by Ginia Bellafante
Breck's 888-238-8118
Note:Breck's has a very high rate of complaints
(see Dave's Garden)
over a wide range of issues:
cancelling orders (without confirmation), substitutions,
billing errors, clueless customer service, …
Tulip World Note: I sampled some of their "More Information" sections and was quite disappointed. Example: zone information on varieties that do well in the SF Bay area (e.g., Tulipa saxatilis) are listed with the same zone designation (3-8) as varieties that do not do well here.
Hobby Gardens (Greenhouses and …), PO Box 83, Grand Isle, VT 05458, (802) 372-4041
American Greenhouse Kit Company: "Offering the largest selection of greenhouse kits. With 100's of photos, gardening cartoons and jokes along with informative articles and advice."
Bug hotels offer wintering spot for garden helpers
Perhaps the bugs in your life go for chalet-style abodes.
Or maybe they swarm to skyscrapers.
Some might prefer the rustic look or a contemporary unit.
Thanks to garden artists, architects and upcyclers, insect hotels…
Other Products
OXO : garden tools (company best known for ergonomic kitchen tools)
Texas Tomato Cage (Google for this - many sources) - Heavy duty galvanized round cages that fold flat for storage. 18-inch and 24-inch diameter models. Expensive - best prices (3/04) tend to be $20 each.
Veggie Cages : Spiral tomato cages that extend to 7 feet high. Prices (3/04) tend to be $6-7 each, depending on quantity.
Note: I have not tried these. My search revealed only one review and it stated that this product failed to hold up plants with large tomatoes (and cucumbers). It performed only adequately for a heavily pruned cherry tomato. However, he did say that it worked well for flowers.
From: David_SANDAGE at CityOfPaloAlto.org (David SANDAGE)
Date: 97-05-29 23:48:51 EDT
Engraver beetles (Ips paraconfucius) is a common pest of Monterey pine.
It attacks stressed pines, homing in on the scent of terpines generated
when the tree dehydrates. Two other serious pests of Monterey pines
are Pitch Canker, a new fungus that causes bleeding sap. This disease
is spreading through the M. pine forest of the west coast and is
expected to decimate them. It attacks other pines and perhaps Douglas
fir, which would cause an enormous economic impact.
Another pest of M. pine is the Turpentine beetle, which infests the
base of stressed trees, making a few sites where pink frass ("sawdust")
and pitch exudes from the hole. This pest can be controlled by
injecting each site.
As you said, controls are limited to prevention sprays of chemical
insecticides and are not very effective. No control is available for
Pitch Canker. Increasing the vigor of the tree is your best course of
action, by means of regular maintenance practices.
Call or visit the office of the University extension education offices
for San Mateo or Santa Clara or the Agriculture Commissioners office
for printed information and the most current advice. (Check the County
pages in the phone book.)
… Based
upon our experience, plus other distressed ones we see in the area, it
appears that there is at least some infestation of engraver beetles in Barron
Park and probably in Palo Alto in general. We pulled some info off the
Internet that suggests that after killing large numbers of Monterray pines
the beetles moved to other pines and firs. It isn't real clear which other
types of trees are in danger, except as Dave says, if they are weak or
stressed they can be attacked. In our case we keep the trees trimmed and
watered, and did not consider them at risk, so it is a real surprise to have
one attacked. We do not plan to remove it except as a very last resort, and
hope that agressive application of insecticide will control or kill the
beetles.
It would be prudent to check all fir and pine trees for signs of stress and
attack - especially dead branches. Cassandra Moore noted a tree near her.
We also are suspicious of the health of the huge tree in the front yuard of
the renovated house at Laguna and Illima.
Regards, Bob
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