For years we have tried to make it to the High Sierra Iris and Wedding Garden during May, when the multi-colored irises are at their peak and the garden is open to the public. This year we finally made it – and it was well worth the wait. The gardens were indeed spectacular, with irises […]
This Garden Only Opens in May – and It Comes with Forest Views and Wine Stops Read More »
February can be such a beautiful time of year at Reverie Retreat. The very early spring blooms begin to pop out now – already we are seeing hellebore blooming and there is the sweetest little field of daffodils and birds of paradise on the bank below the cottage. Every day I walk around to see
Spring is on the horizon Read More »
This is the time of year when I’m planting like crazy. A few weeks ago I planted the first batch of seeds in our makeshift greenhouse in the basement that will grow into summer veggies, such as tomatoes, peppers and eggplant. I spent some time over the winter scouring the internet for sources of unusual
Apples, nectarines, persimmons, figs, quince…I do love fruit and we are on our way to having a Reverie mixed fruit bowl in our orchard. Back in the fall I pre-ordered eight fruit trees that would arrive in January, prime time for bare-root fruit tree planting. But eight fruit trees that need to be planted means
Mid-September is the peak of pepper season for us, and the 15+ plants I put in the ground back in May are now weighted down with beautiful peppers and chiles in all shapes, sizes and colors. We have purple jalapeños… Yellow-green Jalor chiles… Green-on-their-way-to-red California Wonder bell peppers…
The critters have gotten to us this week. We’ve had a vole family for a while now that’s been eating the roots of our vegetables. I went out this morning and found another dead zucchini plant. This is the third zucchini plant the voles have completely killed. I was able to salvage
Critters big and small Read More »
Our orchard is a place where many animals and insects go for food and shelter. However sometimes it is also the place where one creature is hunting another. Here you can see a dragonfly having caught a bee and devouring it (you can actually hear it chewing the bee up). #reverieretreat
“Farm-to-table” has been the buzzword in kitchens in the Bay Area for at least two decades, with seasonal menus derived from local producers expected by diners and critics alike. Even Sacramento has jumped on the bandwagon and is branding themselves the Farm-to-Fork Capital of the World. Chefs frequently have gardens adjacent to their restaurants and
Farm-to-table revealed Read More »
It’s strawberry season! Last year we planted three different kinds of strawberries (18 to 20 strawberry plants each), two of which were “ever-bearing” and one of which was “June-bearing.” The idea was that the June-bearing strawberries would give it up all at once so I would have enough at one time to make
I think I’ve mentioned before that my philosophy around what to plant in our vegetable garden has been evolving. At first I was so excited to actually have a vegetable garden, with plenty of sun (as opposed to my tiny shade patch in Oakland) that I was planting a wide variety of familiar vegetables in
