Recent Garden Books

These are the first books in my review of gardening holdings at the Los Angeles Public Library system. I believe it should give a fairly good impression of what might be available at other large libraries around the country and might even give you a few items to recommend to your own local librarian.

Both of these books were published in 2002.

McGee and Stuckey's Bountiful Container

It is a simple truth that not everyone has or desires a large garden. I remember working on the 1/2 acre my grandmother "farmed" back in the 70's and often thought that perhaps she was over-doing the whole gardening concept. Bountiful Containers is a wealth of information on growing a garden anywhere you might be, regardless of how much space you have available.

Accenting Your Garden: Creative Ideas from America's Best Gardeners

I believe the most beautiful gardens are those where the lovely plantings are set off against the most beautiful gardens paths, ornaments and accents. I have found several ideas in Accenting Your Garden that have made their way into my garden "wish book" for future implementation. There is information on everything from paths fencing and urns to sculpture and how to use them in your garden.

Books

Gardening Month-by-Month in Washington and Oregon - Available Feb. 2003

This looks like a promising title about to be released. I really like Pat Welsh's Southern California Gardening: A month-by-month guide and it sounds like this might be a similar book for those of you in the Pacific Northwest.

Events/Outdoors

Cherry Trees at Lake Balboa

While they aren't blooming yet, the cherry trees at Lake Balboa in Encino, will soon be showing their vibrant and colors. Due to the recent warm temperatures, I expect to see blossoms within the next two weeks. The park is absolutely gorgeous during the bloom, and is almost unrecognizable to a regular visitor.

Click on the picture for some photos of the 2001 bloom.

There are also more pictuures here.