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A Gardener's Notebook: The latest incarnation of my column detailing the trails and tribulations of my garden. Join the list and ask your own questions about gardening Subscribe

No, I haven't suddenly turned into a UCLA fan but the title does describe my current garden theme. Since I already have gold accents scattered around the garden I figured I would put in some purple, one of my favorite colors, to complement them. The first new additions were 2 purple Lantana (Lantana montevidensis) shrubs to go next to the established Coreopsis ( Coreopsis lanceolata). The Coreopsis have proven themselves to be the most reliable perennials in the street side bed of the front garden and the one Lantana in the back garden also does fabulously with little to no attention.

Once a month, minimum

While I know some gardeners who practically have to ban themselves from their local nursery, I never seem to find the time to buy the plants I want for my garden. Even when I do get to the home center I can't decide between a camellia or and azalea. Hopefully, my new plans will help me to fill in some of the major blank spots in the garden before the holidays arrive.

My plan is to make a regular trip to the nursery at least once a month. Much like writing this column I hope that a regular schedule will help me finally get moving. Thankfully I am not planning on buying anything exotic so the monetary damage should be within my budget. That is always an important consideration for any gardener. I get flyers from several local garden shops so I am always on the look out for a bargain.

Moving again

This week my wife, Rosanne, and I purchased a new rustic garden swing made from bent willow. We have been looking at it for years but had held off buying. This year they were having a sale so we finally took the plunge. Of course, in order to place it in the garden I had to move something. I have had a native blackberry bush in the northeastern corner of the back garden for the last several years. It has languished there and many times I thought it had given up completely. Nothing like a little push to get me going, though. The blackberry is now happily ensconced in a much more hospitable location in the front yard and the swing has filled its void well.

I also finally made a commitment to remove the trumpet vine that has been growing along the southern property line. Unfortunately, this vine volunteers easily. Every year I have more and more sprouts coming up both in the bed and in the paths that border it.

The fact that this vine grows against a wooden fence presents another problem. In an effort to get to the sun the vines force the fence slats apart. Every year the fence gets more and more damaged and I am tired of putting it back together. Getting rid of the vine completely could be a problem, though. There are 3 large, well-established plants as well as the volunteers. The hummingbirds do like the plant so I may save one of them if I can find a place where it won't do so much damage.

Until next week…

Keep digging!