For the next 14 days this blog will post information about Japan especially Japanese plants and gardens. My tour started today in Tokyo and will go to Mt. Fuji, Hakone, Takayama, Kanazawa, Kyoto, Nara, Hiroshima and Miyajima Island. Japan is a very crowded country and Tokyo is a very crowded city. Japan has a population…

Euphorbias are a varied genus of plants that are commonly used as drought tolerant garden plants. They are all deer resistant because they have a sticky white sap. THE GROUNDCOVERS: Euphorbia myrsinites Euphorbia myrsinites showing pink bracts around maturing fruit in May.  Euphorbia rigida reaches about 18″ tall. Euphorbia ‘Blue Haze’ Euphorbia ‘Deans Hybrid’…

There are 2 groups of plants that are commonly called Lily of the Valley – Pieris and Convallaria. This is the true Lily of the Valley (Convallaria majus). It is a deciduous perennial/ground cover that blooms in April and early May. It is very fragrant. This planting was made 12 years ago with 3 1…

In the Spring of 2016 I made a trip to Peru to visit my cousin who is a missionary in Arequipa, Peru. He arranged for me to visit all the tourist sites in Peru including a bus trip up into the high Andes. These mountains are over 22,000 feet high. This photo was taken in…

Hellebores are tough shade plants that bloom in the winter. They are drought tolerant and deer tolerant. There are many new hybrids being developed from the old standard Helleborus orientalis. Here is a page from “The Garden” magazine from England which had an article about Hellebores: Helleborus ‘Madame Lemonnier’ Helleborus ‘Royal Heritage’ Helleborus ‘Ivory Prince’…

There are many Mahonias used in gardens for shady areas. They are evergreen and usually have spiny leaves and make good barrier plants. They have yellow flowers and generally bloom in the winter or spring. Chinese Hollygrape (Mahonia lomariifolia). Very upright and sculptural plant. Blooms December – February. Oregon Grape (Mahonia aquifolium) State flower of…

The inside of a house can always be made more beautiful with house plants; it can also be made more healthful to live in too. Plants, inside or outside, use carbon dioxide and make oxygen; they also clean the air of toxins. The house plant that is best for this is Pothos (Epipremnum pinnatum ‘Aureum’)….

Daphnes are small shrubs that grow in part shade and are noted for very fragrant flowers. They generally bloom in the winter when few other shrubs are blooming.   Daphne odora ‘Aureo-marginata’   Daphne odora ‘Maejima’ This is an example of how the nursery trade produces a new variety. A plant with green leaves like…

Many people who visit Dawn Gardens ask how the 8 acres is maintained. There are 5 clues to the successful maintenance of the garden:  The people, the equipment, the water and irrigation system, the plants and the mulch. The People There are 5 people who work at Dawn Gardens, none of them full time. My…

When the colorful exuberance of the spring and summer garden fades, grasses can continue the garden interest into the fall and through the winter A good example of this is the above photo showing lilies that have finished blooming and now, in the fall, the grasses are taking over. This scene will last until February…