Send us your most vexing questions about landscaping and watering, as well as your photos and video. We welcome all of it here at the Blue Thumb blog, where Linden, Larry, Cheryl and Soleil share their personal approach to creating and maintaining beautiful landscapes that also happen to use water efficiently.
Water Wise Plants Can Be Soothing To the Spirit And The Water BillsWater Wise Plants Can Be Soothing To the Spirit And The Water Bills There are some less than accurate perceptions of all water-wise plants not being “user-friendly”—you know, sharp and pointy, not things you want to go touch, etc. Today … Continue reading |
Container Gardening Can Be Water Wise If You Are!Last time around, we discussed water conservation in the vegetable garden, and the article was essentially directed at gardens planted in the ground. However, there are many talented gardeners (and beginners as well) out there who grow fabulous veggies and ornamentals in … Continue reading |
Water-Wise Vegetable Gardens Are Very Easy and Totally Delicious!We have it on the best authority (our friend Monica at The Regional Water Authority) that folks may not be aware that we are sitting here at Blue Thumb Blog Central waiting patiently to be asked questions such as, … Continue reading |
In Irrigation, Timing is EverythingNot more than a couple weeks ago I was here at the computer wearing wool socks. The heater was on and I was glad—freezing outside, and it was hailing in Auburn. On Memorial Day weekend there were chain controls on … Continue reading |
Mulch Mystery DemystifiedWhile interviewing all eleven of the official Blue Thumb ambassadors in March, our questions were aimed primarily at water conservation practices in their businesses and their own daily lives at home. The answers varied but one thing was perfectly clear: Every single ambassador listed “applying mulch” as a … Continue reading |
An Outstanding Case for Rain Sensors and Smart ControllersIn our April 14 post we mentioned that (according to the governor of California), “the drought was officially over”, and right behind that came the prediction that we were heading for “the driest April on record”. It was not. We’ve … Continue reading |
Spring Tree TLCOh my goodness! Now this is GREAT weather, so let’s talk about trees! When sprucing up your yard this spring, it’s also time to provide some Tender Loving Care for those trees you planted last year and to prepare them … Continue reading |
Feed Your Lawn the Natural Way With a Mulching MowerThere are some pesky myths about mulching blades and mowing lawns that we believe might be hindering some of you Blue Thumbs from taking that itsy bitsy (we’re talking small and easy here) step of trading out your regular lawnmower blade for … Continue reading |
Mow, Go and Flow…into the Storm Drains…Whoa!On most Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays, property owners around Sacramento like to have their grass mowed and yard maintenance done so it looks nice for the weekend. Yep, everything looks neat and tidy, ready for company. You can also walk around , on these days … Continue reading |
CA Drought Declared Over (March, 2011) ; CA Heading Towards Driest April on Record (April, 2011)You see, this is why we are here–our reason to be, if you will. We have seen this cycle for years with water, as well as other liquids coming out of nozzles like gasoline, for instance. Remember a couple years … Continue reading |
