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Sun, Jun 02, 2024

Bayou country, spring vegetables inspire shrimp pot pie

New! Shrimp pot pie with fresh peas, carrots and spring onions

Sat, Jun 01, 2024

Dig In: Garden checklist for week of June 2

June starts with blast of summer heat (and warm nights)

Fri, May 31, 2024

Time for cake! SDG hits another milestone

Daily gardening blog reaches its sixth anniversary -- thanks to our readers!

Thu, May 30, 2024

Learn hydroponic growing techniques in Elk Grove workshop

Two-hour class Saturday at Community Garden and Learning Center

Wed, May 29, 2024

All stems, no blooms on roses? It likely was the weather

'Blind shoots' are the result of spring temperature fluctuations

Tue, May 28, 2024

New Loomis Demonstration Garden hosts first Spring Open House

Placer County master gardeners welcome public to experience their growing resource, now in spring bloom

Mon, May 27, 2024

Murer House hosts annual Lavender Day

Learn about all things lavender including how to make it thrive

Sun, May 26, 2024

Double up on cherries in these tender muffins

New! Ricotta the secret ingredient to these baked treats

Sat, May 25, 2024

Dig In: Garden checklist for week of May 26

Plant now as month of May ends with warming trend .

Fri, May 24, 2024

Summer is upon us -- do you have your tool kit?

Be prepared for quick fixes and managing garden info

Wed, May 22, 2024

Learn about summer fruit tree care, pruning

Yolo County master gardeners offer free workshop via Zoom.

Tue, May 21, 2024

Learn about Sierra foothill gardening at Open Garden Days

El Dorado County master gardeners offer advice for growing vegetables, fruit, flowers and more at higher elevations.

Mon, May 20, 2024

The Secret Garden hosts annual Succulent Extravaganza

Memorial Day Weekend event features thousands of plants on sale at Elk Grove nursery

Sun, May 19, 2024

Savory cherry sauce perfect for grilling season

New! Savory cherry sauce with sweet onions goes great with pork, chicken

Sat, May 18, 2024

Dig In: Garden checklist for week of May 19

Get ready for warm, sunny and breezy days ahead

Fri, May 17, 2024

Beat the heat: How mulch can save your garden

Layer of wood chips, straw or leaves helps plants cope with summer temperatures

Thu, May 16, 2024

Walk, stroll, ramble among the sights of a native plant garden

Free event Sunday includes plant sale, botanist's visit

Wed, May 15, 2024

Find cool garden stuff during Community Yard Sale at Shepard Center

Local clubs offer lots of garden gear plus much more at huge yard sale

Tue, May 14, 2024

See hidden garden gems of Tahoe Park

Sacramento neighborhood hosts garden tour, plant sale

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Taste Winter! E-cookbook

Lemon coconut pancakes

Find our winter recipes here!

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Garden Checklist for week of Jan. 5

Take advantage of this break between storm systems to give your garden some much-needed TLC.

* Prune, prune, prune. Now is the time to cut back most deciduous trees and shrubs. The exceptions are spring-flowering shrubs such as lilacs.

* Now is the time to prune fruit trees. (The exceptions are apricot and cherry trees, which are susceptible to a fungus that causes dieback. Save them until summer.) Clean up leaves and debris around the trees to prevent the spread of disease.

* Prune roses, even if they’re still trying to bloom. Strip off any remaining leaves, so the bush will be able to put out new growth in early spring.

* Clean up leaves and debris around your newly pruned roses and shrubs. Put down fresh mulch or bark to keep roots cozy.

* Apply horticultural oil to fruit trees soon after a rain to control scale, mites and aphids. Oils need 24 hours of dry weather after application to be effective.

* This is also the time to spray a copper-based fungicide to peach and nectarine trees to fight leaf curl. (The safest effective fungicides available for backyard trees are copper soap -- aka copper octanoate -- or copper ammonium, a fixed copper fungicide. Apply either of these copper products with 1% horticultural oil to increase effectiveness.)

* When forced bulbs sprout, move them to a cool, bright window. Give them a quarter turn each day so the stems will grow straight.

* Browse through seed catalogs and start making plans for spring and summer.

* Divide daylilies, Shasta daisies and other perennials.

* Cut back and divide chrysanthemums.

* Plant bare-root roses, trees and shrubs.

* Transplant pansies, violas, calendulas, English daisies, snapdragons and fairy primroses.

* In the vegetable garden, plant fava beans, head lettuce, mustard, onion sets, radicchio and radishes.

* Plant bare-root asparagus and root divisions of rhubarb.

* In the bulb department, plant callas, anemones, ranuculous and gladiolus for bloom from late spring into summer.

* Plant blooming azaleas, camellias and rhododendrons. If you’re shopping for these beautiful landscape plants, you can now find them in full flower at local nurseries.

Taste Spring! E-cookbook

Strawberries

Find our spring recipes here!

Taste Summer! E-cookbook

square-tomatoes-plate.jpg

Find our summer recipes here!

Taste Fall! E-cookbook

Muffins and pumpkin

Find our fall recipes here!