Napa

By Cindy Kerson, UC Master Gardener of Napa County Native to North America, manzanita (Arctostaphylos spp.) comes in many shapes and sizes. It can be a tree, a shrub or a ground cover. A manzanita tree can reach 20 feet in height, while the ground cover may only be two inches tall.

by Penny Pawl, UC Master Gardener of Napa County Last year at holiday time I was given a most unusual gift: an amaryllis bulb encased in wax. I had no idea such a thing existed, so I immediately looked online for how to care for it.

Shady areas in a garden tend to cause a lot of head scratching. These spots often confound gardeners who haven't yet learnedthat many attractive plants thrive in dry shade. Some shade-loving plants have colorful foliage that provides as much delightas a bright flower patch in full sun.

By Cindy Watter, UC Master Gardener of Napa County Most of us UC Master Gardeners are accustomed to being approached by people who think we know everything about horticulture. While flattering, that is not the truth. Our training has taught us how to find the answers, however.

by Pat Hitchcock, UC Master Gardener of Napa County I trained to become a Napa County Master Gardener in 2004. That same year, a few members of our group decided we could learn something by growing the same vegetable varieties in our diverse home gardens and then comparing notes.

When I joined the University of California Master Gardeners of Napa County in 2016, I had planned to check out the MG committees and decide which one was best suited to my nascent talents. Jill Pahl had another idea: Cindy, we could use you on the compost committee, right now. I was taken aback.

Orchids (Phalaenopsis) are readily available this time of year in nurseries and even grocery stores. They are popular hostess gifts. I find them quite beautiful and I am always tempted to add another one to my collection.

By Yvonne Rasmussen, UC Master Gardener of Napa County Growing plants from seeds rather than from nursery starts has many advantages and can be an awe-inspiring experience. By using seeds, you have more options than nurseries offer.

My mother adored pepperblack, red, green, hot, sweet, any kind. She used so much cracked pepper in our meals that most of them looked as if they were dug out of a gravel pit. I used to sulkily scrape it off while she told me I didn't know what was good. Times and tastes have changed, though.