Succulents and Way Too Much Rain

Rain-drenched aloes (c) Debra Lee Baldwin

This year I figured my drenched aloes might finally succumb. They got quite a pounding. The gutter overflows 20 feet above them, then continues down-slope. Yet they’re fine. I have some theories why.

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My 70-Succulent Deck Collection

Debra Lee Baldwin

See how I display treasured succulents in pots that contain and frame them. Discover how to pick pots for your own collection, group them on your deck or patio, utilize sight lines and focal points, and delight your guests.

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My Easy, Inexpensive In-Ground Compost Method

Horticulturist's compost pile (c) Debra Lee Baldwin

No bins needed! My inexpensive, in-ground compost pile is efficient, rewarding and more fun (and easier) than recycling dripping bags of garbage. The new CA law that requires recycling of kitchen scraps makes sense, but is messy and inconvenient. Here’s all you need for a method that’s worked for me for decades.

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Bird Puzzle Feeder: A New Way to Enjoy Your Garden

Hooded oriole (c) Debra Lee Baldwin

A “puzzle feeder” is a fun, novel way to observe and enjoy backyard birds. When given a challenge to solve, birds show persistence, determination, and how clever they are—or not. In my new video you’ll see nine different wild birds, from darling titmice to badass orioles. Find a list of simple, inexpensive supplies below.

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Post-Summer Succulent Concerns

Dormant aeonium (c) Debra Lee Baldwin

After a brutal, early-September heat wave, I address ten common, post-summer succulent concerns. You’ll see them in my a new six-minute video: Post-Summer Care for Succulents (6:49). It’s a candid, warts-and-all, behind-the-scenes, damage-control tour.

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See Debra’s Idea-Filled Garden

Debra Lee Baldwin garden (c) Debra Lee Baldwin

Welcome to my site’s “Debra’s Garden” page. This is where you’ll find photos of plants in my half-acre succulent garden, as shown in my recently released, 15-min. video:” See My Idea-Filled Succulent Spring Garden.” The video came about as a result of my garden looking amazingly beautiful after a rainy April here

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How to Redo an Overgrown Succulent Garden

Overgrown succulent garden (c) Debra Lee Baldwin

Every three or four years I redo this succulent garden outside my office window. Last time was 1-1/2 years ago when I added the fountain. It’s an important view area because I spend so much time…uh…gazing outside instead of working. (I can’t help it. The fountain doubles as a bird bath.) In my YouTube video, How to Refresh an Overgrown Succulent Garden, I…

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Spring in My Succulent Garden: Flowers Wow with Bold, Hot Hues

My spring garden’s most vivid blooms are those of succulent ice plants. Aloes, bulbine and numerous arid-climate companions are bright and beautiful from March through mid-May. Increasing temps tend to put the kibosh on delicate spring flowers. If you live near the coast of CA, you’ll enjoy a longer spring, but you may not get…

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