Category: The Garden Guru

Hello again, Westside Gardeners. I am often asked, “What can I do about my soil, and why won’t my plants grow?” Let’s face it: our native soil here is lousy since it has little to no nutrients, including no organic matter. When...

Hello again Westside Gardeners. After recent blustery storms, I thought it would be appropriate to write this article. In most cases, a healthy tree can usually withstand strong winds, up to a certain degree, but when you add...

Hello again Westside Gardeners. I love to explore and observe residential and commercial properties as well as city street trees. As a landscape professional and certified arborist, I critique at a high level. I believe in being...

Hello again Westside gardeners! This week, I thought, I would share an example of an arborist report. If anyone out there, has an establish mature tree, I highly recommend, having an Arborist come out and give you a report. This...

Hello again Westside gardeners. So commonly gardeners find themselves at a loss during rainy days. I am sorry to say that many gardeners have one track minds. The first thing that comes to their minds is to start mowing the lawn...

Hello my fellow garden friends. Now that we are in March, it’s the optimum time to fertilize our roses. We are actually enhancing the soil with organic matter and fertilizer. This allows the soil to become alive with natural...

Hello again Westside gardeners. As you may have already noticed, within the city of Los Banos there are many street trees as well as privately owned that have been topped. Is this correct? No, it isn’t. According to the Society...

Hello again Westside garden friends. February is almost over, and Spring is right around the corner. As I walk around in my own garden, I am creating a punch list. This list will help me stay on track as I get ready for spring...

Hello again garden friends! I hope everyone is safe and doing well. The most recent rainfall has been a blessing. I know the rainfall came all at once, but that is California weather and it is not much different than other...

Hello again gardening friends. It’s that time of year. Time to prune your roses. Whether the rose plants are bush, ground cover or climbing, they all benefit from winter pruning. I have mentioned in my other articles to wait...

Dear garden enthusiasts: I hope the new year is treating everyone well and that all are in good health. This year along with writing Garden Guru articles, working with the city as a Tree Commissioner and giving garden...

Hello again my garden friends.  Well, we are days away from celebrating Christmas. Has everyone enjoyed the rain and frosty mornings? Let’s pray, for the rain to continue. We are still in a La Niña weather pattern and, like...