Succulents and More™

Our Mediterranean climate is dry from late April to October. By the time the first rainfall of the season arrives, we’re more than ready for it. This year, we had rain at the beginning of October, which is very early for us. It was followed by a month of wonderfully warm temperatures in the high 70s, so it didn’t really feel like autumn. But after yesterday’s rain event (about 0.8"), it does now. This morning was crisp, the sun is lower in the sky, and the leaves are falling — still in a polite way instead of the smothering deluge that will be here soon enough. Rain makes for great photos so I grabbed my big camera to capture some of the ephemeral beauty in the garden: Calliandra ‘Sierra Star’, a hybrid between the two California fairy dusters ( Calliandra californica and Calliandra eriophylla ) Washington naval orange in the backyard Meyer lemon in the front yard Agave ocahui and golden barrel cacti × Mangave ‘Inky Fingers’ Agave ‘Lion’s Mane’ Agave ‘ShawPot’ ( shawii × pot...

I first visited Max and Justin’s extraordinary garden in Oakland in October 2020 . Then almost five years went by until my next visit in March 2025 when Loree danger garden Bohl was here for a long weekend. And last Saturday, less than six months later, I had the opportunity for a third visit. It goes without saying that the differences between March and October weren’t as dramatic as between 2020 and 2025. But no garden is static, and when the gardeners are as active as Max and Justin are, change happens at a steady pace. Max (left) and Justin, October 25, 2025 I’ve posted this Google Street View image from December 2016 before, but it’s so mind-boggling that I want to show it to you again: Google Street View image from December 2016 Above is what the property looked like when Max and Justin bought it in the spring of 2017. Much of the neighborhood still looks like that today. I took the next photo from almost the same spot. The front yard, completely bare before, is now a lush jung...