tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50944530211745151262024-09-22T14:15:52.268-07:00jehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07082396901549568248noreply@blogger.comBlogger16125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5094453021174515126.post-20476983271317650702014-08-30T14:53:00.003-07:002014-08-31T09:39:17.750-07:00

It is with great sadness that we announce the loss of the great oak at the southeast corner of Comstock House. (RIGHT: The oak in its winter glory, February, 2010) It was as fine a Valley Oak as seen anywhere, its majestic canopy three stories high and seemingly sculpted to perfection. A landscape painter might say it was even too perfect; a stout and straight trunk held up a crown that

jehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07082396901549568248noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5094453021174515126.post-19892105123197384392011-06-15T08:54:00.000-07:002011-06-23T15:18:30.330-07:00

A small group of local artists recently toured Comstock House and sketched and/or painted the house and garden. Here we see a lovely view painted by Milagros Owen. I can feel the warmth of a late spring day looking at it.UPDATE: Richard Sheppard, another member of the group, has posted his artwork and commentary about their visit on his blog.

jehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07082396901549568248noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5094453021174515126.post-4888774600040449802010-01-17T11:16:00.000-08:002010-01-18T10:55:43.323-08:00

One of the wonderful things about the grounds are the magnificent mature trees. The oaks are majestic, but the ginko is glorious. In the summer the leaves are a yellow-green that whisper when the wind blows. In the fall, they turn a golden yellow that in the setting sun will glow with an inner light. As they fall, the leaves create a golden carpet. I understand that Helen Comstock was also fond

Candicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10058846269739147289noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5094453021174515126.post-64646964116440078452009-10-27T15:05:00.000-07:002009-12-11T18:52:37.441-08:00

It sounds like on would be putting too much seed to start a lawn, but the practice of "overseeding" is to scatter new grass seed on an old lawn. I forgot to do it last fall. But this fall, I am spreading 50 pounds of "Bonzai Dwarf Fescue" on the entire lawn. Actually, it is a tall fescue variety that is supposed to be slower growing. Given how much work it is to mow the lawn, slower is better

Candicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10058846269739147289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5094453021174515126.post-83057154140686459702009-07-27T20:43:00.000-07:002009-07-27T22:17:53.274-07:00

Candicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10058846269739147289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5094453021174515126.post-61819623487870198242009-07-27T20:17:00.000-07:002009-07-27T22:14:40.215-07:00

During this past winter, the garden beds in front of the house were nearly bare, save for the lycoris leaves. I used the time to plant bulbs and seeds that would be in bloom this spring and summer. That work paid off handsomely.This spring the roses are stronger and the lilies are taller. As my gardening efforts so far are merely experiments in which seeds and bulbs will thrive, my future

Candicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10058846269739147289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5094453021174515126.post-50008792105695592782008-06-20T09:02:00.000-07:002008-06-20T09:48:14.819-07:00

The lilies I planted in the new beds and at the corner of the house are starting to bloom. I planted tiger, trumpet, oriental, and asiatic lilies. This is just the beginning. I plan to put in more next year. If the gardening budget were unlimited, I would plant thousands of bulbs in the garden. Of course, I will try propagating them myself. Some lilies, like the tiger, will grow bulblets on the

Candicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10058846269739147289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5094453021174515126.post-76468097605525841382008-06-19T13:56:00.000-07:002008-06-19T14:05:17.090-07:00

The Farewell-to-Spring has been in full bloom these past few weeks. The flower is very aptly named, as it blooms right at the end or spring, just before the summer solstice, in my garden. Since these seeds are so cheap and readily available at a local nursery, I plan on cutting them down low to see if I get a second flowering later this summer, no need to save the seeds. If I don't see a

Candicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10058846269739147289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5094453021174515126.post-80649800080903069782008-06-15T15:27:00.000-07:002008-06-20T09:44:43.452-07:00

In early April, Jeff and I, along with the help of Jesus Perez and one of his employees, dug 75 holes and planted 75 roses named "Lavender Simplicity" from Jackson & Perkins. Most of them (64 to be exact) were planted between the sidewalk and Benton street. The other eleven were planted along the gravel driveway. This past week, they began to bloom.Over the next few years, they should grow

Candicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10058846269739147289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5094453021174515126.post-48018061589888186402008-06-06T11:52:00.001-07:002008-06-07T20:16:09.264-07:00

In the very front of the garden, was a half circle cut out of the lawn. In it were several arbor vitae and a pine tree. We took all of these out, leaving only the cypresses at the outer edge along the wall. I put in a number of roses around the outer half circle including: Bewitched, Christian Dior, Sterling Silver, Golden Sceptor, Iceberg, Ambassador, First Prize, Paradise, Brandy, Fragrant

Candicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10058846269739147289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5094453021174515126.post-69984930425113588272008-06-04T08:50:00.000-07:002008-06-08T23:33:14.062-07:00

I've always admired old roses, especially the many petaled 'cup' varieties. They also tend to have better fragrance than many over-bred modern tea roses. But they often only bloom in one flush in the spring. This is where rose breeder David Austin came to the rescue. He has bred a number of wonderful roses that have the old rose form and fragrance combined with the modern rose habit of blooming

Candicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10058846269739147289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5094453021174515126.post-73886627227007726532008-06-03T13:33:00.000-07:002008-06-04T15:57:17.238-07:00

In addition to putting out flower seeds and planting roses in existing beds, I felt that the front of the house, just in front of the steps, was too plain. I wanted a focal point for the front of the house. So, I cut corners... out of the lawn. I killed the grass with glyphosphate in two triangles at the corners of the lawns where the front walkways intersect. I put in several David Austin Roses

Candicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10058846269739147289noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5094453021174515126.post-49973275943154730282008-06-02T21:00:00.000-07:002008-06-02T23:15:52.683-07:00

The Edwardian Garden esthetic was caputured in the art of the likes of Kate Greenaway and Eugene Grasset, such as this plate by Grasset from "The Illuminated Book of Days". Note the use of poppies and lilies, as well as the use of negative space formed by the tree trunks and bushes. Another famous and influential garden designer was Gertrude Jekyll, whose work also informed my own taste. Her

Candicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10058846269739147289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5094453021174515126.post-47542703547972289702008-06-02T18:56:00.000-07:002008-06-16T14:59:27.302-07:00

In the backyard, we built two ponds using railroad ties and rubber liners, one for the koi and the other for plants and goldfish.Actually the second pond is part of the water conditioning system. There is a siphon that takes water from the larger octagonal pond (in the foreground of the photo) to a stand-pipe in the smaller rectangular pond (in the background). The height of this stand-pipe and

Candicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10058846269739147289noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5094453021174515126.post-87458091242637710962008-06-02T12:54:00.000-07:002008-06-08T23:32:24.922-07:00

One of the discoveries in the garden was a number of old roses hidden in odd corners of the property. Several were along the property line between the old Davis farmstead and ours. Given how overshadowed they were by laurel and ivy, they must have been there for at least several decades, possibly as far back as the original owners. The rose in the photograph is in the southeast corner of the

Candicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10058846269739147289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5094453021174515126.post-13166615462619702312008-06-01T16:01:00.000-07:002008-06-06T12:21:03.855-07:00

While Jeff is primarily interested in the history and restoration of the house itself, I am very interested in the garden as well as the furnishings and wall treatments. This blog will cover developments in that arena.When taking over an old garden, one must be mindful that one doesn't know what plants are in the garden until one has observed the garden carefully for a full year. With that in

Candicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10058846269739147289noreply@blogger.com0