Gardeners have already been getting their hands dirty with warm-weather veggies and herbs, since we've been in peak spring planting season in Los Angeles lately. At Baldwin Hills' Post & Beam restaurant, the winter crops have just been taken out from the on-site garden, and replace with new seedlings that will feed diners in the coming weeks and months. more ›

It took a village, and a lot of vision, but this three-acre Pasadena garden is living testament to what can be done with a lot gone to weed at the hands of Caltrans. As spotlighted by Garden Design, the beautiful urban oasis known as Arlington Garden is adjacent to the townhouse of Betty and Charles "Kicker" McKenney. more ›

The Milagro Allegro community garden at Avenue 56 and Figueroa hosted a garden giveaway this weekend. Advertised to start at noon, by 12:30 some 500 people had made a line that stretched down the block and around the corner. By 12:45 the trees were gone. That left 50,000 vegetable seedlings to make sure everyone ended up with something to plant at their school garden, in their neighborhood or yes, their backyard. more ›

About 20 people were detained and the 10 freeway shut down for hours Saturday when police found 3,000 marijuana plants at an illegal pot clinic south of downtown Los Angeles. Officers serving a search warrant discovered a dangerous and extensive lab with "thousands upon thousands" of plants in a warehouse on the 1000 block of Santa Fe Avenue, reports KTLA. more ›

We will be in the “heat” of spring in just over two months. The days will be lengthening as we pass the December 21st Solstice; you hippie freaks will undoubtedly be worshiping the Mother, and I’ll be looking at new varieties of available seed to put in her. Here are some of my fave vendors whose catalogs that I have dog-eared and love to support. more ›

Until last week, you could only plant -- without a permit, that is -- grass or trees in a parkway, that strip of land between the sidewalk and the street. Thanks to a vote by the Board of Public Works last month, the cookie cutter look is no longer Los Angeles residents' only choice when they want to improve their home sans permit. more ›

April, among other things, happens to be National Garden Month. And what an ideal time--it's spring, and it's the right time to get your planting done for the months ahead of garden goodness. But this isn't just about people with yards to dig up, or with seasoned green thumbs. The great thing about gardening is that you don't have to be a pro to give it a go, or even do the gardening where you live! In fact, you can celebrate National Garden Month, we say, without even setting foot in a garden. Here are 7 things you can do. more ›

Now here's a reason for L.A. politicians to finally pay attention to the unfinished Core Trail plan, which would giver hikers and equestrians the right-of-way along Mulholland Drive through the city (are you listening Sierra Club member Paul Koretz?). A report released today by the National Parks Conservation Association says visitors drawn to the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area--it spans 153,000 acres from Runyon Canyon to the Santa Monica Pier and Point Mugu--spent more than $17 million in 2008. more ›

The Desert Garden at the Huntington is a century old, and boasts one of the oldest and biggest collection of cacti and succulents in the world. A stroll through this 10-acre section of the beautiful estate's gardens will quench your thirst for the colorful and intriguing sight of over 5,000 species of desert plants. You probably can't rush out to San Marino right now, so in the meantime, enjoy these images from the Desert Garden--one of 14 themed gardens on the property--shot by LAist Featured Photos pool contributor delara-photos. more ›

For most of the year, the Giant Coreopsis plant looks like a short stubby odd-looking version of a Joshua Tree. Often referred to as the Dr. Seuss plant, it sits flowerless and dead-looking for about nine months of the year. Then wildflower season comes and it boldly blooms with beautiful yellow flowers. And that time is now and the clock is ticking. more ›

The Los Angeles River Center and Gardens isn't exactly off the beaten path, but it's pretty likely it's not on your radar as a place to stroll, relax, and learn. Intrigued by the prospect of spending some time in a beautiful, peaceful place without spending any money, we headed out last week to check out the space at San Fernando Road and Avenue 26 [map]. more ›

Last fall we heard about plans Arnaud Ozharun, owner of Natural Mind Beauty & Beyond on Sunset Boulevard in Silver Lake, had to convert the exterior of his business into a vertical garden. This weekend we caught some of the installation in process, as vibrant greenery was being set into small pockets all up and down the outside of the building--a total of 20,000 will eventually be in place in the vertical garden, which Ozharun said he hopes will look "like Amazonia." Head to Silver Lake and check it out! more ›

I’m not going to wait until one of you gets your compost together to ask me an important question. I’m not going to hear the 4th query on “why do I suck at gardening?” (A: worms hate you). This column needs to be responsive, sure… but let me ask a question that you should be asking: Why do my dahlias have jock itch? more ›

Just like in a recent episode of Weeds, deep within public lands are some major areas prime for cultivating marijuana. Yesterday, local and federal officials eradicated two sites, one in a state park and another on National Park land. Likely to be worth close to $10 million on the street, 2,088 marijuana plants were found in Malibu Creek State Park and another 1421 in Zuma Canyon. more ›

When a bald eagles disappear from the Channel Islands allowing room for Golden Eagles, who eat really cute little foxes, to take over, everyone freaks out (got 20 mins? Watch this amazing short documentary). When a pretty flowering Spanish Broom begins to grow, not many take notice despite it being one of the top invasive and harmful-to-the-ecosystem plants found in the Santa Monica Mountains. Now, that might start to change. more ›

Wakame, which is used in Miso Soup, is a non-native Asian kelp that found its way to the California coast, now possibly threatening the state's marine ecosystem. Scientifically called Undaria pinnatifida, it was first found in Los Angeles around 2000 and began spreading northward and was thought to be stopped near Monterey. Then last May, it was found in San Francisco. The species is considered one of the 100 worst invasive species and scientists are worried it could block sunlight for native marine plants and kelp. "This is not well studied enough, and we're really quite nervous about it getting out in the ecosystem," a scientist told the AP. "It will attach to about anything." more ›

Waiting lists for popular community gardens can be years long, but many have grown weary of waiting. As 21st Century "Victory Gardens" have come into vogue in our yards, in our neighborhoods, at our schools, at our state capitol, and on the White House lawn, many would-be green thumbs want to get their hands dirty and their veggies and flowers growing. more ›

LAist's own Green Thumb is here to help you get into gardening...So, as he says: "Get down on your knees and start planting." more ›

Valley-ites (and anyone else whose toes are tingling with the chill), get ready to crank up the thermostat, bundle up in the blankets, and pour yourselves a hot toddy. According to the Pasadena Star-News, the "National Weather Service has issued a frost advisory for Los Angeles valleys." That means in the wee hours you'd best "take measures to protect plants and pets from freezing temperatures." more ›

Los Angeles is cold. It’s too cold for this Midwestern escapee’s comfort even if it is Christmas. Humbug. Yes, God gave us Jesus and a really great climate in SoCal, so it’s not supposed to freeze. We don’t really freeze that much, but Jesus and a frost show up once or twice. It happens; my Yahoo Weather report says expect the low 30’s. It says Buffalo. It says Dayton. more ›

Guerilla gardening is largely thought to have its roots in England, where folks have long planted unexpected gardens in neglected public spaces as a sort of call to action that highlights the misuse of land and repurposes it into something beautiful. They often work in crews or teams and go on carefully-planned gardening missions. Recently a local team of guerilla gardeners transformed a section of land next to an off-ramp of the 101 Hollywood Freeway. more ›

Last weekend, the homeowners, docents, and designers who are taking part in today's Green Gardens Tour gathered in the beautiful Santa Monica library to talk with each other and to be honored by the tour organizers at a thank you breakfast. more ›

We live in a beautiful part of the world, don't you think? Despite the fact that sometimes it feels like all we ever see are the taillights and inane vanity plates of the car we're stuck behind, if we take some time to check out all the flora and fauna that our soil produces, we might get that nice swift kick in the rear from Mother Nature we didn't even know we needed. On... more ›