Two of our four plum varieties have blossomed by early March 2015. On our 4-N-1 grafted plum tree, the Santa Rosa variety started mid-February with its thinly spaced blossoms. This week the Burbank variety bloomed with dense sets of flowers. Burbank plum trees were developed by noted plant breeder Luther Burbank in 1883. Prized for its heavy crops of reddish-purple fruit, …

Society garlic is an attractive ornamental plant from South Africa whose leaves have a garlicky odor. It belongs to the lily family — as do onions and garlic — but to a different genus, entirely restricted to Africa, which includes about 24 species. The genus name Tulbaghia honors Ryk Tulbagh, an 18th-century Dutch governor of the Cape of Good Hope; …

California Poppy is a pretty native wildflower. It is very drought-tolerant and is excellent for xeriscapes. When the plant stops looking pretty, pull it up/break-it-off. The poppy seeds disperse widely so you will be surprised by the next year’s plants. I always have it in my Sunnyvale garden.

There are many great perennials and California-native plants that can beautify your yard for little water The whole Salvia genus Star jasmine Lantana Ceanthos

Take advantage of your exterior walls. Walls are good for vines, berries, and trees that can be espaliered. I grow a pomegranate tree espaliered against a sidewall 12 feet wide. My Marion berry canes are also grown against the wall.  

A major challenge for gardening in a Bahl Patio home is sunlight. Your south-facing walls may get 14 hours of sunlight during the summer. Your north-facing walls may only get 6 hours. The narrow sideyard walls may only get a few hours of direct sunlight. Use your south facing walls for plants and crops that crave sunlight: such as tomatoes …

When you don’t have much ground soil, use containers.   A minimum container size is a gallon. The largest containers can grow a 10 foot tree. Smaller pots can easily be moved for better aethestics, better sunlight. Key issues for containers are water, drainage, and nutrients. 16×7 = 6 gallons 14×12 = 8 gallons

From the 1960s through the 1980s the Bahl family built over 400 homes in the South Bay. The average lot was 50×100. The homes used a zero-lot-line design where your bedroom wall was your neighbor’s sidewall. The key design feature was indoor/outdoor transition: the homes often had 50% of the exterior walls as glass. There was an interior courtyard; often …

You have got to try making your own horseradish sauce at least once. See this link about harvesting your Horseradish.

It is possible to water most of your Sunnyvale garden using drip irrigation. Our Bahl patio home has 3 external faucets: One in the front yard, one in the courtyard, and one in the backyard. We installed Y-connectors on the 3 faucets: We connect a hose to one connector and a drip timer to the other.