TREES, PLEASE! Does Your Neighborhood Have Tree Equity?
By Robin Y. Rivet, for Let’s Talk Plants! October 2024. Does Your Neighborhood Have Tree Equity? Is “Tree Equity” just another political...
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October 2024
Aug 1
TREES, PLEASE! Crape Myrtles Are Not French Pancakes
By Robin Y. Rivet, for Let’s Talk Plants! August 2024. Crape Myrtles Are Not French Pancakes Amazing as it may seem, the Lagerstroemia...
Jun 1
TREES, PLEASE! Trees For The Birds
By Robin Y. Rivet, for Let’s Talk Plants! June 2024. (Two Tree Swallows Calling. Attribution: Andy Witchger, CC BY 2.0...
Apr 1
TREES, PLEASE! Unique Tree Selections From A To Z
By Robin Y. Rivet, for Let’s Talk Plants! April 2024. Unique Tree Selections from A to Z Although this is published on April Fool’s Day,...
Feb 1
TREES, PLEASE! California Rare Fruit Growers
By Robin Y. Rivet, for Let’s Talk Plants! February 2024. California Rare Fruit Growers I confess. I developed this “Trees, please!”...
Dec 1, 2023
TREES, PLEASE! Sharing Mark Twain’s Favorite Fruit
By Robin Y. Rivet, for Let’s Talk Plants! December 2023. Sharing Mark Twain’s Favorite Fruit Holiday season is upon us. Have you been a...
Oct 1, 2023
TREES, PLEASE: Imagine Eating A Rose?
By Robin Y. Rivet, for Let’s Talk Plants! October 2023. Imagine Eating a Rose? No kidding. Tasting a rose apple should be on every...
Aug 1, 2023
TREES, PLEASE! Paving Paradise
By Robin Y. Rivet, for Let’s Talk Plants! August 2023. “They took all the trees Put 'em in a tree museum And they charged all the people...
May 31, 2023
TREES, PLEASE! Forest Bathing or Shinrin-yoku
By Robin Y. Rivet, for Let’s Talk Plants! June 2023. Forest Bathing or Shinrin-yoku "Forest bathing" does not require soap or water....
Apr 3, 2023
TREES, PLEASE! Arbor Day, “Sylvan” Day or Día del Árbol?
By Robin Y. Rivet, for Let’s Talk Plants! April 2023. Arbor Day, “Sylvan” Day or Día del Árbol? “Other holidays repose upon the past;...
Feb 1, 2023
TREES, PLEASE! Do Valentines Have Vesicles?
By Robin Y. Rivet, for Let’s Talk Plants! February 2023. Do Valentines Have Vesicles? Yes, red-fruiting Valentines have vesicles - which...
Dec 1, 2022
TREES, PLEASE! DIY Help - Tree Pulp For Your Bookshelf
By Robin Y. Rivet, for Let’s Talk Plants! December 2022. Do-it-yourself Help - Tree Pulp for Your Bookshelf. Our Mediterranean tree...
Oct 1, 2022
TREES, PLEASE! Trick Or “TREE-t”?
By Robin Y. Rivet, for Let’s Talk Plants! October 2022. “Bloody Eyeball” Tree fruit, Alectryon excelsus. Ali Undorf, CC BY-SA 2.0...
Aug 1, 2022
TREES, PLEASE! Eucalyptus – Thank Them Or Yank Them?
By Robin Y. Rivet, for Let’s Talk Plants! August 2022. Eucalyptus – Thank Them Or Yank Them? The battle continues. Do you love or loathe...
Jun 1, 2022
TREES, PLEASE! Can You Bake A Cherry Pie?
By Robin Y Rivet, for Let’s Talk Plants! June 2022. Can You Bake a Cherry Pie? Miracles do happen. Twenty years ago, it was unlikely you...
Apr 1, 2022
TREES, PLEASE! Is Your Tree Going To Pot?
By Robin Y Rivet, for Let’s Talk Plants! April 2022. Should you grow your tree in a pot? If I wasn’t addressing horticulturists: I’d...
Feb 1, 2022
TREES, PLEASE! Sight the Seeds, Cite the Trees
By Robin Y Rivet. Contrary to what easterners believe, winter in our mild region renders many tree species naked for months, and regional...
Dec 1, 2021
TREES, PLEASE! What's Up With Weeping Willows?
By Robin Y Rivet, for Let's Talk Plants! December 2021. Desert Willow in bloom – Chilopsis linearis 'Timeless Beauty' cultivar © photo by...
Oct 1, 2021
TREES, PLEASE! Cal-Polytechnic University Urban Tree’s Website
By Robin Y Rivet, for Let's Talk Plants! October 2021. October is prime tree planting time. Suppose you’d like an evergreen with...
Aug 1, 2021
TREES, PLEASE! Ficus, Figs and Fascinating Tree Sex
By Robin Y Rivet. Ficus carica - edible fig: cross section showing syconium. Did you ever wonder why you don’t see flowers on fig trees?...
Jun 1, 2021
TREES, PLEASE! Tree Watch – Minding Your Elders
By Robin Y Rivet. Is your neighborhood lined with large, mature street trees? The odds are against it. · Older communities once revered...
Apr 1, 2021
TREES, PLEASE! What Tree is This?
By Robin Y Rivet. I’m ‘fessing up. I get too many calls to identify commonly cultivated tree species, but the task is daunting due to the...
Feb 1, 2021
TREES, PLEASE! Viruses, Variegation & Genetic Mutation
The coronavirus is on everyone’s mind. COVID-19 has caused extreme loss of life - but few people understand what a virus is - and what it is
Dec 1, 2020
TREES, PLEASE! Join: Kate Sessions Commitment
Imagine a natural, low-water garden blooming with the beautiful and unique flora of California native plants, attracting a large diversity
Oct 1, 2020
TREES, PLEASE! Persimmons – Pretty & Plump
Bite down carefully. If it’s meltingly soft and syrupy, or spicy-sweet and crunchy, both textures might be ripe persimmons. The Oriental per
Aug 1, 2020
TREES, PLEASE! How Do Trees Become “Native”?
A global pandemic is forcing humans to consider their collective vulnerability, while humbled individuals are expected to hover in place - r
Jun 1, 2020
TREES, PLEASE! FREE Trees, Please!
The virus pandemic is creating tight budgets, but more time to garden. Planting new trees should not be costly.
Apr 1, 2020
TREES, PLEASE: Are Your Trees Drinking Enough? Calculate…
Although April showers may offer some respite, most yard trees will soon rely solely on you for a drink. Unfortunately, that dependence ofte
Feb 1, 2020
TREES, PLEASE: “Silky” Trees
Valentine’s Day is nigh. Do you wish for romantic gifts of silken fabric, sweet fruit or gorgeous flowers? A genuine “silk” tree could be a
Dec 1, 2019
TREES, PLEASE: Do You Pine - Fir a Cedar?
Evergreens you might choose, but no larches, spruce or yews… Araucarias: Eye-catching as a towering species, the Norfolk Island pine is ope
Oct 1, 2019
TREES, PLEASE: Have You Examined Tree Roots Lately?
October is prime tree planting season in San Diego County. The weather is cooling and our rainy season is due. If you are expecting to plant
Aug 1, 2019
TREES, PLEASE: Hot-Hued Trees for Sizzling Summer Daze
By Robin Rivet. Summers in San Diego increasingly remind me of places I used to live; but I’m no snowbird. I fled the east coast loathing...
Jun 1, 2019
TREES, PLEASE: Think Trees Are Making You Sneeze?
By Robin Rivet. Allergies are on the rise. Although grassy plants and food sensitivities account for much of this ascent, there is...
Apr 1, 2019
TREES, PLEASE: Stopping the Topping – “It’s the Law”
By Robin Rivet. Tree topping is brutal. Although the term “butchered” is frequently used, butchers are highly skilled meat cutters. Tree...
Jun 1, 2017
TREES, PLEASE: Jacarandas: Lovely Lavender or Purple Panic?
By Robin Rivet. Final exams and Southern California’s rainy season are over, but in June the jacaranda tree (Jacaranda mimosifolia) is...
Apr 1, 2017
TREES, PLEASE: A Shady Business: Citizens Need to Speak Up
By Robin Rivet. Do you avoid parking under a tree because you’re concerned that bird or insect feces might ruin your car wash? Although...
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