How to Create a Hummingbird Habitat

Among life’s most magical moments is when you stand quietly in your garden and a hummingbird hovers less than a foot away in front of your face, seemingly taking you in and letting you do the same.

It’s not exactly interspecies communion, but it can feel like communication of some kind. Especially when it happens more than once. Which it can if you have hummingbirds visiting daily because you’ve created a space that welcomes and nourishes them. You don’t need anything more than a balcony to do this if you know what components are necessary and are willing to commit to doing some regular tasks. I spoke to several experts to learn all the ins and outs—from feeders and feeding to the best native plants—and am sharing their expertise in my new story for The San Diego Union-Tribune’s Home and Garden section. This is my latest passion project and maybe it can be yours!

Thanks to Luke Johnson for his stunning photos!

Get Your Grill on for the 4th--and Year Round!

Grilling is certainly among the great American pastimes (yeah, baseball too). But some of us didn’t get the memo. There’s something about cooking with fire that can be intimidating. Plus, if you’re using wood or charcoal, there’s the whole mastery of that technique, and it can take a long time to finally get a meal. Not always optimal after work.

But cooking outdoors over an open flame is the essence of Southern California living. If you’re a novice, Logan Mitchell of Cellar Door is here for you with gas grilling techniques and recipes, like the crispiest chicken ever, a charred cabbage salad and two sauces based on grilled veggies. You can get these in my new story for The San Diego Union-Tribune’s Food section, accompanied by gorgeous photos by Kristian Carreon.

A Bold and Colorful Clairemont Garden

It’s the entrance from the street that creates anticipation for seeing just what’s in the backyard.

There’s going to be a lot — an extravagant palette — of color. The plants will have low water needs. And it’ll be just a little eccentric. Oh, and did I mention all the color? Where there was once grass and weeds Chris and Julie Wilhemy transformed their canyon-side garden into a brilliant dream staycation spot filled with Flame Giant pincushions, Mystic Spires, Whirling Butterflies, a variety of sages, including yellow-flowered Jerusalem sage, autumn sage, Mexican sage and friendship sage. There are coneflowers, English lavender, dragon trees, Bougainvillea, foxtail ferns and — out at the edge of the garden near the canyon — Plumeria. And there are even edible plants. The couple offered color tips for gardeners in my new story for The San Diego Union-Tribune’s Home and Garden section. Check it out!

And many thanks to photographer Kristian Carreon for his gorgeous shots!

Dig Into Chef Claudette Zepeda's "Cooking the Borderlands

One of the greatest gifts of living in San Diego is our connection to Mexico just across the border — even in these tumultuous times. It goes beyond mere proximity. It’s the melding of cultures: food, the arts, language.

Few understand that better than chef Claudette Zepeda. A border kid herself, she’s just released her first cookbook, “Cooking the Borderlands: Spice and Smoke Between Mexico and the States” (Clarkson Potter, $35).

In “Cooking the Borderlands,” Zepeda takes readers beyond the San Diego/Tijuana/Baja border, also sharing her knowledge of food in the border cities going east through Arizona all the way through Texas. I spoke with her and got some great stories and tips for the three recipes included in my new story for The San Diego Union-Tribune’s Food section. Dig in!

Create Negative Space in Your Home

So many of us have come up believing, especially if we live in small spaces, that every inch of our home needs to be filled. Walls need bookcases and bookcase shelves need to be fully occupied. Or we think walls need lots of art. We want to be stimulated by different colors and patterns on our floors and furnishings. We need our kitchen and bathroom counters loaded with the equipment we use — even if it’s not in daily usage.

The challenge is that it can lead to our homes being less a place of comfort and refuge than a source of overstimulation and unease. And the things we love get lost in among all our “stuff.” For interior designers, the solution is to create negative space. I spoke with several designers about how to create what is essentially breathing room for my new story in The San Diego Union-Tribune’s Home and Garden section.

Paradise Hills Native Garden Replaces Old Landfill

Paradise Hills Native Garden, in the works since 2017, just had its debut during a grand opening celebration in the San Diego neighborhood on April 18. The 5-acre site, which is part of Paradise Hills Community Park, sits over a landfill that was capped in the mid-1960s but the ground had been left bare. The effort was led by Paradise Hills residents and master gardeners Nancy and Wes Janssen. It’s a fascinating story of determination, backbreaking work by volunteers and hard-won donations. The plot, with its five themed gardens, already is filled with colorful native plants, pollinators and wildlife. Yes, go! But first read the details in my latest story for The San Diego Union-Tribune’s Home and Garden section. Many thanks to K.C. Alfred for his stunning photos!