how do you keep the herons away from your goldfish?

We don't. The dog helps as much as she can, and the fish hide under the bridge.
Renee

Renee,

Once again your pictures are just amazing and constantly give me inspiration. Sometimes I print your pictures and post them up in my garage, on the wall, just to give me ideas.

I have a few questions for you, if you don't mind. Some background...I have a 4500 gallon koi pond in the backyard. I am currently "relandscaping" some areas wanting to do a tropical type look. I live in the San Gabriel Valley.

I see you have a lot of areas that are tropical. Do you mind sharing with me what plants you used. I think I remember in previous pictures you had kind of a thick grassy type plant around your pond, what is the name of this grass.

Thanks,
Karin

Wow! But that's even a bit weak ;-)

You guys are too kind. Thank you.

Karin, I have had a terrible time trying to find the right plants for around that pond. I ended up with some tried and true southland plants. The background plants are nandinas. I have three big green phormiums, one to each side of the waterfall and one up against Mikey's office. There is a Giant Bird of Paradise and blue agaves that are far too large and out of scale for the size of the pond. Five phoenix roebellinis, one in a barrel with wire plant. Sword ferns are all around the waterfall, which has a gold duranta, some papyrus, and a Ming Asparagus fern behind it. There is one Wheeler's Dwarf pittosporum, a Sprenger asparagus fern in a pot and three on sticks, and some lilies, irises, and Louisiana irises planted here and there. There is variegated ivy on one side, and acorus here and there. I just planted three carexes, and there is some zoysia grass out there too. Whew. It's a dog's breakfast of plants! The zoysia is very slow growing, but it's pretty. I think that's the grass you like. No female dogs on the zoysia!
Renee

WHY couldn't I have found a house to buy with gardens like yours? (Wishful thinking on my part, I know.... sigh.) LOVE your gardens!

Renee - where did you buy your zoysia?

Karin

I don't recall- perhaps Green Arrow. It comes in flats at about $5-$6 a square foot. Sometimes I see it at Home Depot.

A couple of questions, Renee...I notice that there are many different zoysias out there. Yours looks like tenuifolia, do you recall? Also most sites say to beware, because the plant is invasive and must be contained. How do you handle this?

For fun, I am including a picture of one of the frogs in my pond.

{{gwi:548201}}

Karin

I love your froggie. We don't see them here any longer. I wonder if the fish eat their eggs, or if a disease wiped them out.

I think I have zoysia japonica. It runs like bermuda grass by stolons under the ground. It does not like foot traffic, and the lumps grow too tall, flop over, and have to be cut back every few years, then it takes a few years to grow back in. It gets into beds and buries plants, rocks, and whole potted plants.

It grows pretty slowly, though, so if you stay on it you can keep it where you want it. The problem is that the edges are the thick lovely green part, and that's what I am constantly cutting away. It's by no means an easy plant.

Renee