Up to Earth

Armando Rendn, a son of the Westside barrio of San Antonio, Texas, now lives in Kensington, California, a little hamlet in the Berkeley hills facing San Francisco Bay, with his wife and their two gardens, front and back. A non-avid gardener, he has nevetheless learned much from digging and observing the world of plants, flowers, bonsai and weeds.

Retiring in 2004 after serving as a writer/editor fo...