Barbara Strona
Barbara Strona is a native Californian who grew up in the Mid-West and Los Angeles. She and her architect husband, Carl, came to San Diego in 1968 and have lived in Mission Hills since early 1971. Barbara received a Bachelor of Arts from Scripps College with a major in English, and a minor in Art. She attended UCLA graduate school and received a General Secondary Credential. She taught English in Los Angeles, Pennsylvania, and at Point Loma High School. She has been a Realtor specializing in residential sales since 1984. Her passions include her job, reading, writing, foreign languages and foreign countries, animals (feathered or furry), theatre, and her family: husband, two adult children and two grandsons.
Barbara Strona's Latest Posts
The Mission Hills Garden Club Presents Education, Beautification, and Fun
Over 14 years ago Mission Hills Garden Club had a fairly lengthy gestation period. However, once it was born, it grew by leaps and bounds. Its history begins before 1999 and continues today with a medley of traditions and changes. In the beginning, Fausto Palafox posted a notice in the Mission Hills Nursery asking […]
Old Ben Courts Wild Birds
The last meeting of the Mission Hills Garden Club’s 2013 summer season was held at the Mission Hills Nursery. Ben Zlotnick, also known as Old Ben, spoke about attracting wild birds. He is an advocate for creating a certified wild life habitat. The entire city of Alpine has such a designation because every household […]
In May, Amy Huie spoke to the Mission Hills Garden Club about native plants. Before beginning her talk, she thanked the Mission Hills Garden Club. As she put it, “My first horticultural job was financed by Mission Hills Garden Club.” She was a student at Cuyamaca College, and Fausto Palafox, owner of Mission Hills […]
Growing on Air
Imagine a plant that lives on air, requires very little attention, uses almost no space (It can even be grown vertically), and it can take both extreme heat and cold as low as 32 degrees. Paul Isley, co-owner of Rainforest Flora, spoke to the San Diego Horticultural Society about Tillandsias, also known as air […]
Part I Bromeliads
Easy to grow and Easy on the Eye In April, Joann Dossett, long-time member of the Mission Hills Floral Association, San Diego Horticultural Society, and a host of other botanical organizations, gave an enthusiastic workshop on bromeliads at her beautiful home. She began by apologizing. It seems a troop of raccoons has fallen in love […]
Floral Design Using Stuff on Hand
February’s Mission Hills Garden Club meeting featured a repeat speaker, Diane Citrowske, who spoke on floral design. This year she focused on designing with armatures and grids. She also included a few tips on prolonging the life of cut flowers. Citrowske began with an overview of the mechanics of floral design. Throughout history, we […]
Digging in the Dirt
The January meeting found Mission Hills Garden Club’s members plus a few grandchildren learning about planting seeds. Fausto Palafox, our president and owner of Mission Hills Nursery, gave us the basics about seeds and how to grow them because starting with seeds is far cheaper and you have more selection than starting with baby plants. […]
Avian Angels and Devils in your Garden: Part II
Migrating Birds in Mission Hills and Elsewhere Last September Mike Matherly told the Mission Hills Garden Club of his disappointment that the birds nesting in the stadium during the Beijing Olympics received no medals. He believes the Bar-tailed Godwit deserves a gold medal. This bird makes the longest non-stop flight of any other bird or […]
Avian Angels and Devils in your Garden: Part II Migrating Birds in Mission Hills and Elsewhere
Migrating Birds in Mission Hills and Elsewhere Last September Mike Matherly told the Mission Hills Garden Club of his disappointment that the birds nesting in the stadium during the Beijing Olympics received no medals. He believes the Bar-tailed Godwit deserves a gold medal. This bird makes the longest non-stop flight of any other bird or […]
Avian Angels and Devils in your Garden: Part I
As I grow older, my interests expand. Living across the canyon from a “birder” couple, I have become more aware of birds. However, when Mike Matherly from the San Diego Audubon Society spoke to Mission Hills Garden Club members, that awareness rose to a new level. I am now fascinated by and curious about our […]
