Heaven On Earth

The Rhododendrons are blooming their hearts out this year. They love our brisk early spring weather. We cut this plant back drastically last year and look at the way it came back. So don't be afraid to trim.

Their fragrance is amazing. Sometimes I go and stand beside the bush just to take in the smell. It's just heavenly.

We Found the Answer

On November 20, I was wondering about this mystery plant we had growing in the pathway. Well, on Monday we cut off a large branch and went to the Ag Office. They sent us to the Farm Bureau where there was a master gardener. Three employees gathered around and speculated and then they called in one more. The consensus is: Datura ferox or the common name is Fierce Thornapple. I certainly agree with the fierce part because of those spiky sharp pods.

This is not a desirable plant to have around and is poisonous. As you can see we chopped it down and put it in the garbage. They asked that we put it there instead of the green waste. Now there is no chance of it reseeding. The seed was probably brought here by a bird or was in one of the bags of commercial bird seed that we buy. It is also in the same family of plants as the Loco Weed found in the mid-west. We don't need any Loco Weeds here... we are pretty loco all on our own!

At their request, we left the branch we brought with them. It is rare around here and they did not have a live specimen. Now they do!

So... now we all know... Fierce Thornapple. Who would have thought?

What is This?

I don't know what this plant is that came up as a volunteer by the fence. At first I thought it was a sunflower. It had rather thick dark green leaves. But then it got bushy and grew wide instead of tall.

The flowers are white and never fully opened wide before this strange looking pod developed at the base of the blossom.

They are sharp, very sharp and look like a prickly hand grenade. I sure would like to know what plant this is and where it came from.

I think we will take pictures down to the Ag office and see if they can identify this wicked looking thing!

Winter Squash Surprises

It is high time to bring in the winter squash so we went down today to gather them up in the wagon. These came up as volunteers and are a variety of banana squash. We found mother nature and the critters had been doing things to amuse us.

Mother nature did some tie-dying...

And the gopher critters carved their own jack-o-lantern!

The Joy of Summer

The garden is producing big time and tomatoes of all varieties are ready to eat. I'm dreaming of BLTs!

Chicken Avocados

An Avocado tree grew as a volunteer where the chicken pen used to be. It's in an odd place but we didn't have the heart to pull it out. It was so healthy and growing so fast. Now it is producing buckets of Avocados. We don't know what variety they are. It's not Haas but they are good. Lucky us!

Kumquats

After 10 years at least, we finally got two Kumquats on the tree. Wow, that is underwhelming! We have threatened so many times that we were going to pull it out. Now...what do we do? Should it stay or should it go?

Soon, Very Soon

The green tomatoes are starting to get just the slightest bit yellow. Soon we will have all we can eat.

 

The cucumbers are doing well too. We planted them beside a wire support this year and I think it is working out well. There are loads of little ones set on. I'm ready for cucumbers and yogurt. Yummmm.

The Usual Suspects

Having the right tools is half the battle. But then you have to use them. They have been lined up there...ready. It seems it's the people that are dragging. We need to get out there and finish up the job of cleaning under the Eucalyptus trees. Every year it is the same drill. Until several years ago, we could burn all the leaves and bark that fell down. But no more. We have to haul it to the landfill. We do compost some leaves but there are a lot of them and it takes a long time for them to break down.

One day soon we are going to put those tools to use...I promise.

Water Drops

The drops of water are magnifying the leaf underneath. DH snapped this while sitting on the patio. He is loving our new Canon SX20.

How the Garden Grows Today

We picked our first tomato today...nothing special but it shows us that they are making it and there are lots more to come. There are tons of green ones and if they can make it through all this fog without getting blight or rust, we will have tomatoes by the baskets. I found a cucumber that is about 2 inches long, and the peppers are loaded with babies. I see salsa and gazpacho in our future.

The California Poppies are in their second crop. Now in the wild this wouldn't have happened unless they got a good rain storm. We watered this patch and stirred it up and were rewarded. The pink and purple flowers were labeled as Godetia or Farewell to Spring on the seed package but they are very different from what I've had before. This flower is much smaller and many to a long stem. They are also a native California plant that must have several varieties. We enjoy them all!

A Rainbow of Chickens

These happy chickens were all over the garden scraps we took to a friend. What a flock of interesting chickens. Every color and every size. They free range all over the yard. The one in the wheelbarrow was...King of the mountain!

 

Plants on Crack

Well, really, in the crack. Several plants on the back patio have found their own special place to grow and they want to be there bad. The sunflower is just about to bloom now and the birds will probably eat up the seeds as they ripen.

This is a Black Oil Sunflower.

I don't know what this plant is.  The leaves are quite thick. I suspect it is something from the bird seeds we feed. It could be Milo or maybe Millet. Maybe we can grow our own bird seeds.

The dill is very handy...not so much...in fact it's in the way! I use it every chance I get on cottage cheese or salad dressing. But it grows faster than we can use it. It smells good when I go out the laundry room door. Poor blind Patsy walks right into it. Who should I favor, Patsy or the dill plant?

What an interesting assortment of plants that are where they want to be...against my better judgement but there they are anyway. For now.

Blackberries for Dessert

Hubby picked the Blackberries and we are going to have them for dessert...with vanilla ice cream! Ohhhhhh, I can hardly wait.

Caper Harvest

This is our Caper bush. It is just getting started for this year but has produced several small batches so far. You need to pick often so the flower pods don't open up. It will get quite a bit larger as the summer goes on and then will die back in colder weather. It is important that all the old branches get pruned off because it sends out new growth each season. I find it hard to cut it back in the fall but it does much better that way.

We put the Capers in a strong kosher salt brine and just keep adding the new ones as we pick. When the jar in about half full we start a second jar and let the first batch finish curing. You will know they are ready to eat when they turn a duller green and sink to the bottom.

I would love to see how Capers are traditionally grown in the Mediterranean. It's a labor of love but fun.

Busy Bee Or Not?

There have lots of these bees on the berry plants. They don't look like honey bees to me but more like bumble bees only smaller. We always have lots of honey bees when the eucalyptus trees are in bloom but that is over and these bees are different. They are black and yellow and very fuzzy. I'll have to do some googling and see what I find.

Remember when we had sets of encyclopedias to go to for information? My folks bought our kids a set when they started school. They poured over those books and had them spread all over the floor. Each letter was a separate book except down at the end, U-V-W-X-Y-Z were in a couple books. There was a yearly update book to capture new information. The kids looked forward to an assignment in school where they were to do research so they could get out all those books...at least until the newness wore off!

Now, we go to the computer to get our information. I'm afraid libraries are going to be a thing of the past. I don't want to read from a Kindle either. I love books. Love turning the pages, checking the inside cover and the blurbs on the back cover. Flipping through for pictures and marking a page by turning down the corner. I don't know if the Kindle has any features like this and I'm not in any hurry to find out.

Now...about these bees...

Here's what I found. There are about 250 kinds of bees. The fuzzy ones are bumble bees and pollinate plants like all bees. They make honey for their own use but don't store it. Their nests are on the ground or in hollow logs or holes in the ground. They are very beneficial and I'm happy they are here.

PS:  I think this might actually be a Bumble Bee Moth. I'm going to do more reading...

Bunches of Blossoms

It seems that everything has burst into bloom. These Raspberries are doing well and in fact I found a small handful that were ready to pick. We are looking forward to bowls full!

The Golden Delicious Apple tree has a spectacular amount of blooms. We will have to do lots of thinning or branches will break. I see dried apples and applesauce in our future. They also work well for apple pies when used early in the season.

The delicate nature of apple blossoms amaze me...and the way the bright pink fades to pale pink as they open spans a whole range of color.

The Black Mexican Avocado is blooming up a storm. The whole tree is just covered. The Haas and the "volunteer chicken pen avocado" haven't  nearly as many blossoms. Maybe it will happen yet. It's nice to have different varieties produce at different times. Guacamole all year long...yummmmmm!

Mini Green Houses

We have been saving empty milk jugs to use as little mini green houses for plants in the garden. Our spring weather usually includes sea breezes ( I won't say wind, lol) and overcast. These jugs give some of our smaller plants that we have grown from saved seeds a little protection for a few weeks. The milk jugs are free and handy! We cut the bottom off and push them into the dirt.  When the plants outgrow them they go into the recycle bin. Good solution that works for us.

The first tomatoes are already too big but the little guys at the other end of the row will be happy to have a warm little house.