Botanical Gardens

Last Sunday we decided to go for a walk in the sunshine at the Regional Parks Botanical Garden. It wasn't the best day for flower viewing, it's technically still winter and, despite the warmth, not much is growing yet but, I was still able to enjoy the scenery.

A Little Yard Work

Our yard had nearly disappeared beneath all the weeds that were enjoying the Bay Area winter rain, so I decided to spend my Presidents' Day uncovering the garden I set up in the summer. There is still a lot of work to be done but I did manage to uncover the ground under the weeds and my garden plots are almost ready for planting. While weeding, I also discovered a snail, some happy Venus Flytraps, and a flowering succulent. Nothing like a few simple pleasures to make a hard day's work worthwhile.

In Bloom

I haven't had a garden since I was growing up in Connecticut so I was delighted that our new apartment came with a small back yard. We didn't move in until June and didn't get around to planting anything until mid-July. Thinking of the growing seasons in New England, I didn't really expect that much to grow. However, in the Bay area, we see sunny warm weather in October and all my wildflowers are currently in bloom. How lovely!

Making a Yard

Deck planter full of million bells and future zinnias

I haven't been at my computer much lately, mostly because, outside of work, I've been busy working on getting my new yard in order. With our new apartment we inherited a small (but big for us) yard. It was mostly just really hard, dry, dirt. The yard is too small to maneuver a lawn mower, so grass was out, and the dirt looked so neglected it seemed like more work than we had time for to make it suitable. So, we're going to make cunning use of pots, bricks, mulch and raised beds to get this yard in order. 

In case the potted flowers don't give it away, this will be the future dahlia garden. We'll heave in some more soil and I'll plant a bunch of seeds.

We've layed out brick and mulch over most of the back yard. It's not my best brick work but heck, it'll do. We made use of old stepping stones as potted plant stands (on the left) and I've planted sunflowers, daisies, and other wild flowers along the fence line.

This will become a pumpkin patch with corn along the fence and various herbs in the front.

And... more mulch, pots and stepping stones to finish off the back yard. We were gifted the green pots, already growing thyme, basil, tomatoes, mint and beans, so the whole yard doesn't look totally desolate. I planted some lavender in the clay pot on the left.

The side of the yard stays pretty shady but we'll put more succulents along the side of the house and I'll fill the cinder blocks with pansies. Not sure what will go in the pots that will cover the stepping stones.

The path from our deck to the driveway will be lined with potted poppies.

The side of the deck had an extra piece of wood as part of the structure so I decided to fill it with soil and plant some more poppies.

Once the yard is finished, we'll put a table where this bag of potting soil is, so we can sit and watch everything grow.

I was so excited this morning when I was greeting by the first of the zinnia's I planted. By the middle of the afternoon there was one more zinnia as well as the first sunflower and poppy peeking through the soil!

House Sitting

This past weekend I had the pleasure of house sitting for some favorite people. House sitting is one of my most favorite things. I think what I love most about it is that, by being in someone else's home, you suddenly realizing how amazing and inspiring the ordinary, every day things are. 

 How could I resist photographing the mint in the backyard?

 Orchids in the shower--genius!

Technically I was cat sitting as well