One of the great joys of retirement is waking with sun, particularly with the low light sunrises outside my window. I may have been able to get a decent picture of the winter sun through the bare oaks this morning and the reflection on the fire prevention pond.
When I turned my back, the weed of the month took over the front slope around the manzanita and the newly planted English lavender. A tiny plant much like Baby’s Breath and next to impossible to dig up. I dug it out around the established plants, first with a trowel and them with a shovel. After a few minutes of this pointless effort, I gave in and went for the Roundup. Digging out some of the weeds allowed me to keep the Roundup on a perimeter away from the plants,
While I was on the front slope, I trimmed more dead wood off the manzanita. I also replaced the soil that had eroded away from the main plant at the top of the slope. Next week I will need to place stones to prevent future erosion.
I laid out flagstones along the front fence, much like a jigsaw puzzle. I will set the stones in next week when I have time to level them out. As I worked, the air was changing and turning colder. I left for Oakland just as the rain began to fall and drove west into the atmospheric river.
A Year at the Snake 