I am having my Saturday morning coffee and updating my journal. I still have some sense of a weekend even without a working week.
I was up early to prune in the front slope garden My great surprise was to see the oldest ceanothus bloom, delicate lilac colored flowers but alas no scent. I have no recall of ever seeing blooms on that shrub before. I pruned minimally to encourage more bloom.
On the flip side, I hacked away at the cotoneaster to keep it off the ceanothus, and at the licorice plant to keep it off the cotoneaster. Both plants are thriving through the dry season – they should winter over well.
Deadheading the two center geraniums near the down slope rock wall is a never ending task. The blooms have been prolific through the sunny season. I can not keep up, although Spots is doing his best. He loves his geranium snacks.
I planted the new agave in the south end of the upper border garden, a memento of my conference in Monterey and the Dry Garden nursery in the side lot near my hotel. A nursery that only stocked succulents. While it was on my mind, I applied supplemental water to all in-ground succulents.
I found cyclamen at the ACE Garden Center in Valley Springs, in unusual colors – pale pink and a purple and white stripe. I said goodbye and dug out the calibrochoa, and replaced them with the cyclamen in the half barrel container. The days are short but still warm, and hopefully the cyclamen will thrive as the nights get cooler. I also enjoyed the beautiful road back from Valley Springs over Pardee Dam and through the Utility District reserve property.
I stopped the yard maintenance. to watch the last of the sunset at a few minutes past five.
A Year at the Snake 