I spent an hour and a half in the garden early this morning in place of a worship service. Being home and not in church on a Sunday morning feels odd. Nevertheless, the mourning doves sang the hymn, with geese on the fire prevention pond adding a lower part. I have been reading about the history of English church music, and my mind is all on contrapuntal lines right now.
All the garden was fresh from the rain overnight. As I cut the St. Francis rockrose for Spots I noticed the scent for the first time. That smell must drive him wild.
I finally took the clippers up to the Circle Garden to trim dead branches off the salvia and lantana, hopefully encouraging the lantana to spread out and not up. I substantially pruned the sunset rockrose that is now well-established in that garden. Uprooting clover right and left and weeding as I went.
The licorice plant on the mezzanine level got a significant pruning. I am developing a fondness for plants that take to pruning well. While weeding around the area I discovered significant water just below the licorice plant. Not surprisingly, the water follows the slope down from that plant and collects at the railroad tie that marks the border of the mezzanine level. Hence the large amount of overgrown grass and weeds there. I am reluctant to cut back the irrigation water given the expected dry weather next week.
A Year at the Snake 