I followed the levee road to Stockton this afternoon. The scene in the central valley is vast acreage cleared for planting. Crews are laying down precast irrigation pipes, ten to fifteen feet and a good two to three feet in diameter.
I made a quick run at the East Bay Nursery yesterday. No verbena was in stock except a native variety, which qualifies as an unlooked for blessing. I also found a geranium with a pinnately lobed leaf, maybe with a variegated bloom, that was too interesting to pass by. Meanwhile back at the ranch, I removed the last of the verbena from the Triangle Garden and refilled the center with the native verbena and new geranium. That area has almost no topsoil, rock shelf being no more than four inches below the surface. I broke up the ground and added soil amendment, with Quick Start to establish the roots. What little soil the bed holds is nonetheless moist.
I also found a new sedum to try filling the empty third of the aptenia bed. This afternoon I trimmed back the dead growth from the aptenia and pulled up imbedded weeds and grass. The culling out was less than last year as I have grown accustomed to the dormant period for the aptenia.
I transplant the angel wings into a new and larger pot because the current pot was almost outgrown. The combination of Miracle Gro potting mix and Quick Start should help the transplanted roots.
At the end of the afternoon a pair of Canadian geese graced the sky, perhaps the last of our winter visitors.
A Year at the Snake 