The certainty of shorter days and cooler nights is upon us, though our daytime temps remain warm. An uptick in squirrel activity tells me that autumn is coming. California gray squirrels live in trees, and although they don’t hibernate, they build up winter stores for the cooler months.
I harvested several sunflower seed heads and left them on our deck, but getting photos proved elusive. I finally captured a couple of shots last week, one of a squirrel on the sunflower stalk and later in a tree across the street with a mouthful.
This weekend, I spotted another squirrel at the base of the curb garden and managed a few shots. By Sunday night, most of the sunflower stalks had been bent in half, stripped of their seeds, and left for this gardener to clean up.
I envy the squirrel’s agility and energy as they hurl themselves from tree branch to roof, then to the back of a narrow bench or railing. This year, I’m counting on them to plant next summer’s sunflower crop. Goodness knows they’ve had their fill.
In other garden news, a few late-season gladiolas popped up through the lavender along the deck. One of my alstroemeria protested its move from pot to pot, eventually throwing in the towel. I took advantage of the real estate and transplanted three or four succulents needing space to expand their roots.
The rock wall is awash with white anemones that have grown quite tall this year, thanks to a good soaking rain this past winter.
They look pretty in glass jars as well.
The first bulb catalogs arrived in the post last week, full of spring promise. Planning a more cohesive planting this fall will be fun; it’s just weeks away. I might try one or two new varieties, but after 27 years of digging in my garden, I’m a realist. It’s too hot for cool-season bulbs, and tulips are like chocolate for squirrels. It’s best to skip the disappointment and plant what works.
Nothing compares to the anticipation of spring.
Gardening Nirvana 
Ah, I envy you bulbs. The tropics and cold-weather bulbs don’t work together, and I miss spring flowers. Mind you, our winters aren’t really cold enough to class as winter for most people, and things carry on flowering regardless. I love your white anemones, although I admit I prefer the darker colours with black centres…
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Your climate has some interesting challenges, Kate. I guess they all do. California has some of the best soil, and a substantial swath of farm land. Before we were known as a tech hub, Silicon Valley was known as the Valley of Heart’s Delight. I miss the open spaces and orchards of my youth.
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I miss the deep, deep fertile soil of my home climate. Australia’s soils are very ancient and thin, and deficient in all sorts of minerals and organic matter. Chook poo and compost are wonder-workers, but if I were very serious about gardening, I’d be adding all sorts of amendments on top of that. We are seriously low on phosphorus and carbon, and generally the soil is rather acidic.
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I didn’t know any of that. Parts of this country have poor soil from using poor planting techniques. Now that we’re more aware of crop rotation, over-grazing cattle, cover crops, and the benefits of going pesticide free, I hope the tides will turn. California’s biggest concern now and in the future is water. We’ve had a nice reprieve this year after heavy winter rains, but I don’t expect it will last. Three cheers for chook poo!
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Australian agriculture is sharing some of the same issues as California faces, the chief of which is salinity, closely followed by erosion. And guess what? Our ancestors had the right idea all along. Rotation, not monoculture, include animals in the regenerative process to fertilise naturally, and accept less than perfect produce for the sake of doing away with pesticides.
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Yes, yes, yes!
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Beautiful. I love that you can end a post that starts by acknowledging the beginning of fall by saying, “Nothing compares to the anticipation of spring!” LOL That’s a lot of anticipation up here in eastern Canada!! 😊
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LOL. I hadn’t really thought about that, Jane. Gardening in zone 9 is a treat. It’s rare that we have frost, and it’s usually behind us by February when we do. My dad gardened in Ontario, Canada, so he had to contend with a limited growing season.
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Zone 9, OMG!! 😂
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🤣
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Patience and tenacity should be your first and last name. Sitting and waiting for a squirrel to scarf down sunflower seeds requires an abundance of both. You are an expert at sharing. You plant the sunflowers, you get to enjoy them and feed the squirrels. Then they plant next years harvest once again. Everyone wins. Even with dead stalks, your garden is so lovely and welcoming. Love the flowers in jars.
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Thank you, Marlene, for your always-gracious comments. I enjoy the life cycle of sunflowers. They are such cheerful plants and they grow at an amazing clip. The birds enjoy the leaves, the bees spend time gathering pollen, the mantis seem to find something on the stalks, and at the end of the season, they produce an abundance of seeds.
Sending a hug your way.
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The squirrels here are really active! I love this time of year; the cooler evenings, the blooming flowers that are recovering from the extreme heat of summer for that last effort, the geese overhead, and the crazy squirrels!
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It’s a lovely time of year, agreed. The schools aren’t crazy about the geese spending their days on the fields leaving slippery deposits behind, but I still smile when I see them. I love nature in all its forms. The squirrels are endlessly entertaining, and fun.
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So I am laughing about your squirrels and sunflowers because recently we caught a couple of squirrels mating in our sunflowers! Did we know that we had planted a squirrel “hook up” place!!! 😳
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Sunflower hookups, eh? That’s a pair of squirrels that don’t mind living on the wild side. ;-)
Thanks for the smile.
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Your garden continues to give you some beautiful color even this late in the season. I love it! And the squirrels are just so funny. We have an oak tree so I’m also witness to their fall activity. One of the tricks that gets me frustrated is they bury the acorns in my pots. They can sure make a mess! I think it’s fabulous that you’ve given them sunflower heads! It’s wonderful to at least do our part to feed them–even if, as you mention, they don’t really need to prepare for winter! 🤷♀️
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Thank you, Debra. I share your dismay at the constant digging in pots. My ground-level fairy gardens are generally dismantled by squirrels right about now. Last year I finally got smart, and packed up the accessories, so they could dig all they wanted.
How fabulous to hear that you have an oak tree. They’re magnificent!
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So true about the bulb planting Alys. Every year I say I won’t bother planting more tulips because the mice will eat them , but every year I do plant more and some survive, some don’t. My bulb order is on its way. 😉 Your squirrels are messy eaters! But fun to watch. I just hope they behave and don’t tear up any of your garden cushions again! Your Japanese anemones are gorgeous! Happy September Alys. 🤗
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We gardeners are nothing if not optimistic, Cathy. When do you plant your spring bulbs? We plant fairly late in zone 9, usually late October or November. Funny enough, I’m already seeing the greens of the freesia from last year. I love this anemones, Cathy. They are so cheering now, and they bring more cheer in the spring when the hummingbirds gather seed “fluff” for nesting.
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I plant my bulbs from the end of September onwards, with the tulips going on last, but before November when the ground is just so cold and usually wet that I don’t feel like digging! We have zone 6 here.
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I love how gardeners can talk in zones, with heads nodding in understanding. :-) You must be immersed in planting now.
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First delivery of bulbs is due today! 😃
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Yippee! I hope they arrived in good shape. I know you’re ready to plant.
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The squirrels seem quite content. I too need to get some bulbs done soon but it’s still in the 80s so fall seems far away and planting sounds too much like work. I’ll have to see if I can do like Tom Sawyer and convince my neighbors digging will be fun. As always your photos are lovely. Happy spring dreaming.
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I love looking at the pictures of your flower beds and flower arrangements, such a lovely variety of colors, shapes, and textures!
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Thank you! I’ve really enjoyed blogging about my garden over the years and in turn, blogging motivates me to do more, and to try new things. It’s a nice synergy.
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Your garden is still so pretty! Mine is definitely past its best. In Maine, spring is certainly a joyous occasion.
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Thank you, Laurie. Given your shorter season, I can well imagine you make the best of every day.
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I’ve no idea what I would do/think if a squirrel popped in my yard! Yep, no squirrels in New Zealand…not even at the zoo.
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They feel like part of the landscape here. I know New Zealand is working hard to right some of the wrongs of imported predators and the like. I applaud that effort.
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The anemone arrangements are so beautiful, Alys. You’re more patient than I with the squirrels, which are just pests in my garden, quite destructive. I had to stop feeding the birds this year because squirrels were so greedy. But I know they have to eat too!
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Thank you! I know the squirrels can be destructive, but I feel we’ve encroached so much on nature, that allowing them to take from my garden is the least I can do. I share your disappointment when they eat half the fruit, and pitch the rest, or dig up my fairy garden to stash seeds, but from the squirrel’s perspective, they’ve found a welcoming place with food, water, trees, and a blogger with a camera. xo
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