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And Now It’s May

An extended heat wave in March, followed by a mix of high temperatures and rain, has left my garden confused.

After days of temperatures reaching 15 to 25 degrees above normal, our orange tree started dropping leaves. The pittosporum did the same. I hooked up a hose to our rainwater tanks and gave both trees a long soak, grateful for the stored water.

My self-seeded sweet peas (Lathyrus odoratus) didn’t like the heat either. They normally do well into June as summer temperatures set in, but the prolonged, excessive March heat sent them to seed before April’s end. I pulled them out over the weekend. I have one sweet pea vine hanging on under the Magnolias’ shade, but it, too, is fading.

Under the Acer, Four o’clock plants(Mirabilis jalapa) are up two months early and already blooming. It’s all a bit unsettling.

Temperatures have climbed again this week, as our dry season approaches. San Jose’s semi-arid climate is typically rain-free from May through October.

I’m trying to reset my expectations and remind myself that all the native plants in my garden continue to thrive, and several of the succulents are flowering. 

We shopped for a pair of tomato plants a few weeks ago and dug holes between rainy days. Fresh garden tomatoes are a summer highlight.

I stumbled across a few sunflower plants at a local nursery while shopping for mulch and scooped up three. In recent years, I planted sunflowers (Helianthus annuus) from seeds, but foraging squirrels unearthed them just as quickly. The new plants have already doubled in size, and now the squirrels will have to wait for the bounty. They’re welcome to eat the seeds after I’ve enjoyed the cheerful flowers. (Photo below of California Grey squirrel, 2014)

Elsewhere in the garden, I’ve manifested good fairy energy by turning a redish root into a garden swing, with a former soap dish serving as a ladder to reach it should the fairies choose to rest their wings. More garden debris forms a hanging post for an abutilon bud lantern. The playground resides under the hydrangeas.

I planted two cellpacs of sweet alyssum (Lobularia hybrid) in pots on the back garden steps. The honey scent teases the nostrils, pleasant but not overbearing, and it’s a fan favorite of butterflies and bees. It tolerates the heat better than most annuals.

I spotted a gorgeous orange butterfly this afternoon from our kitchen window, but I was too far away to capture a decent photo. I need to practice my “be like a tree” skills, where I hold still long enough for the butterflies to land and stay awhile. I’ll let you know how I get on.

18 thoughts on “And Now It’s May”

  1. The climate changes and crazy weather is scary. We had a heat wave yesterday of 75F, something we see a few days in July normally. So smart of you to store rain water, I think your garden looks gorgeous.

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    • Thank you, Maria. My garden brings me joy and I’m grateful for this green space. Climate change is unsettling in all respects.

      I’m sorry to hear about your early heatwave. I hope your allotment is doing ok.

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  7. Your garden still looks delightful but I know it is worrying. Although we garden in very different climates my garden is confused too and it looks like we are headed towards a summer of water restrictions and excessive heat. My squirrels are confused too, they are digging up flower pots and burying old nuts and seeds.

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  10. Our garden is confused too; we got snow just a few days ago. Climate change is crazy! Your garden is still looking lovely despite the circumstances!

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  11. Here at the English east coast we had a very summerly spring, but not such a changeable weather. Therefore every plant flowers very early. Our problem is, like every year, rain. We have one of the lowest rainfall in England because we are situated in the rain shadow of the west coast.
    We think, your garden does really well.
    The Fab Four of Cley
    :-) :-) :-) :-)

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  12. Our garden is a little confused also Alys. While you are experiencing abnormal heat for this time of year we on the east coast are experiencing colder than normal temperatures. All of Terry’s perennials are starting to grow and we had bought two flats of New Guinea Impatiens to give the bed in front of our home some color. I have been shuffling them outdoors for sunlight during the day and then bringing them in our house at night. Normally we would be able to plant perennials the week after Mother’s day but that doesn’t look to be the case this year. Looks like I’ll be babysitting these two flats for a while longer ☹️

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