California poppies

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A Lovely Patch of Earth

My garden is a magical place where fairies roam, and flowers grow.

Daily visitors include marauding squirrels, delicate hummingbirds, mourning doves, and songbirds with handsome yellow chests singing their hearts out in search of a mate.

It provides a refuge for spiders and mantis, which in turn keep the less beneficial bugs at bay. Fence lizards also have a place.

When I gather a spade of dirt and unearth a worm, I apologize and return it to the soil. Some of the hardest workers are unseen and unheard but equally deserving of our respect.

Baby Carrots Fresh from the Earth

Bees are welcome and encouraged with plentiful pollen to gather for their queen. Paper wasps live under the eaves, an equally beneficial guest in the garden’s echo system. They’re not aggressive like yellow jackets, but they are easily mistaken for them. I was pleased to learn the difference.

Paper wasps

Over the years, small packets of seeds have morphed into returning gems. Sweat peas are the garden darlings, with soft, fragrant petals ranging from pale pinks to rich purples and reds. They elicit comments from passersby, generating a feeling of nostalgia.

Nasturtium, purchased as a few bedding plants years ago, cast about the garden with brilliant, showy orange flowers and broad, flat leaves that remind me of paper fans.

California poppies spread across the walkway this year, with several taking up residence around the curb garden and along the drive. They, too, were first scattered from a packet of seeds. 

Two seasons of welcome rain have filled reservoirs and water tanks while affording gardeners a reprieve from regular watering.

The garden continues to evolve, moving from the manicured lawn and roses we inherited when we bought this house to a garden filled with native and drought-tolerant plants, three mature trees, and a deck lined with succulents instead of thirsty annuals. The slider featur below shows the back garden in 1996 and 2024.

I’m grateful for the sun and the wind, the rain when it falls, and this lovely patch of earth outside my door.

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News from the Garden

I planted Mammoth sunflower seeds in mid-May, and thanks to the squirrel-proofing domes, most of the seeds germinated.

Imagine my surprise when a second stand of sunflowers self-seeded, apparently immune to pilfering squirrels. The sunflowers I didn’t plant are over five feet tall, blooming in orange, yellow, and red. The Mammoth variety is heading skyward, but they have a way to go before reaching the promised height. Next year I’ll plant them sooner.

Another fun surprise has been the emergence of more California poppies Eschscholzia californica. The latest batch have an hombre-like coloring, with most of them growing up through dry gravel. Since they’re native to California, they adapt to a number of climates and water needs.

The assorted coleus Plectranthus scutellarioides are doing well on our deck, and one of the plants just flowered.

The leaf motif panel behind the planter box is a happy accident. I had a pair of these panels in the back garden under the neighboring pine tree. The heavy pruning of the pine tree last November damaged the support structure, separating the panels. I leaned them against the fence during the winter months; then, we moved one of them to this spot. It fits beautifully.

When my son moved in to his condo a few years ago, the homeowner left her patio plants behind. I inherited three healthy jade plants pictured behind the rocking chair. Lucky me!

The tomatoes have been ho-hum with just a few cherry tomatoes on offer. The plants were healthy, well staked, watered, mulched, with a bit of garden compost for good measure. They get full sun, a mild breeze and still not much going on. The strawberry plants were a complete bust. I’m too embarrassed to show you.

Check out our Bougainvillea! The vine grew slowly until July, but has grown exponentially in the last few weeks. This beauty nearly covers our bedroom window, providing much-appreciated shade. A variety of succulents grow below.

The California gray squirrel pictured below is feasting on seeds from the Acer palmatum, commonly known as Japanese maple, just outside the window. Moments later he jumped from the tree to the roof, upsetting the wind chimes and startling everyone including the cats.

One of my fairy gardens is deep undercover beneath this beautiful hydrangea. The miniature garden stays cool and sheltered all day. The pinks and blues of the Hydrangea macrophylla are slowing fading to pale green, but they’ve lasted for weeks in this gorgeous state. A few lingering, brightly colored nasturtiums wrap around the base of the fountain.

Thank you for joining me for my informal garden tour. There’s always more to see, and how I wish I could invite you over for tea and a chat on our deck.

In the meantime, I hope you are coping with the excessive heat or heavy flooding, too much or too little rain, wildfires, and all the other challenges nature is throwing our way.

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The Gift of Rain

San Jose gardens get by with about 15 inches of rain a year. During the drought years, we had half of that or less. So this year’s rain has been a gift to South Bay gardens, not only delaying the time when we would typically begin a watering routine but adorning our gardens with more blooms, taller plants, and, yes, lots of weeds.

Nasturtium along the walkway, with salvia and geraniums filling the space in between

My nepeta (cat mint) self-seeded throughout the garden to the sensory delight of our felines. The original plant is twice as tall this year, hiding those sneaky weeds below. They have met their match!

Love-in-a-mist, California Poppy, Geranium, Morning Glory border our neighbor’s lawn

California poppies spread throughout the garden, showing up in pots, along the curb garden, and elsewhere to my delight. The profusion of color is uplifting. I’ve been relocating the self-seeded sweet peas to the other side of the sidewalk so that they don’t overtake the perennials I’m trying to grow. First, I pulled out small volunteers or transplanted them, and then I bought another packet of seeds to hedge my bets during the transition. It worked partly due to the rain, and now the perennials are getting a foothold with the space and an extra helping of rain.

Sweet Peas
Poppies going to seed
Rich colors fill the garden
Lavender and Sage in the back, poppies in the foreground
Poppies and sweet peas commingle

I cut back the stems of the Freesia last week, leaving the leaves to dry out before cutting them back to the ground. Rapidly taking their place are gladiola and love-in-a-mist. Last October, Mike dug out several gladiola bulbs, and I replanted them together in the curb garden to maximize the effect. They’re just starting to come up as the poppies go to seed.

Love-in-a-mist about to bloom

Over the years, people have asked if my garden is a lot of work. While it can be hard on my aging hips and lower back, I don’t think of it as work so much as a pursuit. I’ve had the luxury this season to spend two or three hours a day outdoors, deadheading, weeding, and pruning as I observe all the gifts of nature.

The garden attracts lizards, birds, squirrels, butterflies, and praying mantis. The scents of spring are intoxicating, and the refreshing cool greens soothe me.

A California lizard. They devour lots of bugs
Potted succulents on the deck

Rain-filled water tanks permitted us to plant guilt-free strawberries and tomatoes, and for the first time in many years, I planted five coleuses in a repurposed pot once used in the back garden.

Raised bed planted with tomatoes and strawberries
Raised bed, alternate view

Annuals are heavy water users, so I’ve limited myself to one box and a shade-loving spot at that. I’ll share photos after I clean up the pot. Otherwise, I will continue to plant and tend to native and drought-tolerant plants, knowing that this year’s rain is a gift without any promises for the future.

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A Week of Flowering Cheer: Orange

I’m joining Cathy and others for a Week of Flowers, 2021. Cathy is inviting all of us to share a bit of color/colour during these dark and difficult times. Today I’m featuring orange flowers from the garden.

A cluster of California poppies growing near the curb

These brilliant orange poppies are California’s State flower. The soft petals fold into a variety of shapes at the end of lacy green foliage.

Cathy is also growing California poppies in her garden, half way across the world. That makes me smile.

A rich orange nasturtium

Nasturtiums come in a variety of colors, but the true standouts are the orange ones. They pop up in various areas of the garden twice a year, with foliage as beautiful as the flower. Aren’t they something?

I think a mollusk chewed this near-perfect hole in a California Poppy last spring. The fresh drops of rain and the teepee like shape always make me smile. I hope you’re smiling, too.

Thank you for following along.

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Spring Colors: Some Like it Hot

Orange nasturtium

This orange nasturtium has a banana-yellow center and a lovely pair of eyelashes

Nature always wears the color of the spirit.

– Ralph Waldo Emerson

Unless you’re an allergy sufferer, you probably love spring. It’s a magical time in the garden when spring colors emerge from winter’s slumber while the birds sing their happy tune.

Red and Pink

 

Earthbox planted with red, white and red cyclamen and pink hyacinth
Salvia greggii
Red freesia
Red hot succulents
Dark pink cyclamen growing under a perennial
Hummingbird drinking nectar from an abutilon

After years of planting assorted bulbs and spring-mix seed packets, it’s fun to see the color assortment burst forth. Wrapped around the perennials, and sometimes hiding below, touches of spring color emerge. To be fair, many of the weeds are colorful too. You just have to decide what stays and what goes.

Orange

 

A cluster of California poppies growing near the curb
Hot orange nasturtium
California poppy about drop its petals
This orange nasturtium has a beautiful yellow center and a lovely pair of eyelashes
Golden tips in the sunshine
California poppy wrapped up tight
I love poppies

According to birder Melissa Mayntz of The Spruce:

Different birds are attracted to different colors. Individual bird species may see the “best” colors as indicating a food source. Other birds may be more attracted to the colors of their own plumage as those could indicate a potential mate or another bird that is surviving well.

Most bright colors, however, can be used to attract birds, with certain bird species being more attracted to particular shades.

Red and Pink: Hummingbirds
Orange: Orioles, hummingbirds
Yellow: Goldfinches, warblers, hummingbirds

Yellow

 

Trailing yellow rose
Narcissus or Daffodil
Emerging Ranunculus
Emerging Freesia
Yellow flowers from seed mix
Freesia after a rain

Interesting that red, orange and yellow are the first three colors of a primary rainbow. I think nature is on to something, don’t you?

Not to be undone green, blue and violent show up every spring as well. They’re the cooler colors, providing a lovely contrast to the heat of the spectrum. Stay tuned for their turn in the garden.

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Winter Solstice in San Jose

Sunday we honored the shortest day of our year. It’s winter solstice in San Jose.

Do you know what that means?

It means that spring is only three months away!

Seriously though, you have to look a bit harder for signs of winter in California. We’ve had a few weeks of back to back rain storms, a welcome break from the drought but temperatures remain mild. Most of the deciduous trees are bare of their leaves but others remain evergreen.

Here’s a peek into the winter garden. It asks for little and gives a lot. Nature is like that.

orange cosmos buds

Cosmo buds, no sign of slowing down

orange cosmos

Cosmo in bloom

hummingbird in chinese pistache

Hummingbird in the Chinese Pistache tree

chinese pistache winter

Stripped bare of its leaves, but covered in buds waiting for spring

California poppy

I’m on the ‘every other season’ plan. All the seeds that forgot to come up last year are sending out little beacons of green delight. That’s a California Poppy on the right and to be determined seedlings on the left.

statice

Statice in bloom

pink zinnia

Zinnia. The plant looks shabby, but the flowers continue to bloom

unidentified planted objects

Unidentified planted objects

mexican sage

The Mexican Sage reminds me of a purple caterpillar

lemons

Lemon scented holidays

Here is a shot of the little tomato that could, a self-sown seedling growing from a crack in the steps. Yep…tomato plants in December.

tomato volunteer

Self-sown tomato making a go of it out of the side of the concrete steps

During this hectic time of year, I hope you can find a few moments to enjoy what nature has to offer.

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Goofing Off

selfie

Selfie with Silicon Valley in the background

It’s a holiday in the US today, more specifically President’s Day.  The boys are out of school, Mike’s home from work and the sun is shining.

We desperately, desperately, desperately need the rain and this is the month we get the most of it.  That said, it’s hard not to enjoy such a clear, bright warm day.

We hiked at Almaden Quicksilver, and enjoyed the bits of green along the trails edge thanks to some recent rain.  The California Poppies are up as well.  We hiked mid-day, a terrible time for decent photos, but I hope to go back soon to snap some shots while the poppies are still in bloom.

In case you think I’m a complete deadbeat, I did a lot of digging, pruning, weeding and planning over the weekend and will share more with you later in the week.

See you then!

orange poppies

California Poppies (October 2013)

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A Case of Mistaken Identity

Well I’m embarrassed! Yesterday I posted a photo thinking it was a carrot about to bloom. Imagine my surprise today to find this beautiful California poppy flowering away in the sun.

Yep! That's a Poppy

For starters, I’ve never planted poppies. It’s our state flower and we’re not supposed to pick them. I worried that if I planted poppies I would be tempted to snip a few blooms to bring indoors. I’m no law-breaker!

Closing Up Shop for the Night

We planted carrot seeds last summer. That they never grew is irrelevant. If I’ve learned anything, it’s that nature has her own schedule. When the foliage first appeared at the soil line, I dug down with a finger and discovered an orange-colored root. I was sure it was a carrot. I looked up “carrot foliage” today and it does resemble our fair flower.

Buds and Greens

It’s not that I’m disappointed to have our beautiful state flower in bloom, but that I was so convinced it was otherwise.   I snapped a few photos late in the day, but the skies were clouding over so the lovely bloom was already closing up shop.

Never a dull moment in the garden.