June 20, 2026 by Born To Organize

Summer Solstice Garden

The summer solstice arrives in a matter of hours here on the Pacific Coast, allowing for more daylight hours in the garden. I stepped out earlier this morning to take a few photos while the light was just so. I enjoyed the quiet, for the most part, but a male hummingbird took offense at my presence and kept flying so close to my ear that I could feel and hear his vibrating wings. He eventually tired of his warning flights and settled in at the feeder that Mike lovingly attends.

A hummingbird perched on a red feeder, sipping nectar from a flower-shaped opening.

These sunflowers are filling the corner vacated last year when we removed the invasive wisteria. The transplanted succulents are doing well there, though one of them got a bit scorched in the last heatwave. Deeply scented gardenias are flourishing, apparently enjoying the additional filtered light. It’s emerging as a lovely corner in the front garden.

Bright perennials fill the garden’s center by June, with most of the spring bulbs and annuals past their prime. Pink gladioli are fanning out from places I’m sure I didn’t plant, creating a hodgepodge of pink throughout the garden. I don’t mind a bit.

The Russian sage needs a good dressing of worm castings to improve the soil, but it’s a pretty purple nonetheless.

Close-up view of vibrant purple flowers with fuzzy textures, surrounded by green foliage.

I had a surreptitious visit with my secret strawberry patch. I haven’t deliberately planted them for a few years, as they rarely do well. Last year, a plant appeared in the front garden under a sage shrub. Over the winter, it sent out a runner, and now we have two plants.

We shared one strawberry in May, didn’t get to the second or third berry before an unknown critter, and we have a chance at one more today. Oh my goodness, it’s the little things that make me smile.

In the “be careful what you wish for” category, we’ve harvested pounds of apricots from our grafted tree, so laden with fruit this year that I had to support one of the limbs with a garden trellis. I’ll write more about the tree soon.

As the seasons change on both sides of the world, I hope you’re finding ways to enjoy the outdoors or to pursue a craft. Immersive reading is a great escape as well. We enjoy Netflix in the evening, laughing at an hour of standup comedy or diving in to a great mystery or of late, The Other Bennet Sister from the BBC.

Here’s one more garden gallery:

June 19, 2014 by Born To Organize

Strawberries After All

Strawberries after all

After complaining about the ant invasion in our strawberry patch, I’m happy to be eating my words. I reached in to the dense green foliage of the strawberry patch and came up with the perfect berry: ripe, bright red and ready to eat. The ants moved on, preferring the cast-offs from the fruit tree. The rats and squirrels eat half, then dump the rest for the ants and the fruit flies.

No matter. I gathered the berries the snails missed, and put them to good use that night. The day before, I read Strawberry glut daiquiri at Promenade Plantings.

I’m not much of a drinker, unless you count water and tea, but this sounded really good. We actually had white rum and lime in the house, so it all seemed serendipitous. If you have your own glut of strawberries and you like the occasional fruity drink with a kick, this drink is delicious.

What else can you do with all those strawberries?

Check out these suggestions from my blogging community:

Please drink responsibly.

June 4, 2014 by Born To Organize

The Fruits of my Obsession

Okay, I’m exaggerating a little, but I do tend to fuss and fret over the fruit growing in our garden. Since the rats, birds, ants, snails and squirrels take their share, I’ve realized that volume is key. If your plants produce, say, five strawberries, chances are slim that you’ll be able to harvest any for yourself. On the other hand, dozens of strawberries, oranges, raspberries or plums make for a fruitful harvest. Hence, my fruitful obsession.

This is year five in the garden for our 4-in-1 fruit cocktail tree. All the pruning I did years two through four has paid off. We have a bumper crop this year from two of the four grafts.

Apricots

Plums

Lone Peach

Four grafts (the small ‘twig’ should be a nectarine)

One of the grafts died early on, but I recently learned from my friend Doug that we can re-graft! That was a bit of good news. The apricots and plums look great. The peach graft suffered leaf curl this year. So far only one, rock-hard peach.

We’ll still have plenty of fruit to eat and share, so that is pretty exciting.

Our 25-year-old orange tree is covered in fruit year round. The oranges are no longer sweet enough to eat alone, but my boys love making fresh-squeezed orange juice. We’re also doing our part to keep the neighborhood rats from getting scurvy. They have their own little health clinic in the backyard.

Orange tree

Tree Rat

After several dismal years with the blueberry plant, I’m seeing signs of honest to goodness fruit this year. In addition to being tasty, blueberries are loaded with high antioxidants.

Blueberries beginning to form

A few strawberry plants jumped from the box and continue to happily grow in the nearby gravel. Thanks to composting, they’re surrounded by volunteer potato plants. It looks like a party out there with the gorgeous greens, reds and lavender.

Strawberries and potatoes

The early heat sent our raspberries into overdrive. They’re pumping out flowers and fruit, in addition to providing nectar for the hummingbirds. I’ve seen the little hummers sipping nectar twice from the white flowers, but didn’t have my camera in tow. I’m happy to see them enjoying the flowers; we’re happily enjoying the fruits of my obsession.

My oldest son turns 17 today. Happy Birthday, C!

A wee birthday celebration in the fairy garden

July 6, 2012 by Born To Organize

Bonnie’s Organic Strawberry Patch

Our strawberries are popping out lush, red fruit daily. They are delicious, and as yet, untouched by garden pests. I only planted three plants and had a fourth come back from last summer. Now I wish I had planted more. Next year…