Garden Variety

We're coming up upon the second anniversary of the garden re-do. I thought I'd share some pics of the front yard. I must say, it's come along after the horrible freeze that left me wondering if everything was going to have to be replaced.Our view as we drive up to the house.
Every flowering plant is a yellow, red or orange color of some sort. Lantanas.The one pink. The bouganvillea like the one at my parent's house. If any of you are in my home town and go by there, could you tell me if it's still there. I've heard the new owners have made some changes. Lantana and Palo Verde tree.Mexican Bird of Paradise and Century Agave. I was trying to capture the layers of color and texture of the plants. I found another 5 agave pups sprouting. Let me know if you're local and want one/some. They're free to a good home.Mexican Bird of Paradise and Popcorn plant.
Desert Marigolds, agaves and Lantana. It took several attempts to have any success with the fickle, native Desert Marigolds in the garden. Some of them had to get replaced a couple of times. Once some bloomed you could say I "bombed" the garden with the dead heads. They sprouted eveywhere. These agaves have been dwarfed but they're hardy and I'll pull some of the marigolds from this corner at some point. I'm contemplating "bombing" the neighbor with the dirt yard...I'm not sure if I'm doing this right. I pulled some spearmint and am drying it. The herbs are growing like crazy!We were so excited when we saw pink!The pink was "allowed" as long as it contrasted against the blue wall. The blue has faded in the desert sun but it's still super vibrant. Just the way I like it.Imagine these as foot tall sticks. That how the Orange Bell started out the spring once they got their winter death trim. They've shot up and almost obliterated the illegal, butt ugly fence next store.
I absolutely love this! A recipe called for green onions. Went out into the backyard planter and pulled some. Cashew Chicken for dinner last night.
Thanks for visiting our little casita. ¡Hasta luego!
Marissa

The Pleasure of Spring

I'm here! It's weird... I haven't felt like I've had anything to say. Last week was a mess. If I did have much to say, it was best I kept it close to myself. Our teaching schedule was changed due to AIMS testing. That was workable. Then we find out at the last minute that we're expected to have classes outdoors leading different activities with the students.

Oh my g-d! With a Thursday deadline to have all 2-dimensional art work ready for our yearly exhibit, I was completely stressed. I was fried after one day in the sun. Then it was running around after work with the Chicklet. I wasn't handling the stress well.

A huge stress reliever is coming home and enjoying the garden. Everything is growing and blooming.The popcorn plant has grown so big I had to trim a few branches down. I saw one recently that was well over 5' high. The Chicklet has already reached my height, don't think I'll let the plant beat me too!The Palo Verde is full of buds. In the foreground to the left is a speck of a Desert Marigold. a replacement for the ones that didn't survive.The Ice Plants have exploded in size and color! We replaced another four and they've started to bloom as well. Kenny, the Sharkskin Agave, is holding steady. It's hard to measure his growth but his first offspring was dug up and sent to his new home. We have 4 more Sharkskin "babies" en route.The Chicklet and I love coming home to these. Sometimes we make it before they close, sometimes, not. They're different for the neighborhood and we've gotten some questions and compliments.We set up shop in the carport a few weekends ago. The Chicklet and a fellow Girl Scout came over and we worked on their Clay and Ceramics Badge. They worked on making tiles from clay slabs for one of the activities. We took some cuttings from various plants and trees in the garden and pressed them into the clay. They were fired this week. Can't wait to glaze them in the next week or two.
Marissa