Spring is Here (I Think)

Spring blooms

White blossoms

Blooming in my neighbor's yard.

A riot of flowers

Spring has arrived here in the Mojave Desert. The mulberries and cottonwoods are leafing out. I'm seeing more rabbits; both cottontails and jackrabbits. No baby quail yet though. Saw a roadrunner running across the road yesterday. Hence the name I suppose.

We got more pallets so we can make a chicken coop and raised beds. The chickens are already growing at a friend's house. So we need to get the hen house built. So much to do all of a sudden!

Our neighbor's cherry and plum trees are full of blossoms. Hope springs eternal for me every spring. Last year's gardening failures are forgotten but lessons learned. Time to plant.

We spent a lot of time pruning my neighbor's fruit trees. Now they are blooming like crazy. I just wish I could remember which ones are plums and which ones are cherries. Or maybe there is an apple tree in there.

The garlic I planted last October

Me in the eucalyptus grove

Mulberry tree leafing out

Prunus species

June Gardening Update

June has been a rough gardening month. A week of temps in the 100's and I just can't water 3 times a day. The only sunflower that has done really well was a volunteer wild sunflower with multiple buds on it right now.

The gourds are finally making progress. My garden would be fine if I had big bucks to throw into it, but I don't. I could do a lot with about 20 extra large bags of potting mix and about a mile of new hoses including soak hoses and enough wood to make raised beds like I wanted to do in the first place. I about cried when the local farmer's market guy suggested putting all my plants in containers. I was finally glad to have a huge yard and get out of the city so I could grow things in the ground! I had enough container gardening in Anaheim.  And I'm sure I sounded exasperated when I told him I was trying to get away from container gardening.

On the good side, my portulaca just bloomed. The first flower was yellow, and came and went before I got a photo of it. But there are more buds. The pepper has one fruit on it. The best growing tomato bush has new yellow flowers. I think it's the small yellow pear tomatoes on that one. But I moved them so many times to protect them from the rabbits that I've lost track.

So, I made some ant posters. At least the insects, which come in great varieties, have been entertaining.

Teamwork

Guy putting up an awning before we melt.

Morning Glories

Yesterday I finally got the morning glory seedlings planted along with some bush beans.  The wind was blowing and sand kept getting in my eyes, but I had to get it done as I had soaked the seeds over night and I didn't want them to rot. I still have lots to plant but I'm running out of season and the hot weather is starting to be oppressive.

Last week I also planted coleus and snapdragons around the pepper plant containers. 

Here are some recent sunset photos. The view from my yard is stunning.

Creasote Puff Balls

Joshua Trees are native to the Lucerne Valley

Mojave layers

Pink Sun

Gorgeous Sunset

Better Boy Tomatoes Planted

Today I took the big tub we repurposed from the old washing machine and used it to plant Better Boy tomatoes in. I filled it with about 6” of gravel for drainage, and then mixed 2 bags of potting soil and sand together leaving plenty of space at the top to hold water for the tomatoes. I made sure I placed it where I wanted it first because it is going to be way too heavy to move. Previous tenants had horses, so the whole yard is pretty much full of decomposed manure which should help the garden immensely.

I can hear the baby birds that have hatched over the light fixture on my porch. 

The lizards have also come out to play. These are bigger lizards than the ones I’ve seen here so far. But they are so fast I’ve yet to get a photo.

In front of the porch, I pulled out a bedding plant that was killed by the frost and replaced it with a yellow pear tomato. I visualize sitting on the porch in late summer munching on tiny yellow tomatoes.

I refilled the hummingbird feeder. And I ordered the hummingbird feeding tubes from Ebay yesterday so I can make my own feeders from soda bottles. I got some red silk flowers at the Dollar Tree to put on the end of the glass tubes to make them prettier and to attract hummingbirds. I need to finish the hummingbird feeder so it is ready for the tubes when they get here.

When I was watering the pepper plants, one looked funny. Its been in the ground one day and something ate the top half of it off. Meh. 

Gardening requires a lot of faith. Sometimes I succeed beyond my wildest dreams. Other times it is a fail, but almost always I come out way ahead overall. 

First successful seedlings at my new home.

Sunflower Seedlings