Gardeners Can Get Sooooo Excited

And , this gardener is really excited about seeing buds on her Moon Flower vine !

Never have I planted Moon Flower seeds in the past .  I think I planted these seeds in August and I have been attentively watching for signs of buds following the growth of healthy long vines that seemed to be reaching for the sky on the Moon Flowers .

 

And, now I get to "wait and see" what is to come next .

Yes, just one fig from the fig tree this year , as I had expected following the severe pruning I did last year.  But , I don't understand why there was just one , not two , three or four , but just ONE!  What kind of a message was I suppose to get from that ?

It was my plan to have a smaller tree because it was  growing to a size that was too large for the area where I planted it and casting to much shade in the White Garden.  And, look what I have now !  IT IS HUGE .  It may be that it received more water this year when I faithfully hand watered my gardens .

I think the phase  "The best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry" is very fitting for this situation.

The Fig Tree leaves are starting to turn yellow and are beginning to fall along with the leaves from lots of the other trees .  And, may I say the "dreaded pine needles" that have come down with the recent California fall winds are blanketing the flower beds, driveway and patio .  I have already started RAKING LEAVES and have a few barrels ready to go to the Yard Waste facility . I guess the time I have spent watering the garden in the warmer weather will now be spent raking leaves !  And, that will be fine because I love being outdoors BUT I am feeling very tired .

I have got to get my energy level back up .  After the current medical issues are resolved I am seriously considering to start the use of CBD Cannabidiol Hemp oil .  Maybe it would help with the chronic back pain also .  I have been reading a lot of opinions on the blogs of personal experiences in the use of it .  Lots and lots of information is now available . And, I guess I will also discuss it with my doctor . Their attitude seems to be "try it and see if it helps".  I'll let you know how this rolls out ! And, do any of you have any thoughts you would like to share with me on this subject .  I would appreciate hearing .  My email is everydaydelight09@gmail.com .

Until Next Time .

Mary

Well - Hello There

And ,  How Are You?   My name is EDGAR and I have found a new home in this beautiful bottle tree house .   Look, there is more -

This is a very good place for me because it is sheltered against the wind and it is somewhat hidden so any young humans that may think of a little mischief don't know I am here !

And , it won't be long before all those figs in the Fig Tree behind me will be ripe and ready for some sweet pleasure eating !

Those figs are everywhere !

 With this super hot weather it won't be long before they will be soft, purple and juicy .

This year the tree is huge even though I trimmed it quite severely last fall .  Perhaps the daily hand watering of the garden has coaxed it to exceed all expectations .

A couple more photos that may be of interest .  On the right of the photo you can see the trunk at the base of the Fig Tree .  Now notice the large roots growing on the surface of the ground.

I have never seen anything like that before .   I think it is like that because the ground is filled with so much rock .   Yes, it is my NEMESIS again !  THE ROCK .
It trails out in all directions .  At least I know the Fig Tree is on my side and isn't a quitter !

I am beginning to marvel at the fact that there is any semblance of a garden here especially since there has never been a professional landscaping company involved which would mean that loads and loads of rich soil would be trucked in .  The piles of nice dirt  (only a gardener would call dirt - nice.  Am I right ?)  were so tall and so many that I could not see over them .  I saw that with two of my neighbors, one across the street and one next door to my house .

How about a little trivia for you  .  There is evidence of a mine (probably gold)  on my property. Actually close to where the blue bottle tree is planted.  For the longest time my plants would disappear .  YES, just disappear !   And, after some PI work on my behalf, I could see that I could not see ( how do you like that combination of words) the bottom of a very large hole and it was surrounded with a lot of very very large rock .  So, you know of my overabundance of unwanted rock.  Well, I just started throwing the rock down the big hole.  Eventually, my plants stopped disappearing! The mine is on the property line and I could see some openings on the other side .  For the longest time it was the home of a family of skunks . YES, SKUNKS. One night I looked out my living room window with a flashlight and I saw a Mama Skunk and eight little babies trailing behind her coming out of their home .  Living with nature is grand !

Oh, another piece of trivia.  Since, my house is the first house on the block that is outside of the original 1800's Township this property was used as the town dump !  Yes, you heard me right !

So, it is quite unique and surprising that I have my gardens and without professional landscaping.

Just one more comment.  The largest item I have dug up was a large bed spring .  And, there still are many odd shapes of metal poking out of the ground.

WOW, I really got on a roll, didn't I ?

Next time I'll tell you about last nights vandalizing in my neighborhood .  Interesting that I would write about "human mischief" at the beginning of this post before I even knew there was any such issue here at my home and the neighbors !

The end,  yes, really !  Be Good .  No mischief, OK ?

Mary

Gladiolus Serviving The Heat Wave And Gushing Water Valve

Loveliness rules! In spite of the horrendous heat wave  I have been able to save the Gladiolus with the aid of a little sun protection.

It looks like there will be at least 12 long stems of White Gladiolus this year. When I bought the bulbs the package showed white flowers with a deep red center.

But, it looks like they are going to be all white and that is just fine. The bulbs were from Van Bloem Gardens and named Flevo Eyes. I don't see any red in the flower throat! This is the first time that something like this has happened in all the time I have been gardening. Probably packaged incorrectly. Little surprises! ! !

 They look so tall and majestic - - - don't they?

Gosh, I sure love my garden. It gives me so much comfort. The year has been so very difficult for me in many ways and I am so grateful for the pleasure my garden gives me

Yesterday I was able to buy some more planting mix, garden soil and peat moss so I can work in some more flower beds that need some invigorating.  The clay and rocky soil is so difficult to work with. For optimum results the garden needs a lot more amendments.

As I previously mentioned, the Fig Tree is huge. We can't even see the Angel Statuary at the base of the tree in this photo. It has really grown a lot since last year. And it looks like there will be a lot of fruit. I noticed the Blue Jay birds showing more interest in the tree lately. It is time for me to put up some silver reflective tape to deter their interest.

All the rains this past year have certainly given a pleasant dimension to the garden this year.  Everything is looking healthier and more abundant. So nice!

😟  Lately, it seems like each day I am faced with a new challenge. Today was no different. About mid-day I heard what sounded like water running forcefully. I quickly went outside to the main water valve on the side of the house to find lots of water gushing from a PVC water pipe valve next to the main valve. It is the valve pictured at the bottom of the next photo where you can see the red lever. It was installed years ago for the sprinkler system. 

This is the opening where the water was gushing from. This black pug was forced out and landed on the sidewalk. It looked like it had been glued in with PVC cement.

So, at this point, I am without water until a new valve is installed!  Stay tuned ! ! !

I'm tired and going to bed!

Mary