Even though we haven't had any frost yet, the vegetables look pretty dead. The tomatoes and peppers are wilting. The strawberries from last year are already drying up. Only this year's growth is healthy.
Beans are drying up before they can grow pods, same with the peas. I'm not sure what is going on. The only thing we were able to successfully grow this year were the peppers.
The jujube tree in the front yard already lost all its leaves. The quince is still holding strong. The apricots look tired and so does the plum and peach tree. Even the grass is turning yellow. The grass only looked lush green for a week in late July when I returned from my roadtrip.
The small acacias are all growing new leaves and should be fine for another month.
The only thing that is doing well are the root vegetables. Even the potatoes seem to be in hibernation.
Sunday, September 20, 2009
Friday, September 11, 2009
It's a Texas Mountain Laurel!
The little sapling is a Texas Mountain Laurel. Two, in fact. And now there's a third sapling growing in the same area that may have to be transplanted. That seed must have been in the soil since last year as I don't remember planting any of those this year. They are not easy to grow, and the spot they are in is a stubborn spot for plants; a small rosebush five years ago died and the spot's been empty since.
The little horned toad that I keep seeing in the front yard had babies. I saw one little baby hop along the perimeter fence yesterday afternoon. I hope the little guy makes it into adulthood.
My tomatoes continue to rot on the vine. Green peppers are ripening, strawberries keep growing new runners and the garden's keeping me busy, but I must say that this year's harvest seems puny compared to last year.
My quine tree's leaves are starting to turn yellow, but so far that's the first sign of autumn approaching. The lantanas are still in bright bloom and spreading nicely. I should have at least one more month of color in the front yard.
I hope we get that rain tomorrow as forecasted. The oleander along the eastern fence are starting to show drought stress.
The little horned toad that I keep seeing in the front yard had babies. I saw one little baby hop along the perimeter fence yesterday afternoon. I hope the little guy makes it into adulthood.
My tomatoes continue to rot on the vine. Green peppers are ripening, strawberries keep growing new runners and the garden's keeping me busy, but I must say that this year's harvest seems puny compared to last year.
My quine tree's leaves are starting to turn yellow, but so far that's the first sign of autumn approaching. The lantanas are still in bright bloom and spreading nicely. I should have at least one more month of color in the front yard.
I hope we get that rain tomorrow as forecasted. The oleander along the eastern fence are starting to show drought stress.
Thursday, September 3, 2009
There's a sapling growing in my front yard!
And, unfortunately, I don't remember what I planted there.
I actually have two saplings coming up in the front yard, in different locations. It's either a mimosa or a palo verde.
I really like my front yard this year. Although I am saddened by the loss of my feathery Lindheineri, I will plant them anew next spring in a different location, some place more isolated so that their graceful stems can flow more freely in the wind.
I actually have two saplings coming up in the front yard, in different locations. It's either a mimosa or a palo verde.
I really like my front yard this year. Although I am saddened by the loss of my feathery Lindheineri, I will plant them anew next spring in a different location, some place more isolated so that their graceful stems can flow more freely in the wind.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Agaves, Yuccas and Red Birds of Paradise
My front yard is slowly turning into a drought-tolerant garden. I now have over 13 agaves growing there, most of them year-old offshots of parent plants. Five years ago I had five agaves.
The African daisies are slowly dying off. As perenials they have lived their normal lifespan of four to five years. A few newer plants are still thriving and most likely will go to seed, but I am no longer wishing for more new growth. I feel about African daisies as I do about the coreopsis: they are prettier in someone else's yard.
The garden is clearly in transition, just as I wanted. I don't want petunias or zinnias growing, plants that need more water than the lavender, salvias, lantana, verbena, orange honeysuckle, penstemons and Red and Yellow Birds of Paradise. What is growing there now are all offspring, or young seedlings from fresh seed, most of them strays. I have done little to the front yard this year as far as planting new bushes. (The exception was yesterday's transplanting of agave offshoots) and the natural look seems more attractive, more normal in this high desert. I have the showiest front yard in the street. The red, yellow and orange lantana are getting large enough to demand attention. The black swallowtail butterflies love those flowers.
The desert willow seedling that found a home near the four-year-old mesquite tree is now six inches tall. By the end of the year it will be a foot tall; next year it will be three feet tall. There are also various seedlings from the blue and yellow palo verde showing themselves throughout the gravel. In another five years the front yard will be canopied in various feathery shade shrubs and trees, just as I like it to be.
My one concern is my older yucca. It has brown spots on its older leaves. I've cut off the fungal spots and am keeping an eye out on it for the next year. The yuccca is now about three feet tall and four years old, planted in the spring of 2005 when I was conducting all kinds of experiments in the front yard.
It looks like Hurricane Jimena is going to bring rain this way by the weekend. I hope so, as the Bermuda grass is drying up again.
As for the vegetables, it's been a dismal harvest. Only the green peppers seem to have done well. Tomatoes, squash, carrots are rotting or growing mold before they are ready to be picked. This fall I'm going to do a thorough fertilization and organic treatment of the beds.
The African daisies are slowly dying off. As perenials they have lived their normal lifespan of four to five years. A few newer plants are still thriving and most likely will go to seed, but I am no longer wishing for more new growth. I feel about African daisies as I do about the coreopsis: they are prettier in someone else's yard.
The garden is clearly in transition, just as I wanted. I don't want petunias or zinnias growing, plants that need more water than the lavender, salvias, lantana, verbena, orange honeysuckle, penstemons and Red and Yellow Birds of Paradise. What is growing there now are all offspring, or young seedlings from fresh seed, most of them strays. I have done little to the front yard this year as far as planting new bushes. (The exception was yesterday's transplanting of agave offshoots) and the natural look seems more attractive, more normal in this high desert. I have the showiest front yard in the street. The red, yellow and orange lantana are getting large enough to demand attention. The black swallowtail butterflies love those flowers.
The desert willow seedling that found a home near the four-year-old mesquite tree is now six inches tall. By the end of the year it will be a foot tall; next year it will be three feet tall. There are also various seedlings from the blue and yellow palo verde showing themselves throughout the gravel. In another five years the front yard will be canopied in various feathery shade shrubs and trees, just as I like it to be.
My one concern is my older yucca. It has brown spots on its older leaves. I've cut off the fungal spots and am keeping an eye out on it for the next year. The yuccca is now about three feet tall and four years old, planted in the spring of 2005 when I was conducting all kinds of experiments in the front yard.
It looks like Hurricane Jimena is going to bring rain this way by the weekend. I hope so, as the Bermuda grass is drying up again.
As for the vegetables, it's been a dismal harvest. Only the green peppers seem to have done well. Tomatoes, squash, carrots are rotting or growing mold before they are ready to be picked. This fall I'm going to do a thorough fertilization and organic treatment of the beds.
Sunday, August 30, 2009
Potato aphids
I discovered several stalks of these pesky red bugs on one of my potato plants. I cut the entire stalk down from where the aphids were. The cut stalk went to the garbage dump, and the aphids came to life in the blazing sun. Hahaha those guys had been in the comfortable shade and now they are going to die in the heat like the rest of this garden.
There's a Cat4 hurricane off the Baja California coast. Hopefully in another week we can get some rain off of that one.
There's a Cat4 hurricane off the Baja California coast. Hopefully in another week we can get some rain off of that one.
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Monsoonal rebloom
My yellow palo verde has regrown its leaves. The orange honeysuckle is now in bright orange bloom as well as the Texas sage. Two days of intermittent rain was all it took. Even my potato bush is finally blooming its purple blossoms.
Our Bermuda grass is lush green across the yard.
I volunteered at the county extension office again yesterday for 3.5 hours. It was steady work, from knowing why an apple tree's leaves are curling upward to black spots on cherry leaves or how to determine a ripe watermelon. I probably won't be volunteering as much now that school's back in session.
While I was at the office an elderly woman came by to donate her young fruitless mulberry tree. "I'm sure someone will want to take it home" said Joyce, the UA office manager, and that "someone" was me. Now I have TWO potted mulberries in my front yard. The new one has two cutoff branches. The elderly woman told me she uprooted it because it was growing under a rose bush and her husband had twice cut its branches back. These trees are fast growers and make excellent shade trees, but does our yard have room for one more tree?
The stray willow tree popping up on the west side of the house will be competing with the larger mesquite tree nearby in another five years. If anything, we won't be lacking shade on the southwestern side of the house!
I stopped at KMart after my volunteer shift and bought a bunch of plastic containers for 75% off. Garden stores in town are discounting all their garden ware; something that didn't happen until Labor Day weekend.
The puncture vine is still growing rather profusely in the back yard. Just when I think I've pulled an entire patch of that stuff, new yellow flowers pop up elsewhere. It's a never ending chore!
Today I planted two more small strawberry transplants. That's fine with me because I also picked up four more long planters ideal for the strawberries, from KMart. We are going to be feasting on those luscious fruits next summer. (Well, at least I will be).
Our Bermuda grass is lush green across the yard.
I volunteered at the county extension office again yesterday for 3.5 hours. It was steady work, from knowing why an apple tree's leaves are curling upward to black spots on cherry leaves or how to determine a ripe watermelon. I probably won't be volunteering as much now that school's back in session.
While I was at the office an elderly woman came by to donate her young fruitless mulberry tree. "I'm sure someone will want to take it home" said Joyce, the UA office manager, and that "someone" was me. Now I have TWO potted mulberries in my front yard. The new one has two cutoff branches. The elderly woman told me she uprooted it because it was growing under a rose bush and her husband had twice cut its branches back. These trees are fast growers and make excellent shade trees, but does our yard have room for one more tree?
The stray willow tree popping up on the west side of the house will be competing with the larger mesquite tree nearby in another five years. If anything, we won't be lacking shade on the southwestern side of the house!
I stopped at KMart after my volunteer shift and bought a bunch of plastic containers for 75% off. Garden stores in town are discounting all their garden ware; something that didn't happen until Labor Day weekend.
The puncture vine is still growing rather profusely in the back yard. Just when I think I've pulled an entire patch of that stuff, new yellow flowers pop up elsewhere. It's a never ending chore!
Today I planted two more small strawberry transplants. That's fine with me because I also picked up four more long planters ideal for the strawberries, from KMart. We are going to be feasting on those luscious fruits next summer. (Well, at least I will be).
Saturday, August 22, 2009
Our first decent monsoonal rain
Rain fell hard, as forecasted, late yesterday afternoon. Once the rain started just before sun set, it lingered for hours afterwards. That is why by 7am I was out pulling weeds, then bought three large Thompson seedless vines. Kevin dug the holes, I watered the hole. Tomorrow the grapes will get planted. They are going between two photonias against our northern wall.
More rain is forecasted today and Sunday, but sofar the skies have been clear.
The yellow palo verde is growing new leaves now that it's gotten more rain. I scattered a bunch of palo verde seeds along the eastern perimeter. Just like with my Red Birds of Paradise, if one seed out of 50 germinates, I will be happy.
I'm not planting anything new in the front yard unless it's a stray or from seed.
One of my Engleman prickly pears has Phyllosticta pad spot, which I treated with Neem. I scraped as much of the black "stuff" off. I hope I can save the plant.
___
Sat
1
OBSERVED
Hi
101°F
Lo
70°F
Precip (in)
0in.
2
OBSERVED
Hi
97°F
Lo
72°F
Precip (in)
0.01in.
3
OBSERVED
Hi
100°F
Lo
68°F
Precip (in)
0in. -- row 2 --
4
OBSERVED
Hi
101°F
Lo
69°F
Precip (in)
0.01in. -- row 2 --
5
OBSERVED
Hi
99°F
Lo
71°F
Precip (in)
0in. -- row 2 --
6
OBSERVED
Hi
97°F
Lo
74°F
Precip (in)
0in. -- row 2 --
7
OBSERVED
Hi
98°F
Lo
68°F
Precip (in)
0in. -- row 2 --
8
OBSERVED
Hi
95°F
Lo
67°F
Precip (in)
0in.
-- row 2 --
9
OBSERVED
Hi
95°F
Lo
63°F
Precip (in)
0in. -- row 2 --
10
OBSERVED
Hi
94°F
Lo
68°F
Precip (in)
0in. -- row 2 --
11
OBSERVED
Hi
96°F
Lo
71°F
Precip (in)
0in. -- row 2 --
12
OBSERVED
Hi
94°F
Lo
68°F
Precip (in)
0.28in. -- row 2 --
13
OBSERVED
Hi
83°F
Lo
66°F
Precip (in)
1.16in. -- row 2 --
14
OBSERVED
Hi
89°F
Lo
66°F
Precip (in)
0in. -- row 2 --
15
OBSERVED
Hi
94°F
Lo
67°F
Precip (in)
0in.
-- row 2 --
16
OBSERVED
Hi
95°F
Lo
67°F
Precip (in)
0in. -- row 2 --
17
OBSERVED
Hi
97°F
Lo
65°F
Precip (in)
0in. -- row 2 --
18
OBSERVED
Hi
98°F
Lo
68°F
Precip (in)
0in. -- row 2 --
19
OBSERVED
Hi
97°F
Lo
68°F
Precip (in)
0in. -- row 2 --
20
OBSERVED
Hi
99°F
Lo
68°F
Precip (in)
0in.
21
OBSERVED
Hi
96°F
Lo
68°F
Precip (in)
0.10in.
Today
Hi
76°F
Lo
66°F
Precip
40 %
-- row 2 --
23
Hi
86°F
Lo
67°F
Precip
40 %
-- row 2 --
24
Hi
83°F
Lo
66°F
Precip
30 %
-- row 2 --
25
Hi
83°F
Lo
65°F
Precip
30 %
-- row 2 --
26
Hi
89°F
Lo
66°F
Precip
10 %
-- row 2 --
27
Hi
91°F
Lo
68°F
Precip
10 %
-- row 2 --
28
Hi
92°F
Lo
68°F
Precip
10 %
-- row 2 --
29
Hi
89°F
Lo
69°F
Precip
10 %
-- row 2 --
30
Hi
91°F
Lo
68°F
Precip
30 %
31
Hi
92°F
Lo
71°F
Precip
10 %
More rain is forecasted today and Sunday, but sofar the skies have been clear.
The yellow palo verde is growing new leaves now that it's gotten more rain. I scattered a bunch of palo verde seeds along the eastern perimeter. Just like with my Red Birds of Paradise, if one seed out of 50 germinates, I will be happy.
I'm not planting anything new in the front yard unless it's a stray or from seed.
One of my Engleman prickly pears has Phyllosticta pad spot, which I treated with Neem. I scraped as much of the black "stuff" off. I hope I can save the plant.
___
Sat
1
OBSERVED
Hi
101°F
Lo
70°F
Precip (in)
0in.
2
OBSERVED
Hi
97°F
Lo
72°F
Precip (in)
0.01in.
3
OBSERVED
Hi
100°F
Lo
68°F
Precip (in)
0in. -- row 2 --
4
OBSERVED
Hi
101°F
Lo
69°F
Precip (in)
0.01in. -- row 2 --
5
OBSERVED
Hi
99°F
Lo
71°F
Precip (in)
0in. -- row 2 --
6
OBSERVED
Hi
97°F
Lo
74°F
Precip (in)
0in. -- row 2 --
7
OBSERVED
Hi
98°F
Lo
68°F
Precip (in)
0in. -- row 2 --
8
OBSERVED
Hi
95°F
Lo
67°F
Precip (in)
0in.
-- row 2 --
9
OBSERVED
Hi
95°F
Lo
63°F
Precip (in)
0in. -- row 2 --
10
OBSERVED
Hi
94°F
Lo
68°F
Precip (in)
0in. -- row 2 --
11
OBSERVED
Hi
96°F
Lo
71°F
Precip (in)
0in. -- row 2 --
12
OBSERVED
Hi
94°F
Lo
68°F
Precip (in)
0.28in. -- row 2 --
13
OBSERVED
Hi
83°F
Lo
66°F
Precip (in)
1.16in. -- row 2 --
14
OBSERVED
Hi
89°F
Lo
66°F
Precip (in)
0in. -- row 2 --
15
OBSERVED
Hi
94°F
Lo
67°F
Precip (in)
0in.
-- row 2 --
16
OBSERVED
Hi
95°F
Lo
67°F
Precip (in)
0in. -- row 2 --
17
OBSERVED
Hi
97°F
Lo
65°F
Precip (in)
0in. -- row 2 --
18
OBSERVED
Hi
98°F
Lo
68°F
Precip (in)
0in. -- row 2 --
19
OBSERVED
Hi
97°F
Lo
68°F
Precip (in)
0in. -- row 2 --
20
OBSERVED
Hi
99°F
Lo
68°F
Precip (in)
0in.
21
OBSERVED
Hi
96°F
Lo
68°F
Precip (in)
0.10in.
Today
Hi
76°F
Lo
66°F
Precip
40 %
-- row 2 --
23
Hi
86°F
Lo
67°F
Precip
40 %
-- row 2 --
24
Hi
83°F
Lo
66°F
Precip
30 %
-- row 2 --
25
Hi
83°F
Lo
65°F
Precip
30 %
-- row 2 --
26
Hi
89°F
Lo
66°F
Precip
10 %
-- row 2 --
27
Hi
91°F
Lo
68°F
Precip
10 %
-- row 2 --
28
Hi
92°F
Lo
68°F
Precip
10 %
-- row 2 --
29
Hi
89°F
Lo
69°F
Precip
10 %
-- row 2 --
30
Hi
91°F
Lo
68°F
Precip
30 %
31
Hi
92°F
Lo
71°F
Precip
10 %
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)