Cool, windy, rain

Memorial weekend started out okay here, cooler and a bit breezy but sunny.  By Sunday it was windy and cloudy, last night we got some rain and this morning it was cloudy and cool still.  Gracie was shivering and wondering where the sun was and why the heck we didn't fire up the furnace.






This morning I was sitting on the love seat admiring one of my orchids and decided you all needed to see it too.  It is just so regal and holding onto its blooms a long time.

More Garden Pictures

The rest of last posts garden pictures.  It was getting too big and was acting crazy.

We are having great weather for this holiday weekend and we are staying home.

Monarda

different view of the veggies and a pretty spirea in the foreground

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Garden update

I took a bunch of pictures of the garden so you could see how big everything is already.  The asian pear tree is loaded with fruit, last year we could hardly find any, my bee balm otherwise known as monarda is almost five feet tall, crazy big.  




















I had bought a pot of blooming lilies last year, there were 5 and they were only about a foot tall, I didn't know where I wanted them but I stuck them into the clematis/gladioli bed so I wouldn't kill them.  Well they are HUGE, the plant stems are like broomsticks and they are almost five feet tall and still reaching, they've squished the glads they are planted next to.  Can't wait until they bloom.  













The yellow rose bush has a cane with buds at the top that is now taller than Larry...crazy. Every bug known to roses is plaguing me this year.  It's a wonder I've gotten any more roses on one bush that keeps having the tips go limp and die because of a borer that goes into the soft tips.  We had to lop off a hunk of my Merlot rose bush because a cane borer was boring its way down to the heart of the plant, but we got it in time.  So much for systemic rose food/insecticide/fungicide.

my food garden, tomatoes, zukes, lemon cukes

Talked to our neighbor that had gotten bitten by a rattlesnake a month ago, she is only now able to get out a teeny bit for short periods of time.  There was so much swelling for a long time, they even feared she would lose a toe, she was given 8 vials of anti-venom, all the hospital had.  She had two more snakes in her yard in two days just this week.  We still have been lucky enough to not have any this year, but we are concerned about Gracie.  We researched the rattlesnake vaccine for dogs and figured it wouldn't be good for her because she reacts to everything from getting micro-chipped to her flea/tick remedies and the Vet agreed.  They recommended a rattlesnake avoidance class for her, they use real rattles, real muzzled snakes (don't know how that works) so the dogs know the smell and the sound and learn to always give them a very wide berth, so the end of next month we are doing that.  I figure that her awareness will help alert us too.

The bee balm is that tall green clump at the far end

Last evening Larry felt an earthquake and we were surprised to learn that it was centered at the south end of Lake Almanor, not far from where we lived in Chester for 14 years.  The seismologist we saw on the news this afternoon said it was the largest the area has had in like a hundred years and the many aftershocks they are having is unusual too.  Glad we aren't there!  We haven't felt any more down this way.

my crazy carnations

Cooler

It has been cooler here in Cool, no shorts today.  It was cloudy, windy and rained just a bit this morning.  I stayed in most all day.  

Yesterday I got pictures of my little friend, a female Anna's hummingbird.  She doesn't care how close I am.  The flashy male is camera shy.

Great Weekend

We had a really nice weekend.  The weather has been warmer than normal but with a breeze that keeps it from being hot.  

Saturday we ran some errands in Auburn and then visited Artist's studios on the Mother's Day weekend annual art tour.  We saw areas of north Auburn we've not seen and enjoyed seeing the art and artist's at work.  I especially enjoyed the Nicholson blown glass studio, they were working/demonstrating while we were there and boy was it HOT in there with the furnaces going.  Really nice pieces.


Yesterday we went absolutely nowhere and I read an entire book, just changed chairs.  I haven't done that in a really long time and it was relaxing.  Talked to both of the girls and they and their families are both doing great.




This weekend's star of the garden is my matilija poppy, it's first flowers opened this weekend.  I love all poppies and this one is tough, tall and pretty.  It will just get bigger every year.

Odd flower on the jerusalem sage, another tough plant.

Wildflower Walk

Today I took a hike with Larry and Gracie to see the wildflowers across the highway before they are gone.  It was really pretty, but the weeds and foxtails were really tall too.  Of course Gracie thinks it is immensely fun to leap about in them and upon our return home during her check over that we give for hitchhikers, be it bug or sticker, we found another tick.  Every couple of weeks we find one on her or brush them off of her on the trail, in spite of the liquid poison we put on her.

Refreshing Rain

Having the mystery reptilian tail on the stair below me last week when I was sweeping made me nervous because I am always on the alert for rattlesnakes.  I have yet to see one this year, but we learned that our lady neighbor across the road had gotten bit by a small rattlesnake right outside her garage.  The smaller snakes are the most dangerous because they don't control their venom.  Our neighbor was rushed to emergency by her husband, she started reacting pretty quickly, but she is home and recovering.  Not having spoken with them we don't have any details.  I am more vigilant then ever.  We keep our place tidy and weeds cut so if one decides to slither through we can spot it before it feels it has to get us.














We spent the weekend working in the yard getting things transplanted, weed eating and enjoying the fine weather.  This morning around 3:30 a.m. it started raining and it was a steady rain until almost noon.  The rain sends nutrients from the air to the plants and it washed the tree pollen off of everything.  The plants just seem to spurt up after a rain.  

My new celosia plants in the box.

Knowing today was supposed to be a rainy day I had planned to get some yarnwork done.  I have three projects going and needed to get started on a fourth.  I did a bit of work on the most important project before breakfast and I never touched it the rest of the day.  During a leg stretching walk through the garden after the rain stopped I decided I had to take pictures and then I ended up on the computer the rest of the day.  This evening I did get a good start on project four.

Peaking through the leaves.

The first peony flower to open.  I'm glad I got them rounded
up and tied back yesterday so the rain didn't drop them to the ground after
they filled with water.

Gracie got bored with waiting for me to finish
with my photography and decided to enjoy the
weak rays of sun trying to break through.