It's perfect weather for garden installation around here

I think normally when someone says, "Yeah, I'm taking the whole week of Thanksgiving off because we have plans" it means that the person is traveling to spend the holiday with relatives or go on a vacation of some sort to celebrate the holiday.

Not so around here.

When Hubby said he'd be taking the whole week of Thanksgiving off because we have plans, it's because:

1. a portable storage container is being delivered to our driveway
2. the last of 1500 pounds of boulders needs to be moved out of the back of our low-riding pickup truck
3. the invasive ivy and vinca major that's grown through the fence from the neighbor's yard over the past few years needs to be hacked away
4. the boulders that were in the pickup need to be arranged to line the path down the south sideyard in preparation to install a pea gravel and flagstone path (which we'll probably tackle during his time off around Christmas)

Oh... and Hubby is also doing the pre-holiday food shopping that needs to be done while I'm sitting here typing this blog post. Yeah, I married a saint of a man.

The garage has, up to now, been our storage area for my floral design supplies (including some massive coolers too big to put anywhere else and big boxes of blocks of floral foam), home construction materials, and food storage in pantry units down one wall. Over the past few weeks, we've relocated the pantry units to available temporary space in the house, but there isn't room anywhere for everything else in the garage that needs to be cleared out in order to begin the work of transforming the space into my new studio.

So last week, we made the decision that we'd just have to bite the bullet and include the cost of a portable storage unit in our construction budget.

The portable storage unit was delivered on-schedule mid-day on Monday. It's called CoolBox because (unlike other portable store pods) this one is completely insulated so the interior stays more temperate. The 16 foot x 8 foot unit is now sitting in our driveway taking up one parking space with its door facing our garage door. Today, Hubby started the transfer of stuff from the garage to the unit while I worked on setting rocks.

Hubby had done the monumental task of cutting back ivy the past couple of Saturdays (despite being plagued with an allergic reaction to all the stuff he was kicking up in the process). Once he had cleared the ivy away to reveal bare ground, he started moving rocks from the back of the pickup and pre-placing them in a line.

Then it was my job to come along and apply my vision to the placement of the rocks. I had to dig, scoot, and rearrange to get each one looking just right. The long course of rocks now forms a raised bed for the warm climate lilacs, loquat trees and Cecile Brunner rosebush that form the dense arch of foliage leading down the sideyard to our "secret garden" in back.

Hubby smartly discovered one rock with a little "mouse hole" on the bottom and placed it perfectly over the irrigation line that runs to the raised bed (you can see it in the photo above). (I'm telling you, he's awesome!)

With the November air cool and crisp, it was the perfect time to be doing this hard labor.

This time of year is always interesting in the garden. There are some trees and bushes (the liquid amber, plum, pomegranate and cherry) that are turning beautiful shades of yellow gold or russet red. At the same time, the leaves of the non-deciduous trees and bushes, like the thick glossy loquat leaves, remain a lush green. The hummingbirds and bees still have plenty to snack on since the lavender, loquat and navel orange are in bloom. At the same time, their deciduous neighbors have bare branches ready for winter.

It's such a wonderful time to be out in the garden, I may have a hard time breaking away for the Thanksgiving festivities. Then again I'm "a bona fide turkaconis freak" of major proportions so it probably won't be that hard to lure me away.

We are not being compensated in any way by CoolBox Portable Storage or getacoolbox.com for the photo of their storage container or mention of their company's services in this blog post.

I love Autumn... but I'm not a big fan of the fall

I love Autumn... but I'm not a big fan of "the fall"... "the fall" of the leaves, that is.

The leaves look so beautiful as they change colors while on the tree--nature dressed in the same colors I love to wear myself.

As brilliant as the inside of a tropical fruit, the orange-yellow leaves of the pomegranate is a delight to behold... until those leaves start loosening their grip and descending to the ground and pond below.

Every day or so I sit on my "tranquility bench" with pool net in hand sweeping leaves off in gentle strokes being careful not to scoop up little mosquito fish in the process. It's slow, methodical and eventually very rhythmic.

As I sit on the bench, I look above me at all the leaves still hanging on.

I know I will be scooping those out in the days to come.

There's no easier way to do this delicate work.

I am the steward of a backyard wildlife habitat, and I must be gentle in my stewardship opting for slow and methodical sweeps of the net over get-it-done-quickly techniques that would most likely involve noisy leaf blowers or nets over the pond that would prevent animals from getting the water they need while our region still waits for the replenishing autumn and winter rains to fill up seasonal ponds again.

The "tranquility bench" takes on a slightly different purpose this time of year, yet I still find tranquility there.

Slow and steady wins the race when it comes to fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue, and garden installations

I know it is officially autumn when the Japanese maple tree begins to change color. It has. The leaves dance in the breeze in colors ranging from russet red to bronze to a pale Granny Smith green. Fortunately, this tree holds on to its leaves a long time after they've changed color, so Hubby and I can enjoy them and savor their beauty.

With the cooler daytime temps, I've been able to go back out into the garden to do involved hardscape installation that I can't do in the summer heat. However, I do have to keep telling myself the old adage, "Slow and steady wins the race" and that it's perfectly okay to do things at a slower pace than what my creative imagination and my ambitious brain would like.

Last Saturday, Hubby and I went to our local landscaping yard and handpicked over 1500 lbs of beautiful moss-rock boulders of various smallish sizes. Actually, I picked and Hubby lifted. I wasn't able to help because of a minor fibromyalgia/chronic fatigue flare-up. He loaded each rock onto a palette. Then the landscaping yard guy came and picked it up with a forklift, drove it to the scale and then to our truck where employee unloaded the palette into our truck and Hubby was able to finally get a break. The poor little pickup was riding pretty low on the way home, but it handled the rocks like the champ it is.

My flare-up has been keeping me from moving forward with installing the rocks as the border for a future pea gravel and flagstone path down the side yard, so the truck it still sitting the driveway (very low) full of rocks.

I keep repeating to myself, "Slow and steady wins the race... Slow and steady wins the race."

Because I haven't pushed my body (as I often do) I'm feeling this flare-up wane already. And if I don't jump the gun and let it completely subside, I'll feel just fine to start hauling rocks around in a couple of days.  Then I can line the path in preparation for a pea gravel to be put in so flagstone can be set in it.

I just have to remind myself, "Slow and steady wins the race... Slow and steady wins the race." You know, now that I think about it, I feel a little like Dory on Finding Nemo.

The roses are in bloom for autumn

Last month, after the summer heat-waves seemed to have left for another year, I gave the rosebushes in the front garden a "haircut".  Trimming during the hot summer months makes the roses thirsty for water (not good), but if I leave them alone and don't cut them, they are quite drought tolerant.

By September, the roses are always looking a bit shaggy. Some of them are vigorous growers that need neatening up every 6 months while others can be left to only get shaped once a year. I don't do a hard prune on my roses because with our mild some-night-frost-but-no-snow winters, it isn't necessary. If I time my pruning just right, I can get a big beautiful display in the spring (April to May), again in the fall (October to November) and then again around Christmas day.

This year I seemed to have timed the pruning perfectly because I'm getting a lovely October bloom from several of the varieties including 'Our Lady of Guadalupe' (below), 'Ronald Reagan', 'Janice Kellogg' and the infamous mislabeled rose that was supposed to be a 'Sterling' but turned out to be what I think is a 'Queen Elizabeth' (above).

There's something magical about having the roses in bloom while everything else is going through the changes of autumn. It reminds me that I don't live in a place where snow will envelope my world for months on end (something I lived with for a large slice of my younger years that has left me traumatized when it comes to snow). And I am happy.

The phenomenon of autumn and winter roses

"Montezuma"

Each rosebush in the garden is a little different in its tastes and preferences as far as sun and water go. Each one blooms at its preferred time during the year as well. When I first embarked on planting roses, I had no idea that there would be so much diversity in blooming times--nor did I anticipate the majority of the roses would be giving me an "encore bloom" as the outside temperatures cooled toward the end of the year.

Consistently every year, as the dryness and heat of summer slips into the toasty days of September and early October the roses begin to look a bit peaked and tired. My brain is okay with that because it is turning autumn after all.

But then the first autumn rains come and something miraculous happens to the roses... they bloom as if it's May again.

Mystery rose (was mislabeled as "Sterling" when I bought it)

After 12 years of watching this phenomenon happen, I'm beginning to expect it instead of being surprised by it. It still seems like a miracle to me though and never ceases to delight me.

The temperatures continue to get cooler and cooler throughout the month of November (our overnight temps are now dipping into the 40-45F (4-7C) range. But the roses seem to get happier and continue to bloom and will continue to do so until Christmas Day when I've learned I can always count on roses in bloom for the holiday.

"Janice Kellogg"

There are subtle differences between the autumn and Christmas blooms and the earlier blooms of spring and early summer. The autumn buds are smaller and tighter--often darker in color. The buds take longer to open and when they do the petals are often more crepe-like with variegation and patterns that weren't there in the spring.

"Sheer Magic"

I have one rosebush (a mystery rose that was here before we were) that refuses to bloom all summer. It loses all its leaves as if it was winter. Then when autumn rolls around, it begins to get foliage again and by December and January it is putting out its lovely pale pink teacup-sized blossoms for me to enjoy in the midst of a fairly dormant winter garden. It is really delightful to have that special gift every year at a time that is hard for me because the days are short and the sun often hides behind a low marine layer of clouds.

This is what I still have to look forward to as Christmas Day draws nearer...

The winter-blooming pink mystery rose on Christmas Day 2007

We know winter is not far away

When a pointy-nosed energetic kitty

Takes time to stop her playing and cavorting

To hunker down on a warm lap

Under a fuzzy blanket...

We know winter is not far away.

Blogging and the joy of looking for "ladybug moments" in my life

My good blogging friend Jen at Muddy Boot Dreams asked three blogging questions in a recent post. Her questions are:

1. The main reason I blog is _____________________________? 

2. Blogging is part of my life, how much of a part is it? _____________________. 

3. I use blogging to ______________________________ in my life?

After reading her questions, I started thinking... a lot.

"What are my answers to these questions?" I kept asking myself.

With these questions swirling around in my head, I went on throughout my day doing the things I needed to get done on my "to do" list. One of my "to do's" was to send out inspirational letters to women in my church congregation that are unable to join us regularly. I have three women that I write to on a monthly basis as part of the visiting teaching program of the women's Relief Society in our congregation. Every month I hunt for a quote that I feel will resonate with them in some way. Sometimes I write the quote in a store-bought card and sometimes I create the card from start to finish. It's always a bit of a challenge finding the right quote. I always search with a prayer in my heart.

I found the quote I wanted (above) and then decided to pair it with a photo I took 5 years ago on a short trip I made with my mom to find some fall color north of us. We were winding up a less-traveled highway through a canyon filled with brilliant colored fall leaves. At one point we pulled over so I could take some shots. That's when I found the ladybug walking on the brilliant orange leaves of an oak tree sapling. It was there as if it was waiting for me to take the shot.

As I continued working on the card I would print and send out, I reflected on Jen's questions as well as the quote and the photo. The swirling thoughts began to come together. By the end of the process, I had my answers to Jen's questions.

The main reason I blog is...
The main reason I blog is to capture those moments that have made me feel grateful and brought me true joy. The moments are fleeting and can be easily missed--just like seeing a tiny ladybug crawling across an autumn leaf. I photograph things the same way. Here on my blog I write the words that are in my head about the moment I tried to capture photographically. If I don't write it down, it can easily be lost in the bustle of life, and then it's gone. That glimmering feeling that made my heart sing with pure joy for just a second or two would be lost if I didn't write it here.

Blogging is a part of my life... how much of a part is it?
Blogging is a constant undercurrent in my life because I approach it a lot like journaling. I try to capture vignettes and "ladybug moments" that are real and special so I can share them with my Hubby who is often at work when these moments happen. He's my best friend in the whole world and most of my blog posts are for him so he can feel connected to this place we love and cherish.

I use blogging to ??? in my life
I use blogging to stay grounded in what matters most in my life. The exercise of capturing those moments of joy and then showing my appreciation by recording them here on my blog keeps a sense of childlike wonder alive inside of me. In the New Testament of the Bible in Matthew 18:3-4 it says:

"...Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven."

I believe that there is so much God wants to bless me with including insights into my real potential from His perspective. I am His child. He is my Heavenly Father in every sense of the title "Father". I believe that if I strive to see my life as if through the eyes of a child, He can share so much more with me than if I get bogged down in being a grownup.

Somehow trying to capture "ladybug moments" to share with Hubby keeps me from getting too bogged down in the mire of being an adult. Finding the magical moments to embrace, cherish and then share them with Hubby (and everyone else who reads my blog) in the hope that he (and you) can embrace and cherish those moments too, keeps that childlike spark alive and flickering inside me despite the winds and storms of life that try to snuff it out.

Come what may, I will continue to look for "ladybug moments" wherever I go. If I have my camera, I'll photograph the moments as best I can to capture the essence of that special blip in time. And I will continue to record them here on my blog... if for no one else than for me and Hubby.

The rains have come... autumn has officially arrived

After much anticipation, the rains came late Sunday night. And suddenly it is autumn.

The refreshing moisture comes in big drops, 

washing away the dust of summer and leaving everything clean and shiny bright.

Roses the size of teacups become teacups themselves
as the rain collects in the curves of their petals.

Every divot, nook and cranny turns into the tiniest of reflecting pools.

The sun-loving bougainvillea finally gets a chance to feel raindrops on her 

before her leaves fall at the first sign of frost.

The tropical beauty of the canna lily leaves get the same privilege as well.

The sun peeks through as one weather system moves past us to the east--

possibly bringing snow to those much farther inland than we are. 

Then the garden waits for the next rainstorm to blow in off the Pacific.

Learning something else new... edible forest gardening

The pineapple sage is in bloom right now and the hummingbirds are happy (taken 16 Oct 2012)

A couple of posts ago, I wrote about learning a new word--permaculture. The concept has had me transfixed ever since. Then a couple of days ago, someone I follow on Pinterest pinned a diagram of a garden design that had a link to a blog about permaculture. I followed it and was introduced to a new concept...

Edible forest gardening!!!

"Picture yourself in a forest where almost everything around you is food. Mature and maturing fruit and nut trees form an open canopy. If you look carefully, you can see fruits swelling on many branches—pears, apples, persimmons, pecans, and chestnuts. Shrubs fill the gaps in the canopy. They bear raspberries, blueberries, currants, hazelnuts, and other lesser-known fruits, flowers, and nuts at different times of the year. Assorted native wildflowers, wild edibles, herbs, and perennial vegetables thickly cover the ground. You use many of these plants for food or medicine. Some attract beneficial insects, birds, and butterflies. Others act as soil builders, or simply help keep out weeds. Here and there vines climb on trees, shrubs, or arbors with fruit hanging through the foliage—hardy kiwis, grapes, and passionflower fruits. In sunnier glades large stands of Jerusalem artichokes grow together with groundnut vines. These plants support one another as they store energy in their roots for later harvest and winter storage. Their bright yellow and deep violet flowers enjoy the radiant warmth from the sky. This is an edible forest garden." (www.EdibleForestGardens.com)

I read the above paragraph and found it wasn't hard at all to picture myself in that setting... because that's exactly what I have when I walk out my door into my own garden! I didn't even know that's what I had going on. Not a clue.  It's just so cool to think that by simply following my inner voice and the inspiration that kept coming into my mind when I needed it most, I've created an edible forest garden over the past 12 years. It seems like it was by accident but I don't believe in accidents. I think there was a divine power at work helping me with this all along.

I thought I'd share some photos from when we first bought our house in 2000 alongside some photos I took today. It was fun for me to compare how things have changed so much.

Our barren backyard when we bought the house in 2000

A Cecile Brunner rose bush grows like a tree with the lower branches
trimmed to form a natural walkthrough pergola along the side of the house.
Loquat trees grow up through the edges of the canopy of roses to reach the sun.
(photo taken 16 Oct 2012)

River rocks and flagstone hide the drainage system that drains rainwater away from
the house to prevent flooding of the crawlspace that we used to have every winter.
Warm climate lilacs and climbing roses grow along the fence line
with vinca major that was already here growing at ground level under their canopy.
The plum tree I planted in 2001 is big and mature (upper right)
(Photo taken 16 Oct 2012)

In the back corner the cherry tree that was already here forms a canopy for partial-shade loving plants.
The branches are good for hanging bird feeders. I fill them in the winter when the bugs are less active.
I've selectively allowed cherry saplings to grow to create a thicket for privacy and shade along the fence line.
In the spring, the cherry tree is covered with ladybug babies (ladybugs typically lay eggs on the forest floor).
(Photo taken 16 Oct 2012)

A pomegranate bush had been growing here when we bought the house,
but it had been cut down to the ground. I've let it grow back tall and beautiful next to
the Santa Rosa plum I planted in 2001. Together they provide shade for the pond and
a shady place to sit and watch the fish.
(Photo taken 16 Oct 2012)

This was the same view of the back of the house in July 2000 as the view
in the photo above. Such a huge difference!

The canopy opens up on this side of the garden and lets in lots of sun.
Lavender grows in pots around a water fountain to attract pollinators and ladybugs.
A bay laurel tree grows against the fence. We can use the lavender and bay leaves
in the pantry to repel bugs like weevils away from flour.
(Photo taken 16 Oct 2012)

There wasn't anything along that fence when we bought the house in 2000

In the center of the garden is the pond that is surrounded by potted subtropical plants
including aloe for medicinal uses, palms that will become habitats for barn owls when they get taller,
and a dwarf Morro blood orange tree (right) that gives us sweet fruit along with the other citrus trees.
(Photo taken 16 Oct 2012)

Strawberries grow in raised planters and pots under the protective canopy of one of the palm trees
next to the rock waterfall that flows into one end of the pond. The strawberries like the mini marine climate.
(Photo taken 16 Oct 2012)

What still amazes me is that we can have an edible forest garden on our lot that is only 50 feet wide. That's not very wide. Yet I'm still able to feel like I'm completely removed and secluded when I'm there...

...well, except for when the neighbor turns up his radio too loud. When news talk radio is blaring over the fence, I'm reminded I'm not in a secluded locale after all. Oh well. Fortunately, I have large spans of time during the day when I can pretend.

The upside of having summer temps in October... autumn hibiscus

"Autumn hibiscus" 
digitally painted photograph by Cindy Garber Iverson
(available on fine art prints, canvases and cards by clicking here)

It doesn't feel like it's officially autumn around here (it won't until November), but I gotta say the hot temps are worth it when I see these beauties next to my front door. Cue the Hawaiian music please...

Early Autumn vignettes from the garden

Garlic blossoms gone to seed

The last of the sunflowers

My favorite form of a birdfeeder--a sunflower gone to seed. Looks like the birds liked it too.

A feather left behind

The perplexities of explaining gardening in our Meditterranean climate

Plumbago

September around here means at least another full month of summer temps (we hit 95F/35C yesterday) so the garden is still blooming away and putting on a lovely show. Even though I don't normally share so many photos in one post, I couldn't settle on featuring just one of the many types of flowers that are showing off in the garden. So think of this as a "photo bouquet" of sorts.

"Our Lady of Guadalupe" rose

Trying to explain living in a Mediterranean climate to someone who hasn't ever lived in one for a full year is kind of difficult. Have you ever read Under the Tuscan Sun by Frances Mayes? All the plants she describes in this memoir are plants that thrive here. The seasons are much the same too (although our winters are a bit milder). The best way I've been able to describe it is that our spring starts about 2 months earlier than you'd expect and autumn comes about 2 months later than in other gardens in the northern hemisphere. Our climate isn't tropical, but it isn't the typical "four season" climate either. See... I said it was difficult to explain.

"Janice Kellogg" rose

The light is changing so we know that autumn is officially only a few weeks away. However, we know that our garden won't look autumnal until late October or even November. Many trees won't display their fall leaves until then unless we get some chilly nights.

Alstroemeria

The good thing about living in this climate is that we have an extra long growing season for veggies. It's so long, in fact, that many veggie gardeners put in a crop in March or April to be harvested in mid-summer. Then another crop is put in around July for an October or pre-Thanksgiving harvest. With indeterminate crops like some tomato varieties, in past years I've been harvesting tomatoes all the way up to the morning of Thanksgiving the third week in November. It's pretty cool.

Four O'Clock

Lest you think this is all too good to be true, there are downsides to this climate. Trust me... there are.

One downside is we can't expect any rain throughout the summer. The rain stops sometime in May and doesn't typically come back until October or November. It means that our rolling hills are a pale golden color all summer and green during the winter and spring. It's the exact opposite of someplace in the midwest of North America.

Another downside is that we can't grow certain vegetables in the summer garden because the temps are too intensely hot. Veggies like lettuce, cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, peas, spinach, kale and some onions don't do well. So those crops get planted sometime in the autumn or winter and are grown as winter crops. When everyone else is enjoying fresh lettuce for summer salads we are dreaming of our winter salads. Yeah... it's kind of weird.

Strawberry blossom

After over a decade of learning the rhythms of this climate, I think I'm finally used to what to expect and what not to expect. It still doesn't prevent me from feeling a yearning ache inside when garden bloggers in other climates are posting gorgeous autumn leaves. Autumn is a favorite season for both Hubby and me. It's hard to have to wait a whole 2 months for our climate to catch up. Especially when all we want to do is surround ourselves with the rich tones of the autumnal palette, snuggle up in warmer clothes and enjoy evenings with kitties curled up on our laps.

Gerbera daisy

One really good upside to living in this climate is that once October rolls around, it will still be temperate enough to start working on large garden projects. Hubby and I are looking forward to working on a long-planned pergola in the unfinished portion of the back garden.

In the meantime, I'm still hunkered down inside with the A/C on daydreaming of autumn.