Here in the desert we’re having our last cool days before it really starts to heat up this weekend. It’s been spring for a while here, and everything that didn’t die in the drought last winter are showing a meager display of leaves. I gave up gardening for food after I grew the amazing $50 dollar carrot and now garden for birds and more specifically, hummingbirds.
You’d think that my garden would be full of lovely, colorful blooms, but this is not the case. For one, the lizards like to eat flowers and for two, the goldfinches have been eating the flower buds. I spent a lot of effort replenishing my raised planting beds last year and planted a nice row of salvias, anticipating a riot of floral pink, but no, a close examination of the stems reveal the marks of tiny goldfinch beaks.
The other part of my sad gardening saga is the oppressive 6’ gray concrete block wall that surrounds my back yard. For years I’ve been trying to cover it with vine plantings but found the vines would sprint to the top of my trees and then spread out, smothering them. Last summer I cut a bunch of them back and planted my old art display grid walls for trellises. I’m enjoying moderate success. The passion fruit vines are doing well as are the cat claws, and cape honey suckles. I still have a lot of gray wall to cover.
My big success story is the large fountain I got sick of and converted into a planter. I filled it with two types of cuphea, bat-faced and a mexican firecracker. They’re too high for the lizards to get and the birds don’t eat the buds. It’s making a nice display now and should improve with the warm weather.
Your weather sounds nice Mary.It is kind of cosy in tonight,rain on the roof and fire going,but I will miss the warmer weather .We had a good run.
