Ch-Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes

Life just ebbs and flows along, meandering, humming a little tune as is sweeps along, happy in the direction it's going, knowing nothing else.......until a storm moves in.......then things change. That happens in all of our lives and it happens in the life of the garden.

In our case, we worked peacefully, my husband and I, in our shade garden. We learned to adjust and love the plants we could grow in the shade. Sometimes I complained that I couldn't grow tomatoes or some extremely amazing plant that demanded full sun, but for the most part it was a haven from the hot Texas sun and a lovely one at that. That is, until that fateful day........the winds blew in from the west......and I'm not talking any plain ole ordinary wind, I'm talking the grandfather of all winds before it becomes something else......straight-line winds of 60-90 miles an hour!

Things have a hard time remaining the same when confronted with that kind of a force. All along the fence line, the hackberries have been growing for 60 plus years; our neighbors have been losing them a few a year, as have we. But.....this last event removed the top 25 feet of a couple and revealed the need for the rest of them to be removed before they fell on our house or the neighbors house.

So we had to start on the path of change, starting from the top, down.
The tree guys came, sawed, and conquered!

And then there were none....

Now comes the rethinking and planning. After several years of severe drought, loss of trees and then torrential rains we had to put our permaculture knowledge to test. My husband (and fellow garden lover) and I come from two different directions in the way we garden......he measures and draws and counts and calculates....and when his back is turned I dig a hole and plant something. So far, it has worked magnificently. We compliment each other, compromise and laugh! We get to spend quality time together and the reward is enormous, both in the relationship department and in the resulting garden.

We raised and leveled the back portion where all the trees were.

And planted some really great pollinator plants, a Fig tree, a Mexican Plum tree, a Methley Plum tree, and an Eve's Necklace tree. This was all last fall and so this year will be the first year to see what comes back and what starts to really grow........I have to totally restrain myself from going and buying new beautiful, fresh out of the greenhouse plants to fill in the spaces.......spaces that will fill in on their own as the plants do that thing they do!

Just a sample of what's to come.....and guess what else comes........

Bees on the oxalis and Oscar waiting to eat it......

And all the rest of the garden creatures that find their home in paradise......

So that we can sit on the deck, sipping whatever, and watch the live nature channel.

Just be sure you wear the proper attire and watch out for the sun!

Be still my heart

This time of year sets my heart racing, my blood flowing with a whole lot of drooling and ewwwwing and awwwwwing. I walk into a nursery and just stop and stare, totally mesmerized.....taking in all the smells and colors and sounds....and I'm not talking a kid nursery.....no siree! We're talking newly grown, happy, full, beautiful plants; Plants that are just crying out for a new home, some place to spread their roots and reach for the sun!
Oh the self control it takes to not just fill a cart or two or three....for my garden has so many bare spots and is just crying out for a color punch! But I am not falling for this Spring fever...it gets me every year. But this year I know better! All those perennials that are hiding under the mulch and soil, just ready to pop out at any time.....they need their space. The markers I so cleverly placed last fall did not make it through the winter, so I will be surprised and reminded of these hidden treasures as they make their appearances. Oh yeah! And all the seeds I have scattered, and the re-seeders that are planing on showing up again, in some random spot of their own choosing. So.....I will definitely not buy anything right now!

Okay......alright......It's not my fault!

And I didn't even buy this one......a friend brought it over!
So I know....I probably need counseling, or..............I can just blame my husband. He calls me the ultimate Earth Mother and bringing in new baby plants is just part of my makeup. So there! Ha! Justified! There's a little justification dance going on right now!

Coming home after my "not buying" excursion and it being a most glorious day...with sunshine....I decided to peruse the garden and see what's going on, what survived the winter and what "chores/fun" will be arising in the next few weeks....months.....etc....etc...etc.....
The survivors........

 The cabbage just seems to be getting happier as the days go by.

The kale was a delight all winter long....but it is hard to wait to cut down the daffodils that are no longer blooming.....apparently they need to keep their leaves for a while to do some important work so that they will bloom again next year.

The amazing broccoli (so glad for spell check.....I always want to spell it brocolli) got ignored and went to flower before we harvested.....but flowers are so wonderful in all their glory!

The dill is all perky just waiting for the swallowtail butterflies to arrive.

This little broccoli guy just came up on his own in the crack of our brick pathway. Way to go little guy!

Our early spring bloomers and popper uppers are hard at play just doing what they do best....the early risers get the bees!

One of my early projects was to reclaim my leaky birdbath......so Voila'.....

And set out the 100% cotton yarn for home building materials for the birds.

And keep the compost cooking.....

Frame the really cool dragonfly picture in the really cool frame....

And put out the newest addition to the growing garden family of whimsicals....

So yes.....I am ready....and waiting....but enjoying each and every moment before, during and after.....Loving life and living fully and walking in my earth mother shoes!

Cacophony of Life

I'm going on about 4 years with a certified wildlife habitat yard in a fully populated suburban area.

That means that the wildlife have food, water, cover, and shelter for raising their young. Some are a pleasure to have around, some are just doing the things that they are required to do to survive, and some are just plain weird....but all so strangely beautiful.

You might be sitting on the deck with a cold one, thinking you are all alone.....but no....there is a whole micro world going on if you just open your eyes to see it.

There is just so much flying, hovering, creeping, leaping, fluttering, oozing, hopping, spinning, munching, biting, chewing, stinging, eating, pooping and sleeping going on all the time. The births and deaths.....living and dying....and all the crazy mating rituals right there, possibly in plain view.

So take your kids, your husband or wife, a friend or just yourself outside and sit and observe and listen and live a little beyond the walls of your house.....it will make you smile!

And you might find you are bringing something interesting and entertaining to this "other" world.

And don't be surprised at what unusual and cute wildlife might show up at any time...........