Photos
Keyhole Garden Progress – April 23, 2020
Weather took a turn from cool and damp to hot and dry, all but putting a spike in what remains of the romaine. For the spring replacements we brought in Genovese basil (front left) and yellow pear tomatoes (mid left, can't see them yet). The cucumbers are fruiting and the frying peppers are really leafing out now that they're no longer in the shade of winter's lettuce.
Wild Poppies Along the Road
Just some wild red and golden poppies growing alongside my road. After years of battling wild mustard, these guys are a nice change.
Cleveland Sage Blooming in April
Ahh... April and the native sages are all blooming profusely following last week's rain. This one is a Cleveland Sage (Salvia Clevelandii), which both looks amazing and smells incredible. Check out the snake-like whoop-de-do the flower stem on the right is doing for no particular reason. Nature's funny that way.
A New Member of the Family
Walked out into the yard today and saw that one of the girl ducks has hatched a new duckling. First of the season. Welcome little duckling!
Romaine Lettuce with Freckles
One of the early spring veggies to make it through last week's torrential rain is this cute little Romaine lettuce called Freckles. Assuming they make it through my current gopher scourge, these guys should color up the veggie garden's "greens and onions" bed.
Yellow Rose With a Leaf Umbrella
I lost track of why type of rose this one is a long time ago, so we just call it "the yellow one." As I was snapping shots of the plant after the rain this morning, I noticed this bloom peeking out from the shelter of a leaf umbrella.
Ducks Gone Rogue (Video)
Some of my ducks have figured out how to climb fences and wander up where they shouldn't be. Multiple times a day now I'll pass through my bedroom and be surprised by a band of the feathered rogues not two feet away. Here's a video of what it looks like.
Red Ripe Ruby Perfection Cabbage
Coming to the last of the winter veggies in the keyhole garden. This sexy beast is a ruby perfection red cabbage. Absolutely gorgeous, full-sized plant with a nice tight purple ball in the center. Ruby Perfection red ball cabbage - a full-sized red cabbage It's supposed to be sunny and warm all week, so this is going to make some great coleslaw this weekend.
The Four Ducksketeers
Mamma hatched these four and their sister two years ago this month. Mamma is a Swedish Blue duck and dad's a mallard. Together they made these fashionably gray-tonal boys (their sister looks like mamma). They still hang out together but they don't do much other than eat, hangout and get into trouble, so we call them the "Ducksketeers". Clockwise from top left, that's Athos, Aramis, Porthos and D'Artagnen.
Natives and Newcomers
Wildflowers, some native, some not, growing among the weeds in spring 2020 The wildflowers are a mixed bag, but they're better than weeds There's a strip of The Acre that borders chaparral and oak surrounding the pond. Technically, it's "defensible space" mandated by the fire department, so it's supposed to be cleared of weeds and growth in the fire season, which is roughly June to October when things are dry and hot. But during the winter and early spring it doesn't have to be kept clear, so rather than just letting it be a weed bank, I seeded it each [keep reading...]