The Dry Garden

Move Over Mockingbird

 
An Adult Male Lawrence's Goldfinch Sits in the Peach Tree

Lawrence's goldfinches are great imitators of other bird species' calls.  Their songs are largely made up of borrowed sounds.

A Simple Soup from the Garden

We harvested lots of butternut squash last year, and still have a few left, so I decide to make soup.

 
 

Ingredients

Large butternut squash

4 large carrots

1 can (14.5oz) Italian recipe stewed tomatoes

Olive oil

2 1/2 pints (40 fluid oz) vegetable stock

Prick the butternut squash all over and rub it with olive oil.  Bake at 350F for 1 hour.  When cool, cut in half lengthways and remove the seeds.  Peel and cut into cubes.

Peel and chop the carrots.

Heat 1 tbs olive oil in a large pan and saute the squash and carrots until the carrots are beginning to soften (about 10 minutes).  Add the can of tomatoes and the vegetable stock and bring to the boil.    Simmer for 40 minutes.  Allow to cool and then puree in a blender.  Reheat carefully.

This would be even more delicious made in the fall with home grown tomatoes and herbs.

Competition

We have to compete with the birds for our share of vegetables from the garden.  Rufous-sided towhees live in the pittosporum hedge and pop out regularly for their meals.  The California quail are regular visitors, the whole family coming to see what tasty snack they can find. 
Broad (Fava) Beans with Snow Peas and Onions in Rows Behind Them

The CD hangs on a stick in a vain attempt to scare the birds away.

Signs of Spring

We still need 12" of rain before the rainy season finishes, but there are definite signs of spring in the garden.

 
 Rhubarb

 
Narcissus 

Invasion

We planted a bed of Anemomes under a window several years ago, but they never did well in that location so we took them out.  They reappear here and there in the garden every year.

 
 A Sign That Spring's Coming

In Greek mythology, Aphrodite, goddess of love, loved a handsome mortal man called Adonis.  When hunting, he wounded a fierce boar, which stabbed him with its tusks.  Aphrodite heard his cries and found him bleeding to death. Red anemones sprang from the earth where Adonis's blood fell. 

Hail

 
 It's Hailing on the Dry Garden

Grasses

 
A Barrowful of Grasses and Artemesia

Grasses are very useful in a dry garden and we decide to plant the largest flat area with Fescue, Siskiyou Blue.

 
Fescue, Siskiyou Blue in Position 

 
Fescue, Siskiyou Blue Planted with a Manzanita in the Foreground and Lamb's Ear to the Left

 
  Fescue, Elijah Blue Planted

Fescue, Elijah Blue is smaller than Fescue, Siskiyou blue