Hungry Squirrel

A couple of days ago I noticed some big mushrooms along the path in the back yard.  This morning a squirrel was eating one of them.  He must have really enjoyed it, because he ate the whole thing.

Apple Bags

Today was the day to put the little net bags on the tiny apples.  There isn't going to be much of a crop this year.  Only two apples on North Pole, a dozen on Golden Sentinel, and about two and a half dozen on Red Sentinel.  I suspect a pollination problem.  We didn't arrive home from our trip early enough for me to hand pollinate them, and maybe it was too cold and wet for the bees.

Today I planted five unnamed varieties of dahlias that I got on sale.  I thought all mine in the ground had died.  But I found that several are alive.  So now I have lots.

All the berries are blooming, front and back.

Vegetable Washing Station

I've been wanting a vegetable washing station outside for a long time, and now I finally have one.  I can wash all the dirt off vegetables before I bring them in.  And an added benefit is I can collect the water and reuse it in the garden.   It cost me $10 for the old sink and $6 for the blocks.

I sowed more onions, 'Copra' this time, and some 'White Lisbon' scallions.  I also planted out the leeks I started in a pot.

Spring Flowers

Dodecatheon hendersonii

Stylophorum diphyllum (Celandine Poppy)  

Pulmonaria 'Diana Clare'

Spring Planting

Today I got the first of the spring crops in.  I planted snap peas, carrots, beets, lettuce, chard, and kale. I also planted onion starts and started some leeks in a pot. It really felt good to get out there in the dirt.

We're getting an estimate on having the irrigation lines repaired.  Several of them broke during the extreme cold in January.

Garden Leftovers

As I was out pulling weeds I noticed that I still had some carrots in the ground.  I dug some up and they looked pretty good.  There's also a long row of spinach that has overwintered beautifully.  So dinner today was grilled chicken, carrots (with store-bought asparagus), a spinach and herb salad and homemade bread.

It's good to be home.

Back Home

We've returned from our cruise, and it's Spring!  What a difference from when we left.

It looks like I've lost a few things from the severe cold in February.  A pittosporum and a grevillea look dead, and a cistus in front looks bad.  But I think both little citrus trees are alive, although they will probably have to be cut almost to the ground. We had above normal rain in both February and March, so pretty much everybody is happy.

Even though it's late, I've started some Debarao tomatoes.  They're the best paste variety I've ever grown, and I saved some seeds in case I can't find plants in the nursery.

I did some weeding today, but in general the weeds aren't bad.  The big push to get it done before we left has paid off.