The Nest

Last December, one of the female Anna's spent a lot of time in the side garden, particularly in the Dahlia Tree. Oh no! we thought. There's no way she could be interested in building a nest, because a) that plant gets cut to the ground in late January when it dies back, and b) well, it's just too close to the kitchen and all the commotion that goes on in there with the dogs and kid and me at the sink 4 hours a day.

I watched her nestle in the crook of one of those fragile leaves and thought: she's just resting. Then there was this bizarre little platform that looked to be made out of mud, but it was flat and it was almost January, cold and dark. Hummingbirds couldn't possibly start nesting that early! It's not even Spring.

Then in mid-January, 1 week before I was ready to do the deed and cut the dahlia, the platform turned into a cup and we had a problem. Frantically I looked up Anna's hummers and nesting and hatching times online. I figured we had to keep the plant up until May, somehow, fighting the darn snails and bracing it against the Spring winds.

Our Lady of the Dahlia was all alone. The males do not assist.

We hung our heads out the upstairs window whenever she was off eating, looking for eggs. But often busted by a very irritated mama bird who would buzz a foot away from our faces in the 2nd story window. Then one day, creamy yellow eggs the size of jelly beans appeared - but unlike a carton from the grocery store, these exuded life. A few weeks later, the pin-heads emerged.

The babies grew and grew, the nest flexing with as they got larger, mama building up the sides with each feeding. And they developed personalities. The one closest to the window was more aware, hungrier, adventurous. We called him Boy, and though I talked to all 3, he was the one that captured my heart.

Our sleepy little babies were more often awake than not, and spilling out of the nest. Mama had to cling to the edge of the leaf for feedings. Everyday when she went to eat, I crawled through the garden and picked snails off the bottom of the leaf and nest. Doug shamed me for interfering with nature and fretting over what was not mine, but then I'd catch him building supports and agonizing over whether mama would continue to feed the babies after his intrusion.

Their wing feathers came in, and the boy entertained us with flexing and preening. He started to exercise, beating them as fast as he could, holding on to the nest with his little feet, wanting to fly, scared to go. Then one day he let go, and it was a miracle! He hovered up, and I thought I'd lost him forever, thrilled by his independence and might.

He practiced for a week, buzzing around the dahlia, then to the fern, and over to the camellia, gone longer and longer each time. Till there was only one, the little girl.

But the boy came back, urging her on, and 2 days later she too fledged. Again I struggled with joy and loss...until I realized they just moved to the backyard! They followed their mother for over a month.

The females still spend a lot of time sucking sweet nectar from the flowers, but they are shy. It is Pinky, that hungry boy, who follows me in the garden, even perching outside the window when I sit in the turret. He is all grown up. A shocking pink cap covers his head, black stripes run the length of his wings like a hot rod.

The king of my garden.

Fall at Mills College: Halloween

It is Fall at Mills College. The leaves on the deciduous trees are swiftly turning and branches stand stark and naked. The remaining threads of chlorophyll look like tie dye on a hippie's T-shirt...a popular costume for Halloween this year in the East Bay.

It was not so long ago! Or maybe it was...I was a child of the 60's. I remember making bell-bottoms by splitting the seams, shopping at thrift stores, my mom sprouting alpha and making homemade yogurt, composting...and of course her garden.

My mom let me dig rivers in her rose bed, make mud pies in her cookware, and decorate with flowers from the lantana. She let me run barefoot through the babies tears that ran shin deep on the side of the house, cool and soft on my barefeet on hot summer days. We ran the sprinkler to play in just for fun, and grew strawberries to pick and eat warm in the sun.

Mom reveled in my childhood fantasies. She never yelled or fretted when I played with bees or sat high in the avocado tree pretending I was an elf and the limbs my home. That sense of peace, of oneness, the escape from worldly cares is still there, awaiting in my garden - in all the gardens I love. And for that alone, I am forever grateful to my Mom.

Secret pathways and hidden fountains, miniature oak forests and flocks of birds, inhabit Mills College.

Epiphyllums: More Detail

Not to beat the epiphyllum topic dead, but I finally dumped my camera (it's been since June) and found this pic from last month. I think this one looks like a fire works display. The flowers on this plant last a few days.

As opposed to the paltry 12 hours for the one Lin gave me, but the flowers are twice as big...

From what I read, it took years before folks hybridized colors other than cream or pale yellow. The pink below is an inherited plant. It must be at least 30 years old - I've had it for 10 years; it came from Claire's Aunt Lillian when she passed away. We had literally 50 blooms this year lasting almost 2 weeks. Amazing.

Epiphyllums are REALLY easy to propogate. Just cut a "leaf" to the base, if that's what you can call those spiny things, let it set for a few days, and then pot in fast draining potting soil. You don't need any kind of "special" soil as in orchid or cactus. I like clay pots because they dry out fast after watering. I line the bottom and top with rocks.

They prefer bright shade. Mine are on a covered bench with the tillandsias, a native orchid, and a venus fly trap - just to give you an idea of who else is happy in this light. I tend to clump plants into micro-ecosystems. Our entire backyard is shaded by the umbrella of a 70 or 80 foot deodar cedar, so we've really gone for that rainforest feel, inspired by hikes through the redwoods and the great abundance of readily avilable central american salvias and fuschias that we are blessed with in the Bay Area. I water about 2 or 3 times a week.

Primary pests are aphids and snails. I use my fingers and spray with soapy water to combat the aphids and throw Sluggo in the pots for the snails. Sluggo is a non-toxic mineral that desiccates the snails in their shells.

katydid this and katydid that

Doug found a katydid on one of the cymbidiums this morning. I thought they like to eat leaves, because I've seen cut holes where I've seen a katydid - on the camellias of all things - but wasn't sure so looked them up online. There are 1000's of species around the world in a whole array of colors, sizes and shapes - flourescent pink to bark tones and up to 4.5 inches long. Some eat snails and lizards!

I found there are two species roaming around Northern California, the Microcentrum rhombifolium and Microcentrum californicum. A member of the grasshopper and cricket family, kaydids are distinguished by antenna being longer than the body.

But I didn't find any that look like the ones in our garden until I saw a picture of a nymph angle wing. The clue is there are essentially no wings and distinct brown spots on the body. I think this one is a female because it has a hook off the abdomen.

Epiphyllum from Lin

Doug took this shot at 8:30 this morning, and the bloom was already closing. By 10:00AM, it was completely shut and wilting. But oh! what a magnificent 12 hours it has!


Just for scale, here's a shot with Doug's hand - and his hands are quite large!

We have 2 other epiphyllums. They are totally bizarre man-made creations with 1,000s of hybrids available, though I've never seen one for sale; all my plants come from friends. My mom has quite a nice a collection too.

They like bright indirect light, basically like an orchid or epiphyte, and fast draining soil.

The UC Botanical Garden added some to the Arid House entry a couple of years ago, though I've not seen its bloom. My first encounter was at the San Diego Wild Animal Park which had rows of huge specimens handing in basics in a screened house. Love at first sight...

Kenai

This is my baby girl, Kenai Peninsula Ty, better known as Booga. Kenai has a four layer coat; she blows the under coat 3 times a year. Right now, she looks about 20 pounds heavier than she did a month ago, and it's all winter down.


Here's another one of Booga coming out from under the Tequila. Kenai loves rolling in scented things: Salvias, fine perfume, Doug's hair, fertilizer, and - unfortunately - cat poop.

Kenai will be 10 years old on Valentine's Day.

Indian Summer

As much as I hate the heat, I'll take hot days in September/October any day over hot days in June/July. Indian Summer is the typical Bay Area weather pattern, as Doug reminds me every year, so no surprise when it comes.

So how hot is it? The past 2 days got up to 93 - 95 in Hayward and Oakland - just in time for Stevie to start at his new school. And, of course, I've been going east each day after drop-off. It was 105 in Livermore at 1:30 on Wednesday; 101 in Pleasanton at 11:30 on Tuesday.

What's a gardener to do? Water! It's okay to put a little extra down and save your plants. Some just can't handle the stress. In our garden, the salvias are fine but the fuchsias and impatiens go limp in hot dry weather. Although I've been getting by this summer with watering twice a week, I'm watering everyday until the hot spell is over, especially the new plants my It's Fall! excitement put in the ground last week; the chamomile lawn started to look like cooked spinach on Tuesday. And of course anything in a pot will dry out faster than a plant in the ground.

Watering is one of those "things". Jo says you should never water after 10AM, but she's a rose lady and is always in battle against mold. With a busy work and family schedule, I have no qualms about watering in the evening on a hot day (sometimes any day); I accept the columbine tends to get moldy and nasty. My Mom's friend Arlene lives in Fairfield which is crazy hot all summer; she waters the balcony garden (all pots) twice a day.

So why the inconsistent posts of late? We just set up a new computer; it screams ^_^

ps - after emergency watering the back and side, I remembered a couple of other points. This spring, Jo was kind enough to take me on the East Bay MUD Bay-Friendly Garden Tour; we hit about 7 houses. It was fascinating! Especially as so many of the gardens we looked at could hardly be termed "water-wise".

However, one house really stood out in terms of excellent plant selection and...harmonious design. It just looked lovely (yes, lots of salvias). After complimenting the owner on a marvelous garden, I asked how she managed watering, and was delighted to confirm the entire property was hand watered; I've been mildly embarrassed that irrigation is the last priority on our list.

This was their second garden. The first time around, they layed irrigation, planted, and a year later discovered things didn't grow exactly as expected and ended up re-doing a major portion of the system. Having learned that lesson, they were giving this garden 2 years and then put in the lines. (They water once a week.)

I have an ancient sprinkler system in the front and hand-water the back and side. Frankly, I like to hand water: it's relaxing, I can hose down the plants eliminating dirt and bugs, gives me a chance to get in touch with what's happening with individual plants and whether communities are working, meditate on blog entries, etc. The water is directed exactly where I need it without waste.

I would hand-water the front, but the spigot is currently buried in a mound of Mexican Bush Sage. That's going to change!