What a Difference a Year Makes...

Our Home Last Year

Our Home Now

After the Rain

We finally got some much-wanted rain today. We have a deep well, and irrigate daily, but there is nothing like a good rain to perk up a garden. Eventually, as the garden grows back, I hope not to have to water as often. Right now, shade is still a rare commodity.

New Close-Up Lenses I just got a new set of stacking close-up lenses I had to try out in he garden. I took about forty pictures, and then realized I'd forgotten to put the disk into the camera.

Am I the only person who likes rolly-pollies? They don't seem to be doing damage in my garden. They're not even insects--apparently, they are crustaceans. I find that they are fun to watch, but then I am easily entertained.

More Garden Residents

This heron was fishing in our creek.

A chameleon showing off.

Garden Residents

When we were living in our FEMA camper, we'd built a porch that the carpenter bees started nesting in. We didn't want to disturb the bees when we dismantled the porch, so we set part of it in among the bamboo. It looks like they are still using it.

I think this snake must've been trying to make friends with the garden hose. We were never sure if this was a pregnant snake, or if she'd just swallowed a mouse.

A canna is a perfectly cool spot for a frog to rest.

Okay, this one was taken last fall, but I still wanted to include it here.

Front Garden The front garden is starting to shape up. The recent cold weather has slowed things down a bit, but there's still plenty of color.

Back Garden

I haven't done much with the back garden since Ivan in 2004. It's been taken over by weeds, Mexican petunias and jasmine.

The Creek

We have a creek that runs through our property. Those are weeds in the foreground.

Succulent Garden I thought it might be fun to plant a succulent garden. I was worried that the ground would be too wet and too rich for succulents in this spot, but so far they all look happy. It's planted over our old septic tank and there is a sprinkler nearby. I think the gravel keeps them all happy.

Bat Face Cuphea This little shrub is a cousin to Mexican Heather. It is full of blooms right now and red color is brilliant. If you look at it closely, it really does look like a little bat. I have to get more of these this year.

Spring is Springing

Things come to life quickly here. Many of my plants are not fond of frosts and freezes, but they bounce back quickly once the weather warms. The more delicate things are protected as well as we can manage. The hibiscus is happily blooming, the wisteria has come and gone, and the bananas are busy putting out new shoots. The oleander and cannas are budding out and ready to flower soon.

I'm trying to get everything planted before the hot weather sets in. I like to crowd things a bit to keep the ground under them shaded. This year, with the sprinkler system up and running, we should have quite a show.

Spring Has Sprung.

I'm finally getting back to gardening again. Last November, we had to dig a lot of things up to install the sprinkler system. I never gave the garden much attention after that, and we had a few harsh frosts. We covered as much as we could, but some things still took a beating. We had to replace one of the palm trees, although I don't think the weather had much to do with that. Sometimes transplanted palms just don't make it. They replaced it for free.

The bamboo is almost back to its pre-Ivan height. I guess they are right--you just can't kill bamboo. The new sprouts are already five and six feet tall.