Thoughts about Xeriscaping

It's an odd time to think about it, given that we are heading into rainy season. I would lke to decrease water use as much as possible in the yard. Already, the lawn went brown for the summer (and now is greening up again). Sedums like this one didnt need ANY watering during the summer, so are an ideal Xeriscape plant.


I took cuttings from a few patches of sedum around the yard and added them to new areas. This was a simple matter of cutting off wayward pieces and sticking them into holes in the ground, made with a trowel.


They might grow, and might not. Not much is lost if they dont.



This as a very dark burgandy variety. Unfortunately I dont have the tag. There are thousands of varieties. Most grow slowly, although some are faster.






This year there were other attempts at a xeriscape approach. Ginkgo is listed as a dry tolerant tree - now there are 2 small ginkgos added as future shade trees. Trial patches of thyme and chamomile were grown (a bit messy but fragrant). Irises seem to like dry summer. Chinese and European chives did not requre additional water (although I did water the pots of Chinese chives that are used for dumplings). The grapes were not watered at all, and were very productive.

It's not over yet.

With news from the East and Midwest regarding snow and cold, I'm grateful to have continued color and fruitfulness here. The tomatoes provide a few fruits each day, as do the figs and apples. The canna leaves are bright and colorful. The clematis and fuschias continue to bloom. The sedums are also bright and colorful. The moss changed from brown to green.

Today I planted the remainder of the bulbs that were purchased last month. That's all for this fall (it SHOULD be enough - there were about 210 daffodil bulbs, 160 tulip bulbs, and 20 muscari). The daffodils usually start to sprout above the ground in late January and bloom in February, which helps cheer up the most depressing month.

Thinking about using more dry tolerant approach next year - there was news about increasing stress to the water supply system. I took cuttings from some low growing sedums to use as ground cover in some areas bordering the house. I also spent some nursery coupons on an upright sedum.








Tonight will be an over-night shift so trying not to stress now.

A few more shots of Puerto Vallarta.

 

FAll leaves on Tree Peony. Roses here and there.

The tree peony has been hinting at fall for a couple of weeks now. The grapes are done. The apples are picked. The tomatoes are winding down.


The roses were low maintenance this year. I almost never watered them. The only fertilizer was compost. They were mulched with bark chips. These roses have bloomed all summer - nothing dramatic, but some fragrance and color without hassle.

This is Tamara, an Astin rose. Very fragrant, minimal trouble.


This is Magic Carousel, a miniature rose. It's just doing its own thing, blooming off and on. Minimal effort on my part.

I decided that any rose that requires major effort and fails to produce, just isn't worth it. There is a Darwinian reduction in the number of roses in the yard. The ones that survive will be be the ones that continue to bloom, with minimal disease, under the conditions in this yard; organically. With preference given for the fragrant ones.

Puerto Vallarta

It was time for a much needed break - so off to Puerto Vallarta for a change of climate and attempt to clear the mind. Here are a few photos.


Ning got to hold an iguana (for a fee - watch for locals bearing 'photo ops'). This creature was quite tame and fun to hold.



PV had a few 'vegetarian friendly' places - always a challenge when I travel. Using the 'Lonely Planet' guidebook, some veggie friendly places were identified. This one was off the beaten track, quiet, very tasty, inexpensive, and all of the options were vegetarian (as opposed to my finding the 'one item' that did not contain meat).

I did learn to say "Estoy vegetariano' but along with that is needed 'No como carne. no como pesco. no como pollo' to bring home the point. Another very good restaurant was "Barcelona' which served "tapas" which were small entrees (or large appetizers) with a wide selection of veggie options (for me) and seafood and meat options (for Ning).





This trip was definitely needed. Even if I didn't clear ALL of the unwanted mental baggage out, I did find some rest and some perspective. I got to try some (limited" Spanish. People were very friendly. The food was very good, overall. We did a LOT of walking up and down hills. The sun was great. The ocean was warm. The scenery was beautiful