SPRING FEVER ?

You've all received them. I usually delete them but today a friend, knowing my gardening interests, sent me the following E-mail, titled "Planting Tomatoes". It sure brought a smile to my face. Hope it does to yours! ( Well, it IS gardening related and NO, I don't have spring fever. )

An old Italian gentleman lived alone in New Jersey. He wanted to plant his annual tomato garden, but it was very difficult work, as the ground was hard. His only son, Vincent, who used to help him, was in prison. The old man wrote a letter to his son and described his predicament:

DEAR VINCENT, I am feeling pretty sad because it looks like I won't be able to plant my tomato garden this year. I'm just getting too old to be digging up a garden plot. I know if you were here my troubles would be over. I know you would be happy to dig a plot for me, like in the old days. Love, Papa

A few days later, he received a reply from his son.

DEAR PAPA, Don't dig up that garden. That's where the bodies are buried. Love, Vinnie

At 4 a.m. the next morning, the F.B .I. agents and local police arrived and dug up the entire area without finding any bodies. They apologized to the old man and left. The same day, another letter arrived from his son.

DEAR PAPA, Go ahead and plant the tomatoes now. That's the best I could do under the circumstances. Love you, Vinnie

Please Excuse...

Please excuse the photographer's conceit...she just couldn't help herself and took so many pictures...all of which she LOVES! A desert gardener is always grateful to see other gardens ...how we appreciate the creativity and thoughtful planning involved in making a desert garden into a place of your very own. (and don't think we won't steal a few ideas! )

ABDNHA Garden Tour 2012

Mother Nature smiled on Borrego this weekend. The ABDNHA Garden Tour went off as planned and surpassed the previous record attendance. I'll bet we walked over four miles while investigating nooks and crannies of all six gardens. We love to look at all the gardens and are always amazed at the creativity of the owners. Each garden has its' own aura and mystique, giving an insight of what the owner feels is of importance to him, personally. You might say..." Gardens never lie. "

If you attended the event, I'm sure you noticed all the happy ABDNHA volunteers. The Volunteers love to help out during the day of the tour. Not only do they get free tickets, they get to see their friends and talk to all the visitors! Thanks to all who participated in Garden Tour 2012.

Circle of Art and Garden Tour

What a weekend for Borrego Springs...a two day Circle of Art Show and a Sunday ABDNHA Garden Tour !

The vendors arrived Friday night, found their assigned sites, set up their tents and moved their paintings, pottery and handmade items near their tents ...like a gypsy band moving into Christmas Circle creating a magical place of music, cuisine and artful wares. Vendors seem like a happy lot, to me, and they seem to love the "people contact" they find at these exhibits!

Both happenings draw tons of people. What you see is the result of many, many volunteers who have been working most the year to stage the fund-raising events and, as usual, visitors are enjoying themselves immensely!

Today's photos: Circle of Art. Tomorrow's photos: The Garden Tour. Enjoy yourselves!

KER- CHOO!

The drone was constant...the aroma bewitching...a loud steady hum and upon closer observation, trees filled with bees. I don't think Borrego bees have heard yet of their scarcity! Now in bloom in this Borrego garden... olive, citrus, chuparosa, native fairy duster, brittlebush, ocotillo, some indigo, lavender, penstemon, native barrel and beavertail cacti, plus assorted other plants...KER-CHOO!

Ah, Sweet Rain

Early this morning, my weather informant called to report .84" of rain from our much needed storm. A gentle but cold rain fell throughout the weekend...cold or not, any precipitation of any kind is always welcome, especially this year. We now stand at 2.46" for the weather year. Not much...but, I'll bet enough to make all desert plants respire joyfully!

Borrego residents, too, are giving another sigh of relief....especially if you have a garden. A natural rainfall always gives gardens a boost, washes dust from leaves and makes everything look more beautiful. The desert, too, will respond in kind. Ocotillos now blossoming on bare stems will soon be covered with bright green leaves. All the perennial native plants respond quickly to rainfall.

I feel the elation of the native people who lived here in the past when they experienced rain after a period of drought. How they must have rejoiced and appreciated nature's gift to them...as do I.

And, who knows what will happen before the end of our weather year... no more, some more or much more...as usual, we'll just have to wait and see!

Ocotillo Wells

Has anyone noticed a recent increase in e-mail notifying you of upcoming activities for various organizations? My in-box is filled with notices of events I already know about and, unfortunately, they have recently become considered as spam, at least by me. How I wish organizations would become more selective as to the e-mail they send.

Now, if I seem to contradict myself, I am passing on to you a notice I received that seems to affect all Borregans. We have only until March 21st to make our comments known regarding the update to the General Plan for Ocotillo Wells State Recreational Area. Enough said. Go to planocotillowells.com to post your comments.

2012 Garden Tour

Featured below the fold in the March 15 issue of the North County section of the Union Tribune is an article about the upcoming ABDNHA Garden Tour, which I can hardly wait to see!

We have never missed a tour and have always appreciated the effort that goes into the fund raising project. Volunteers are involved from the beginning to the ending of the project...those volunteering to be "garden hosts", receiving free tickets...and, what fun they have greeting visitors as they arrive and giving them a big ABDNHA welcome! The event offers great opportunities for any gardener...especially those who call themselves " Borrego Desert Gardeners"!

In the past, Mother Nature has smiled on the tour...no rain and only one heavy wind over a period of fourteen years. As always, we just hope for the best. Tickets may be purchased online at abdnha.org or at the Nature Center, 652 Palm Canyon Dr., Borrego Springs.

Be sure to bring your camera to the event. I'm hoping to take some stunning photos!

Desert Gardeners, Last Meeting of the Season

What a great way to end the season...in a aged desert garden filled with California and Baja California desert native plants. Not only is the garden a tribute to Herchel Larrick, the creator of the collection, but a statement of the beauty that can be found in using plants adapted to local conditions, grown with very little water and , when grouped properly, form a real desert garden oasis.

The pathways beg to be traveled slowly with surprises around each bend. Hundreds of birds inhabit the area, feeding on seeds supplied both by the plants and the many feeders scattered about. The owner remarked that the quail have become almost tame and scurry to meet him when he scatters seed.

I was stunned at how fast the garden had grown since I last viewed it four years ago. The Boojum ( Cirio or Fouquiera columnaris ) trees had grown dramatically and have green trunks. The thing that really caught my attention...I saw those sweet sparrows in that garden, too...BUT, not the little vegetable plant destroyers that are in our garden...they were flocking to the bird feeders. Can it be possible THAT is all we need to prevent plant damage? Well, we have another plan in mind, as you will soon see!

Encelia farinosa

One plant that should be included in any dry land garden is Encelia farinosa, or brittle bush. This plant was well known by the early inhabitants of the region. The sticky sap was used as glue or melted and used as varnish. It can be chewed as gum. The plant was made into a tea and served a variety of medicinal uses. It was also burned as "incienso" by the early Friars.

Our lot included many varieties of local native plants. ( one reason we chose it...) One plant was conspicuously missing, however. Not one brittle bush was present on our lot and we searched many nurseries before we located one that even grew the common plant. Now, many nurseries stock these showy well adapted arid plants. We bought five of the one gallon size and, before long, they naturalized and spread throughout the entire lot. We have given many starts to friends and actually have to weed them out of the gravel driveway, where they spring up after each rain.

They require little water, grow quickly, look good during any season and blossom into a mass of yellow each spring. They fill the garden with color, attract birds, are eaten by rabbits as a last resort and are a perfect fill-in plant. The pastel gray-green foliage blends with other desert plants perfectly and they require a minimum of effort to grow. They will survive on as little as five annual inches of rain. None of our brittle bush are irrigated. During drought, they will just shed a few leaves, maintain their branches , wait for rain...then leaf out!

After they have bloomed, we let the flower heads dry on the bush. Birds love the seeds, In the late summer or early fall, we prune off the stiff brittle flower stalks to create a more attractive compact plant.

More Wind!

March winds swept across Borrego yesterday...this time gusts around 65 MPH. Other parts of the desert nearby also experienced winds. Some Palm Spring routes were closed and the radio advised against traveling in the area. Unfortunately for us, we happened to be driving home along highway 78, returning from Brawley, just when the winds were strongest. The sun was completely obliterated by clouds of dust and sand. The highway lane markers were non-existent and our trip home was accompanied by flashing emergency lights, headlights and twenty mph speeds! WHEW! We didn't like it and the pitted car didn't like it either.

What was so amazing about the trip were the feelings we experienced while traveling through the storm. There was an eerie sense of isolation...similar to how you feel when caught in a boat in heavy fog or in the white-out of a heavy snow storm. No familiar sights can be seen...you are caught up in nature's plan and it certainly captures all your attention!