A beautiful day with way too many people milling about. So, not much of a walk and virtually nothing on the picture front. Since I was on the phone with Docken I mostly talked about some stuff that had changed, died or hadn't been maintained in the local botanical garden.
A girl and a boy Calypte anna hummingbird, a mere 137 yards apart as the hummingbird flies. Will they find each other as spring approaches? Only time will tell.
I also picked up about a dozen agave pups from an area just outside of the garden that doesn't appear to have seen a gardener or maintenance person in a long time. The agave pups were falling on the concrete paths from several plants. These, however, were hand picked and will get potted in 4-7 days.
Meanwhile, Dimorphotheca sinuata (Cape marigold, Namaqualand daisy), flowers are blooming by the dozens everyday in front of and along the side of the house. This picture was taken moments ago under not ideal lighting conditions. Much of the green you see are more flower buds yet to open. The tall yellow flowers are Tecoma stans, that plant took off like a rocket after the recent rains. Other flowers--in yellow, Euryops and the tall shrub with deep orange flowers on the far right is Tecoma capensis, AKA, Cape honeysuckle. If you squint a little and notice the netting along the garage wall, that's an experiment in growing some sweet peas. It could be a bust on that one... we'll see. Hey! I'll let you know. Deal?
A Once Upon a Walk Report, previously mentioned and a week in the making, will probably get posted tomorrow.
Dear young person stumbling into this post at anytime: If there are books that adults who make decisions for you and don't want you to read them, especially books awarded for achievements in journalism, you need to make a special effort to find, read and treasure those books. You might want to pay special attention to this one.
You Agave pups look like bulbils, which is the term usually used to describe the baby plants that develop on an Agave's bloom stalk after the flower dies (as opposed to from the plant's base). Not all Agaves develop bulbils.
ReplyDeleteThe front garden looks wonderful. The December rain followed by a (relatively) warmer January seems to have given it a great start. Unfortunately, the rest of our "rainy season" isn't looking good.
The pups made it out of your pocket. Phew. The birdies are beautiful and your yard, although presently very pretty, is a veritable petal-party waiting to pop. I know you really dislike it when I write like that(winkey-eye with smiley-face). But I really love it when you post appealing pictures and important information. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteI will be interested to keep up with the budding hummingbird romance ! Love the garden. i look forward to your walk reports because they celebrate much of the beauty in the world at a time when there is so much focus on the mischief mankind causes....
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