Gardeners outside of Southern California may be mystified by the amount of attention we here give to 10 inches (25 cm) of rainfall in less than a month. In some places that amount is considered drought. How do I make it clear how rare and wonderful such an event is? It's like...a brilliantly sunny 80F (26 C) Christmas...in London. Or a luau at the South Pole. Or a tornado in Switzerland.
What's so amazing about it? Let me count the ways.
It means the outdoor furniture is actually clean.
There's moss growing on the DG:
Instead of shriveling, a piece of Fuchsia stuck in the ground has rooted:
Though not all of the roses look so good...
...some of them don't look so bad:
The cool-season veggies look (and taste) wonderful:
Strange and unusual fungi are sprouting:
The soil oozes water even a couple of days after the last shower:
Baby Quercus are sprouting everywhere:
And the koi have gotten fresh water straight from the sky:
It rained so much we see odd little things we rarely see. We see things that water brings.
Love your observations and love those koi seemingly in the air.
ReplyDeleteOk Hoover, I'll try not to whine about the rain up here. We have a full week of dry on the agenda though-maybe I will actually be able to start pruning the roses this weekend-before Reine des Violettes takes down the fence. Apparently she is not aware that it's winter.
ReplyDeletelove all your details and insights! we are enjoying similar surprises from all the rain. and just wait until we get a little heat!!
ReplyDeleteThe kois' personality leaps off the page every time you post a photo. Wonder what they made of all that rain. I was at Fashion Island Christmas shopping during a rainstorm and checked out their koi pond, whose water had risen from the rains and was LEVEL with the pavement. I was worried that the koi would leap or float out onto the pavement. I think I'm too nervous to have koi! (And what a great arm chair that is.)
ReplyDeleteThank you Sherry!
ReplyDeleteks, RdV probably does not consider California's version of "winter" much of a challenge. :)
Thank you, Laguna Dirt!
Denise, they enjoyed the rain. pH 7.0 is just their ticket. The stuff from the tap is not their preferred medium. And yes, koi-keepers are a nervous bunch. Herons, water quality, parasites...there's just so much that can go wrong. It's not for everyone.