fff april 24
Carpenteria californica is a rare though native shrub growing well near the Arboretum’s heritage house
One of the women in my fellowship class has been a volunteer at the local arboretum for a couple of years. She offered to lead a group of us on a tour of the grounds. We certainly did not cover all 26 acres, but had a comfortable, informative two hour visit with terrific historical details about the start of the garden which had been slated for parking back in the ’70s. The garden grew partly by local resident donations of shrubs and trees brought in one gallon buckets. We had the perfect day with breezes keeping the low 80s temperatures comfortable.
Is this a fave? I’m not sure it’s a fave. But it was entertaining.
Plant Share Admin (PSA): Last call for our kakai pumpkin! (he germinated several dozen plants to give to plant share people for a growing challenge to see who could grow the biggest pumpkin)
Me: No, thanks. I can’t be at the share this month.
PSA: I’ll save you one.
Me: I killed three of the wintermelon seedlings from last year’s challenge. And I don’t have room for it.
PSA: Grow it vertically! You got passiflora to set fruit.
Me: Thanks, I’ll pass.
PSA: I’m at the grocery store near your house. Can you remind me of your address?
Me: No! Then you’ll be dropping off plants!
PSA: Just one. One kakai.
Reader, I did not give him my address.
And it’s true! The first fruit on my passion fruit vine (passiflora) that I grew from seed. It was a thrill to see it bloom, but I had not expected fruit for another year. I don’t grow a lot of edibles, so it was fun to see the few things that are making it: Purple Cherokee tomato, plant-share cucumber, passiflora fruit, and the first (edible) tiny strawberry. The first two got snapped up by a squirrel. The next one looked promising until I discovered a slug dining on the other side of it.
In preparation for The Big Volunteer Day, we had a tool-pick-up afternoon where project leaders could grab the shovels, rakes, loppers, paint rollers, tarps (and so much more) that they would need for each of the projects at their school (typically gardening, gaga ball refurbishment, painting murals, spreading mulch). Several of us helped with pulling equipment and supplies a bit before the official time frame just to limit the chaos once people arrived.
One of many funny conversations at the tool pickup:
Leader: Could you get this group of kids some nitrile gloves?
Me: How many pairs are needed?
Leader: Oh, maybe the rest of that one-size-fits-all box.
Me: We have this box of kid-sized gloves, too.
Project Leader: They’re high school football players though!
Me: Oh! No kid gloves then.
Bonus: when I arrived home with my supplies, neighbor met me to show a terrific cart she’d inherited that would work beautifully for a planting table. And she gave me a big two slotted bucket-type thing that fit all the supplies for my school’s project perfectly.
Plans and more plans. 1) Earlier this week, our dear friend from Colorado texted that she’s coming out to care for her brother and have dinner with us. 2) Mom and I have finally fixed a date when, free from doctor appointments and other prior commitments, we are driving down to see my aunt in Chula Vista. 3) Roomie and I had been wanting to rope our friend Anna into a mini get-away at a nearby town (no flying, no long drives). We sent out the invitation, booked the hotel, scoped out coffee shops and restaurant, and planned a little art activity (Anna has the real talent). So good to get these on the calendar.
Bonus: it was Mom’s real birthday and the 51st anniversary of our leaving Vietnam this week. We lunched at an old phở restaurant (we used to think was too far, but was actually just a couple miles from our usual VN grocery spot) with plans to return. I made a bunch of things she’d use: kim chi, chopped garlic in olive oil (freezer packs), cookies, and a couple of soups. And a bouquet of garden flowers (below).
Have a wonderful springy weekend, friends. It’s plant pickup/delivery and Big Volunteer Day for me.
spring bouquet: ‘Cafe Au Lait’ dahlia, gaura, Brazilian plume, and cerinthe
fff april 17
“Do you know Google Meets? I’m down with the flu! Can you help our leader run this meeting?” Thankfully, my near total ignorance with the application did not hinder the conference call with 28 project leaders for our big volunteer day. “We have a last minute request from a principal. Can we accommodate her?” (Typing furiously to our contact to make a last minute add) Yes, we can. “Thanks for the Behr color codes for the mural paint needed. Can you get Dunn Edwards, too? Just in case.” Nice guy at Dunn Edwards helps me make matches. “Can we put those plants you ordered for the raised bed in this agave planter?” Hmmmm. It’s a taste of the week before the week of the Big Day.
While we were in this meeting, I asked whether we could get the volunteer check-in QR code early. Being a new system, logistical details were a bit hard to come by and the leader said he’d look into it. But then a text came through from a friend that I didn’t know was on the call, “Yes, you can! I’ll send it to you!”
This same friend was having her 40th birthday at a skating rink with extended family and friends and kids kids kids. Families were encouraged to wear matching outfits and some were pretty hilarious. Several of us weaker-ankled older types told her we’d come but she’d better have an ambulance on hand if we so much as put on roller skates. Loved the shirts they got for her parents.
In the midst of a busy week (roomie had her own mountain of details to manage, including swapping out a chair for her mom who fell), we had a little oasis of calm and quiet. Anna came down after work and joined us for a small local flower show, coffee at a quiet cafe, and tasty taco dinner.
We got rain! Of course, beforehand, predictions were anywhere from 0.5″ to 2″. On the day of, counts for my area dropped to 0.15″. However, my rain gauge showed we must’ve gotten a particularly wet cell since a brief hard downpour netted us 0.5″. The skies in the days following were just delightful. Fluffy bunchy bright clouds, frothy wispy clouds, stretchy gauzy ones. So lovely.
Hope you had some faves this week. Maybe even more than five!
nicotiana alata – wish you could smell its gentle jasmine-like scent
fff april 10
Thankful that our Easter luncheon went really well. We needed to make some adjustments to ensure roomie’s mom had plenty of space to maneuver her walker. It’s amazing how much furniture needs to be moved to accommodate an extended dining table. Roomie had her images of Christ’s appearances after His resurrection and we read verses around the table. Two of our friends joined — one of which was the nurse who’d helped roomie with her mom’s wound care. So thankful for these two.
With all the running around and errands and plant nursery hopping, I forgot to mention that the Ford Ranger surpassed 200,000 miles. While I had it in to get shocks replaced, the front desk guy noted that he had a car in that was 12 years younger than mine that had more miles than mine. For all the years I drove 50 miles each day to and from work, there were nearly as many years just putzing around town. So thankful for this amazingly reliable vehicle. When roomie and I first became roommates in the ’90s, we often wished one of us had a truck for all the hauling we were doing with church projects (we drove compact sedans at the time). We said whoever needed a new vehicle next was getting a truck — and we did in 1999. Maybe because it was so often used for such projects, our gracious Lord gave us a low-maintenance one.
You know how certain topics just converge over a short period of time? One of the audiobook offers I came across recently was for learning Korean. Some of my other reading lately has Korean protagonists. Then my Dad decided for our weekly outing to go to Korean for lunch, for a change. We had a great time together, now our second time at this restaurant. Below right are banchan (side dishes) that arrived before our entrees (bibimbap and soondubu jjigae).
My daffodils finally bloomed! They are the tiny kind that seem to do better in my garden. And also the passiflora (passionfruit vine) has begun blooming. These seem short lived, but more are coming. I’m growing the vine for its fruit rather than for the crazy looking flowers. We’ll see how successful I am at keeping it contained. Bonus: rain expected this weekend!
When a friend asked what my plans were for the day, I nonchalantly said I was going to email the volunteer project leaders with a heads-up for garden project-related deliveries. It turned out a bit more complicated to pull together the details from emails and conversations to nail down dates and timing for bulk mulch delivery by one guy, bagged mulch/soil by another, and plants by me and another guy. I thought a last minute review the next morning with fresh eyes would be best. Late the night before, one of the dates changed! So glad I waited before sending out 13 emails that would need corrections.
Hope you have a snag-free, relaxing weekend, friends.
Hellebore ‘Ice n’ Roses’
fff april 3
There are busy weeks and then there are BUSY weeks. This was one of the latter and I have a feeling it’s an on ramp to several more at top speed. But first, some faves:
First, roomie’s mom was released from the hospital in more stable condition. Roomie still has a lot to do for her recovery every day, but a friend who’s a nurse helped some aspects. So thankful she was available at just the right time. When roomie’s mom needed a powered recliner to more easily lift her feet and then help her out of the chair, roomie found a shop that had one that was the right size for her mom. Still a ways to go, but thankful for so many answers to prayer.
For the big volunteer day near the end of this month, I visited the nursery and put in the plant order for the schools, but had to go elsewhere for some that this shop didn’t have. Also, as the project leader for the local school, I worked on some mural designs for the principal and district to approve before we could line up paint and supplies. Mulch delivery schedule to schools was also finalized. Thankfully, details are coming together nicely.
In the midst of all the running around, we managed to keep our brunch date with a friend and lunch with some other friends. It was a good time to decompress and catch up and share in our lives together. The bouquet above is what I brought from the garden to the brunch.
What had been predicted to be barely measurable rainfall turned out to be 0.4″ which was enough to make the garden happy. Partly cloudy days with beautiful fluffy clouds made it a joy to snatch whatever time I could eke out. Here are some developments: the first ever bloom on my passionfruit vine, blackberry blooms that might set fruit for real this year, buds forming on the dahlias, and eye-catching leucospermum bursting with flowers that last for weeks on end.
Roomie and I were returning from a Maundy Thursday service when someone texted roomie that they thought my phone had gotten left at the church. Back we drove, thankful it was caught in time so that I wouldn’t be without it when we’re so busy. As we headed home the second time, I noticed the turn signals weren’t working. Before we groaned about having to squeeze in a trip to the car shop, a quick check with our favorite chatbot said it’s likely a fuse or triggered by using hazard lights (which we used when I ran in to get my phone). Switching on/off the hazards restored the turn signals! Yay!
Edited to add: A terrific plant share! We continue to have an influx of new faces to the event. I brought mostly flower seedlings and brought home a little fern, a few terra cotta pots and saucers, lemon, grapefruit, geranium cuttings, and a sugar snap pea. It was loquat season and everyone who had a tree or a friend with a tree was sharing fruit. Those who didn’t have plants or fruit to share brought baked goods. We had a great time. Then roomie met me and neighbor for coffee and catch up.
Thankful for the pockets of quiet for contemplation and to anticipate the coming joy of Resurrection Day. Isaiah 50:7 “For the Lord God will help Me; therefore I will not be disgraced; therefore I have set My face like a flint, and I know that I will not be ashamed.”
‘Golden Celebration’ rose
fff march 13
More than one of you has commented that it seems I’m busier than when I was working. I’m certainly feeling it with the various projects. Blessings abound and here are (at least) five!
One of the guys who helped with ideas and construction on the instrument center partners up with another neighbor for an art show. He likes to make whimsical art with found objects (palm leaf sheaths become elephant portraits, for example) and beverage containers and corks become scenes on panels made from repurposed pallets. She makes art with glass including these glass panels attached to open books. She etches animal portraits onto the glass. Fun to see and talk with the artists. I don’t normally have art up in the garden, but I was enamored with his turtle made from hinges, doorbell housing, and maybe some kind of escutcheon plate.
Even though the Santa Ana winds were whipping through the southland (30-35mph gusts), I had a few hours outside potting up seedlings, finding a spot for plants I’d picked up at plant share, taking down garden umbrellas before the wind did (one did get lifted and blown into neighbor’s side yard).
When the house internet went down for more than a few minutes, I tried the recommended resets but finally got the word to ask for a tech. Scheduling mix-ups left us with no internet for about 4 days. But I had prayed that we’d get an experienced tech who had everything he needed — and that’s what we got. It took him nearly 2 hours to complete the tests and replacement of our modem, ONT, and connection at the source. Bonus: he’s an avid gardener and we had plenty to talk about.
I spent a lot of time at school campuses this week, meeting up with project supervisors, photographing project sites, writing up details, calculating mulch and drop-off route. It’ll be a while before I get them straight in my mind, but am so thankful that my phone photos have the location in its metadata. Printed out school satellite photos helped pinpoint project sites and great for making notes.
Bonus: It’s easy to imagine creating a school garden, but experienced project leaders (and, increasingly, school staff) are moving away from plantings unless there’s a committed garden club or associated church group partnership. This means a much smaller number of plants I’m responsible to order and deliver — yay!
We are entering at least a week of 90F temperatures, so I’m going to celebrate these buds and blooms, hints of color to come before they burst open and fizzle out in the hot days ahead.
Oakleaf geranium, ‘Apple Blossom’ pelargonium, ‘Wynyabbie Gem’ westringia, unnamed salvia from plant share friend, unnamed cranesbill geranium from same plant share friend among ‘Third Harmonic’ alstroemeria leaves, cerinthe (self-sown seeds).
Enjoy your weekend, friends.
fff march 6
leucadendron ‘Safari Goldstrike’
Plant shares are (nearly) always going to make the Faves, but February’s was especially fun and lively. The warm weather has jump started many gardens and people brought all kinds of new stuff. I brought seedlings (cosmos, gaura, calendula, nigella, centaurea, zinnias) as well as rescued plants ready for a new home: passionfruit vine, sweet potato, geranium, germander. My aunt’s large pots were claimed early by eager participants. So many new-to-me plants that came home with me: yacon (a root veg), Pakistani mulberry (smaller, more suited to SoCal), Boston fern, perennial purple poppy, a section of sugar cane (for my aunt), and a white blooming Brazilian plume. That year-old mulberry is already producing fruit! Bonus: Afterwards, roomie, neighbor, and I enjoyed the air conditioning (and coffee!) of a local coffee shop that had big open spaces. It was good to get caught up with all the news. Neighbor works for a tile company owned by a carpet company and always has ideas for projects.
Another plant fave: My aunt had given me a black Surinam cherry sapling grown by a friend of hers. I’ve had it for a year or two, but this is the first time I’ve seen tiny blooms on it. We’ll see in a few weeks if those turn into actual fruit. Nasturtiums have been loving our wetter cooler January but the heat wave has really pushed them into full bloom. Bonus: while I was noting plant growth, dozens and dozens of American robins were swooping in and out of the garden to eat the Carolina cherry berries that are still on the trees.
I had two outstanding businessy things to deal with that had been delayed for weeks. One was a document originating from my mortgage company that needed to be corrected (you can guess how eager they were to fix it… not). A second issue seemed to have been lost in the mail. Both were resolved without too much effort on my part. Such a blessing and relief to have them off my plate.
When a neighbor was giving away a small bench with storage, roomie and I immediately thought about our friend Anna — and the excuse to drive up to see her as we delivered the bench. We had a delicious lunch she’d packed for us at her favorite coffee shop and two hours of rich conversation. Bonus: we survived two near misses while on the way there and made it home in time for roomie’s doctor appointment despite having police run a break on the freeway a mile from our off ramp. Whew!
My job as the city-wide volunteer day’s Plants Person has really kicked into high gear. I visited one school with its principal and our project supervisor. Then the three project supervisors and I met with the school district’s maintenance and operations team for review and approval of projects at each of the 20 participating schools. Many more meetings are being scheduled to nail down plant and mulch details, estimating number of volunteers, ordering materials…
It’s that time of year for overflowing citrus — neighbor brought me a trug heavy with her mom’s tangerines and a friend from church shared a big box of ripe grapefruit. I juiced both but also sectioned some sweet grapefruit for eating, too. Mom’s neighbor shared her tangerines as well as a woman at my Bible study.
Happy almost-spring weekend, friends.
freesias are miles ahead of daffodils
nikkipolani 
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