Initially my interest in succulents and cacti (the latter a subset the succulent family) was mostly practical. The soil around here is very poor and rain comes only during a narrow, three- or four-month window; the rest of the year the landscape is bone-dry. Succulents seemed custom made for such harsh conditions, though I quickly …
Tag: xeriscaping
Spring arrives early at the ranch and succulents and cacti lead the festivities
The spring solstice won't arrive until Tuesday at 10:15 a.m. but at the ranch we've been enjoying a spring greening since late February, thanks to the succulents, cacti and other xeric plants already blooming even though not a drop of rain is expected for several months.Longer days and warmer temperatures spur this spring hubbub. Shallow-rooted …
Continue reading Spring arrives early at the ranch and succulents and cacti lead the festivities
When the Succulents come out to play
Despite their often gruff appearance,succulents have a tender, flowery heartSucculents are split-personality plants, scornful and hostile one day, inviting and flirtatious the next. Cacti, a member of the succulent family, in particular sport razor thorns that warn strangers not to come near, but then, maybe the next day, or month or year, will set seductive …
Climate change? Yes, I believe so
During an interview on Face the Nation, GOP presidential contender Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) pretended to articulate his position on climate change. But instead of a candidate who presents himself as a young avatar of new ideas he came off sounding about as lucid as someone singing "The Star Spangled Banner" while brushing their teeth. …
Tiptoe through the Cactaceae
When our house was still in the dreaming phase, circa 2008, Stew and I envisioned an enclosed front yard that would hold a collection of subtropical plants somewhat in the style of an English walled garden. It would provide a lush break as one entered the house, between the semi-desertic outdoors and the indoors.It was …
Spring Interruptus
April and May don't bring showers or flowers around here but mostly winds and dust, frequently spiced with brush fires, all of it to remind us of our a semiarid climate and terrain.It's a season of both high expectations and frustrations, much like February and March in the upper latitudes of the United States: You …
Sherwood Forest delayed
In the beginning--as when the Spaniards arrived in this area during the 16th Century--the hills around San Miguel supposedly were densely wooded, including oaks, ash, walnuts, mesquites and other hard woods. But then, between the Spaniards cutting down trees to use as fuel in silver mines and Mexicans collecting wood to make charcoal, the hills …
El Rancho Santa Clara 