Late Summer in the Garden

The yard guys started things off before 8am.  

I saw them through the window when I rolled out of bed. I usually have time for breakfast before they arrive, but, there they were and so there went I, walking the entire property and pointing out what needed to be done.  

There was much to be done.

They raised the lantana so each bush is now a lovely round capped mushroom with lots of space beneath the lowest leaves.  No pack rats will find them attractive, now that the sun and the wind have free access below the entwined branches.  

They trimmed a tree branch or two; it was hard to tell which to cut, since the rain weighted them down. 

Still, I knew that nothing belonged dangling over the bbq.... too bad we couldn't figure out what to do to fix the situation.  

They planted a tree.  Purchased from a local not-for-profit, I only saw it on-line.  In real life, it is too small to replace my downed palo verde but perfect to grow big and stately between my house and my neighbor's garage.  Not my original plan, but gardening in the desert is often a case of missed opportunities.  I'm still looking for a statement tree for the front of the house; blocking their garage was lower down on the list.  

Still, it's done, and I am grateful.

All the weeds are sprayed with toxic only to them blue stuff.  Though they'll be back in the morning, all the snake/squirrel/unknown beastie holes are raked smooth and covered over.  The stones are neatly contained within the borders of the paved paths and driveway.  For one day, at least, everything is pristine. 

The barrel cacti are all atilt or lying flat on the ground, yet each one still has one thick root anchoring it to the soil.  Given my new pet theory that the plants communicate and share nutrients as they are dying, we left them in the ground.  I don't know if the theory works for cacti, but I'm enjoying the thought.

There's not a lot of planting to be done.  I'm cleaning out the containers which haven't been changed since before I was shot.  It's not a pretty job, but somehow it's very rewarding.  I always did like pruning more than planting.

We've had a record breaking monsoon, and there's still more to come.  The ground will be ready to accept new offerings in a month or so, when I'm ready to get down and dirty once again.  For now, I'll let the high 90's feel cool and enjoy watching my floral offspring grow.