The status of my garden 123001

My sunflowers are GROWING and growing! Look how tall they are! And, I also have California poppies and African daisies sprouting and growing out front. This area gets full sun and is right up against our front fence. Out back, the sweet peas are growing up our chain link fence. I also planted some other seeds there and they are coming up. I constantly have to weed this area as many weeds are enjoying the water and fertilizer! HA! The neighborhood scrub blue jay is still around. I saw him out front yesterday morning (I feed the birds out there...) AND I saw a mountain woodpecker! That's two mountain birds down here in our desert! I know it was a mountain woodpecker because I've seen them up in our local mountains! What is going on? Have a safe, happy, and enjoyable NEW YEAR!

Red berries~Ruby Tuesday 122909

From yesterday's yellow Chinaberries, to red berries today for Ruby Tuesday! These were found up at the ranch where I board my horses in our local mountains near Palm Springs, CA. Ruby Tuesday for December 29, 2009.

Mellow Yellow Monday 122809~Chinaberry berries

I've been experimenting with the macro setting on my camera lately. These are Chinaberry tree berries, which are still hanging on the tree. In spring, mockingbirds will eat these berries. HOWEVER, they are toxic to pets and livestock! The birds do LOVE the berries. We also have a tree in our backyard, but our tree still has its leaves. Our pets have never bothered the berries, but mockingbirds sure LOVE them! This tree is up in our local mountains, where I board my 5 horses. Mellow Yellow Monday for December 28, 2009.

Cacti~Today's Flowers 122709

We don't have many natural flowers blooming here in our desert right now, but I found these cacti in our archives. Something different! Today's Flowers for December 27, 2009.

"W" is for...ABC Wednesday 12 23 09

wings. And, here are two very different examples of wings, from the small hummingbird to the big black bird. Both photos were taken at the Living Desert Reserve here in Palm Desert, CA. ABC Wednesday for December 23, 2009.

Ruby Tuesday~Candy Canes 122209

I spotted this house with candy cane lights over the weekend when hubby and I were out for a walk and couldn't resist taking a picture of it. Ruby Tuesday for December 22, 2009. For other Ruby Tuesday entries, please visit: http://workofthepoet.blogspot.com/

Yellow beauties~Mellow Yellow Monday 122009

I found these yellow beauties yesterday morning, when I was out & about early. I don't know what they are...I just enjoyed their color! Mellow Yellow Monday for December 21, 2009, the shortest day of the year!

Today's Flowers~Orange Canna Lily ~December 14, 2009

I decided to post this photo because I'm tired of looking at gray skies and I wanted to see some color! More rain is forecast today (the 3rd day)...sigh...Today's Flowers for December 14, 2009. One good note: the rains have sprouted my California poppies and African daisies! They are just babies now and when I have something to post, I'll post pics of them. I believe this is an orange canna lily, but I could be wrong and there was no identification on it that I remember. HELP!

Today's Flowers~Arboretum~120609

HA~NOT my garden! No, these beautiful flowers are at the Los Angeles County Arboretum in Arcadia, CA. Today's flowers for December 6, 2009.

Desert storm ~SkyWatch Friday 120409

I have previously scattered some African daisy and California poppy seeds out in front of my fence, where I grew them last year, but we haven't had any real rain here in the desert yet and I've had to soak the area with the hose. A few scraggly plants have sprouted, but nothing great, considering the amount of seeds I threw out there. So, last weekend, I was thrilled when our desert got its first sprinkles! And, another storm is forecast next week. One with REAL drizzles! YEAH! So, I threw out two more packets of daisy and poppy seeds and I'm hoping that with next week's rain, they will sprout and thrive. For some reason, seeds really need the natural rainwater. Maybe our water district's water is too hard? This is a peek looking back toward the San Jacinto Mountains Sunday morning. SkyWatch Friday for December 4, 2009.