Keeping Up On The Garden Chores

This morning I got outside early, trimmed off the dead sunflowers, and cut some for a small porch bouquet. I  also  cut  back the periwinkle. It had gotten out of control. It's an invasive plant, but has pretty flowers, and it does well in the drought. I may pull it out and replace it with oleander, which needs very little water.

The navel oranges are doing very well. They are still my favorite variety. They are so juicy and delicious. They will be ripe in about six or seven months. I've been keeping the soil cool with a layer of straw mulch.

The pomegranates are already splitting. I'm not sure why, it could be the lack of rain. I will have to strip the tree, and feed the fruit  to the chickens. Otherwise, the rats will come and hollow out the fruit.  I think I will buy a Wonderful Pomegranate. They seem to do well here. Several of my neighbors have them, and their fruit doesn't split. Mine looks gorgeous when it's in bloom, though. Each Spring it is covered with bright red, tubular flowers.

The tiny blood oranges on the branches turned black, shriveled up,  and dried up on the tree. This variety usually produces oranges every other year, so I guess that's Mother Nature's way of helping the plant to conserve its energy. I will keep it fed, mulched, and watered. It gave me a large crop of delicious oranges this year. Patience...

The hummingbirds love this gopher plant. It does seem to do the job of keeping the gophers out of the front potager garden,  thank goodness!  I think the hawks have greatly reduced their numbers, too. We have several nesting nearby. It's a very healthy ecosystem here. The vibration and sounds are calming.

I've been meaning to post a photo of the finished set from The Five Hour Baby Sweater. I think it's so sweet. I am looking forward to showing it to my knitting friends next week. It's so old fashioned. I am working on a new white  baby sweater now. It's fun to use the baby yarn in my stash that was given to me. I feel fortunate to have inexpensive hobbies. Library books, gardening,  bike riding, walking the dog, and knitting all keep me feeling balanced and happy. How was your weekend?

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