Exotic Blooms

August 17, 2013

Cekur (Kaempferia galanga) is a herb I have tried to grow numerous times with very limited success over the years. Even if it sprouted and I tended to it with the tenderest of care, it inevitably dies. It does not matter if I keep it in the house or outside..

This year I planted the cekur in Temecula instead of San Diego. Temecula's climate is more extreme; hotter in the summer than San Diego with a chance of frost in winter. So far, it has been a fine balance of watering, shade and heat. Too wet and the tuber rots. Too dry, they become dry and shrivelled. Then there are the snails that absolutely love to devour them. 

Temecula went through a weekend of over 100F this past weekend. I made sure that the cekur had the moisture to combat the heat. I was handsomely rewarded by a delicate and beautiful bloom that rivals and resembles an orchid!!

See how I GROW......

July 12, 2015

We went away for a mini vacation in Montreal and Vancouver. When I got back I was astounded at what greeted me!! Apparently, the Choy Sum had its own summer vacation and was "glowing". Compare the pictures from June 25 and July 12, 2015.

June 25, 2015

Underwater Garden

June 25, 2015

I was so excited to see how the the transplants had grown since I last saw them. Also, a little bit afraid.... Before I left, I had sprinkled the beds with Organic Sluggo to take care of the millions of snails that seem to be everywhere. No matter how many I physically removed, when I turn around there would be more snails- sometimes stuck together...meaning future generations of snails. It seems be no end to these snails.

Apparently, snails was the least of my worries!! As I excitedly, slide open the door to the patio and garden, my jaw dropped. It was an unbelievable sight! I was in shock and shouted for BH. 

It is Planting Time!!

June 21, 2015

Now that the planter beds have been renewed, I was excited to transplant the seedlings that we had brought over from San Diego. I installed drip irrigation and planted Choy Sum and Swiss Chard in one bed.

Making the trip

June 18, 2015

I am way behind on my blog posts....
In the midst of the chaos I call life, BH and I have surely but slowly been moving our stuff from the San Diego house to the Temecula house. Now that it is summer it is only natural that we turned our attention to the garden; looking at what plants we could bring with us.

Without a single doubt, we were taking our Kaffir Lime and the Calamansi Lime. It proved to be quite a feat as the trees have been in the pots for quite a few years. In addition to that, I had  been neglecting the plants for the past year or so. The landscapers had repeatedly knocked off the irrigation emitters from the pot. Often, I don't notice until weeks later during my infrequent visit to the garden. As a result, the trees were stressed  and the roots were crazily entwine within the pot, seeking out every bit of water.

Rehabilitation and new planter beds

June 14, 2015 

We did a lot this weekend. On Friday, we transplanted three pomegranate trees that the birds had so kindly planted in one of my raised garden bed. It is only fair as they had feasted on the pomegranate fruits from the tree up front. Dear husband dug up the three trees which were already flowering and fruiting from the planter beds. That in itself was quite a feat. The roots were deep. I think this is their second spring. Then DH had to dig the holes to transplant the trees to. We moved it to the south hillside next to the goji berry.

Dogs in the Mist

I spent this weekend going through my photos on my phone, uploading to computer and backing up the photos. I came across these photos of Frasier and Ellie following my husband. My husband is allergic to dogs so the dogs are outside dogs. He does not play with them, just talk to them from the door. I think it is because of just that, they lap ( no pun intended) up any interaction they have with him. They just love him. He says he does not like dogs and they dogs are just for us. Secretly, I think he loves them just as much as we do.

One morning I woke up and look outside. It was all misty. I could not see beyond our property, could not see the vineyards.

The mist started clearing up a bit and what do I see? My husband strolling around our property with his morning cup of joe, and our dogs just leisurely following him around.