Cup of Gold

Important info: Regarding Solandra maxima, Cup of Gold Vine–all parts of the plant are toxic and poisonous, so be aware of this before planting if you have pets or small children.

If that’s not an issue for you and you love vines with gigantic flowers — about six inches in diameter — take a look at this!

The flowers deepen in color as they age which make this plant even more appealing and that’s when they become fragrant.  

About a year ago, a gardener friend gave me a few rooted stalks of Cup of Gold and they seem to really love it here. One of them is already about 40 feet and growing every day. The others are doing well too, but not as great as this one.

I’ve rooted more and now I have them growing everywhere; in a few years it’s going to look like a jungle around Casa de Enchanted Seashells.

Another Vernal Equinox

Our meager rain over the weekend was absolutely welcomed but everything is already dry. The forecast calls for eighty degree temperatures by midweek.

The equinox marks the precise moment the sun’s rays shine directly on the Earth’s equator.

Last week’s full moon is now a waning gibbous. I didn’t get any full moon photos but when I looked outside last night, I saw a colorfully glowing moon and snapped some pics.

The Sky Above

According to the weather report, showers are likely, mainly after 11pm. Today will be mostly cloudy with a 60% chance of precipitation. New precipitation amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch are possible.

That doesn’t sound like very much rain but it will be welcomed in this very dry March.

I looked up to see a sky full of clouds that look like something my grandma would have crocheted, a dresser scarf or table doily, two things nobody really decorates with anymore. I have layers of them in the cedar chest, nestled between sheets of perfumed tissue paper.

A Sunday Pictorial

Just a day in the life…

Caring for a friend’s old and adorable cat for a couple of days…

Chasing butterflies in the garden…

The clouds hung around after a bit of welcome rain.

A whole lotta bicyclists ride down the beach highway.

There were supposed to be waves up to eight feet but not here, I guess. It was kinda disappointing, but still a beautiful Pacific Ocean scene.

Happy Sunday from sunny Southern California!

Fragrant Freesias

These are the first fragrant freesias of spring. (I like alliteration.)

#WordlessWednesday

Forsooth! Frivolous Forsythia

All of our crazy weather including half the rain we usually get made for an early spring. The fruit trees are flowering, the ash tree did its thing and is leafed out already, as well as the grapes.

Not at all native to this weird deserty, sometimes Mediterranean climate, I saw a forsythia bush and couldn’t walk away without bringing her home. I paid full price too, which should tell you how much I wanted it. Teehee.

When I was growing up back east, I knew spring had arrived when my mom took me violet hunting and the lillies of the valley popped up, An even more glorious sign were the budding forsythia and lilac bushes up against the French doors in the living room.

When the weather warmed up enough to open all the doors and windows, their fragrance was literally breathtaking.

I’ve tried to grow lilacs here and failed, so I don’t have the highest of hopes for this forsythia, but I will try my best.

Fingers crossed, everyone!

P.S. There’s a chance we’ll have rain this week and that’ll make all my plants (and me) happy.

Photo by LExie Blessing on Pexels.com

Happiness is a Blooming Hedgehog Aloe and Stunning Ceanothus

The temps dropped nearly forty degrees and we were lucky enough to get some unexpected rain.

In the morning I was greeted by this flowering orange Hedgehog Aloe against a background of a very healthy ceanothus covered in lilac blooms.

From Bunnies to the Beach…

First thing this morning, directly outside my bedroom window, I was greeted by not one, not two, but THREE bunnies! I knew right then and there that it was going to be a great day.

I could see this gigantic ship pretty much all the way from my house and I don’t think it moved at all, or very slowly, by the time I made it to the beach. Going north or south, I can’t tell. It was quite a few miles offshore, that’s why it’s not a clear photo.

It’s about seventy degrees and GORGEOUS. No whales or dolphin, just a couple surfers having fun in the smallish waves.

I was sitting crosslegged on top of a cement picnic table on the sidewalk overlooking the beach when someone walked by and told me I looked quite peaceful. Maybe it’s because of the way I was sitting, meditatively, but the thoughts in my head weren’t so serene. It was H-O-T and I was not looking forward to the long UPHILL walk back to Casa de Enchanted Seashells. In addition to those thoughts, I had to use the restroom and the beach bathroom isn’t the most luxurious, but when you gotta go…So I did and then I could no longer delay the inevitable — I walked home.

Dorothy said it: “There’s no place like home.”

Rocky Beach

I got up super early and went to the part of the beach that never fails to provide a variety of plentiful rocks for all my projects. This time was no exception. The irony is that there are no seashells here; only rocks. My local beaches aren’t known for seashell collecting, but rocks are welcome treasures, too.

There was the bluest of sunny skies but it was windy and sand was blowing all over the place from another mild Santa Ana.

I was able to find all the rocks I needed, joined by an audience of seagulls and shorebirds. It was so early there were few humans so we had the beach to ourselves.

Every rock is so beautiful and unique; I have a hard time choosing who comes home with me. Just look at them!

Violet Memories

A little violet plant surprised me today in the garden. I don’t know how it came to grow here, especially since Southern California is not the most suitable habitat. Violets prefer damp, well-drained ground and the sun-dappled protection of woodlands, none of which I have.

I was reminded of a special time with my mom. Every spring we’d bring willow baskets with handles and go to the stone bridge at Palmer Park in Detroit and fill them with purple and white violets.

When we returned home, my mom and I would fill every vase and glass we could find with the fragrance of these beauties. Sometimes I’d press a few in a book to find at a later date when it was dried and papery but still evoked the faintest perfume.

Since there’s no rational explanation, I’ll just thank my mom for her visit to guide my happy memories of those lovely times we shared.