The opening of the garden.

March 4—so it has started again: The spring cleaning of the garden!  

A good sun, strong and warm, came out today and the earth warmed up to 42 degrees.  So, I was left with no more excuses not to go out and start working the grounds again.  And thus, the job has started.  The garden has been reopened!  From now on I won’t stop.

Two of the old pink Know-out roses were taken out today too—pathetic looking little things, long due for the trash. Finally, they’re out of the garden.  Why do I keep waiting and hoping and waiting for bad plants to improve, or do better when they never do?  Now, I have a lovely space under the lilac tree for planting something else… but what?

March 6—today, I planted a clematis and a peony.  The clematis was planted by the New Dawn climbing rose at the entrance of the garden, and the peony in one of the beds, right where another peony bush stands.  I will have to remove a mule pine around that same area soon, because I don't like how it looks there; taking away precious space for something prettier, or better.  But I will have to wait until I'm done with the cleaning of beds.   

March 7—I’ve continued working in the garden every day this week; little by little and section by section.  Cleaning and clearing off its floors of the usual thick layer of debris, dead leaves, branches and broken pots and things that our long winters tent to accumulate each winter.    

All that grass growing along the fence and in places where they are not supposed to grow, I'm pulling out by hand... and I am also removing the viola papilionacea o wild violet that in certain parts of the garden spreads out like a ground cover.  This is a good time to do this, as these annoying little things have not spread out too much yet, and because the ground is soft with snows and rain moisture, it is easier to pull.  

 It took me awhile to pull them all out, but the garden is freed of it now.

As a way of an experiment, I’m only doing a light pruning on the perennials this year.  Leaving shrubs and trees to recuperate from last spring’s abuse.  Leaving most everything just as they are, and only removing the dead leaves from the rose bushes and maybe cutting off some tips to give them some shape, but nothing much. 

It always amazes me how awfully emptied of life and unattractive the garden always looks around this time of the year… but at least it gives me a clear idea of what I need to do there.

After two big trash bins a few large trash bags more, everything is starting to look awesome.  If not lovely, at least clean. 

Remember the little pond I created last spring?  It is no more. This is now where the new fence will go, as soon as the Fisherman finds time to work on it. I still have to figure out what to do with all those rocks.  Where should I put them?

...and, this is the crooked fence that Reuben built. You can't really tell by looking at the photograph, but it is lop-sided. Plus, he only build that much of a fence.  Now, the Fisherman has to extend it on each end to make it a ‘normal’ side to side fence.  For this, we’re using part of the old fence. So, it’s going to be something sorts of like a Frankenstein of a fence!  Hehe.  Not only we will have a crooked fence, but also the wonkiest of all fences!

This year I’m planning of filling several empty spaces throughout the garden and cover fences on certain areas with either some tall shrubs or vines.  It is still too early to know if the tree I moved at the end of last summer survived, and if the new tree that Joe planted for me at the beginning of fall made it or not.  I'm hopeful and eager to start seeing some life in them...  

Have you started working in your garden yet?

Welcome, March!

March 1st—freezing rain and snow for four consecutive days! And then, today, as if to celebrating the beginning of the first weekend of March, the sun came out melting snows and bringing out all the birds. How happy the earth felt, and my heart too! Everything looked so vibrant and flawless and the brilliance brought in by this new March sun made every thing feel and look gloriously springy!

I went to the moody mud-covered garden and my feet sunk under soft wet grasses and mud, and I noticed that the first tulips have already started showing up happy little heads. Some of them, in the right places, some in the wrong. And I had to just ponder and asked myself how could I had been so reckless or distracted as to not noticed when I was planting, that I was planting in the wrong place? Now, these tulips will have to be pulled out, because they were planted in that special place I’ve been saving for my new roses.  Argh!

Reuben and Antonio came by today to work on the new fence and gate.  That’s the space where our new trailer is going to be kept.  

How excited I was to have this project finally started!

We are adding a new fence and gate at the front and, to add more space for the trailer, we are also moving that part of the fence which separates this space from the garden a few feet down.  Which means the garden will be smaller now, and I will also be losing the little pond I created last spring... sad!

But what a disappointment this project turned out to be when it was all done, because the fence that now will be dividing the trailer side of the backyard from the garden is everything but straight.  Period.  From whatever angle you see it, it isn’t straight.

Back to Winterland

Is it normal to feel this depressed after a glorious vacation of warm Caribbean sun and marvelous beaches? I supposed it is, if you’d have to come back to Winterland again. 

Winter’s chill isn’t for everyone I supposed. So, back to my fleece pajamas and warm sheepskin slippers it is for me! 

I hear that on Wednesday while we were sunbathing in some of the most beautiful beaches in Nassau, here in our high desert snow was coming down in big flakes… and so much it snowed, that some of our schools had to be closed down for the day. Freezing rain and a lanky dark sky welcomed us back home. Dispositions are low and eyes are having a hard time getting used to this no-light no blue skies situation again; weakening down the spirits and wearing down old bodies. 

But of course, this could very well be just how I see things, because this sun loving creature that I am needs lots and lots of sunshine and a glorious tableau of many greens where to repose these eyes all year around.

Our winters here are yellowish-brown and bleak because of the type of trees we have. But when it snows the scenery changes and the land gets to wear its peaceful white garments and gleaming jewels of crystals, and it is beautiful and alluring everywhere you look. The little creatures, dwellers of the garden love this time of year too.

They don't seen to mind cold, cloudy days at all...

or think that our winters are too long, or too cold to take a bath...

And there is quite a different sort of conversation on a bare fence than there is in the shadow of a beech tree in summertime…

They don't complain either, like I do, about February being too long too cold too annoying.  They just do what they have to do, knowing that winter is like a brief pause in music, and that during that pause the musicians are privately tuning their strings, to prepare for the coming outburst.  I know, I have to learn from them!

We are high desert through and through, with the benefits of having nice mountains and forests close by, and a river running through town.  We are not desert like Vegas or Phoenix, but more like Reno and northern Nevada. And I can hardly wait to start seeing all those glorious tulip heads popping up everywhere in the garden. I'm so ready for warmer days and new buds on the lilac trees!  I am dreaming with roses... lots of roses, new roses, old roses and I'm thinking of planting Moonflowers and Morning Glory at the feet of climbing roses.  Would they take over the roses?  Would it be a bad idea?

We haven't brought our new trailer home yet, but soon, very soon it will be here and I will start decorating it in my favorite gypsy style.

The Fisherman will complain about everything I want to do there, all the things I want to hung from the ceilings and on walls and all the gypsy fabrics and tapestries I want to wrap our bedroom with, the cushions and floor pillows and bohemian gypsy décor.  All—he will complain about everything, and I will not have a care in the world whatsoever, and at the end he will agree with me and love the end results and feel pleased and delighted seeing me happy and cheerful like a little bird.  Men.  Don't we have love them! ;)

Winter

Rain rain… for three consecutive days, we have been gifted with precious rain.  This is the time when our high desert gets the highest amounts of rainwater, then, during our hot summer days, Nature can go without it for months.  So, I am thankful for whatever amount of moisture we can get these days. 

Which also means, I’m spending most of my days cozying up in my jungle house! 

Watering my ‘plant children’ and making sure they get plenty of humidity from whatever source they can get it.

A few weeks ago, I decided to rescue my potted Norfolk Pine—the same one I had discarded after the Christmas holidays were over and took it outside to let die, because I knew it couldn’t be planted outside and survive our winters, not to mention that it’s not even close to being a native plant…

It happened that the other day when we were at a local gourmet café we like to visit, I noticed a potted Norfolk Pine sitting by the large windows, and it was huge, and beautiful, and looking at its size, I figured the plant must had been several years old.  Which meant they could survive in a pot! So, I run back home and save it. Was it worth it? I can't tell yet, but I like to see it in in this corner of my house…

My new white flowering Kalanchoe is doing great thus far. The Kalanchoe flowers can last for weeks and weeks. I got my first Kalanchoe last summer, and its beautiful pink flowers bloomed throughout the entire summer and fall. And now this white one is doing the same… these flowers last and last…

After my pink flowering Kalanchoe was done flowering, I repotted it, so we’ll see what happens now.  The small flowers look like tiny roses... I love them!

In my gypsy room days are spent decorating, and going through dozens of home and garden books and magazines.

Adding fairy lights everywhere!

I covered the closet door with that same versatile tablecloth I use for everything.  A few weeks ago, it was a bedcover, now is doing the function of some wallpaper.

I love it so much!

Some of the geraniums have started blooming. This have to be one of my greatest joys during our long winters for sure!

And here is that closet door again!

The other day, a huge flock of robins came by again, so many birds, that not a single tree in the garden was devoid of them.  Me too, I’m also looking forward to spring!  Dreaming with it, dreaming with flowers and vines and a strong sunshine to crown my head and warm my shoulders…

I can’t forget, though, that winter has its own beauty to share, and I’m learning to love the natural stillness and effortlessness that come with it, the beauty of snow in the early morning, the melancholy of nights.  Winter is the time for home.  And I’m gathering each of its precious jewels in my soul.  Learning to love what it has to offer me on a day to day.  And how beautiful, and glorious it was this morning as I was coming home from a date with my Fisherman at Starbucks, to see the new day dawning behind snow-covered peaks; winter light, merciful and opaque, reposing over frozen fields. Coming down a steep hill I could see the entire valley below as far as my eyes could reach covered in a nimble haze; smoke from fireplaces slowly and ceremoniously rising up the heavens as horses and sheep received the new day under the great openness of fields covered in winter delight.

OK my friends, I hope I haven’t bored you!  I hope you all have a lovely Valentine’s Day today, and may you always find peace and joy during your days and nights. 

I will be absent from this place for a few days, but if you miss me you can always find me on Instagram!  https://www.instagram.com/gypsycielo/

See you then!