Rain

Yeah ...over here there was 2 'pulses' of torrential rain periods between 1 and 3pm. But that interval of intense lightning had me looking to pack up and leave if I survived it.

I read and see the problems from Hurricane Irene. Too much rain. It's another scorcher here in Austin area - was 107 yesterday. Feels unbelievable just to walk outside. Just hoping the landscaping holds up. Exhausting, hawling bucks around, giving those expensive little plants a chance. The oaks look terrified! And, we've seen a lot of movies in the often-to0-cold air conditioning.

I snuck two buckets of water, threw it on the deck. The birds seem to hang out in those trees, close to the 4 birdbaths. The poop was stacking up.

BUT, it's gradually getting less hot this week, 97 degrees on Friday. AND, 30% chance of rain Th, Fri, Sat. I"ll be out there, standing in the rain, if it makes it. "They" say we'll have this drought for months.

Yeh. The rain here for a few minutes yesterday (10?) was a delight.
Also, I don't have to water today. My grosso lavenders and rosemary plants are pretty hardy plant souls, famous last words. One new mexico olive (Neomexicana forestiera) kicked the bucket last year, to my rue, as it was set opposite its mate on the other side of the yard (I like some symmetry with randomness between, in certain yards). Those are supposed to need no water at all once established. I guess two years of establishing wasn't enough.

Have a spanish lavender that is hanging on, newly planted this year. The guy that's making it without a blink is my dwarf pomegranate. I'm pomegranate plant keen, but have only grown the regular sized one before, back in CA.
Have a Caesalpina gilliesii (yellow bird of paradise, not to be confused with Strelitzias) living happily, from seed, in my kitchen; I'm waiting until the baking heat stops before I plant it. The one living in the back yard needs no care.
Another survivor without too much plant whining is my catnip. Or, catmint. They're similar; I had one of each, one being in a pot. The one in a pot died on me. Anyway, the one in the sand is a brave thing, whichever it is. I can't tell, via google images.

Uh-oh, spoke too soon. The 30% of a few days ago became 20%,and is now 10% all three days. We don't water the lawn at all, so you could say equality rules on our street. It is a strange shade of bright brown and yellows, crisp to walk on. Then, there are those possums that try to dig down to the roots fishing for (grubs)?

When we lived through a whole summer of no rain in Michigan the lawns were a beautiful golden color. Then, after it poured for an hour the weirdest grass emerged, bright green and furry. Fascinating to see all the dirt and dust washed from the trees.

Haven't washed my windows since early spring. They are very low and are getting splashed, but you can't see the dirt from outside. But we can hardly see out, when in.

Russian olive really like water. Their virtue is tolerating some really nasty soil. Our Parks and Recreation is steadily removing the stuff from the Riverwalk. It's close to the river and has something like a four foot water table. They are mostly undesirable immigrants, and very invasive.

and they only live 7 - 10 years...

I have been removing their carcasses all over the property this summer.

Not to mention, they have such a variable hardness as to make the wood useless for most things, and a tendency to warp like corkscrews while drying.

it will burn...

if it sucks, I'll burn it in the shop.

as for rain, I've given up and am making my own at home...

We have had so much rain lately I haven’t been to a car wash in 4 months.

And we have had so much rain, my neighbors' two year old ducks haven't learned to swim yet. They heard it was raining over in Rio Arriba County, and took their kids to see it. They were too late.

It's not a russian olive. Go back and look at my post. You must know I would not plant that. It's a new mexico native, called new mexican olive.

You also recently instructed me about round up and a shovel. What's the deal?

Forestiera neomexicana:

Last week it finally rained enough for the toads and frogs to come out and have their enormous annual orgies in the collection ponds here in the a-hole o' Texas.

What's good about the drought is that I haven't been tortured by the mosquitos that usually come out around July and August.

Is that in front of that old church in Santa Fe?

I don't know, it might well be, pruned nicely as it is. Will look around.

Have been google looking, no luck so far.

Sorry. New Mexico olive is not only nicer, it's related to real olive trees. The berries are a bit asringent for my taste, and more seed than fruit, but the birds like them.

This is the place i was thinking of . . .



. . . i think they may not be the same.

I think it's different too.
I haven't been to this one you showed - San Miguel Mission Church, said to be the oldest church in the U.S. in one of the pic links.
http://www.examiner.com/santa-fe-insider-travel-in-albuquerque/nm-history-museums-begins-walking-tours-of-historic-santa-fe-april-15th

I don't recognize the church that the New Mexican olive is in front of, but I'm no New Mexico churches expert.