Mother's Day, May, 2025

As we remember our mothers on this Mother's Day in May, 2025 let us not forget all they taught us, supported us through and for many of us have left us in their deaths. Perhaps some of you know my mother gave birth to me on Mother's Day?

Of course, my birthday often occurs on another day in May, as it does this year. Since no family is nearby, friends will be celebrating with me. One will be bringing my all time favorite cake (Cardinal Sin: dense, rich and almost fudgy. A flourless, bittersweet, single layer chocolate cake, glazed with house made chocolate ganache and chocolate). The Patisserie Angelica in Sebastopol is where anyone living nearby may purchase one to enjoy, if they so wish. 

While living in Santa Fe, New Mexico, a thorough search was made to find a comparable cake . . . nada. So back living near Patisserie Angelica their Cardinal Sin is frequently purchased for birthday celebrations.

Sistrinchium bellum
Californian blue eyed grass

Calylophus drummondianus 

(Sundrops)

More pictures of the plethora of flowers now in the garden . . . in both the front and the back.

 Displacus aurantiacus 

(Bush monkey flower)

Aesculus californica 

(California buckeye)

 

Calycantus occidentalis 

(Western spicebush) 

 

 

 

                                                Carpenteria californica  

                                                              (Bush anemone)

 

The Official Beginning of Summer

June 20, 2023 is the summer solstice. This day in June marks "the official  beginning of summer". 

To each and every reader of this post:

Happy

    Happy

        Happy

            summer solstice. 

                Enjoy!

Sunshine seems to be prevalent most everywhere in the Northern Hemisphere right now. In the summer solstice light here is the sun Dwight created, one of his very first clay pieces he created while we were together.

Sogyal Rinpoche's head was the model 
for one of his very first clay sculptures.

This sculpture has moved with each relocation. In most homes it was featured near or on the front door. Since the front portal shades the living room window, you will have to look extremely closely you can see the sun located on the right side of our Santa Fe home's front door.

Since I wanted to be able to enjoy Dwight's creation during my morning qi gong practice, the sun is now hanging on the back fence. It is directly in my line of vision when I look out the dining room double doors towards the fence.

Calylophus drum mondianus (Sundrops)

which to me is the ultimate symbol of Summer.

On a warm summer’s day Shasta loves to lay in the herbs especially if they are still in the shade. Here she is napping atop a 'Berggarten' sage which for me is the must-have herb for "an out of this world" grilled cheese sandwich.

As we honor the changing of the season on this first day of summer may we each

Ready

Pinus monophylla (Pinyon pine)

This slow growing pine tree is my all time

my favorite! And when possible cut ones

have been my traditional Christmas tree. 

 On San Felipe Circle in Santa Fe, New Mexico

I was lucky to have a full grown one 

in the front near the sidewalk.

PageRefuge is ready for her debut on the Water Wise 2023 garden tour. The Eco-friendly garden tour is scheduled for May 13 from 10 a.m. to 4p.m. I feel feel fortunate that two volunteers will be here in four hour shifts. The delightful woman who has agreed to the morning will arrive early to help me with the set up.

Below is a list of the eco-friendly gardens that are participating this year:

Cloverdale

Hummingbird Haven

Corte Madera

Wildlife Oasis – Neil Cummins Native Habitat Garden

Cotati

Color in Cotati

PageRefuge

Novato

Miles McKay Meditation Garden

Lemons and Lavender Homestead

Home Ground Habitats

Oaks and Sages

Petaluma

New Oak Woodland

Garden Sense Waterwise Garden

San Anselmo

Drought Resistant Garden

San Rafael

Planting for the Future

Santa Rosa

HOA Lawn Conversion

A Garden for Wildlife

Laguna Environmental Center Native Plant Demonstration Garden

Matanzas Creek Natives

Totally Unexpected Food Forest

PageRefuge's plants are cooperating big time to provide visitors with a wide range of colorful displays. Seems to me that each will certainly find something they will like to plant in their own gardens.

Viola tricolor (Johnny jump up)

The flowers are a tasty addition to lettuce salads.

I must admit this is my all time flower! The flowering is prolific and to me looks so cheerful. When I scattered a few (well, I guess there were far more that a few!) in the large clay pots sitting on the back patio, I noticed as I prepared the pots for planting tomato plants in them that they were FULL of Johnny jump up. On a flower planting day recently I dug them all up and transplanted them in the "milkweed bed" beneath the living room windows. To my astonishment when I had planted them all, the bed was covered. What a delight to behold!

Lonicera hispidula (Honeysuckle, aka Hairy honeysuckle)

Calylophus drum mondianus (Sundrops)

While living in Santa Fe, I fell in love with Sundrops. Luckily, when this property become mine to relandscape, it came with two of the above! I merely moved them so they would be together in a spot to my liking.

In New Mexico several varieties of Sundrops are indigenous. Along the front where the sidewalk curved, the two pictured below were planted after I purchased three of each from Plants of the Southwest:

Fendler’s sundrops (Calylophus hartwegii fendleri)

Dwarf sundrops (Calylophus serrulutus)

 

While the plants are not identical, they all have the cheerful yellow flowers. The Sundrops' extremely appealing flowers cannot help bring a smile to one's face. Thus my reasoning for planting them near the  walkway to the front door: a welcoming of sort to my home.

Mimulus aurantiacus (Sticky monkeyflower)

When the sun shines onto these clumps of grass planted near the driveway and road, shimmery is such an appropriate adjective! I had created a similar situation at MuRefuge. My goal when I planted grasses I had sprouted from Todd planters into the thickly mulched front yard was exactly what now exists. Often I am so pleasantly surprised with the result. Tanis shared she has planted these grasses in her garden but they did not flourish. This reminds me that we live in so many microclimates here in Northern California. Each possess conditions so different from one another.

Stipa pulchra  (Purple needlegrass)

Lepechinia fragrans ‘El Tigre’ (Pitcher sage)

The above plant was mentioned in an article I was reading . The pictures and description intrigued me so I checked around and found two plants for sale. I planted one in the front and the other in the back. I was so excited when I noticed the one in the back (featured in the picture above) was flowering. The flowers have a delicious smell and attractive to pollinators as well.

As I walk about surveying the readiness of PageRefuge's debut, I have a