cakewalk

I've been away visiting the folks in the San Francisco Bay area. Spent a day helping my sister make cakes for my father's birthday party. With the addition of another sister's chocolate mousse cake, there were six cakes altogether. Whew! Plant photos to come.


This was my contribution, and yes, I made the rose from fondant. Looked better in real life than in the photos, but oh well. OCD* is a necessary qualification to making this cake.

Chocolate mousse cake and swirly circle cake made by a sister.

My 10 year-old niece made this one. How cool is this? I love it.

All of us together made this one.

One sister and I made a frog-on-a-lily-pad cake. I didn't think about taking a photo until it was almost devoured. Sister made the frog.
*Obsessive-compulsive disorder.

it's coming down

If there was any doubt about the weather, it became abundantly clear this afternoon.

Here's snow coming down on Karl:

'Winchester Cathedral' was planning on making a show, but this is as far as it got.

A spider web under an overflow pipe makes for a curious scene.

Apache plume (Fallugia paradoxa) becomes a delicate tracery.

There's a heuchera and some dianthus under there.

so much for the growing season

An early winter storm has hit us, and yep, that is snow on the mountains. Yesterday morning there was flurrying at my house. Today's high is supposed to be 41F and tonight is expected to be as low as 23F. The osmanthus flowers froze last night, and are crispy brown this morning. We'll see how the rest of the garden fares as the week goes on.

saffron

Although saffron crocus (Crocus sativus) doesn't make a dramatic show like Crocus speciosus does, it is a nice surprise to have in the fall. Here it is, peeking out of the Artemesia versicolor. I find that although saffron crocus survives, in my garden it never produces enough to make a good showing. Maybe it needs a more Meditteranean climate. It is also a slightly muddy mauve which does not catch the eye in the garden, even if it is attractive enough up close. My two flowers won't make enough saffron to flavor a dish of paella, but I like the novelty of having the blossoms.

after the show

Like fall leaves, the purple asters give a big splash, but the color doesn't last for very long. After all, they don't have a lot of time to put out seeds before the cold weather comes. Fortunately, after the big show, comes an encore. Quickly after the blooms fade, sometimes even before the last of the purple daisies fade, the pappus forms attractive puffballs that catch the light. These help the seeds disperse (like dandelion seeds), but can make a mess as they stick to clothing when the gardener is trying to neaten up the garden.

dalea

Not to be confused with Dahlia, which might sound similar, Dalea frutescens, or the Black Dalea, has tiny pea-shaped flowers (it is a legume after all). It blooms for a long period in the fall. In milder climates, it can bloom all winter, but not here. Here, in my neighbor's yard, it hardly needs any water at all.

cottonwood

It's that time.