The rustling of leaves

October slipped by. This blog has become a cobwebsite. I thought that I could talk endlessly about plants and gardening. But of late, I've been pre-occupied with other thoughts and tasks. None of which have been about the garden. Well, mostly.

A few of the things I have been doing:

1. Working on a dune restoration project. Sunset magazine featured an article in September (which I haven't been able to find - I need to stop by the library) about the Monterey Dune restoration project. Currently, I have 2 trays of California dune natives that are sprouting (ever so slowly). One tray is beach aster (Lessingia filaginifolia) and the other is Sagewort (Artemisia pycnocephala). Once they get their true leaves, I'll be able to thin the seedlings down to one plant per cone. They are planted out in January and February. Sounds like cold, wet, windy work. And I'll probably be there.

2. Going to evening lectures at Cabrillo Horticultural Center about Sustainable Landscaping. I missed the first two classes, but have attended the last two and the final one is in a couple of weeks. I have some interesting notes; maybe I'll share them. (I hate promising that I'll write an entry and then never do it, so I'm hoping that I really will write up what I learned at the lectures.)

3. Trying to put away the harvest and take down the tomato vines. Rather dull work, but it needs doing. Don't feel like blogging every time I go out on a pruning or weeding expedition, because what more can you say about it?

4. I put some cabbages into bed 3 a couple of months ago. The sulfur butterfly caterpillars have devastated the poor things. They look more like lace than cabbages. I don't seem to have the heart to pull them up. But I just might have to.

The garden is pretty dismal. As the evenings are darker and time is shorter after work, I never get around to watering. I don't have things set up on timers. Maybe next year. I've lost a few plants, but so far, nothing that I'm upset over. I was even thinking of a Thursday 13 meme of what plants I've killed this year.

I had a short visit by Bambi one week. He took every single autumn rose bloom off, and de-nuded a couple of plants. But again, not much of a hit so I am thankful. I need to spray the back part of the yard again with the nasty anti-deer spray. So far, there's nothing they are interesting in. Or the neighbor's dog is keeping them spooked. (Good dog!)

I have been haunting the garden center on occasion, hoping to spot a 6 pack of walla walla onions. I really loved the crop I produced this year, and I was hoping to get another run on them. I finally found a set at a natural food store, and I purchased them with a 6 pack of Japanese red mustard and ruby cabbages.

Rain started on Thursday, but I barely received an 1/8th inch. But apparently Aptos/Cabrillo college (their weather station site) had only seen 0.26. But driving through La Selva/Freedom on Highway one in the morning, you would think that there would be more in the rain gauge. And although I was enjoying the small warm spell, I am looking forward to the rains and the greening of the landscape.