Oh my aching back!

I've spent the past two days cleaning up my yard and planting fall flowers. We had all our garbage cans full and I didn't want to face the garbage man with all the stuff we put out. There was a lot of debris out there.

What's the reason for all this activity? Tomorrow a photographer is coming to see my yard. There is some software being developed to help people design their yard in the desert style. One of the yards that may be used is our yard, so as usual I work myself into a frenzy cleaning up. It's worse than when I have people over at the house. At least it's more physical.

I bought 24 purple stock plants to add some color by the front door and the side flower bed. That's one of the fall plants that should last the winter, barring freezing weather. I've had some reseed for several years. The yard is looking pretty brown and tan except for some small desert perennials called dogweed and paperflower. They are both yellow. My whole concept when I designed the front yard was to look like the edge of the desert. I used elevational changes, natural rock and lots of native cacti and perennials. This lovely plant is Mexican tarragon. Crush a leaf and it smells distinctly like licorice. I've been told they are used in Day of the Dead wreathes in Mexico.

I also like to use various agaves, this one is called Queen Victoria agave. I have Parry's agave, Weber's smooth edge agave, Century plant or American agave. The little succulent plants are aloes. I forgot which ones they are but I like the way they get reddish on the tips in the fall.

The last plant I want to show you is my screwbean mesquite. It has these interesting seed pods that sort of look like screws. It was 15 inches tall last spring when I planted it. It was in a one gallon pot. Now it is over 8 feet tall after only 18 months. That's what planting an appropriate plant with the right kind of irrigation will get you. And those kids I work with were teasing me last year. One of them asked me if I thought I would live long enough to see it grow up. I guess I showed him.