Ashland
A year in the life of a California Native succession garden planted (mostly) from seed.
October
April
Post-rain, it’s peak Poppy bloom, long work calls enlivened by weeding.
May
Monkeyflowers, Penstemon, Sphaeralcea, Salvias all blooming, Aristida purpurea is established and brilliant purple, Poppies starting their dormancy.
June
Buckwheats and Grindelia firing up. Poppies are done, Monkeyflowers starting to go dormant. Garden is buzzing with bees.
August
Deep summer dormancy with no recent rain and none on the horizon- the fifth season. Aristida purpurea a fuzzy gold cotton candy haze threading through the skeletal Grindelia, Buckwheats and Sages; Epilobium sensing its moment with buds starting to emerge.
Early November
No real rain yet. Full dormancy, lots of brown, silver and gold. Epilobium, having peaked in October, is now starting to fade after providing late-season nectar to the hummingbirds.
November 2 weeks later
Post-rain, photosynthesis starts right up, green leaves and stalks poking their heads up into the silvers and greys.
January
The sun is low in the sky. With recent heavy rains, everything is glowing with growth happening above and underground.