Plans, Plants and Pests

Tomorrow is the first day of sumer!!!!
The year is almost half over, WOW, where has it gone!!!??? 

We will be starting on the backyard landscaping soon, got some initial drawings from Scott and they are down right scarey!!!

This is the layout for the irrigation that will need to be put in.

First we will have to remove a few plants to be able to dig the trenches for the main water lines.   We will have to rent a ditch digger so want to have it all ready to go so it can be done in a couple/few days!!!  Then laying all the pipe and risers.......I'm get tired just looking at the picture!!!

Then.... even scarier is the drawings for the planting.....

I don't know how many plants are in there, but ALOT!!!!  Way more than the front yard!!!  YIKES!!!  We already know this project will take a couple years to complete.....just not enough time and or $ to do it all at once!!!!

The area within the walking path will be Mediterranean plants and around the outer area will be all native plants.  There are not alot of plants yet along the path to the casita because we are still working on that.  We want this area to be very tropical and lush, to have a very relaxing feel.  This will be the first area we work on.  

Speaking of the front yard, it is really coming along.  Almost everything is blooming and the humming birds are having a great time!!

The path is more visible every week.....

Yesterday I was checking on a couple of the palms, they were looking like they needed more water.  Well, under one of the little shrubs was a pile of soft dirt!!!!   

A GOPHER!!!!!  AARRGGHH!!!!

Mel got right on it and dug around the plant and found what he thought was the tunnel, he set the trap and in a few hours he had caught the bugger!!!!

YEA!!!!!  But now his tunnel still exists for others to cruise!!!!!  We'll have to keep an eye out.........

The garden is coming along.  We have gotten lots of veggies so far, and looking forward to more.....my squash plants haven't done very well, I think they are not getting enough sunshine.   I will be glad when we get the back garden beds put in.  They will get full sun for most of the day. 

The figs have started ripening.  This is the beginning of the first batch of the year.  Not many on the first go arond, but more to come a bit later.

 We have started getting our final plans together for our trip to Thailand.  This includes immunizations!!!!  YUK!!!  I HATE shots!!!!   We went to the clinic and I got 2 to start with.  The list of shots needed is LONG!!!!  I haven't had shots since high school when you needed them to play sports!!!   It wasn't near as bad as I remember, but my arm was sore for a couple days!!!  Luckily these shots are good for several years.  We will make an appt. with a travel nurse to get all the specific ones needed for where we are going. 

OH JOY!!!!!

We have been looking at a couple cars for me.  I really need to get something more economical!!!  I love my car but the mileage is terrible and I really don't need a car this big.   We have narrowed it down to a couple different ones that I think will work.  I love the Matrix, but I think it is out of my price range.  I drove the Soul and really liked it, but it has a couple issues, so now we are looking for a Ford Focus Wagon.... I know, not a Cool car at all, but it will be very functional for hauling the surfboards and for all the trips to the nursery for plants, etc.   and it gets good mileage......we just need to find someone who has one so we can really look at it......

Check out these guys who have taken up residence in the avocado tree!!!!

 From what we have read online, a group of bees will leave their old home if there are too many.  They will cluster somewhere and "scouts" will go on the hunt for another home.  This usually takes a couple days.  If a scout finds a new home they will leave.  If not, they will build another home......It has been about 4 days now and they are still here.   They are very quiet, you would never even know they were there. I don't want to kill them, so we will call a bee keeper and see if they can come get them.   Mel is allergic to bees so we are worried a bit about that, but they are way up in the top of the tree.....we just don't want them to build their new home here!!!!

So, that is what is happening here in our little corner of the world.

Hope you are enjoying yours.