Welcoming Garden Visitors

This weekend my SJC garden will be open to the Orange County Master Gardeners as a part of their annual tour. This is the third time over the past eight years I have participated and I am always happy to share my garden and experiences with my fellow Master Gardeners. Contrary to what most people may think, gardeners are much more forgiving as visitors to a garden, probably because they really understand just how difficult it is to create and keep up a beautiful space, especially when trying to practice ecologically responsible habits. I have to say though, while going back through pictures to find some that show the progression of the gardens over the years, it is obvious that the drought has taken its toll on the gardens. What were once lush beds and paths with overflowing edges and fillers are now bare dirt and sparse, even with watering from the automatic sprinklers. I had three yards of mulch delivered today to help with water retention and we are expecting some rain over the next couple of days but we need so much more. Luckily pretty blooms like this daylily are willing to bloom with just a little water weekly.