Sierra Foothill Garden

March is coming in like a lamb.  What does that mean?  A little rain, a little snow, just an inch or so. One or two things are blooming and the daffodils are about 6 inches tall. My photos are for Town Mouse’s meme, First Views. Visit her post, and sign in to the Mr Linky tool there to join in!  The idea is to show wider views of your garden as it changes month to month.

The table centerpiece catches snow and adds a bit of color to the natural beauty beyond.

Looking out over the garden to the mountain. About an inch fell, still very much below our average of a few 8” snows through the Fall and Winter.

The main path lined with logs runs through the center of the garden area. The Bergenia is blooming as usual. Deer nibbled a bit of this but now is the peak bloom. The round leaves are so different than any other native leaf shape so I enjoy having it.

The path between the lower patio and the salvia bed. My 24 year old daughter was so shocked when I told her it was a ‘salvia bed.’ Why? Hmmm…how does she know about salvia? Good to shock your kids now and then, I think.

The lower natural meadow that I weeded completely last summer has Buckbrush Ceanothus, Deer Brush, Yerba Buena, goldenfleece and a variety of cudweeds. I planted about 40 deer grass seedlings out to the hinterlands where there’s no water.

Overlooking where the Hall’s Mule’s ears were, the view is up the slope toward the house. The frosty bench is a favorite place to sit and water. In the center there is a reddish look to the Jupiter’s Beard which turns red in the cold.

Each mule’s ear pod has a hat of snow! Beyond is the forest where there is an opening in the wire fence that deer use to come and go.

Looking over a foreground of native Goldenfleece (left) and lo native Bear’s Clover, is a variety of sages, Cleveland, Pineapple, Russian and Autumn sages.

Looking down over the new meadow, now more than a full year old, you can see much more green than last year. The perennials around the edges are more substantial and I can see many native seedlings. The bad news is the filaree came back with a vengeance, and I know I’ve already started, last week on a sunny day, some intensive ‘square foot by square foot’ weeding. I have a head start though by IDing all the seedlings, natives from weeds, last year.

In the ‘front’ which is actually away from the view, are the beds with an Aristocrat pear, a lilac, lavender and thyme, mixed with some low conifers and junipers. I want to redo the edging of rock into a more flowing shape this year.

The goat shed hill frosted with snow. Behind it are the neighbor’s tall ponderosa pines, our manzanita and a huge leafless Oracle oak.

From the goat shed hill you look down on a large natural meadow dusted with snow. Here is the hedgehog dogtail grass (non native) and the Wedgeleaf Ceanothus, Deer Brush, Yerba Buena, and California larkspur that was discovered last summer. There is also a nice Flannel bush.

What my Dad would call a ‘mackerel sky’ over the cold mountain, looking northeast.

Overlooking the south part of the garden below the new meadow we’ve made a path you can barely see. We’ll carve this out a bit better with the tractor again to keep it clear of stickery weeds.

The front bank faces the bay window of the living room and I’ve worked to plant anything on it that would like clay. So far the Manzanita ‘Howard McMinn’ and the lavender and rockrose do the best along with trailing rosemary which might soon cover the wall in places. There’s a line of daffodils planted along the top edge. The three saw blades were used to build our house.

Well the snow did come and a fraction of rain!  Next month, April Fools and it anyone’s guess what the weather will be.  Consider posting your own ‘first views’ and joining us in our garden ‘tours.’  Thanks, Town Mouse for the idea, this will be an invaluable record of our gardens this year!