My friend Pamela sent me this picture of a tree in her yard. That morning, low clouds covered their area, but no snowfall occurred. You can imagine her surprise and delight when she looked out and saw this beautiful "snow covered" tree when there was no snow! It reminded her of the Christmas trees with flocking on them.
Turns out there is something called Rime ice, which coats trees with ice droplets from fog, often on a mountain ridge. A friend in Colorado told me about this phenomenon when I showed him this picture of Pamela's tree.
Rime ice occurs with fog, cold temperatures and high altitude. Hard rime is a white ice with a "comb like" appearance, and soft rime has a more feathery appearance. Meteorologists have a number of fine distinctions beyond these - mostly related to how the ice forms and under what conditions.
For the rest of us, here's to simply enjoying the beauty of a snowy tree in...
I am now officially a farmer! Well, a back yard farmer, at least. Our town has an exciting group called 15Thousand Farmers, whose goal is "growing community through neighborhood-based, sustainable growing". Its a very cool idea. Here is their vision:
The Vision:
15Thousand Farmers helps create, empower, and inspire 15,000 new, sustainable, neighborhood backyard/front yard farmers in Louisville, KY to feed their families and themselves and to give away! How? By using simple and easy instructions, checklists and materials and ongoing support provided through local growers and resources that will provide everything needed to start growing food in our yards, on decks or in community gardens.
Since "Barb's Garden" this year scaled to an additional 28' by 16' in size, this organization crossed my path at a great time. I learned of the group through Art in the Arbor, a local art festival. Of course, I signed up immediately an got my official Dirt Card, which also gives me some cool discounts....
My friend Karen shared this photo from her backyard this year. This Wisteria went crazy with blossoms and graced her yard with purple blossoms for a couple of weeks. She says this year the number of blossoms was absolutely amazing....
Karen sent these photos from a butterfly exhibit at Phoenix's Desert Botanical Gardens, which is nestled in the beautiful red buttes of Papago Park. Serving the community for over 70 years, the gardens are committed to preserving desert plants and educating people about the fragile desert eco-environment. They offer a variety of classes to learn more about how to preserve the desert - and how to plan your own gardens.
They also offer many events throughout the year, including art exhibits and a jazz series in the gardens. Check out the Allan Houser exhibit through the end of this month, or attend one of the many jazz events through June.
Or, simply enjoy these beautiful photos from Karen's desert visit. : )...
What a difference two years makes! Jack's desert oasis continues to boast color, shade and comfort. But look at how everything has filled in as it matured!
Notice the mesquite tree and how the green leaves provide shade and background for the colors throughout. The green from the tree, and surrounding plants, add a softness and shade to the landscape. Colors from potted plants and blooming plants really pop against the soothing backdrop.
Jack's design brilliantly relies on a lot of desert plants, so almost everything works with the climate - meaning less work to keep everything thriving.
One casualty from the original design: a Queen Palm. As Jack says:
One has lived and I cut the other down...my nursery has quit stocking them as they freeze too easily and suffer from the heat. They need to be on the coast in Southern California.
Best of all, everything works together in scale. From the beginning, Jack left space for the plants to mature. (Compare this...
Arizona’s climate favors drought resistant gardens, and rewards gardeners who understand the environment they work with. My friend Jack “gets it” and tends to an amazing garden in his backyard.
When Jack and his wife moved in, they literally had a blank desert canvas to work with. In a brand new home, they began creating a beautiful setting in harmony with the desert’s nature. But not without a little trial and error to begin with. Here’s some sage advice from Jack: (more…)...
