adventures in horticulture...

{alternate title: amelia - 3, drought -2}

{alternate alternate title: green thumb, black thumb}

so.  i've been planting and tending and re-landscaping and potting and fertilizing and watering (oh my.)

and after this summer of more than 85 days of triple digit temps (oh yes), i thought i'd give a mini-update on my successes and failures.

we have:

{a beautiful pomegranate tree, heavy with fruit... yet to be tasted, so i'm giving this a win based on appearance and lack of death...}
{BUT do you spy the EVIL stink bug on the bottom pomegranate?  he is one of what must be thousands of creepy stink bugs who think my pomegranates make a better hang out spot than the food court full of tweens at the mall - side note, i didn't live in a big enough city to ever get dropped off at the mall with friends.  oh no... until i could drive, my parents were there too.  i feel like i may have missed out on this 11-14 year old experience.  oh well.}

{beautiful thriving agave.  my best friend in the drought this summer.  bravo, sweet agave, bravo.}

{rosemary!  a surprise success story.  usually i keep rosemary plants around just long enough to get attached to them, and then, inexplicably, they die on me.  i don't do anything different, they just die.  but this ol' gal... growing and growing and smelling delicious.  she's about 2 feet high, in case you can't tell in the picture!}

{womp womp.  poor, sweet little fig "tree".  you never should have been growing in the shady entryway where not only do you have access to the sun you crave, but where i eternally forget to water you.  RIP fig "tree."}

{this little jade transplant was happy as a clam for many months.  until the summer drought and zillion degree temps did her in.  but at least the yellow pot is still cheery and welcoming so people might forgive the decimated plant right next to the front door.  note to self: probably time to dump her in the trash and replant something else.}

and this next photo isn't of any plants from my garden... but a combined adventure to the farmers market and central market produced such a lovely centerpiece arrangement i had to show it off somewhere...

{farmers market delights and hydrangea procured at central market.  perched upon a runner my aunt wove on her loom, and next to antique green glass salt and pepper shakers inherited from my grandmother.}

{here they are again with some perspective... and a sneak peek to the uh, long-awaited "after" photos reveal/home tour...coming soon!}

growing anything at your house?  did you also enjoy a summer of triple digit heat?  any other pre-teen missed-events still haunting you to this day?