Fill

Today Mike Godsy from DPW was tasked with dropping of some fill soil for the project. He promptly brought 4, 2CU FT bags of this mix- Soil & Stone. Very good potting soil. Lots of sand, lava pebbles and loam. I had asked for a 1/2 cubic yard- not really knowing how much I would need and didn't want to be saddled with too much soil to move if it was way too much. Being raised on a farm, you'd think I could have guessed much better. I could actually use three times this, but I am not going to push my limits.

I called Mike back, explained that I underestimated and he will be able to bring 2 more bags. Thanks Mike!!

Below are the before and after examples of what I am filling in. I planted lots of Senecio mandraliscae, Crassula muscosa and Oscularia deltoides to root in and hold the new soil. All this is done in preparation for winter rains when all the run off tries to create this gully again. Preventative measures at work. I hope I am right on this one- so much soil eroded away over the winter...

Also, here is an update on the Agave vilmoriniana.                                                        I suspect that it may have reached full height by now- all things considered that is. Look at the double picture below. The red line in the picture on the right marks my height of 5'8". Really, it is at that height- yes I know it looks wrong- too low, but it is correct. So if that is 5'8",  I am putting the flower stalk at 11'. Remember, this is not all that impressive. This agave grown to maturity under normal circumstances can have a flower stalk much larger than this. One in Palo Alto at the Stanford Arizona Cactus garden is a good 25 to 30' right now- go see- it is up into the Oak tree. Because this particular specimen was stressed it shot this flower stalk out as a last-ditch effort, thinking it was going to die. It is the best it could do.                                                                               Still, a lovely show I think.

Poppies!

Poppies galore! 
They are the state flower you know.

I don't often show the median up at Malta and O'Shaughnessy, but it really is looking good. With the help of the Supervisors office, I am trying to get the walk sign raised in the interest of safety. I prefer not to have to cut down the plants or worse...

From the picture right below here, you can see how a driver can see the crosswalk, but not the walk sign.

The California state flower is the orange color, but the cream color flower is not. I couldn't resist spreading lots of seeds last fall and here we are now reaping the benefits. I have been asked to collect some seeds for my neighbor here on the block. She especially was interested in this color. She calls it white- the seed packet says Buttercream.

I brought a truck load of plants to install today. Among them was this beautiful Agave americana variegata specimen. It came from the generosity of Dilyara in the North Bay. I think the name Buttercream for the poppies here, in this picture at least, makes perfect sense. Behind it you can see the Furcraeas and the large Agave americana from Joanna in El Cerrito- and peeking into the frame from the lower left is another agave- A. weberii.

I planted several Euphorbia characias (I think) from Channing, some Aloe striatula from Christy, some Aloe nobilis from Fanny, an Opuntia and a clump of Aeonium arboreum
from the South Bay. That is it as far as I can recall. It took me around 3 hours. I had one driver pause and exclaim a big 'thanks it looks great'.  That sure goes a long way for me. It makes it all worth while... To finish off the time there, I did lots of weeding. Below is the haul before installation.

Beautiful

This morning, Channing arrived on time as usual of course, and we headed over to El Cerrito to extract a large Agave americana from Joanna. I think this is the largest agave retrieved for this project. It is really a beautiful plant. After moving around a few plants to make room, I located the spot to plant it. I am trying to create a bit of a windbreak for the Furcraeas. I hope it works.... Later, I had lots of small Agave americans and I added to a couple of other medians around the neighborhood. Treasure hunt anyone?

Eureka!

They're in! The promised signs from MTA were installed last week. Each end of the center median is adorned with one of these yellow diamonds. I trust these will save the lives of the growing agaves and succulents that are being nursed along. I am so happy. The trick was to contact my district 8 supervisor's office, and ask for their help with MTA. Literally the next day, Bam- they're in. Raised reflectors and raising the walk sign at the Malta median were also part of the deal. Maybe one more email...


Behind the yellow sign in this second image, you can see the Agave vilmoriniana really making a show. Actually, had this plant been in the ground longer, this stalk would be much larger- we will see how big this one will get. I am counting on lots of bulbils.....

(Bulbils are tiny plants that form on the inflorescence of certain agaves.)
















The poppies are bursting.......the Lychnis and Euphorbia are all in full go mode, flowering up a storm! It is very pleasing to see all this. It now looks like a real garden.  Cool.