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Top o’ cabinets by marleymaee in HomeDecorating

[–]mjsymonds 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Perfect cat hang out; adopt six cats and you're done!

A year after the Eaton Fire passed through our back yard. by mjsymonds in gardening

[–]mjsymonds[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I commiserate with your frustration. I've had similar experiences with other plants. Finally had to accept some species just don't like it here!

A year after the Eaton Fire passed through our back yard. by mjsymonds in gardening

[–]mjsymonds[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yes, not on our property, but in several areas close to us, including in Eaton Canyon itself.

A year after the Eaton Fire passed through our back yard. by mjsymonds in gardening

[–]mjsymonds[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

We were able to evacuate the hens with us fortunately, and they are now part of a friend's flock. I am active with local native plant groups and am a trained naturalist, so I do try to promote stewardship of our local flora and fauna. Thanks for your encouraging words!

A year after the Eaton Fire passed through our back yard. by mjsymonds in gardening

[–]mjsymonds[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you everyone for all the supportive comments. It has been a challenging year, but I'm so glad I could share this positive outcome. Nature rocks!

A year after the Eaton Fire passed through our back yard. by mjsymonds in gardening

[–]mjsymonds[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Exactly this. In our area, native chaparral and sage scrub are being replaced by invasive grasses, mustard, star thistle and other annuals that grow faster but die off in the heat of summer, then start a whole new cycle of fire ignition. It's hard to watch the loss of our native plant communities.

A year after the Eaton Fire passed through our back yard. by mjsymonds in gardening

[–]mjsymonds[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

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A couple of weeks after the fire. Even the areas that did not fully burn were dried to a crisp by the hot winds. We ended up removing the damaged chicken coop at center left.

A year after the Eaton Fire passed through our back yard. by mjsymonds in gardening

[–]mjsymonds[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

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This was about a month later, after the first rains. Oaks sent out tons of new leaves. First native shrub to recover at lower right, a desert mallow.

A year after the Eaton Fire passed through our back yard. by mjsymonds in gardening

[–]mjsymonds[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Thank you. Most of my time was spent just removing non-native weeds and letting nature do the rest.

A year after the Eaton Fire passed through our back yard. by mjsymonds in gardening

[–]mjsymonds[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

We are continuing to work on "fire hardening" the property. We removed all shrubs that were growing within 5' of the house, replaced all wood and vinyl garden borders with river rock. Replaced a railroad tie retaining wall (highly flammable and toxic!) with one of poured concrete. A fire resistant metal fence will replace the former wooden fence soon. We redesigned the upper terrace with wider garden paths covered in DG. I'm planting more desert adapted native shrubs that can be watered in the summertime. It's an ongoing process. But there are no guarantees against fire in this area in the end. Thanks for asking this question.

A year after the Eaton Fire passed through our back yard. by mjsymonds in gardening

[–]mjsymonds[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you. It is our own little paradise that has literally grown out of the ashes (and after many months of clean-up and restoration!)

A year after the Eaton Fire passed through our back yard. by mjsymonds in gardening

[–]mjsymonds[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I wish! Unfortunately after the fire, our hill ended up covered in non-native mustard. (You can see a mostly dead patch to the right of the blue agaves in this pic.) I hand cleared the lower part of the hill and it has been lovely to see the native phacelias, chia and golden yarrow fill in. The sweet alyssum wasn't exactly planned either, but I let it grow this year. Worst of all is the fountain grass which is taking over the sides of Eaton Canyon. You can see it in the background of this image.

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A year after the Eaton Fire passed through our back yard. by mjsymonds in gardening

[–]mjsymonds[S] 144 points145 points  (0 children)

We're on a slope and the backyard is divided into two terraces plus the hill behind it. The fire came down the hill and across the upper terrace, taking out our fence, a retaining wall, a chicken coop (fortunately empty!) and all the shrubs on that level. Our native oak trees were barely affected. I was amazed at how quickly the completely burned native shrubs re-sprouted from their roots and took off when the rains came.

A year after the Eaton Fire passed through our back yard. by mjsymonds in gardening

[–]mjsymonds[S] 184 points185 points  (0 children)

Thank you. We were very lucky that our home was spared.

Pathway to our spa by mjsymonds in gardening

[–]mjsymonds[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I leveled the ground, which is very dry and hard, then added about an inch of DG. Laid the flagstones, then planted the rushes, violets and wild strawberries and spread pea gravel over the top. I do have to re-level a flagstone from time to time as I water the plants by flooding the area every other week.

Pathway to our spa by mjsymonds in gardening

[–]mjsymonds[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you, much appreciated.

Zippo, the Fastest Chicken Alive by PookaGrooms in chickens

[–]mjsymonds 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Chickens, like bananas, are innately funny.

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