Autumn in the garden

Converting even a small yard from grass to drought-resistant perennials and native plants is a ton of work. I started three years ago with just a little patch where I dug up grass and planted thyme. Each year, I've done a little more. Sometimes, when things get too much and I'm totally drained, I can't even bring myself to do art or write. The garden though, remains a refuge. The very fact that it’s so much physical work actually helps.

I get the itch to garden in the spring, and that's fine, but it's held me back. In San Francisco, fall is the rainy season, which means that if you want seeds to grow or seedlings to root, the best time to sow and plant is well, just about now. When I plant something in the spring, it struggles in the summer, even with regular watering, and then roots well in the rainy season, and then takes off the following spring. By planting in the spring, I've been slowing down my perennials. I had to see it happen twice before the lesson sunk in.

This year, when rain showed up in the 10-day forecast I got to work. I trimmed the dead grass and dug up a good part of the lawn. I bought native wildflower seeds, compost, and more ground cover seedlings.

For two weekends, I worked hard in the yard, digging, planting, and sowing. I created protective cages for the seeds and little plants out of chicken wire.

The rain came last Monday, as predicted.

Even when it wasn't raining, it's been damp overnight, and my work seems to have paid off. The seeds I sowed last weekend are already sprouting, and thanks to the protective cages I constructed, the squirrels can't dig them up.