This year's project

Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings trilogy. At least that's what I've been on about and the other coments make sense to me.

O Smeagal lives at Sofs place now. Hi Smeagal (waving). I never bought his death. I think he was too pathetic to die.

I read the Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings, but I guess I have forgotten quite a bit. Sigh, old age is unkind to memory.

They are a set of books that a significant number of people find quite profound. I have seen some of my own Spiritual experiences reflected back at me in various ways by various things in Tolkeins books. I know people who read them every 5 or 10 years, myself included.

A lot of the serious Tolkein fans did NOT like the movies. I looked at the movies as a different story with a different teller - Peter Jackson instead of Tolkein - and can enjoy them as such. There were a number of elements that do not correspond to Tolkein well at all.

I do the same as you Dave-who-is-Dave and treat movies as they're own story.

Yes, I agree. Movies just aren't the same as books. You have to appreciate them for what they are -- two different genres. The only one I found was remotely the same was Little Big Man. They were about the same though the movie had to cut a lot of the book out and was a long movie even so. Both were hysterically funny.

I liked Tolkein and some of the images have remained with me. My DH and I often laugh over the commandment "Don't Get Off the Path", because the minute you hear it you know that they will. But I didn't remember any of the things you mentioned above -- well it was a long time ago.

It is impossible to put on film what the mind experiences in the book. There is built-in emotions driving the landscape of a book and that is a big difference. Plus I think our minds relate, in reading, in 3-D not 2-d as a movie. Smeagle when lusting after the ring is experiencing a moment that went on in my past that is vivid and filled with personal attachment that a movie can never achieve.

I agree that movies and books are very different experiences.

A couple more pictures. Baseball season is over (for us) so I'll not have 4 games and practices a week to attend and hope to move a little faster.

First picture is a flagstone extension of the driveway. It will extend the basketball court a bit and give people a place to step when they step out of their car. The driveway is just wide enough for 2 vehicles. Not my favorite thing to rake out just enough dirt to get the flagstone top even with the others and driveway (within reason) and to make the dirt very flat so there aren't gaps underneath. At any rate they are in and I like them.

This one is of the walkway to the front door. I took the picture while it was still light enough out and then set them a bit further into the dirt so they are halfway buried. These were smaller so they were quite a bit easier to pick up and put down 3 or 4 times each. I'll have to move the one sentinel rock over a few inches tomorrow.

I luv the colour!

That is looking good, love the flagstone!

I love flagstone and use as much as I can afford and lay down. I am working on planting my roses today.Yesterday I planted my Oregon Grape Holly where the giant juniper used to be. I chose Grape Holly because it is shade tolerant and the spot where I removed the juniper is pretty shady. I know grape holly can also go wild, but I find it easier to hack back and to shape than the juniper -- not to mention that I find it more attractive with its dark shiny leaves, yellow fragrant flowers and edible purple berries. Probably I won't have enough for humans, but I bet the birds will enjoy them.

The flagstone was here when I moved in. The previous owners had it in the back yard as a base under their clothes line. My reaction was like Alice's to that: "Curioser and curioser."

I like the colour too. It will set off green very well.

I used a yellow flagstone called Colorado Gold because it was thick. Flagstone tends to shatter and being thick helps. It cost a bundle but I an really enjoying. As part of the new gate project, we are putting in a concrete pad where the gate swings into the vacant lot. We considered flagstone but decided concrete would last longer. It will be just a small pad, so not unsightly. I will have to rearrange the drainage because the vacant lot is higher than my lot and all the erosion flows to the back gate -- a low spot with respect to the vacant lot. So every spring I have to dig the extra mud out.

Very nice flagstone work there! I've done that, setting flat stones for pathways and yeah, it is not at all the funnest gardening thing, is it? But very satisfying when done I bet. ;-)

Much much nicer than any of the alternatives I know of, too, better than gravel, bricks, pavement... nice stuff, stone-steps-along.

More plants in and a few pictures of them. First picture is the Cistus I planted intending them to become a 4' light hedge on one side and part of the front.

I built a mounded-up area in the front closer to the driveway for ornamental Oreganos. The rocks are mostly a red sandstone. The cascading Oreganos will be able to cascade over the edges of the rocks. Three varieties on the mound so far - libanoticum, 'Amythest Falls', and dictamnus. I have a couple more to go in as well. On the right you can see a couple plants of O. vulgare 'humile' behind the black tray. It is a short ground-cover and is supposed to work as a grass substitute even. I'm planting it adjacent to the flagstone along the drive and partway around the mound.

It was a little bit dark but I snapped this picture anyway as I was able to capture Socks the cat who was helping me plant. He seems to have some vested interest in what I'm doing any time I go digging in his front yard (sandbox). The little grey-green blobs being planted in front of the Manzanita are Salvia pachyphylla. These are ones I grew from seed and they seem quite healthy and happy - good roots. They also smell wonderful - kind of a minty, musky, resinous smell. The other Manzanita will get Salvia Azurea which are ready to plant too.

Very nice. Especially like Socks. I am impressed with your commitment to low water plants. Very good idea. The neighbors will all be interested. I have only one cistus because I wasn't too sure what to expect of them. I probably have more bushes than I need already. Same with trees. My neighbor would like me to cut down my aspen because it shades her roses. I declined. Wait until she see how high my beauty bush grows!

Excellent progress!

The plantings look great! The cascading oreganos will look deadly on the red sand stone!

He would have to plant nightshade for it to look deadly. I think they will look excellent.

snorkle

Most deadly excellent.
I'm excited to hear of an oregano that might work as a lawn. That's because oregano is so rambunctious here, I do believe it might choke out the dandelions.

Oh, picante, you must read yesterday's article called "Memories" which is about eating the dandelions and how nutritious and tasty they are. Maybe you could get dandelions and oregano to coexist and have a nice mix of purple and yellow flowers to be used in your meals.
I definitely have enough dandelions to feed the town just in my yard, but now I know to add them to my salads or cook them as greens.

Here is an article by a group that tried a number of lawn alternatives. I'm quite curious as to how well Oregano works. If it does better than Thyme, which has been tested in my yard by two boys and it still grows and spreads, then I am all for it.

http://www.mountainvalleygrowers.com/oreganolawn.htm

Sounds like a terrific idea.

I think the smell alone will be awesome. I would like to try a mix of thyme, moss phlox and clover along the sidewalk when we terrace the front for a ground cover.

Oh pretty. Red clover? Or white. Red clover grows in the pastures of Mississippi and along the roadsides and is so beautiful. White is okay, too, but red is incredible.

Sounds nice dahlianut. Red clover is very pretty and is taller than the white.

I had really high hopes for 'Dragon's Blood' clover but it did not survive the drought/shade test in the 'don't look there bed'. The white one passed the drought/shade test wonderfully but it seeds quite far so my neighbours might have issues. The purpurpea oxalis cornata may be the way to go. Still hmmmmmmming about clovers.

Maybe some member of the pea family would do as well -- a low growing one. Not sure what that would be right off the bat, however.

Some of the Oxytropis (Locoweed) are nice looking.

This one in PF would work in CA
http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/161281/

I have an Oxytropis lagopus I'm growing from seed I obtained from Alplains. Nice purple flowers again.

I have some kind of large pink flowered clover growing in my front yard. I think I planted it because I don't see it anyplace else! It does quite well. Re-seeds.

That is a lovely plant, dparsons. I had always thought locoweed and jimson weed were the same thing. Clearly not. I will be growing datura ( jimsonweed) of the purple color this year. I bought it at the DBG on our trip there. I planted some very late last year and it bloomed even though I planted it in the shade and very late. This year I will get it in earlier and will put it in more sun. Hopefully it will bloom more than it did last year. Here is the white variety. Don't find the purple one in plant files, but I know it is there. Will keep looking. Here is the closest thing I could find:

http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/355/

but it isn't purple.

If Dahlia mixes thyme, moss phlox & clover, will the clover need mowing? Does it get fairly tall, in other words?

I may copy the experiment. I think most ground covers would be more attractive than our lawn, which is full of creeping bellflower and enough dandelions to give everyone in town a liver cleanse.

I planted a couple of oreganos as well, Norton's Gold and Hopley's. All four of yours are awesome dparsons. Especially the dictamnus which probably isn't hardy here. I love the smell of Salvia pachyphylla too.

Nice on the Jimsonweed Pajarito. The flowers are reminiscent of Morning Glory.

Some clovers get taller than others - anywhere from under 6" to 24" that I've seen.

The O. dictamnus is rated as a zone 7 plutodrive. 2 zones is probably pushing a little hard. O. libanoticum, pulchellum, 'Amythest Falls,' and the vulgare ssp. hirtum 'Humile' (creeping lawn substitute variety) are all rated to zone 5.

Yes, they are reminiscent of Morning Glory but much larger. Very striking. I think they winter over in Albuquerque, but not here.