A Visit to the Los Rios Historic District

Posted on July 29, 2015 by Janice

This morning I rode my can-am spyder motorcycle to the library, and afterwards decided it was too lovely a day to go directly home, so continued south into San Juan Capistrano. Above you see one of the charming little coffee houses in the Los Rios Historic District, which is a special part of the unique city. Los Rios Street is an example of neighborhood life at the turn of the century. It’s not only the oldest neighborhood in San Juan Capistrano, but the oldest in the state of California. We’re so very fortunate to live close to this charming part of California. There are about 40 homes and they vary in age from 50 to 204 years. Most homes are private and can only be viewed from the street, but several are now gift shops, museums, or tea and coffee houses. The street is lined with lovely flowers, and below is a gorgeous example.
Above, another coffee house, and below, the beautiful Hummingbird Cafe.
I took many more photos, but the ones I’ve posted should give you an idea of why I love to visit Los Rios Street, and always make sure to have my camera. You can park in a free parking building on Verdugo Street in San Juan, next to the Am Track station, and walk to Los Rios Street. If you’ve never seen the Los Rios Historic District, and are in or near Orange County, please go and see it for yourself. You won’t be disappointed.

Garden Calendar

Posted on July 10, 2015 by Janice

July is nearly half over, so I decided I should be taking a look at my copy of The Twelve Month Gardener’s Journal. I have the West Coast version. Under July I read that I should deadhead annuals and perennials to encourage flowering. With that in mind, I went about the yard with my pruning shears in hand. Above you can see some of the marigolds that brighten up the yard. I love marigolds. They’re so bright and cheery. Our hummingbird garden is doing well, and I recently added another plant to my collection. Below you see two photos of Mystic Spires Blue salvia. I was told that once you start collecting salvia it becomes addicting and it’s true, mainly because they’re available in so many beautiful colors.

Our Bougainvillea is doing very well this year. This plant was purchased in May of 1977, when I returned to California. This was the first plant I bought, because to me Bougainvillea means California. The plant remained in its original pot until we moved into our new home in November of 77. We first planted it in the front of the house, but it did not do very well there. Later we moved it to the backyard, where it has thrived until this very day. It is the first thing we see each morning when we look out into the garden. I don’t know the life span of a bougainvillea but I do hope we can enjoy its beauty for many more years to come.

Our Hummingbird Garden Part 2

Posted on May 27, 2015 by Janice

In my previous post, Our Hummingbird Garden, I promised to show you the rest of the plants in our new hummingbird garden. This is Mystic Blue Salvia, although it’s more purple than blue. Again you see the tubular shape to the blossoms, which make them perfect for the hummingbird’s long beak. The plants are doing well, and most are forming new buds.

This Lemon Light Salvia is getting ready to flower. We haven’t seen a flowering Lemon Light, and we are really looking forward to the first blossom.This is Salvia Microphylla, commonly referred to as ‘baby sage’. I love the pink and white heart shaped flowers. This variety is called Hot Lips.

Berkeley Barb is a Mountain Sage. It’s named for a counterculture newspaper that was published in Berkeley California from 1965 to 1980.

All of these plants with the exception of Berkeley Barb prefer full sun and are growing happily in the center of our back yard, but we may have to move the little Mountain Sage as the summer progresses and the days become warmer.The morning after we started our garden, I was taking long distance photos of the plants, when I realized that a hummingbird was enjoying nectar from the Salvia Gregii. I continued to take photos, hoping I’d caught one of our first visitor. I hope you can see her enjoying some breakfast. As the plants grow and produce more flowers, I’m sure we will see many more of these little birds, and I’ll be posting more and more photographs. I’ll also share any new plants with you as well. I’m sure there will be many more, since there are so many beautiful choices.

Garden of Surprises.

Posted on May 11, 2015 by Janice

Since my return from New Zealand, our weather has been rainy and dull, so I haven’t spent much time in the garden. Yesterday the clouds disappeared and the sun came out. This morning I was outside first thing, ready to work and, to my surprise, I found my fuschia plant in full bloom. It’s gorgeous, as you can see in the photo above. A few weeks ago I pruned, transplanted, then fertilized my rather neglected plant. I was so happy to see that my efforts paid off. Below you see a second surprise.

While transplanting the original plant, a small piece of that plant had broken free and I had placed it in a separate pot. When I left for New Zealand the offshoot looked as though it had died. I didn’t discard the dead plant, and I’m so glad that I didn’t because, as you see, the baby fuschia is happily growing. It will be great fun to watch it mature.

The third surprise was a Monarch butterfly caterpillar munching on the milkweed. I took a quick photo, which you see below.

Healthy looking fellow, isn’t he? In a day or two he’ll climb the wall, take shelter under the ledge, and enter the chrysalis stage. Today I watched a full grown Monarch butterfly laying eggs on one of our milkweed plants, so it looks like we’ll be seeing quite a few of these caterpillars before long. Tomorrow morning I will be out in the garden again, and I’m wondering what new surprises await me.

City of Brea Art Gallery Exhibit

Posted on February 27, 2015 by Janice

This gorgeous art piece titled Apricot Champagne Ball was created by the Steven Gandolfo/Jean Salatino studio. It is one of many beautiful pieces being shown in the exhibit by the Association of Clay and Glass Artists of California. Martin and I took part in a Saddleback College field trip to this show at the City of Brea Art Gallery. Below are photos of some ceramic pieces we also enjoyed seeing.

Stars in her eyes by Isolde CortesFloral Pod 2 by Mark Hendrickson

Cloudy Day Butter Dome by Rachel Ashman

One of several amazing hand built pieces by Cheryl Tall

There were so many beautiful glass and clay pieces in the exhibition. I certainly encourage you to go see this exhibition before it ends on March 6.

Plum Bird Corner

Photography, Gardening, and California

Category Archives: Arts and Crafts

A Visit to the Los Rios Historic District

Garden Calendar

Our Hummingbird Garden Part 2

Garden of Surprises.

City of Brea Art Gallery Exhibit