I’m not sure if it’s midlife, or the fact that I’ve moved back to natural landscapes of my childhood, but I notice trees and plants far more than I used to. Each month here on Home Again I share a photo roundup of what’s growing around my home, neighborhood, and city. Glad you’re here!
The days are long, the fruit is ripening, and the jasmine smells hit me the second I step out my front door. The mornings are gloomy, the evenings golden and cool, and the hillsides have begun to show their dryness. It’s June in Santa Barbara.
Let’s take a little tour around the garden, the yard, and the town, shall we?
Do you guys like apricots?
Will you help me eat some of these peaches?
I have ripe avocados - who wants some?
These are the texts of summertime, and somehow I still have more ripening fruit on the counter than I know what to do with.
When I moved back to California in 2014 (not quite home again at that point, but closer), the sight of Jacaranda trees in bloom was like hearing a familiar old song. It’s true, many locals don’t like the sticky purple droppings all over their cars; for me, the costume quick-change of an entire city block is so dreamy it outweighs all the rest. And then, just like that, the purpling is behind us.
I think of June as prime Jacaranda season, but they can start to purple in May and last into July. They can also have a second blooming season later in the fall, but it never seems like its quite as impressive.
Are you even in midlife if you don’t have a favorite tree in your town? Mine is this one, a gorgeous Jacaranda giant next to a comically tiny building. Big purple tree + tiny nineteenth century storefront = damn delight.
Also: It's Love Or Hate (Or Love And Hate) Jacaranda Tree Time Of Year Again (LAist)
As I mentioned last month, we’re being buried alive in enormous zucchini from the garden. It’s not my favorite vegetable, but I do have a new favorite way to eat it: stuffed.
Our landscaper recently made an offhand reference to blue catnip, referring to a type of ground-cover plant we have all over our property. I was confused because I had previously thought it was mint-gone-wild, having seen mint go wild in the past. Plus, it smells minty.
Then one day I cut some of its flowering blossoms and brought them inside as a little rustic bouquet in a wee vintage vase … which one of my cats promptly knocked over and laid himself atop.
Turns out, it’s both! Mint and catnip - or catmint. It sounds like all catnip is part of the mint family, actually. Now when I clip some for interior decoration, I put the vase out of reach and toss the extra stems on the kitchen floor for a minty kitty party.
If you’re curious what it’s like to be in avo-abundance, Meagan Francis and I recorded an episode of our new podcast, Midlife Lady Leisure Pursuits all about avocados and, specifically, my bounty.
Click the player below to hear our conversation, and give MLLP a try wherever you listen to podcasts - especially if deep dives on debatably relatable topics are your flavor of fun.
That’s a wrap on June, friends. Happy (belated) Solstice!
More in the What’s Growing series:
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