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!
As I approach a year of this series, a couple of observations. One, and I don’t think this will blow anyone’s mind, this whole nature thing is a bit cyclical, isn’t it? The Pride of Madeira blossoms that caught my eye in April are gone, and in their place dry stalks wait for winter rain. The red toyon berries that appear just in time for Christmas and are forgotten by spring, are back again as tight, colorless clusters.
Two, despite the temperate climate and the fact that we’re almost never without some kind of greenery and assorted blooms to admire, my old hometown experiences seasonal change in its own way. September is hot and dry (often very hot and very dry), and this year we had some monsoonal storms that brought tropical humidity; there’s no chill to yellow the edges of neighborhood trees, and there won’t be until closer to Thanksgiving. This isn’t Pumpkin Space fall, but it is my personal, hometown autumn: dusty, fire-prone, and punctuated by sundowner winds.
The Internet swears to me that this tropical vine, the amphilophium buccinatorium, produces red flowers that fade to pinkish-purple over time. I’m trying to remember if this very hedge I walk by multiple times per week ever sported scarlet blossoms. Maybe? No end to the noticing opportunities over here.
It occurred to me only this week that as I photograph what’s growing around me, I tend to zoom in - literally. I love magnifying the tiny details of a fern leaf pattern, or using my iPhone camera to put a delicate flower into perfect focus.
What I don’t usually do is set my sights on a middle distance, taking in a whole tree. But for some reason this yucca gigantea, or spineless yucca, caught my attention with its white flowers and off I went to the Seek app.
This Los Angeles Times article gives a good overview of the yucca plant, including how its parts are used in Salvadorian cuisine!
Look, I don’t love figs all that much to begin with, and ours seem to be pretty mid, as the kids say. That doesn’t stop me from swearing to find a recipe I like to use them all up, though. Determined to make this one before the harvest is done.
Bryan has been making hot sauce with jalapenos and serranos from the garden, and we’re doing our best with the late season squash, cucumber, and cherry tomatoes. Personally? I’m ready for soup season. :)
Do you know the children’s story Bread and Jam for Frances? In which Frances’s refusal to eat anything but bread and jam comes back to bite her when she is finally allowed to do just that. By the end she’s crying at the dinner table, begging for spaghetti and meatballs and singing her sad little song:
What I am, you guys, is tired of avocados. And there’s no end in sight this year.
And with that, friends, we round the corner into the final quarter of the year. I would love to know what changes you’re seeing in the natural landscape that surrounds you? Are there crunching leaves or early frosts? Leave a comment or hit reply and let me know!
More in the What’s Growing series:
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