Reflections on 2023

Another year comes to an end! Our theme this year has been The Roaring Twenties (for the 21st century). We shook off the dust of COVID-19 (with reasonable caution), and spread our wings to travel and explore further a field than our back yard and San Ramon.

It was a thrill to take some real trips again. Visiting Alaska required getting on a plane for the first time in several years. There we enjoyed seeing beloved family members and fantastic scenery that was just waking up from its winter slumber. Visiting Dinosaur National Monument in Utah and Colorado entailed an 1800-mile road trip across the high desert and back. There we explored dinosaur fossils, petroglyphs (patterns etched in stone) and pictographs (patterns painted with pigment on stone), and the geology, flora, fauna, and history of the region.

Clockwise: Birthday flowers in a pottery vase (by Brad Nebeker)
Travelling and exploring nature, dinosaur bone fossils, and petroglyphs (Utah)
Dyeing fabric with indigo (Indigo tinctoria)
Visiting beautiful gardens in all seasons (Filoli in summer)

Throughout the year we visited gardens, such as the Jensen-Olson Arboretum in spring and Filoli in the heat of summer, and enjoyed nature in all its forms, such as birds, critters, lichen, plants, and trees. Dyeing with indigo was also a thrill - seeing that transformation from emerald green to indigo blue, and trying out resist dyeing techniques from around the world. We also worked with a local landscaping firm and now have a firm plan just waiting to be executed. For fun we learned about the birth flowers of each month and the meaning they convey. Movies, books, and the history of plant hunters in the West added spice to life, along with the pleasure of family and friends!

Christmas in the Bay Area: 2023

The tree is decorated, the wreaths and stockings are hung, the Snow Village is set up, and Christmas music wafts throughout the house. The pantry is filled with ingredients for a feast, and a few goodies have already left the kitchen for parties, potlucks, and cookie exchanges. My Aunt Char and I recently enjoyed Home for the Holidays at the Contra Costa Civic Theatre. The beautiful singing and music was just what we needed! Santa is expected in a few days, and a few presents are already under the tree. 

Each year is a gift!

We're expecting a low-key holiday this year and looking forward to small gatherings, Zoom calls, good eats, and a chance to relax, reflect, and connect. 

Merry Christmas to all!

Birthday Flowers: Holly

All this year we've been celebrating life in the roaring twenties by looking into the birthday flowers that are associated with the month in which a person was born. Birthday flowers have symbolic meanings attached to them that convey traits or sentiments to those born in the month. The message may be in the plant or flower, or in the color of the flower.

For December, birthday plants include holly and Narcissus. I am focusing on holly since it is a wonderful plant for the Christmas season, symbolizing happiness at home. Holly is more a plant than a flower, but the dark leaves and red berries have become a symbol of Christmas.  

Leaves and berries of European holly (Ilex aquifolium)
(Photo by Jürgen Howaldt)

Holly (Ilex aquifolium) is an evergreen tree or shrub that is native to the United Kingdom. Holly has prickly leaves, white flowers, and red berries in winter. The fruit is eaten by deer, squirrels, small animals and birds, but is semi-toxic to humans. Holly is dioecious (two houses), with red berries indicating a female plant. Holly was once viewed as protection against evil spirits and as a symbol of fertility, happiness, good fortune and joy.

Roaring Twenties: Wrap Up

For this year's "The Roaring Twenties" theme, we celebrated the partial return to "normalcy" (if that even exists) and all the good things of life. COVID is still a reality, but the consequences aren't as dire as they were in early days, when we were figuring out how to survive a pandemic (with lots of opposing opinions). It was a pleasure to expand my horizons, range, and scope this year. I've traveled more, visited more gardens, and enjoyed the company of more people. I've also appreciated the simple pleasures of observing nature, dyeing with plants, and learning more about our beautiful world. Definitely cause for celebration in this century's "Roaring Twenties".

 

Adventures in Alaska, Nevada, Utah, and California in the roaring twenties!

Celebrating Gardens and Landscapes

Cause for celebration - we're finally getting back into the habit of visiting beautiful gardens and enjoying nature in more than just the back yard.

Mountain View Cemetery

Chilly Walk on the Iron Horse Trail

Jensen-Olson Arboretum

Summer Heat at Filoli

Bringing Back the Natives: 2023

Landscaping: Site Survey

Celebrating a Return to Travel

More cause for celebration - a trip to Alaska and an 1800-mile road trip to Dinosaur National Monument.

Alaska - the Last Frontier

Dinosaur National Monument

Nevada to the Great Salt Lake

Treasures in Tahoe

Celebrating Birds and Lichen

Wherever we go, nature provides something interesting to watch or learn.

Counting Birds

Finches (video)

New Hummingbird Feeder

Portraits in Lichen

More Portraits in Lichen

Alaskan Portraits in Lichen

Celebrating the Everyday

Find beauty in the everyday.

An Atmospheric River Runs Through It

Shadow Play

Summer Evenings

Fall Light

Dyeing with Plants (a celebration of blue)

Birthday Flowers

Celebrate friends and family with birthday flowers!

January - Carnation

February - Violets

March - Daffodils

April - Sweet Peas

May - Lily of the Valley

June - Roses

July - Water Lily

August - Poppy

September - Aster

October - Cosmos

November - Chrysanthemum

December - Holly

Plant Hunters

On a quest to learn more about plant hunters in the Western United States - then and now!

David Douglas

Lester Rowntree

Amy Patten

Movies

We traveled to exotic places via documentaries and learned more about dyeing with plants.

A World of Indigo

In Search of Lost Colors

Books

We used a few good reference books to learn more about flowers, plants, and gardening. The internet provides similar information, but sometimes you just want to curl up with a good book!

The Color Dictionary of Flowers & Plants

No Fail Flower Garden

Illustrated Encyclopedia of Perennials