This Day...

... will be an historic one:  former President Trump spent it attending his trial in New York.  We shall know in a few weeks what the outcome will be. 

Meanwhile, on a more pedestrian and botanical note, the Nature's Notebook gang was out in the Cottonwood Gallery today.  Besides tracking the usual suspects, we saw Abronia in bloom and a probably Townsendia incana right in the middle of the path.  There was also a Fendler's dandelion, Taraxacum fendleri and a small hedgehog cactus with a mighty flower. 

Abronia fragrans

Townsendia incana

Taraxacum fendleri

Echinocereus rigidissimus

Kodama

A quote from the Arnold Arboretum e-newsletter this morning:  

In Japanese folklore, kodama is the name of the spirit that dwells within old trees. I found it fascinating that Japanese culture has developed a vocabulary to describe that energy. In Western culture, such notions are often associated with spirituality or mysticism. Most everyone I know, spiritual or not, has had some experience when they were awed by the natural world. To stand with this katsura, connecting with an organism that has been present on Earth for generations, it felt possible to sense its kodama, or at least my interpretation of it. How fortunate we were to have such an experience, and to know such elder organisms are found and protected in our natural world.

This past Wednesday I worked on my 36-year old Ginkgo, getting it ready for the Bonsai Club's Mothers Day Show.  I removed all the wire (just in the nick of time) and trimmed some leggy bits.  I've put a few of the resulting cuttings in water, but I'll have to move them to a rooting medium if they are to have any chance at all.  

Before

After

I'll wait until the leaves have reached full size before I consider another light trim to get this year's growth into shape.  Going for the classic candle-flame profile.  

Lilacs

This week the French lilac on the east side of the house finally opened its blooms.  The fragrance is intoxicating.  The buds have been swelling for the past two weeks and looked like they would be open any second.  

The Great Eclipse of 2024

 Schlepp and friends were at it again, viewing an eclipse.  Last year it was an annular one, right over ABQ.  Back in 2012 it was also an annular eclipse.  This one was partial, the centerline going south and east of NM.  We got to see 77% through high, thin clouds.  

Hanami Continues

Caro & I had a multi-faceted Friday:  browsing at Duran Central's gift shop, Covid booster at their pharmacy, lunch at the restaurant, then over to the Botanic Garden for a stroll.  The weeping cherries were largely beat up by last Tuesday's storm, but in the back of the Sasebo Japanese Garden along the wide ADA path there were some fresh explosions of cherry blossoms.  Even though the Magnolia by the stream was spent, smaller Magnolia × soulangeana were full of magenta color.  

The Acequia Ride

After a busy day in the yard, moving bonsai out from winter quarters, putting away the cold frame/green house, sealing the bamboo fencing, etc., etc., it was warm enough to tempt me to take a bike ride.  It's still a little chilly (long pants, t-shirt) but the sun was pleasant and there was no breeze to speak of.  

I went up the Griegos Lateral to the north behind the high school. Along the way there was Rumex, Arundo, and Sisymbrium leafing out.  The latter was already in bloom with tiny yellow blossoms everywhere.  The ditch was running happily since they started putting water in it about a week ago.   

I took advantage of the water in the acequia to take the new CrowdWater app for a test.  I was surprised how much detail they take in.  One point of ambiguity:  is an acequia a temporary or permanent water feature.  I chose permanent because it runs uninterrupted all through the growing season.  I may go back and change that because it is a seasonal flow, dry in winter.  

Goodbye, Standard Time

Daylight Saving Time has begun tonight.  My body says it's 3:00 a.m., but the clock on the computer screen shows 4:00.  Later today I'll get out the step ladder and change all the clocks around the house.  Have to remember how to do that for the cars, too.  I think Caro's Cube didn't get changed, so it won't need any tweaking.  

Lucky for me, I don't have a Nature's Notebook rotation at the Botanic Garden this Monday.  I've got two weeks to adjust.  I'm definitely not a morning person, least of all this time of year.  

In the backyard, the birds will come to the feeders as is their want, irrespective of human time.  I just need to remember to refill them today.  Fluffy will still be at the back door, waiting for dinner at 5:00 MST, which today will be 6:00.  But breakfast will be late for her.  

I had just gotten used to the lengthening days in the late afternoon.  Now the evenings will be preternaturally longer.  The Hibiscus will continue to bloom in its natural rhythm.  They usually open in the early morning and fade by day's end.  The last couple of cloudy, cool days have prompted them to remain open well into the evening, sometimes until the next morning.

No matter--its a relaxing Sunday.  I'll water the bonsai juniper, fill the bird feeders, feed Fluffy (perhaps Stella, too), and bake zucchini bread.