Garden Activities: April 28, 2026

And I thought I was late last week!

Though I wasn’t present on Tuesday, the Tuesday Crew was well-represented and included: Julia Appelrouth, Beverly Kemmerling, Susanna Mac, Carlos Rodriguez, Katie Shank, Daryl Stutley, Nancy Taylor Walker, Janet Wall, Anna Wiktor-Becker and Ann Wright. This is the first time on the list for new volunteer Carlos who the team introduced to the garden and who plunged right into the work of the day. WELCOME Carlos!

Carlos

The group opted to work in separate areas at the top of the hill. But before that, the group worked on weeding the area just up hill from the Rare Fruit Orchard.

Carlos, Susanna, Ann, Anna and Julia.

Janet with her root slayer tackled mustard and star thistle.

Katie did the same elsewhere in the Desert Garden.

Beverly taking some time from her photographic responsibilities to collect some browning deciduous chasmanthe.

Perhaps the most demanding job of the day was that tackled by Daryl, Carlos and Nancy: beginning the work of clearing the old arbor from the Rare Fruit Orchard.

Daryl cutting away the passion vine from the collapsed trellis.

Daryl and Carlos bundling the vines for transport.

Pieces of the arbor next to the path for pickup.

The green waste that was transportable by garden cart was taken to the bin and compressed so as not to cause problems for the waste management company.

Julia, Katie, Carlos and Susanna at the end of the morning.

Finally, it is always a treat to come upon something not seen before in the garden — at least by us. This time it was a weed called toadflax.

If it is purple toadflax, then it is Linaria purpurea native to Italy. The group left it in place (here surrounded by rosemary) so hopefully it will set seed and spread somewhat. Like other plants in this genus, but blossoms resemble those of snap dragons.

Thanks to Beverly and Nancy for their commentary and images!

Enjoy the garden…KMM