California - What are you doing this month?

Around here, 10 months out of the year, the style in the video is most popular.  Nothing between the toes.

Since the grass is wet much more often than not, I wear some Croc knock-offs that look like this, only without the strap.

Oh yeah...Crock knock-off city at my house...every color and some are lined with that sherpa stuff so no socks needed.

I have never worn flip-flops as I cannot bear the strap between my toes.

+1 Blister-city for me!

I LIVE in them all year around, so I don't even think about the strap.  The socks just form to the toes when you slip the sandals on

I grew up a barefoot kid, but barefoot doesn't work when you have sharp gravel paths to traverse!

boffer wrote:

sanderson wrote:....Time to break out the winter clothes.

I thought that was a PNW thing!

Notice that the PNW folks have to wear heavier knit socks than Californians!

boffer wrote:Around here, 10 months out of the year, the style in the video is most popular.  Nothing between the toes.

Since the grass is wet much more often than not, I wear some Croc knock-offs that look like this, only without the strap.

In all seriousness, I need to replace my thong/flipflop summer Crocs for something like these.  Turning compost and walking across wet grass and dirt clumps up my ragged tennis.

I just found this site for California urban farmers
http://ucanr.edu/sites/UrbanAg/

I bought some pool/beach slippers and wore them quite a bit last year (until I think they got thrown into the back of my closet and I forgot about them).  They wash off nicely but are light weight and don't sweat.

Rain received Monday - 0.42"
Rain received today, Tuesday - Trace.  We are up to a total of 1.51" for the year!

What's your yearly norm in the valley?  We're usually around 16" I think.

As the clouds start to move up the mountain, they tend to start dropping rain.  In the Valley, we got 2-3" last year, but the "Norm" is 8-10".

Micro-greens in a 4" deep wood tray: (Salad Mix)
Flowering snow peas:

sanderson wrote:...Micro-greens in a 4" deep wood tray: (Salad Mix)...

I think those might be past the micro-greens stage, or else they're growing really really fast!

The average crop-time for most microgreens is 10–14 days from seeding to harvest.

Picky, picky. Mini-greens

sanderson wrote:Picky, picky.  Mini-greens

Call them what you will, they look awfully nummy to me 

I did  a little in the garden today.  I left the leaves around the orange tree and added compost (not against the trunk), then covered with scraps of cardboard.  They are ripe about 4 weeks earlier than last year.
Regarding the hybrid compost pile I built from shredded green leaves and limbs (plus horse manure, grass and coffee grounds).  Well, the larger pieces of shredded limbs are now resting over the leaves I left around the front photinia bush/tree.  I'll add compost and water well.  Should make for a good hot weather mulch this summer.  They are not suitable for Berkeley fast composting.    Plus, they kept getting stuck in the new 1/2" hardware cloth I lined the cage with a couple of weeks ago.  The hybrid pile is still at 140*F with white mold visible from the sides and top.

Maybe I can get in gear tomorrow.

"THE fog comes
on little cat feet.
 
It sits looking
over harbor and city
on silent haunches
and then moves on"

Carl Sandburg

A couple sunny days after rain, we get fog.  It is so quiet outside right now.

Heavy rains expected Thursday and Friday.  We may get a couple inches!!

What are all of you Northern Californians doing to prepare for the wind, rain and/or storm expected Thursday and Friday?? It's foggy and cloudy where I am. I'm working outside in double layer pants and 2 tee/2 sweatshirts to keep off the chill. Yesterday, I collected leaves from 2 neighbors that I have been coveting. DH and I moved 2 TTs to a better location. Today is the last of the rough pruning and collecting of Wisteria and Pistachio leaves and getting the plastic covers on anything I don't want to get really wet.

What are you doing?

I have to wrap up my greenhouse front (the damage to the zippers etc. leaves me vulnerable). We bought some plastic drop clothes that are sized nicely to simply clip on the front. The wind could play havoc if it's not buttoned up.

I watered down my straw mulch so hopefully it won't blow away!

Basically just put everything away that could blow away and hope for the best!

After being on this Forum and seeing how everyone's flowers look, I have been working on the red mush, clay and hardpan in the front beds.  Thank you all for some healthy ideas!    I hope to have a show stopper and encourage neighbors to consider the same.  You can see a neighbor house across the street.  No flowers in the bare dirt "flower beds".  Everyone rakes the leaves out of the flower beds, including us (until this year).  

Color spot after 10 months of organic mulch and compost.  Dianthus, snapdragons, pansies and volunteer cock's comb.
Shredded limbs , green leaves, old dried leaves and compost.  Getting it ready for next year's draught and restricted watering.  Husband thinks it looks a little embarrassing!
Front flower bed.  I've been working on this area since summer (??).  I'm working on a raised flower bed, key-hole looking? with lots of organic and driplines to survive the drought. The actual raised bedding areas will be contained within tall vertical stone sides next spring.  The surviving flowers (brain slippage) are amazing!  Never grown any so healthy before.

Off to batten down the back yard

Audrey, Did you get the green house secured? I still have work to do before 3 pm when the rain is expected. So glad we got the TTs moved before this rain.

Kinda sorta have it secured - the panel we bought was supposed to be "heavy duty" but it's very thin. It's possible it will shred in no time. No time to worry at this point.

I got my MM made and filled up the second 4x8 table top, then covered it so it doesn't get too wet. The wind was picking up a bit while I was out there, but nothing big yet. The sky sure is dark and the bottom side of the clouds are a weird undulating pattern.

audrey.jeanne.roberts wrote: The sky sure is dark and the bottom side of the clouds are a weird undulating pattern.  

That cloud pattern looked awesome from down here.  Still waiting for the big rain Weather update is 1-2 AM with thunderstorms.

Hubby figured out why the plastic isn't very thick - he thought he bought the thickest mil at 7 mil, but when I told him how thin it was he looked at the package again and it's .7 mil!!!  If it makes it through this storm I'll be surprised.  Oh well... not the end of the world no matter what happens.

I was looking at the temps this time last year and we were 27 degrees (on accuweather's accounting but they don't get my actual location well), today it's 47 QUITE a difference!  We were actually down to 22-24 for a few days this time last year.

0.7 mil! Gosh, are husbands universal or what? God bless their hearts.

Yesterday I had long jammies under my sweat pants, 2 tee shirts and 2 sweat shirts to stay warm while getting ready for the rain. Today in was in jammies and 2 short sleeve tees. Quite warm. I guess it's the Pineapple Express influence.