String of Pearls

I must remember to ask at the nursery how long this arrangement has been growing. It has been there for as long as I can remember. They are known for their succulents and have a wonderful array of them. We have planted some like the light colored ones hanging down like water from a fountain but if they are too close to the ground, the slightest bump can knock a few 'pearls' off the string. I think this is a very clever arrangement.

We are a bit overwhelmed by the number of plants that still need to be replaced, and are reluctant to put in very many new ones, especially if they require a lot of water, so we confined ourselves to a few flowers for our 'mound' garden at the same level as the house. I persuaded John not to buy any more pepper plants and I got a flat of thyme to plant around one remaining slab of cement at the bottom of some stairs. That has become my project which I much prefer to pruning thorny plants...

The fire department has requested that our house number be visible from the street which made me realize that our large numbers firmly glued somehow to a big  rock at street level had become completely covered by rose bushes. The deer usually eat every single rose from these bushes, effectively pruning them, but for some reason, even though we see them all the time walking across our field or down the neighbor's empty lot they have left the roses completely alone. 

Unlike the ground squirrels...no visitors to the ground squirrel 'hotel'. I suspect sterner methods may have to be taken since there could be hundreds of them underground by now.

Thanks to many of you who commiserated and sent links to helpful sites here's a link to some information about them

There's always something to battle in the garden. I suppose that's what makes it interesting.When I was teaching yoga I used to say it was more about the journey than the destination....