Late to the Summer Garden Party!

Sugar Pea Pod Vines

I'm late! Late to the Summer Garden Extravaganza. That picture to your right is the reason WHY I'm so late to the summer party this year. This, and two other sad plants that are not pictured, are all that remains from my fall garden planting efforts. My fall garden doesn't normally look quite this sad, but California's epic amount of rain this winter drowned just about everything EXCEPT what you see pictured to the right.

This spot happens to be the highest spot in the backyard garden. Not pictured is the rest of the garden. Why not? Because for much of the winter that section of the yard was under several inches of water. That's what happens when an area that had not see much rainfall in two or three years suddenly receives TWICE the amount that normally falls in any given year.

That was the winter we needed in Northern California. Unfortunately, a lot of good comes with a little bit of bad. Two to three inches of rain can be very good for fall and winter gardening efforts. Thirty inches of rain is a different story entirely. You needed a rowboat to pay a visit to some areas of the garden this past winter. I could only watch as the fall and winter greens drowned following one epic storm after another.

Lake Northern California!

BUT, there was one bright spot. It was that high section of garden that I'd set aside for the sugar pea pod plants that I'd received from a gardening friend. 12-of those starter plants went into one cirle. 12-others went into another. The plants in the lowest section of the yard, like many other fall garden plants, drowned after the backyard turned into a lake. But the other 12 did just fine.

The unusual winter weather not only covered some sections of the garden completely, it also stunted the growing efforts of those plants that remained above water. So, when the time came to start prepping the garden for spring and summer exploits, the sugar pod pea plants that survived the lake-like conditions were just starting to flower.

Spring Peas

I had a choice. Pull the plants out and declare the fall and winter season to be an entire bust, or wait. I chose to wait. While other gardeners were prepping garden areas for tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers and other summer efforts, I patiently waited for those blooms on the sugar pod pea plants to turn into garden peas. That patience would be rewarded.

The wait resulted in a weight of 1.1 lbs. of sugar pea pods. That's enough pea pods to fill up a collander. Which is a lot of peas. The vast majority of those were added to some sliced mushrooms and put into a soup creation which resulted in a lot of leftovers. I will be eating the last of that soup for lunch today, which will put a finishing wrap on the rain-challenged fall and spring gardening efforts.

The sugar pea pod harvest did finally allow for some summer garden prep. In fact, that prep started the moment that the pea harvest ended and the plants were removed. But, I will admit, I'm a solid month behind the efforts of many others. The tomato plants are already beginning to produce pea-sized tomatoes, but there will be no "early harvest" this summer. If I get a cherry tomato to ripen up by the 4th of July holiday I'll consider myself lucky.

Spring Pea Harvest

Fortunately, I get to benefit from a special climate called "California Weather." As unpredictable as it has been this year, you can still count on a long summer growing season out west. So, even if you are like me, a month behind schedule, it doesn't matter for us California types. The garden planted in late May will eventually catch up with those gardens planted in late April. When the month of September rolls around, you won't be able to tell the two apart.

The real benefit, however, is all that water stored behind our massive Northern and Southern California reservoirs. Plus, a massive snowpack that is slowly melting in the Sierra Nevada. It's a snowpack that is so very large that all of it may not melt. Our fantastically warm summers won't be warm enough or last long enough to melt all of that water trapped in the high country.

Which is fine by me. That's irrigation water for backyard vegetable gardening efforts!

The Breba

Breba Crop-Fig Tree

Most fruit trees grown in California share a common trait. The same rule applies to most bushes or ground covers that produce fruit. It does not matter if your fruit of choice is a juicy peach, or if it's a red and ripe delicious strawberry. Your fruit of choice generally spends the entire year to gear up and produce a single big crop of fruit.

The same rule of thumb can apply to some tomato plants that are known as hybrids. They produce one big crop for an entire season and that's just about it. Don't get me wrong. It's a good crop of tomatoes. But, you only get one.

There is only one type of fruit tree, that I'm aware of, that laughs at this time-honored model of production. This type of fruit tree says "hold my beer." I must warn you that I do not have a great deal of experience with this fruit variety. I can only tell you that it begins to produce tree-ripened fruit much earlier than most fruit trees. But, it doesn't stop there. It keeps right on growing new crops that become tree-ripened fruit throughout the summer.

Breba Crop 2023

It has more energy than your standard Energizer Bunny.

That first crop, pictured above right and again to your immediate left, is called "Breba." It comes from the Spanish word of Breva. This is the first crop that is produced by your average fig tree. I happen to have one of these trees. It is anything but average. It is also unlike any fruit tree or bush that I've ever grown.

I must admit to you: I have grown my fair share. This includes five different varieties of peaches. Why five? Because four is never enough. Come to think of it, five wasn't enough either.

The Spanish are responsible for bringing the fig tree to North and South America. Blame the Spanish. They also brought peach trees and pigs. They would also bring numerous plagues and diseases that the natives had no resistance too, but we'll save that sad story for another day.

Tree of Gluttony

You know what the worst part of this fruit tree experience is? I'm not even sure what kind of fig tree I have. I know it came from Dave Wilson Nursery. But that is the extent of my knowledge. The tree was in a bucket that was labeled with the name of Kadota. This is NOT a Kadota fig tree. Not even close. It's some kind of black fig because the skin of the fruit is black.

My best guess is this is the Black Mission Fig. That is the industry standard. But judging on the color of the skin and the color of the flesh (red), it could be another variety. This includes the Black Jack, the Purple Smyrna or even the Violette de Bordeaux. In short? I'll never know. I just know this one tree produces a boatload of fruit.

As of right now, this tree is loaded with an eye-popping amoung of Breba. But you ain't seen nothing yet. The main crop will dwarf the size of any and every Breba crop. Or, at least it has so far.

Breba here, Breba there

I give away as much as I can. Neighbors, friends, family members, you name it. You want figs? I got figs. Last year I convinced two members of the Sacramento Gardening Group on Facebook to come over and strip the tree. You know what? They did! They nabbed huge sacks of fruit! Guess what? It did not matter! Because the tree was free to grow a third crop, and it did!

I am kind of sad and disgusted to admit this. But there came a point last summer where I had given away as many figs as possible. I had used the fruit to make gallons of fresh Kompot. Anyone who wanted a whack at that fruit production was welcome to it. Despite this, hundreds of figs dropped from that tree and rotted.

Mango the Magnificent!

There was a day and age when various critters would help with stripping the crop. Rats, possums, skunks and birds ate as much as they wanted. But that day and age ended when Mango the Magnificent arrived and made his presence known. One day my three month old kitten put on a show for me by racing up and down that fig tree. Guess what? Critters no longer visit. They say "pass."

So, should you feel the desire for tree-ripened figs this summer, be sure and drop me a line. You can take as much as you like. I will beg you to take even more. You might even get a free ginger cat out of the deal.

That Instagrammable MUTT!!!

Bandit's Instagram Moment

There he is! In all his glory: I give you the Instagram Moment of the elder generation (this means old). This is Bandit. He is a rescue mutt from the from the Bradshaw Animal Shelter. I believe he is a Border Collie or at least a Border Collie mix. He is in his element. Among the wildflowers currently in bloom at Marco Dog Park in Roseville.

I snapped this photo a few days ago and placed it on Instgram. It has all of seven likes. Bandit has gone viral. Or, as viral as Bandit is going to become. I am not a social media darling and never will be.

For most of the year, Marco doubles as a drainage ditch smack dab in the middle of the busiest of commercial district in all of Placer County. It was built as a flood control facility, but also does double duty as a dog park. After a winter of record rain and snowfall, followed by a few warm spring days, the so-called drainage ditch begins to take on the look of a pristine Northern California foothill setting.

Marco Dog Park-Roseville, CA

This was Bandit's second visit to this park. This is about the time he discovered the well-worn dog trail that multiple other dogs have created. It's a ring of a trail around a park high above the ditch below. This trail gives mutts like Bandit and others an unprecedented view of the countryside. It's also about the time that Bandit would discover this trail and dog park are alive with gophers and other critters that he can chase to his heart's content.

A rescue mutt hath no greater joy than this. Unless, however, a jackrabbit should cross his path.

I am a fan of the many dog parks in Northern California. I am required to be fan of them. That's the price you pay for adopting a Border Collie or any other Border mix such as an Aussie Shepherd or a McNab Shepherd. These are "working dogs." They are a working breed. They need a place to work. Since there are no sheep or cattle nearby for them to run after or herd, a dog park offers the next best thing.

Looking for the Chase

Marco is unlike most dog parks that I've visited. Many of these parks are square or rectangular in nature. There are usually two of them joined together. One side is for small dogs. The other is for larger breeds like Bandit. Most are covered by a large expanse of grass. Others, like C-BAR-C Park in Citrus Heights, feature an undulating hill and a sprinkling of native oaks and other trees.

Marco, however, is unique. If a dog wants to vanish in the undergrowth, he or she can. They can run up a steep hill to the rim of this park and run among the trees, bushes and other plant life that dominates this park. They might be less than 25-feet away, but you will never see them. This is Paradise for a dog. They can run. They can sniff. They can play. They can be safe from trouble. The comfort of a chain-link fence keeps them away from busy city streets and within the confines of the park area.

But the best feature of this park, at least in my option, is the drainage ditch itself. As of right now, it's full of water. It really is just a ditch. But with nature's overgrowth on both sides of this basin, it doubles as a stream cutting through the park. If Bandit isn't chasing a gopher or two on the trail that rims the upper portion of Marco Dog Park, he's playfully splashing after any unfortunate bird that dares to land in this drainage area.

Seasonal Stream (Ditch)

A good hour of running the dog park trails, bounding through high grasses and chasing after gophers or birds produces the required result: a tired herding dog. Tired herding dogs tend to sleep at night. If you don't tire a herding dog out during the day, they might spend the night chewing your favorite shoes into pieces. Or, chasing the cat all over the house.

I do imagine, at some point, the water will stop running through this ditch. The intense heat of summer will turn those green grasses brown and gray. It won't be as pleasing to look at, or for a dog to play in. But, if you're looking for a unique dog park that offers some unique dog exercise, this dog park fits that bill and more.