Micro desert life...

And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed,

and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself,

upon the earth: and it was so.

And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after its

kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose see was in itself, after his

kind: and God saw that it was good.

­– Genesis 1:11,12 - Bible (KJV)

Greg and Eli both said if we built the thing – or redesigned it, they would come.

We recently re-landscaped our little desert backyard. Before the work, we had a few large Barrel Cacti, three Desert Spoons, a few Golden Barrels, a Texas Ranger, Miniature Grapefruit tree and a Mexican Bird of Paradise.

I feel almost obligated to also say, “…and a partridge in a pear tree…” however inappropriate!

We have three broadly defined seasons here in the Sonoran Desert. There is the fall, winter, and spring comprising one of them when the weather is to die for. The days are mild (infrequently chilly) and the nights very cool.

The summers are a different story. When the oven goes on here, it stays for a few months and is hot…very hot. This summer we have been over 100 (37.8C) degrees Fahrenheit most days and have had runs from 112 (44.4) up to 116 (46.6C). People who leave during these months of the year are called snowbirds for a reason. They leave when it's hot and return from whence they migrate (somewhere in the snowy north) to enjoy some of the best weather in the country.

We live here year-round. Forty percent of our neighborhood’s population inhales and exhales (comes and goes) according to the seasonal changes.

Then there is the monsoon season when the rains come. Since we live on the western edge of the Catalina Mountains, when the rains come water coming down the slopes can accumulate in washes (think dry river beds), turning them into raging waters. Every year, people ignore warnings about avoiding flooded roads and find themselves swept away in life-threatening situations. The season officially begins on June 15^th, but usually, the rains don't find their ways to our environs until early to mid-July.

This brings us back to our redesigned backyard. Greg is a ‘young' sixty-year-old artistic botanist. He knows desert plants intimately, and understands how best to distribute them in living spaces – like our backyard. Eli, on the other hand, is the landscaper. He and his team do the ‘pick and shovel' work to move the creative thought process to reality.

In San Diego and when we first came to Oro Valley, to watch bird life, we put feeders out. We learned that attracting that many fowl can also attract small predators. Additionally, when there was food, the birds came in crowds. When there was none, not only were the feeders bare, but the birds found ways to greener pastures.

Greg suggested we place naturally occurring desert plants that would provide sustained food for nectar consuming birds. So, we accepted his suggestions and Eli came to change the flowers, bushes, and architecture of the backyard.

We have collected rain water for a couple of years in a 265-gallon tank. This allows us to save and use it to water in the dry season. The yard now has small indentations called swales to capture water during the monsoon season. Water from these ‘mini ponds’ slowly seeps into the ground providing a more sustained water source to help harden our plants and bushes.

In an earlier post (June 11^th), the backyard was described in more detail. Our desire was to make the yard reflect the desert plant life around us, and a place where small animals and birds could find shelter and food. While it has only been in place a little over a month, it is thriving. It will take a few years for the Desert Willow trees to gain enough height to shade the yard. But the young Creosote, Chuparosa, Blackfoot Daisies, Desert Lavender, and Mexican Bird of Paradise are attracting several varieties hummingbirds and other birds, as well as Carpenter Arizona bees, to shelter and feed on the natural environment that is our newly reconstructed backyard.

These little creatures don't come in hoards, but in small and steady streams to partake in part of their daily sustenance. When Molly waters in the early morning, it is not unusual to see hummingbirds fly into the gentle spray to bathe in flight. It also isn't unusual for them to flit over to us and hover to see what curiously bizarre creatures we are.

Greg and Eli were correct. We (those fellows) designed and built it. Mini wildlife are coming, and we could not be more delighted.

- ted