Unlike gardeners in cold winter climates, Southern California gardeners generally welcome autumn, which is frequently referred to here as our second spring. Temperatures drop and our winter rainy season draws closer, making it a great time to plant. I've been working on renovating one of my larger succulent beds and I'd planned to cover that in my next post but the arrival of our Santa Ana winds offered an opportunity to reveal autumn's darker side: the
brushfires that all too frequently accompany our seasonal Santa Ana winds. Unfortunately, what was billed as a "mild" Santa Ana wind event nonetheless fanned a major fire on Monday afternoon, leading to the evacuation of 1500 people at its height. The latest update is that the fire is just 15% contained.
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| Monday night's sunset lit up the clouds of smoke in shades of pink that belied the fire's fury |
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| But this early sunrise shot captured by my husband on Tuesday spoke more clearly of the fire's danger |
We're fortunate to be 50 to 60 miles from the fire so, other than its impact on air quality, the
Canyon Fire hasn't affected us directly. However, as we do live in a fire danger area, any local fire puts us on edge and has us sniffing the air for the tell-tale smell of smoke. My in-laws' home went up in flames in the
1993 Malibu Fire and I've never forgotten the heartbreak of that event. I empathize with anyone impacted by such fires and I react negatively to any thoughtless individuals who put their neighbors at risk with careless behavior like setting off fireworks or tossing cigarettes in tinder-dry areas.
On a less sinister note, two other sightings drew my attention during the twilight hours this week:
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| I believe this is a red-tailed hawk, the most common bird of prey in our area. This fellow landed in our mimosa tree Sunday night and just sat there, staring in the direction of our house. I took this photo from directly below him on our backyard patio. No hawk has ever allowed me to get that close. |
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| In contrast, this spider (presumably some kind of orb weaver) cared not a whit that I was standing right next to her as she busily created a new web right across an area I walk through every day. I unintentionally broke her web but I fully expect to see a replacement the next time I round that same corner. |
Visit Anna at Flutter & Hum to view other images participating bloggers found interesting this week.
All material © 2012-2017 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party
