Chickadee Gardens

 Winter started last Sunday. No, really! There are two seasons here: summer and winter. In other words, we have a hot season and a wet season as spring and autumn seem to shrink every year. Last Sunday the rains began; it looks as if The Big Dark is indeed here. Joking aside, that's what it feels like. And seems not far from the truth.  Returning to my garden with fresh eyes after a month away was a perfect opportunity to evaluate what has done well in our long, increasingly drier, hotter summers and cold, wet winters (we seem to set weather records on both ends annually). Additional considerations for a rethink are that some plants are now too large or no longer happy so we must evaluate whether a plant stays. We ask ourselves if any particular plant pays the rent, so to speak. Is it healthy? Does it have at least three seasons of interest? Does it support wildlife? Is it drought-adapted? These are questions whose answers shift from year to year. Are there practices we could ...