Bloomin’ Holler~

On By cindy knokeIn Uncategorized

Rain is in the forecast,

for tomorrow.

It will be the first winter storm,

for the parched Holler,

and won’t be nearly enough,

but we’ll take what we can get,

to keep The Holler bloomin’.

Happy Holidays to you from The Holler~

Note: These photos were taken near The Holler, at The Vista Botanical Garden, Ganter Nursery, and The San Diego Safari Park.

255 thoughts on “Bloomin’ Holler~”

  2. Cindy, your blooms from the Holler are glorious, absolutely luminous! May tomorrow’s rain slake all thirsty flora and fauna – even if only temporarily until the next storm.

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      1. Yes. It grows well and colours are vivid and we have tens of colours here and widely seen all over. I am always waiting for your next post. It’s a joy and big smiles to view the images. Always some thing to watch and explore. I rate your posts are the best in the team always.

        Still covid restrictions around here make me work from home and all my cameras are sleeping 🤣 hope and wish soon can escape from this restrictions.

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          1. I totally agree with you. It’s going to be two years and all out door activities are restricted. Every quarter new virus is arriving with wired names and spoiling peace of everyone around. Wishing no virus news in the year ahead . Have a nice evening 😊

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  10. Paintbrush lilies and proteas make me feel at home! We have had one glorious rainstorm that has revived us all. I am so pleased you have some in the offing too!

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    1. I was just over at your post, looking at your snail which is exactly the same as ours. We have armies of them coming out after the rain. Our snails are not native, but were imported in the mid-1800’s. I had no idea I could be farming and selling them. See : https://www.foodandwine.com/news/snail-farms-united-states
      You would feel quite at home at The Holler, but you would miss your giraffes et. al. !!! I miss them all too. So happy you got rain!

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    1. I didn’t know more is coming next week. That is excellent news! It seems just misty and damp today, but it’s better than nothing. Natives are definitely a smart move. I have been tending my Matilija Poppies for a year now. They are native, but boy are they hard to get going. Enjoy our bit of much needed winter weather my friend დ

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      1. You named the plant I’m DYING to have! Matilija Poppies are my all time fave but I don’t have any. Do you propagate yours? We have a large yard esp for the coast with a flat area and two upper parts. The top one is my son’s fave cos it’s all Cal natives-he’s been working on it since college, we used to go to Las Pilitas before it closed. This time we found an adorable little nursery with natives in Pt Loma on the way home from the airport. She gifted us a ton of native seeds so I’ll be working hard for the next two weeks while the ground is wet.

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        1. I know that we are nearly neighbors, and I love that. Your son sounds wonderful! The Matilija’s have been a labor of love and effort. They’re native, so how hard could they be to grow? The answer is really hard. They are sensitive plants. The tend to live naturally on the sides of creek beds where there is water. The seeds germinate with smoke from fire. I see them growing around here often. I think they are the most beautiful flower. I planted 8 as a test. 5 are sill alive.

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          1. Yeah, it IS pretty cool we are in the same area and thank you, I am biased regarding my son, lol. I’m very happy you’re able to successfully grow Matilijas, I am determined to have some in my garden! I’ll never forget the first time I saw one on the cover of an old Sunset magazine.

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  16. You must have wonderful warm weather for hibiscus to bloom just now. We have a few shivering geraniums hanging on through a first snowfall, but nothing exotic like your blooms! So nice!!! I feel warmer already.

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    1. Brave geraniums, blooming in the snow! The Holler does get below freezing for a few nights each year. But the citrus and pomegranate orchards tolerate it for some reason. More tropical plants need to be sheltered to survive. Stay safe & warm my friend დ

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  19. These are beautiful Cindy, and best wishes for Christmas, some lovely rain and the holidays…and not necessarily in that order 🤣 😂 😀 ❤️ 🙏🏽 🦋 🎅🏽 🕊 🎄 🎁 ⛄️

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  26. Pingback: Bloomin’ Holler~ — – Echoes in the Mist

  35. good morning, how nice to wake to the colourful Holler… dark cold mornings here.. with snow.. high of only about 28 today.. love your posts… stay safe.. greetings to you and your family from Canada.

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                    1. You are so right on. I know you know what you are talking about because I experienced it myself. Every time you hear a college/university administrator say, “We are here for the students.”
                      You know it not truthful, because the people who actually do get up front with students with problems, never say this. They just do it.

                    2. I wish I didn’t know what I was talking about. When Marketing is running the college, students’ best interests are not even on the list, including a quality education. Yes, it was time for me to go.

  38. They’re all so lovely! I love that purple one. We’re supposed to get snow, but I can’t tell yet if we did as it’s still too dark, but my yard is just wet. It rained. I hope the lawn and field have snow.
    I hope you do get some rain!

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  41. Pingback: Bloomin’ Holler~ — | Rethinking Life

              1. Thank you for your belief in me, but unfortunately, as you understand Cindy, english is not my native language, and I cannot express my thoughts using the right words to make my writing not just informative, but belles-lettres. Reading english books I see how many beautiful words and definitions this language has, but they are not in my vocabulary and it takes time for me to find something appropriate to express what I would like to say. Unfortunately, I came to english environment too late. It is one of the problem. The other one is I am listener.
                Because I am planning to live long life😀, probably I’ll try to write. Being at retirement age I have to work anyway for now. We’ll see what gonna happen.

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                1. You, Alexander, speak any language with beauty. Your photos pave the way for you, they are after all, international language. English is definitely a second rated language, all sorts of dumb people speak it, including me. Having the humility to write, read and talk in other language, not perfectly, seems to me to be a prerequisite, for being a good human being.

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                  1. Thank you Cindy. It is not about what surrounding people think about my language it is about how I feel myself.
                    Have a wonderful Sunday! Unfortunately, after Friday disaster it is impossible to feel happy. However, we have to try.

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                    1. “It is not about what surrounding people think about my language it is about how I feel myself.”
                      Yes. Very true. And as a surrounding person, orbiting your star Alexander, I can tell you truthfully, you shine brighter than you know.

  46. What beautiful flowers! It feels so good to look at your wonderful pictures over here in the cold, wintery, snowy Southern Bavaria.
    Have a fine time, dear Cindy, and stay safe!

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    1. So kind of you my friend. We could swap places for a few days! You can warm up here, and I will go to The Christmas Markets, eat German food and German Christmas cookies. I miss Germany. Stay safe, warm & well დ

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      1. So sorry, dear Cindy, but because of the Corona Virus we don’t have any Christmas Markets here in Bavaria and most of Germany… We all do hope that next year the situation will be a far better one… But if you mail me your address I would love to send you some Original selfmade Bavarian Christmas cookies. 😉

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        1. I just found your comment. It was in my WP spam file, along with many other comments. I am so sorry your magical markets are cancelled. I do understand why however, and safety is the priority. Your wonderful offer of your homemade cookies is so lovely of you. I am afraid that I found your beautiful offer too late for you to send without inconvenience to yourself. I have an idea however, next year let’s each send each some of our own homemade Christmas cookies. It is a wonderful idea. Merry Christmas my friend. I hope you and your family are having an healthy and happy Advent.

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          1. Sometimes that happens to me, too, that a lot of comments vanish into the WP spam file…
            Your idea of sending each other homemade Christmas cookies next year is wonderful!
            Have with your beloved ones a wonderful and healthy Advent time, too, my dear.

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    1. Thank you Janis, and yes, it is more like dampness than rain. I’ll dance now too, maybe the two of us can make it happen, although my twin 3 year old grandsons danced up a storm yesterday and coaxed nary a drop from the sky!! 😉 😉

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  52. Despite being parched, there still seem to be plenty of beautiful flowers near The Holler! I think I’ve said this before, but I wish we could ship rain from the east to California 😆

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  53. Beautiful shots, Cindy!
    Wish I could send you some of our rain!
    B.C. alone got enough for all of us. Some towns are just gone. They say an atmospheric river fell on them.
    Crazy climate change.

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    1. Yes. I have been reading about this. Very sorry. Floods and drought seem to be the world we have created. But, you and I had no choice or voice about this. Robert Frost wrote about this, “Some say the world will in end fire, some say in ice.”
      How did he know?

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    1. Yes, protea and bottle brush grow prolifically at The Holler. Our landscape looks very similar to South Africa, minus the incredible wildlife of course. Cheers to you Ally & thanks for stopping by დ

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        1. Your place is just a myriad of serious clicks more wonderful than here at The Holler.
          On our second trip, we stayed outside Crocodile Bridge. We passed the gate, drove to our house, we were greeted by the house cat, who hung around for awhile in the house with us. Jim who is a cat person, went here because I needed to, says to me, “We could live here.”
          And I am thinking, just 30 minutes into Kruger. I was born in the wrong place.
          In the morning, we told the owners how much we liked their cat. They looked really nervous, and said “We don’t have a cat.”
          I said, “Of course you do, it spent a long time in the house with us.”
          It was a South African Wild Cat, and it hung out with us.
          I fricking love where you live.

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          1. That’s such an amazing story, thank for you sharing it with me Cindy. I think I live in a wonderful place, but it has gotten a bad rap so often, even now.
            I wouldn’t live anywhere else.
            I have only traveled to Europe and the UK but I would one day love to visit the Americas and see how the other half live.

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  67. 🙂 The Holler in Bloom ~ you’ve definitely have some magic for the holiday season, Cindy. Beautiful photos and I hope the rain will be plentiful enough to keep the blooms (and you) happy 🙂

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    1. Thank you. I’m very sorry you are going through such hard times. I wish I could visit you. I would like to. But due to covid, we now actually live like we are continents apart. Please know I think of you. დ

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    1. I look forward to spending another year with you my friend. On Monday my twin 3 year old grandsons will be making decorated Christmas cookies with me for them to eat and take home to their parents. Merry Christmas to you and your family Kathy დდ

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