David Austin Roses were my centerpiece for Thanksgiving. (Click to enlarge.)
Same bouquet photographed with flash.
Holler roses are still blooming!
Mixed Thanksgiving bouquet.
They show more color with flash.
Koko Loko roses are thriving now at The Holler. They bloom cocoa colored and turn pale lavender.
Star of Holland Amaryllis are early, which is a first, because I was home to plant them.
Narcissus are also early due to surprise rain.
Cheers to you from The Holler in winter~
There is a ghost ranch adjacent to The Holler.
It’s in a nature preserve and is named Rancho Lilac.
Rancho Lilac has a interesting history.
It was originally settled as a 2300 acre homestead in 1865.
It passed through several owners over time who turned it into a working cattle ranch.
In 1945 it was purchased by Col. Irving Salomon, an undersecretary to The United Nations who built an extensive rancho home where he hosted rural retreats for world leaders like Dwight Eisenhower, Eleanor Roosevelt, Mahatma Ghandhi, and Golda Meir.
This is the Salomon home ranch complex . There is an abandoned pool and tennis court and a caretaker living on the property. The rancho is currently preserved as an historical landmark.
There is a year round creek running through the property making the habitat critical for wildlife sustenance.
1600 acres of the ranch property have been set aside as a permanent nature preserve.
This is the old road that connects The Holler to the Rancho.
The Rancho is like a time capsule, unique, pristine, and full of precious and vulnerable wild life. We hope it stays protected into the future.
Cheers to you & be careful and safe~
We have a community of roadrunners living inside our fences at The Holler.
They have become quite used to us, and shelter in our garages or patio when it rains.
This baby roadrunner showed no fear when I approached, but I didn’t press it by getting too close. I would like to stay his friend!
You can see he still has some baby down on his back.
Cheers to you from The Holler’s fearless baby beep-beep~
Note: For those with enquiring minds regarding the tricky controversy over ‘beep vs meep,’ wiki clarifies that although commonly quoted as “meep meep”, the current owner of all trademarks lists “beep, beep” as the roadrunner’s main sound. 😉
This Red Shouldered Hawk has been sparring in Holler skies recently with the Red Tailed Hawks.
“California Sister” butterflies are understandably at home in The Holler.
“Firecracker Skimmer” dragonflies float lazily by.
Passion flowers are passionately,
prolific.
Pickerelweed flowers,
reach for the sky. (Thank you Eliza Waters for identifying this plant!)
Bottle brush thrive while spiders spin.
Cheers to you from all who seek the sky~
The Holler is quite buggy so it is most helpful for this little guy to catch both the spider and the spider’s catch all in the same web!
Rock Wrens are diligent feathered bug catchers.
They are always hunting and eating.
Rock Wrens are year round residents at The Holler and they are the only species in their genus, Salpinctes.
Rock Wrens are glorious songbirds whose music fills our days. Click to hear their vocalizations:
Cheers to you from The Holler’s hungry, musical and industrious wrens~
Of flying fairies.
It’s a bit tricky to take a photo and feed a hummer at the same time!
Most of The Holler Hummers are packing on calories now to prepare for migration.
Black Chinned Hummingbirds, like the one pictured above, travel to western Mexico or the Gulf.
Rufous Hummingbirds (above) have one of the largest migratory bird journeys in the world, flying up to 3,900 miles each year. Rufous populations are in decline due to habitat destruction and they are now designated a threatened species.
Some Anna’s hummingbirds stay year round at The Holler.
Responsibly maintained backyard bird feeders have helped vulnerable hummingbird species thrive.
They have brought dwindling population numbers up and expanded the territory of many species.
During migration, hummingbird hearts can beat over 1200 times per minute, their wings can flap 80 times per second, and they often fly alone.
Cheers to you from The Holler’s magical flying fairies~
Teach me,
that just because,
we cannot see something,
doesn’t mean it isn’t there.
Cheers to you from unseen beauty everywhere~
Hovering in mid flight,
reaching speeds of 60 mph,
with a tongue that is longer than their body,
the only bird in the world that can fly backwards and upside down,
weighing about a tenth of an ounce,
and battling for turf and territory daily with their lethal spear beaks,
hummers are flying,
works of art,
with attitudes!
Cheers to you from The Holler Hummers~
I thought it might be time to post some more Holler Hummers.
Hummingbirds in your backyard,
make everyday brighter.
They accompany me on my gardening rounds,
and buzz the camera when I am taking their photos.
If the feeder’s empty,
they swarm my office window until I get up and fill them!
They are quite persuasive,
for such wee tiny critters, weighing only .11 ounces!
Cheers to you from The Holler’s ever entertaining colibris~
Quiet beauty.
For difficult days.
Fragile.
Strong.
Like you,
and I.
Orchids grow,
in volcanic rock.
Beauty blooms from fire.
Cheers to you and keep on blooming~
