There are a few things we would have done differently with our home had we known a few facts. Outside, we wouldn’t have had as much terracing down to the lower area and we wouldn’t have had a rock garden. We think it would have been better to have had our porch just go out the whole way but, what are you going to do? We have it and have to do a series of steps to get down to the bottom of our little hill.

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Here is a view of the rock garden in rather poor light. When I took the picture I was more interested in the light than in the garden. The landscape lady that originally put in the garden mostly put in local succulents that I have seen growing on the hills and along the roads around here. The first couple of summers they grew like crazy and had all sorts of little flowers. This year they don’t look very happy. I’m guessing they go through cycles. She also put in some bushes that I call Pampas grass which also did well at first but now don’t do much of anything. I think the cold winters that we have here did a number on them. I cut back some of them and dug up the rest and planted some lavender plants and santalina just so we have a little color and variety. It’s hard to have a really good garden when you aren’t at the house all of the time. We never know what we will find when we return each Spring.

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Anyway, here is a closeup of one of the rocks–thus, a rock garden. Many of them are slowing shattering since they are exposed to weather. I’d love to get some garden sculptures but they are very expensive here.

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And, sigh, the snails are making a return. This is a big fellow, but I’m starting to see the darn little white ones. It won’t be long until I am once again engaged in full scale warfare with them. I’m going to put ashes around my vegetable garden this summer as apparently they don’t like ashes but it has to be replaced everytime it rains. Snails and weeds–it never ends.