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Oh, how I love the rain. While all the media mavens in Los Angeles are bemoaning the loss of the precious sunshine I am truly basking in it. I stand at the back door and listen to the rain on the tin patio cover. I keep the door open, even though it is in the 50’s, so I can smell the fresh, damp air as I cook dinner.

Now, I am not saying that I want to move to Seattle or London, but I do enjoy a change in the weather. I spent the winters of my Ohio childhood in the throes of cabin fever and disliked it as much as the constant sunshine and heat here in LA. I like change in most things, especially the weather.

It looks as if the Winter is finally settling in now that a second and third storm have followed close on the heels of the first. If you watch the satellite photos you can see the storms build in the northern Pacific and push their way across the northwest, northern California and finally down here to us in LA. I have taken to watching the radar pictures, courtesy of the Weather Channel, to see where the rain is falling and estimate how soon it will arrive in my backyard.

Weather, of course, is an important part of any garden. Without the sun, the wind and the rain there would be no gardens. As gardeners we spend the days alternately cursing and praising the weather, complaining about too little rain or too much, too much heat or an early frost. What little control we can exert over our gardens seems like god-like power when we compare it to our inability to control weather. It is a humbling experience every day when we must submit to whatever the sky decides to offer up to us. We can plan and protect in small ways, but when it comes down to the bottom line, our gardens are on their own to face whatever weather comes along.

Starting next week I will be spending a couple of weeks in Salt Lake City, Utah on business. I have been looking at the weather reports already and it seems I will get to experience Winter full-on, something I have not done in many years. I figure this will give me an opportunity to check out how gardeners in colder climates go about putting their gardens to bed for the Winter and what can happen if you don’t take the proper precautions.

If my hands are not too numbed by the cold I will fill you in on all my experiences in the Wastach Mountains of Utah in the next few weeks.

Keep digging!

Douglas

What was happening a year ago (or more) in my garden? October 31, 1999 Harvest Time October 1996 Willows and Compost

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