Wonderful garden! Good rock work too! I'm only an hour away and hope to see your garden some day in person. Cher, the leaves appear to have come from Arbutus menziesii. They normally shed during the summer, beginning in June. It's nature's way of dealing with our dry summers. AKA Madrona, a broadleaf evergreen tree with peeling, reddish bark. We have several weeks before we see the real Fall. Mike

Marlorena, I'm so glad you see a difference. I'm here every day so it's difficult to judge. Titian, I wonder what causes the differences in SdlM. Other people have mentioned the pale flowers. You'd think with my rotten soil, heat and drought this rose would be a mess, but it's been one of my most reliable roses. Trust me, if you could see my list of discarded roses, you'd feel better. I'm afraid and ashamed to count them, the number is so huge. After more than eight years, more than half are young roses, which really discourages me sometimes since they take so long to get going. I've concentrated more on tea roses now, although I have a feeling many will outgrow their allotted spaces. I'm not too fond of Chinas except Mutabilis and many of the Austins didn't do well here. I always feel that no matter what I do I've made mistakes again, but I just keep muddling along.

I'm so grateful for the additional lovely comments. Sheila and Sylvia, I'm proud and honored to have inspired you, because so much of what I've accomplished has been inspired by others, and to be able to pass that on is a privilege and joy. I'm happy to also pass on whatever I've learned in my garden to someone who may be in a similar situation and can utilize that knowledge. Sylvia, I'm thrilled that the drip watering is working for you. I never dreamt what a difference it would make for me. Sheila, I'm quite sure your tea garden will surpass mine because you have much more room and in a short time it's already grown so much. I feel that I can claim it as my godchild and will be so happy to see it grow and flourish. prettypetals and Steven, as a gardener whose work is not seen or appreciated by many in the real world, your praise means everything to me. Sharing is such an important part of it all.

Shrouded in fog: Volunteer trash tree--a box elder which reminds me of the apple-throwing trees in the Wizard of OZ: The base of the tall 'mushroom' in the middle is a box elder stump. You can see the roots which had spread in search of water. The tiny concrete mushroom in the lower right was a gift from my late sister: Grandson's portal to ... somewhere. Really an old wagon wheel missing its spokes, guarded by friendly gnomes. The box elder on the right and the wild cherry on the left came up between tumbled blocks so I left them for shade: I left a small mound of dirt and a piece of the old stump: The back side of the stump. I'd love to plant hostas here, but I know it would be an invitation to the deer--I'll have to settle for heuchera, Canadian ginger, and violets: The bird houses belonged to my late mother. When her house was sold, I brought them to my block garden, where they look as if they are climbing the tulip tree. Fire circle--under the firewood is the stump of a wild cherry tree. Twigs I picked up this spring, awaiting a trip to the burn pile on the other side of the creek: An old bird nest, with pebble eggs: A cow bone rodents have been gnawing for calcium: A row of stones which remind me of potatoes: Concrete mushroom top--bottom of a piece of concrete which was poured over large gravel and rocks: Photobombed by my cat, Gargoyle: Yes, I am Queen of this domain: More stumps with concrete mushroom tops: Some of the blocks were still held together by mortar and were really heavy. When I find an interesting rock or other object I add it to the pile: