This is my first post in the community after many months of absence due to a tragic event . I am glad to be back here and interact with you all! Coming straight from Malaga International Airport to our house, the first thing I did was to inspect my Mediterranean garden. I am not even sure if I could call this a garden since my purpose of planting those succulents and cactus plants was to just make the plot look greener. The plants here were mostly given to me by my German girlfriend who used to be our neighbor in another area in the countryside.
Before the COVID/pandemic broke out three years ago, we were at the verge of leaving the house as we finalized our vacation that year. We had luck to have left the county since COVID was about to sweep Spain seriously at that time. It has been 19 long months that we haven't set foot on the property and when we came afterwards, I was surprised that all the plants did not suffer from the heat. They were not watered at all during our absence. The only thing was our town had plenty of rain and that was the best part as the plants grew wild.
We were supposed to come here last year and two weeks before our flight in Sept, the Husband sadly suffered a cardiac arrest and passed-away. That was also the reason why I wasn't here for 17 months.
We have a Spanish friend who takes care of the wild grasses inside the property. He didn't need to water the plants because we were closing everything including electricity for the waterpump when we left for the home base.That is also the reason why I only have succulents and cactus plants. They are the best for a Mediterranean garden as they are almost maintenance free. We had experienced a long term absence from the property the first time during the pandemic, but now it was a different situation because it did not rain all throughout. It has been reported that the dams in Andalucia have only 10% water reserve. I am trying to water them now as often as possible to compensate for the loss of water for the drought period.
These two Euphorbias had been planted before we left last year. They were small branches that fell off the ones from the right side of the gate due to the harsh wind that is always visiting our town during wintertime.
This is the berry or I do not know what to call this. During Spring, the main tips of Euphorbia candelabrum get yellow flowers and blossoms into such fruit. I am not sure whether these are edible though.
This is Aloe Vera that I planted before we left for the homebase. It is a pity that I did not see their flowers. The flowers normally blossom in Spring with a strong orange/reddish color and sometimes with yellow ones too.
The Agave blues...
One has to control the growth of the agave plant as it would produce plenty of newbies on its side. This agave is similar to the blue Agave they use to make Tequila in Mexico. According to the locals here, the ones that we have in the garden are called Agave sisalana and they are cultivated in Southern Mexico to use the fibers of each stalk to make twine and rope.
I have experienced cutting the hard stalks one by one before....and I swear, it was an awful lot of work to do because I did not have the proper tool. And if one is doing it under the glaring sun, you'll be exausted in a short period of time, trust me!
This time, a Campesino (Farmer) who is an expert in cutting such plants helped me over the weekend. At least he had a battery powered-cutter and he did all the 8 plants in 30 minutes.
Cylindropuntia
There are many varieties and this one here is one of many. It has a beautiful pink or yellow flower which is so beautiful. The one in my plot had been so small when I got it from the town gardener. It is a very dangerous species that could pinch the tires of vehicles.
Ten years after I planted this cactus, it became a nuisance and it spread all over the plot. I didn't want someone or animals to get hurt, so I am removing all these from the plot.
Cleaning the Agave plant
This is a trimmed Agave with the lower stalks cut. I cut the spike on top of each stalk to avoid any accident. The farmers in Mexico have a special tool to harvest the body of the blue agave for Tequila making. They look like the body of a pineapple, don´t they?
I feel relieved now that the agave plants are cleaned and I can easily see any new growth that might come out from the mother plant. There is a need to trim the plant and control any new growth because if not done, they can spread rapidly and will over grow and make the garden wild.
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It was a tiring day and am glad that the the garden is again trimmed. My problem here is the heat wave and this week, it´ll be sunny but the temps will rise again....till 40!? Hopefully not! Keep hydrated everyone!
xoxo,
Mers
I love the marigold. The agave is very popular for landscaping in commercial buildings here in Socal.
Well, agave is almost maintenance free, it just needs to be controlled because of newbie plant that sprouts on its sides..thanks for dropping by.
One of the best things about growing plants, shrubs, flowers and succulents that are native to the geographic region is they tend to grow and thrive regardless of droughts or have a need for human intervention (as in watering). I'm glad everything was well after being away from your residence for 17 months and you were able to remove, prune and trim the vegetation to your liking. The cylindropuntia certainly took on a life of its own! The barbed spines look like they would be wickedly painful and the cacti could be planted for use as protection around property. Nobody would want to try stepping over or through a fence of cylindropuntia. The trimmed agave look absolutely charming transformed after trimming to look like pineapples!🍍🎍🍍
Have a terrific week ahead and stay cool! @mers☀️🌵🏜🌵😎
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Me too, glad that everything is ok here. My main concern now is to clean up the exterior walls of the house due to the dirt brought by the calima/sandstorm from the Sahara..the walls are with brown hues...gone is the whitewash color of the house.
I am so glad to have you in my life dear Nina. Thank you!!!
I'm so sorry to hear about your loss. It sounds like you're doing a great job of taking care of your garden, even in the midst of grief. Your succulents and cactus plants are beautiful, and I'm glad that they're doing well.
I'm also glad that you were able to get some help with trimming the agave plants. They can be quite dangerous, so it's important to be careful when working with them.
I hope you're able to stay hydrated and cool during the heat wave. It sounds like it's going to be a tough week, but I'm sure you'll get through it.
It is very humid here in Andalusia, we could fetch some hot days the coming days and I really hope it does not get to 40°C. I drink plenty of water daily even more than 3 liters, sometimes plain and sometimes with lemon juice.
I am coping with the loss, it's sad losing someone with whom I was with for 40 years ..depression is subsiding little by little as well as the stress..life must go on so I keep on moving.
Thanks for leaving your nice comments as always. Have a nice day!
Good afternoon. You have a very beautiful place, despite the fact that only succulents are planted here. The garden turned out wonderful.
I have never seen milkweed bloom. Such a plant in our pots grows very quickly, so they are constantly pruned.
I have not seen Aloe Vera bloom, I would really like them to bloom with me. But at home, this is not possible. Flowers love freedom, not a pot of earth)).
Agaves are great. You have done an excellent job. Despite all the sorrows, the garden calms down, and life goes on ... Health to you!
Thank you so much! Yes I myself is surprised when I saw the succulents growing nicely without water the last 17 months. But it proved that they are robust since during the pandemic, we couldn't travel here because Spain was one of the worst EU countries hit by Covid.
Agaves are hard to trim, one needs a proper tool to cut its stalk and mind you, each is heavy. Aloe Vera are nicely blooming in Spring especially if they are in clusters with red orange flowers.. I have one with yellow flowers.
Glad you like the garden, appreciate your lovely comments. Have a nice day!
Absolutely stunning post - how incredible that your garden manages to survive in your absence. There's something to be said for succulent gardens! I've heard it's been intolerably hot over there.
Oh goodness, @mers, I had no idea about your husband. I am so sorry to hear that - that must have been really devastating! I hope you are in good spirits and that focus on the garden helps you cope in his absence - our loved ones do leave big holes in our hearts. xx
My dear @riverflows, the heat wave here is enormous, might as well stay at home in order not to get a heart attack :-))
Yep, the first three months after the Husband passed was horrible..I had depression, stress and tremor, my health suffered and I lost almost 20 kilos. My weight is stable now and thanks to my neurologist's prescriptions, I got better as time passed. I guess, I am healing now though with a heavy heart.
Thank You for leaving a lovely comment! I hope you are enjoying your day...have a nice one! Hugs to you!
Hi @mers , time goes by quickly, the pandemic is behind us thanks to GOD, returning to your home must have been hard without your partner, but hey, life goes on and we with it.
Take care of yourself
Thank you so much my friend...How are you doing these days?
I work from home and practically what I do, work and work, but I don't feel bad about this, I take it as if I were forging a good future.
That's a great mindset! Anyone is responsible for his destiny. You will be successful in doing anything to have a brighter future. Just keep going and once in awhile, do not forget to reward yourself by going out meet friends or see nature. We need this for our soul!
My condolences on your great loss ... and, welcome home to Hive!
Euphorbia are generally poisonous, including the fruit -- probably safer to see those as ornamentals!
Thank you for sending your condolences and for visiting.
Yeah, I remember someone said that to me, but only for animals. Well, might as well be careful that the doggies from the neighbors do not come near them.
The jury is still out on humans, and even some animals ... monkeys do eat the fruit regularly, and if we don't crack the seeds, THEORETICALLY, we could too ... but it's like yew fruit ... crack one seed and you might be gone ... but that's also true for cherries (cyanide!) ... but then cherries probably taste better and have super hard seeds ...
I've actually added your post to my Friday newsletter (in your time zone it will come out Friday night) ... welcome home to Hive with such a fine piece of content!
Oh wow, that is nice! Thank you.
Yeah cherries, I read so much about the cherry seeds that they are poisonous and its horrifying because I sometimes swallowed one or two seeds unintentionally. So probably it did not cracked while inside my stomach because I am still alive to this day, lololol! Thanks for a lovely chat.
You're welcome ... I used to swallow cherry seeds as a child into early adulthood. I remember the day I heard in my mind: "STOP DOING THAT." It was YEARS before I found out why! I'm 42 now, and still alive ... God is good ... and now I do research on fruits CAREFULLY!
Enjoy your garden and this lovely summer ... those Euphorbia berries are at least pretty to look at!
Yes they are lovely.. Thanks a lot !
The heat this year has been brutal even here in the USA. It was so nice of your friend to help you trim the Agave plants as that does look like a tedious job. I love how they look after they were trimmed. The garden succulents all look so healthy, good for you!
Yep, am glad they didn't suffer from the heat. I've been watering these succulents morning and evening to compensate for the lack of water during my absence. Thank you for visiting and take care!
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Hello @gardenhive! Thank you so much, it's an honor to be in your list...I still need to know the ropes about threads posting at Leo and to vote for the author of the week. Have a nice weekend ahead.
How pretty, that's a gorgeous place! If you had more Agave you could make your own Tequila! That looks like such a peaceful place.
!DHEDGE
Hello @thebighigg! Yes it is very peaceful here...the only noise you´ll hear here is sometimes from the dogs from the other hillside:-))
Apreciate you visiting my blog and commenting. Thanks and have a nice week! And oh thanks for the tokens btw!
Thank you for visiting and for the token.
tough work! Glad someone was there to help you with the work. Those thorny cactus looks so scary, glad you got rid of them
Yeah, I wouldn't dare to get rid of them on my own, too dangerous .
I hope those who worked for you didn't have a hard time. I guess the same cactus maked the wildlife(cheetahs and more) go blind in teh desserts, I saw a documentary in NatGeo once. But I guess there are many more thorny cactus varieties on the wild
The farmers here are used to such kind of work even under the heat. They are ok. Thanks.
Thank you for your Spanish garden tour, @mers! Even we are in the same Europe, plants look totally different. I enjoyed seeing the photos.
Now I got whole your story and why you were in Germany. I'm sorry for your loss of your husband when you were away from the home ... I wish you recover and start again with/like the strong cactuses.
Hi there, yes I am recovering slowly but surely. Glad you like the garden "tour". How is your terrace garden coming along?
Thanks for visiting and enjoy the Summer! Hugs from Andalusia!
My mini balcony garden is doing good. I know your home is your current place but I was so much impressed by your balcony last year and your posts motivated me to maintain mine ☺️ Take time for recovery! Plants and Hive Garden friends are with you 🍵
Thank you so much dear @akippoon for the encouragement. I did not plant anything in my balcony this season coz I know I have to leave home base. As soon as I know what lies ahead after my husband's estate then I will plan to do container gardening again. Before I left Vienna, the only plant I replanted had been the lemon seeds and they grew so well. I just hope they will survive. Have a great day gardening!
I can imagine the struggle in trimming those plants. daghan thorns! lol
Oi, daghan ko pinches... Nagsuffer gyud ang beauty ni lolay..lol!
LOL
I didn't know Aloe Vera grew flowers. I have a few aloes here, but I never saw them bloom. Maybe it's a different variety. Your garden thrives even in your long absence.
Yes dear and I am so grateful for having such robust succulents and cactus. Aloe Vera takes time to flower but if the soil is right + cactus fertilizer it will surely bloom. Thanks for visiting!
Glad plants there be survive. How Amazed. In my area, Im planting some Aloe Vera type because easy to take care.
So, you Harvest agave with big amount? Did you sell it?
Hi! I am glad too that they did not suffer from the drought. The agave was not harvested, I need to have them trimmed so they would not become wild. The cut stalks will be disposed. Thanks for dropping by and have a nice day!
Yes, indeed they look like giant pineapples, hehe. A smart way to get rid of the spikes creating a different appearance. I like it.
Thank you..oh diba, parang huge pineapple ang dating :-))
Farming or gardening always include sweat and dirt but at the end of the day, it will always worth it. The feeling is mutual here. Enjoy gardening!
Thank you so much, enjoy your day!
Well ma'am @mers you plant them for a reason. But the Cactuses looks amazing in you're place because they can deal with that kind of situation. They look tougher as the years goes by.
And it's pretty hot down there, stay safe po
My goal to plant these succulents is to make the yard green. I have no intention to really make a garden because we were only here in winter and nobody could water the plants coz we close everything including the eletricity for the water pump. So these are the alternative plants since they are so robust even during the drought period.
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My condolences for the loss, I'm sorry. Your garden looks beautiful. Regards.