California Poppy

Today it felt like we skipped spring and went straight to summer. It has been to chilly to linger out there, but today I spent quite awhile in the garden watching the lizards emerging from the rock walls, the bees hovering in the hundreds around the rosemary, and the birds, who can empty the large feeder in a single day.

The viburnum is in full bloom and the cistus is beginning to produce it's vibrant flowers which emerge crinkled from their buds. The oak trees have produced  lots of light green leaves, and the little daisy-like chrysanthemum ground cover has spread along the back fence and is popping up in little clumps from the rock walls. But I couldn't resist a shot of the California poppy. It is practically a weed, but a welcome one. I bursts out in huge clumps around our raised beds, grows between the rows of vines in the nearby vineyards and pops up profusely along the roadside. When the season is over, it just disappears until next year, so I always think of it as a true sign that the warm weather has arrived to stay awhile....