Fall…An Abundant, “Fun”tastic Season
Jackie - Waterwise Botanicals • September 12, 2018
From beginning to end, fall is a cornucopia full of fun. Here in southern California the change in leaf color is barely noticeable, but you can find it in a few variety of trees. Living near Fallbrook, I love the way the gold shines out on our little, windy roads that lead into town. Even the local vineyards turn to gold. Pumpkins begin to show up in front of grocery stores and Lavender Hill Pumpkin Farm opens with its amazing varieties in all shapes, sizes, and colors spreading throughout in their growing ground. Mike is the seed collector and business man, while he is often joined by his wife who loves to play her guitar and sing folk songs for the children…and often adults find her enthusiasm delightful too!
I love to begin buying pumpkins to use for decorating from September through November. I feel like a kid in a candy shop as I begin to pick my pumpkins for their color, size or unusual patterns. I put them both in and out of the house to welcome the season. Decorating with them can be an art in itself. I love to use burlap or plaid fabrics in fall colors on tables, in wheel barrows, boxes or draped over cabinets or tables covered with nuts, gourds and…of course, pumpkins with big, fat candles or luminaries to add fall intrigue to the display. Then, I bring out any wooden bowls or bright colored pottery I’ve gathered through the years to find the right look for my pumpkins. I like to contrast oranges with deep blue and white. Outdoors, they wind up in boxes, cuddled together on the patio, or randomly placed in the garden. We have been known to take a little tip to central coast to visit “Avila Farms” to see their mounds of pumpkins and to “See Canyon Apples” to celebrate fall.
Then, in October we can add the fun of Apple Season! I love to visit the Apple Farms in Oak Glen or have Apple pie in Julian. I even begin making pumpkin bread and apple pie as time allows. On top of that we have Halloween to enjoy. A soft plastic skeleton or bat finds it’s way to the garden or front porch lending to the fun. I formerly lived in a neighborhood where the mailbox was up by the door on our front porch deck. When I had outgoing mail, I tucked a waxy, fake hand into the mailbox holding my outgoing mail to have a little fun with our mail carrier… OK, that might be going a little overboard, but it was fun and I had kids at home to enjoy my mischief. Halloween is scary fun…a time for dressing up just to be silly and laugh…to pop out and go Boo! I loved to hang the black cats, witches, and bat drawings the kids made on the fridge. How about you?
The fun still lives on through Thanksgiving with turkey, pumpkin and apple pie, corn-on-the cob, butternut squash, cornbread…should I continue? It’s a “fun-tastic” time when the chill hits the air and the fireplaces get lit…when trips to the mountains bring fall tree colors, and hot cider…when friends gather and we feel thankful for whatever abundance has come our way during the year. When kids giggle and get to carve pumpkins, and hand tracings turn into turkeys, it’s a time for heart- warming memories for me, and the fun lives on. Pumpkins can be very resilient …and I’ve been known to keep my best pumpkins out in the garden till spring!

Wishing you a season filled with fun and happy hearts.
- Jackie Jesch
Waterwise Botanicals
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Cactus Blossoms and Springtime Spring is a season for renewal after Winter. Flowers start to bloom, and Easter is celebrated with Easter Eggs and Chocolate Bunnies. We begin to garden again; fashion trends start to go from dark to light and bright. Here at Waterwise Botanicals, we have ‘Cactus Blooming Season’ filled with the awesome, large Cleistocactus Blooms, which are huge and stunningly beautiful. Spring to me refers to “a new beginning”, flowers blooming, birds singing, days are brighter and longer, and colors explode. Dark turns to Dawn and all things are new and fresh. What a perfect time to enhance your landscape, plant a garden (flower or veggies) or both! Its also a great time to start a new hobby or habit…walking, biking, working out at a dance class or gym. It’s time for adding a freshness to your life. For instance, you could buy yourself some flowers, start a new novel, give someone you love a gift for no reason, or take a Painting or Ceramics class, go for a drive to somewhere new, shop at a different store, draw pictures for or with your kids or grandkids. The list can just go on and on. I guess we all need a time to blossom. Maybe this Spring it the perfect time for us to bloom and grow too…after all, soon the birds will be making nests, and we will be seeing Butterflies and Bees. Here’s to blue skies, lemonade, new adventures, sandy toes, long drives, new talents, Butterflies, and visits to see Waterwise Botanicals. Don’t forget our Free Succulent Saturdays, including vendors, food, fish feeding and fun. Welcome Spring! Jackie Jesch Waterwise Botanicals

Have you ever seen a cactus with a buttcrack? Meet our Notocactus leninghausii—aka the Golden Ball Cactus —a spiky little guy with a surprisingly cheeky feature. That’s right, this cactus has a "buttcrack" and we’re here for it. Stick around to see this golden oddball up close and personal—nature’s sense of humor is alive and well in the plant world! Click on the image above to see our YouTube video!

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