Spring Planting

Spring comes early to Las Vegas … at least we're hoping it does. We've noticed the trees budding and leafing out as we take our morning walks. The temps are a bit warmer and each day is minutes longer. We're getting itchy for a change and what better way to exploit our itch than to plant a garden. We surveyed all the local places for plant availability and price. We were opting for seedlings versus seeds. Walmart had all the regular flowers and veggies. Lowes and Home Depot were a bit more expansive in their offerings and the prices were good. The local Star Nursery has slightly higher prices, but the variety, quality and knowledgeable clerks sometimes make up for the price difference. We spread the wealth and bought stuff at each place.

We started with a large ceramic planter for the front entryway. It gets direct sun and lots of it. David ran a soaker from the sprinkler system to the big new pot. We bought bright purple and yellow violas, pansies and dianthus, all of which like full sun, and filled the planter.

Next, we chose three lavender plants for the side entry which we've just discovered has sprinkler heads. David fixed the ones that were broken and exposed those that were buried. After rock removal and a bit of soil work, the lavenders are in and looking fine.

Mary is working on the new backyard raised planters. She's keen on different varieties of peppers and tomatoes and likes to experiment with new things like kale and artichoke. Herbs are key on her grow list and she chose lemon balm, lemon thyme, basil, cilantro, mint … the list goes on. We'll be a well-herbed family and she plans to use them in her summer menus.

I took to the internet to figure out how to prune cacti and succulents. The universal answer … carefully! Armed with pruning sheers and long tongs, I trimmed back our prickly pear, removing several decayed and errant pads. I doubt it had ever been pruned. The aloe and yucca were also trimmed back and the front yard is looking much improved.

There's still much to be done in the landscaping department. David wants to build a deck with more planters. We'd like to add a couple of trees and some shrubs and perhaps some border plants along the back wall. There's no rush. Las Vegas has four planting seasons and we'll do a little bit each time we visit. In the meantime, it was great being outdoors and initiating the rites of Spring.

Let's hope Mother Nature doesn't decide to do winter again!

Henderson Bird Viewing Preserve

henderson bird preserve nevada

Instead of our usual morning walk around the golf course, we drove four miles to the Henderson Bird Viewing Preserve to enjoy some early morning peace, quiet and bird-watching. As I've said before, we're not “twitchers”, i.e. avid bird watchers, but we do enjoy watching and identifying birds in beautiful settings.

Located at its Water Reclamation facility, the City of Henderson has done a great job with the bird viewing preserve for nearly 20 years. Over 140 acres of land including nine ponds provide lots of safe area and nesting for residents as well as welcome rest stops for migrants and visitors. It's one of our favorite places to visit when we're in the area.

henderson preserve nevada

We've never spent much time at the preserve during the winter months, so we weren't sure what to expect. We were waiting at the gate when it opened at 7 am and spent over two hours walking the maze of paths around the ponds. We certainly got our 10,000 steps in without any difficulty. Of the nearly 300 species identified on the preserve's checklist, we saw only a few and most of them were waterfowl. That said, the species we saw were relatively new to us (or our memories have failed us once again). The northern shovelers were in great abundance.

northern shoveler henderson preserve nevada

...and I don't remember seeing (or ever hearing about) buffleheads before. It's a great name though.

bufflehead henderson preserve nevada

While ducks, coots, Canada geese and grebes swam peacefully on the ponds, falcons and hawks soared overhead looking for breakfast. The wary desert cottontails hid inconspicuously in the bramble and the smaller birds took refuge in the reeds and grasses along the shore. We saw one coyote prowling just outside the preserve's fence … watch out bunnies.

henderson preserve nevada

I got a kick out of the Quail Crossing sign with all the Gambel's quail milling around … obviously not jaywalkers.

quail crossing henderson preserve nevada

The place was nearly empty during our entire visit other than a few photographers trying to catch the morning's “magic light”. Hopefully, serene, beautiful places like this will continue being supported and funded by local governments and organizations, providing a great place for walks and birders and a safe haven for our avian friends. We look forward to returning on our next visit to Las Vegas.

henderson preserve nevada

Land Life in the Desert

It doesn't take long to settle back into life on land. We don't miss the long morning treks to the toilets and showers, and doing the laundry is pretty easy. Jumping in the car to head to the grocery or hardware store is a snap. Instead of boat chores, there are house chores to attend to, but they're not all that time-consuming, so we're spending our time on other things. David is studying for his Nevada Master Electrician's Exam and I'm working on our 2016 IRS returns. I've also just volunteered to be on the planning committee for an upcoming high school class reunion. On a friend's recommendation, we're looking into some free on-line courses that might be fun. All take up a considerable amount of time and we're enjoying the change of pace.

We do appreciate the long morning walks around the Stallion Mountain Golf Course. We've got a pleasant routine of waking in the morning around 5:30, having a cuppa, checking the morning temps in Vegas and Chesapeake, reading the news (always alarming lately) and then heading out for our walk. The paved walk around the golf course is about 3.5 miles long and if we head out before sunrise, we miss the early morning golfers. I particularly enjoy seeing the local animals ... desert cottontails, herons, coots and ducks … they all seem to be waking up then, too. There's a falcon that sits in the same spot everyday, patiently waiting for an opportunity to swoop down on an unsuspecting bunny. Sometimes, we see the resident coyotes trotting along on the hillside, heading for their daytime retreat.

The views of the Strip when the early morning sun reflects off the buildings are quite beautiful. It's hard to imagine while we're enjoying the quiet and peace of our walk, that we're so close to the hustle-bustle of the Strip. It's walkable if we chose to make the trek. Heck, we can see the Linq's High Roller, currently the world's tallest Ferris wheel, from our front yard.

David has planned several outdoor tasks including staining the new raised planters that he and Paul built on our last visit. Mary and Karen are looking forward to planting veggies soon. The backyard irrigation system is complete and with our newly acquired knowledge about native plants, trips to the local nursery have been on the agenda. It's like a scavenger hunt finding just the right plants to achieve our goals of beauty and color combined with low maintenance, xeriscaping and reasonable cost.

We've been up making the rounds of local doctors and dentists for past-due check-ups and physicals, having lab work done and generally catching up on healthcare that we've delayed. The verdict? We're healthy … must be our crazy lifestyle.

We've taken the time to visit a few local places that we've not seen before. This year's Chinese New Year display at the Bellagio was a pleasant hour spent. Our day at the Springs Preserve was outstanding and we plan to return soon and probably buy a membership. We've revisited places we especially enjoy like the Clark County Wetlands Park, one of my favorite places in Las Vegas. We saw a roadrunner there the other day. We plan to head to the Henderson Bird Preserve one morning soon, too.

Added to the agenda, we've recently learned about the China Ranch Date Farm, which is only about 1-1/2 hours away. It sounds interesting, so I've put it on our local “to-see & do” list. I mean, what do we know about dates? Could be a fun, learning experience.

Yes, we're keeping busy. Land life is certainly a different kind of life than we're used to, but we're easily adaptable and, for the most part, we find it enjoyable. It's a relief not worrying about whether the anchor will drag or what the wind is going to do tonight or tomorrow. On the other hand … we've scheduled our return trip to Nine of Cups at the end of February. Can't get too used to this land life nor being anchored in the same spot for too long!