Cat Nap

Okay I'll admit it, the title to this post is silly even for me. However, I shut my eyes for a few minutes several days ago and when I got up and walked past my deck door I did a double take when I realized I wasn't the only one getting a cat nap. I don't have any official cats but there are quite a few unofficial ones that come and hang out in my garden, no doubt with their noses and ears poised for the careless bird or mouse. This particular cat is making me wonder though because more often than not it seems to be lazing around. This is the first time I caught it napping on my deck but I've spotted it more than once curled up on my garden chair underneath the crepe myrtle tree in my back yard. I'm far more low key about the cats in my garden at this point because although the birds still find plenty to eat in my garden and I think I have as many birds as ever, they aren't sitting birds anymore. I used to have so many feeding stations that gave the neighborhood cats central areas to lie awaiting for the birds but once I stopped feeding them in officials feeders, the birds are dispersed throughout my garden and aren't quite as easy prey or that's what I tell myself. I'm able to get a kick out of the napping cat without worrying about whether it's belly is full of one of my flighty friends. The drought is beginning to be noticeable but I'm amazed at how well so many of my plants are doing with only a cup of water here and there. I'm not doing any real irrigating but the rose bush I planted for my Mom who loved yellow roses is one of the few plants that gets the benefit of my leaky faucet. It drips into a big washtub and gives me about a watering can and a half of water per day to help out some of the plants that need the most help. Other than that they are on their own. It's funny because the white valves in front of the wash tub go with buried hoses from back in the days of whole sale irrigation around my garden but times and priorities change. At this point for the most part I'm happier having a garden with plants that are evolving along with the weather patterns. Good thing for me that I love Queen Anne's lace. Now that's one tough plant and it is everywhere, happy to take the place of less tough plants. Butterfly weed is another that's doing well with very little water. My city is starting year round water restrictions beginning in July and even has good information about drought resistant landscaping for people that are interested. I stumbled across that because I heard we were starting water restrictions soon and did a web search as I hadn't seen anything in my newspaper lately. I was surprised that they are finally getting smart and not having spot restrictions during the worse shortages but finally voted to implement permanent year round ones. I approve. I do hope the rain which is being forecast for the weekend materializes. If we can get some rain, I'm hopeful that my gerber daisies and coriopsis which are already going to seed will produce some new plants. It could happen. It probably will happen with the coriopsis but the gerber daisies would involve some major luck. They don't look too bad but are getting that end of summer look which is a little weird since it's only the last day of May.