I had a four-day weekend, and it was lovely. I achieved a good balance of relaxing times and hours spent busy with projects. Some of these productive tasks were also enjoyable, such as experimenting with moving my pots around after sweeping up the pathway, and discovering which plants grouped together well.

I like to combine differently sized pots and contrasting colors of blooms in some areas. And I try to have short, bushy plants in front of tall, long-stemmed gladiolus or climbing vines such as the morning glories. Re-mixing throughout the seasons also lets those with less frequent blooms, such as wallflowers, herbs and bulbs, have their moment to shine at the front of the house when they're at their best. These pots are then moved more to the backdrop when dormant.

Although it'd be wise to keep from buying additional ornamental plants when the yard's this crowded (I do replace inexpensive ones that die out, such as those fragile violas) I've wanted a lilac bush for years. In late July I found a variety that should work well here: California Lilac (Ceanothus). Not only a smart choice for being a hardy native shrub, the fluffy and fragrant flowers are known to attract pollinators.

I've been picking a handful or two of tomatoes every week over the past month, as they become perfectly ripe. Mine never get very large, even varieties with names such as "Big Beef" will only produce fruit about the size of a lime in this foggy climate. On Sunday, I noticed that the vines were starting to turn brown, so I picked most of the red tomatoes, even if still a bit firm. Usually I add a few to salad or simple open-faced toast sandwiches, but I had enough this time (along with a larger heirloom tomato from our bi-weekly vegetable shipment) to make salsa. I varied the recipe with grilled shishito peppers instead of pasillas, and fresh oregano in place of cilantro. It was so tasty!