My backyard fruit trees are officially confused! After an epic October rainstorm that dropped 1.85″ over the course of three days, combined with our above-normal temperatures, the lemon tree is flowering again. So are my pomegranate trees, like the one shown above. Such is the life of a desert gardener. When my garden isn’t parched…
Are you harvesting rainwater? Storing it in a cistern like the one shown above? Congratulations! You’re now the CEO of your own water utility. As CEO, you get to decide what to do with the water in your cistern. You’ll also need to figure out how to handle cistern overflow when rainfall is especially abundant….
Sorry to say, but Tucson’s 2025 monsoon season was a bust. Started with high hopes, then it fizzled out. However, a series of Pacific storms is reducing some of our summer rain deficit. The most recent of these was a combination of two tropical storms, Priscilla and Raymond. In three days, this soggy couple dropped…
I have a confession to make: I need help. As a water harvesting and gardener, I simply can’t do everything myself. And I’m also finding that there are limits to my knowledge. Here’s an example: Since 2017, I’ve been happily raising a black mission fig tree in my backyard. It’s in a container for many…
If there’s one thing to know about hurricanes, it’s this: They’re hard to predict. For example, Hurricane Lorena was predicted to visit the western coast of North America, and she certainly did. She caused major flooding in western Mexico, then headed back out to sea. Despite her avoidance of the United States, the weather forecasters…
Rain! In the garden! It’s time for a photo op! Now, do I take my cameras out in the rain? Sure, why not? My Nikons have excellent weather sealing, and, yes, I have tested it during heavy downpours. Then there are those nighttime rainstorms. Too dark for photography. Best to wait until the morning after…
I’m writing this post on the first day of fall, so Happy Autumnal Equinox! During the summer months, I had a problem that really smelled! My cistern started reeking like a sewer! Ugh! Okay, that’s enough exclamation points for one paragraph. Let’s get to work on solving the problem. First thing I did was to…
Want to make your digestive system run in reverse? Drink your cistern water, straight out of the tank! How can you avoid this calamity? By filtering your water. Have I enjoyed filtered cistern water? I sure have! There’s a local organization called the Watershed Management Group (WMG) that offers frequent events featuring rainwater drinks. Matter…
Since the summer heat is on blast and the monsoon rains have been paltry, it’s time to cut back on water use. Here’s how I’m doing it. First thing is cutting back on my own consumption. That means shorter showers, and I have a timer that makes them easy and fun. It’s a five-minute hourglass,…
This backyard scene shows good news — rain on July 22! — and bad news. See that brown trailing indigo behind the flower pot with the ceramic flower? That indigo might be viewed as the bearer of bad news. Let me explain. We’ve been in drought since August 2024 and guess who should have been…
There are few photographic topics I enjoy more than rain in the Tucson desert. Know what I’m really enjoying about this photo? The rain that’s been collected in my gauge! In this post, I’m offering tips on how to clean a rain gauge so you can keep enjoying scenes like this. I like to keep…
If you’re a rainwater harvester, there’s nothing like the sound of rain on the roof. Being the quantitative type, I’m not content to just listen to the rain. I want to measure it. That’s why I keep a rain gauge on duty in my backyard. It’s shown in the photo above. This is the gauge…
While Tucson’s summer monsoon season began with great promise, it fizzled out. Locally, we’re calling it the non-soon. At my place, the lack of rain has resulted in the need for more water for the garden. Where is it especially needed? Well, my two pomegranate trees have been suffering. I’ve been seeing — and removing…
When the monsoon rains come, it’s time for a photo op. For this episode, I’ll be heading out to my front yard, where the passive water harvesting earthworks are busy. This is a good time to get shots of falling rain and flowing water. The camera lens combination is my Nikon Z9 with the 24-70mm…
Welcome to Martha’s Tiny Tree Farm! This little farm consists of items that I paid absolutely nothing for. The three pots? Found them by the curb. A neighbor was offering them to whoever wanted them. The dirt and the mulch? From my yard. The tree seeds? Their pods fell off my two ironwood trees. I…
In this week’s episode, I discuss summer gardening in the desert. Short take: It’s not easy, but it’s doable. Since garden plants don’t fit anyone’s definition of drought tolerant, they’re going to need human help to keep going. In my garden, that help consists of three things: Here’s another summer gardening tip: Cut back on…
Here’s a drainage swale that’s just sitting there, looking for something to do. Typical for drainage swales when they’re not directing rainwater away from where it isn’t wanted to where it is. That’s the first of the three activities of water harvesting. So, how do I get this swale ready for the summer monsoon season?…
I may not look like a killer, but I am. Now, before you check the Most Wanted List to see if I’m on it, rest assured that I’m not talking about homicide. I’m talking about darn near killing my fruit forest! The culprit? Me! I also had a partner in crime that came in a…
Although it’s tempting to plant desert trees in the bottom of your water harvesting basins, don’t do it. Remember that all-day hike in the rain, the one where your feet stayed wet? That’s exactly how desert trees like ironwood, mesquite, and palo verde trees would feel. Instead, plant those desert trees and shrubs near your…
It’s important to choose the correct mulch for your rainwater harvesting basin. If your basin is going to experience rapid inflows and outflows, it’s best to use inorganic mulch consisting of heavy materials like gravel or crushed rock, rather than an organic mulch like wood chips. Heavy materials are more likely to stay put during…
Meet my studio audience. I caught this mourning dove couple strutting on the fence outside my studio. And birds are the theme of this post, specifically, my appearance on the Birdhugger Podcast. Host Catherine Greenleaf and I discussed how to handle drought with water harvesting, and we also noted one of its key benefits: Nourishing…