Pick them! My lemon tree ( well low shrub really) has been very productive for me and I am grateful. This is my first year growing lemons and what success! They started blooming in late December last year and after some careful pampering, what with moving it inside on frosty days and watering it daily, the lemons are finally ready for the picking.This poor shrub is barely holding up under the weight of these huge lemons. I fertilized the shrub with organic fertilizer and compost and watered it from my rain barrels. It’s as close to organic as it’s going to get.

My lime tree was just as, if not more productive, but was ready to give me it’s fruit much earlier in the year. I devoured them quickly. It has already sent out new fragrant flowers for next year’s crop. Yippee.

While all things are slowing down for a nice cool nap up in New England, everything continues to come alive here in Texas. The weather is perfect. Low 80’s (around 27 Celsius) during the day and cool 60’s (around 19 Celsius) at night. A wonderful rain shower to replenish the earth.  Flowers are bursting into magnificent bloom and butterflies are feasting on plenty of nectar. Bees (including mine) are out foraging busily. Its a wonderful time of year.

Here’s just what I captured today on my way out the door:

I was busy planting a new Salvia Greggii for the garden around my pond, when I realized that in the little shrub there was a very pretty Bold Jumping spider intently watching me. These guys are incredibly aware of their environment. I am sure he could smell, feel and see me move around. Although I am not quite sure why it is called a bold jumping spider since it was pretty shy with me. (Understandably – since I was moving and shaking his world (aka plant in pot) around like crazy.) It did some nifty acrobatics just to stay hidden from me:  Hiding behind leaves….

Climbing upside down on a leaf – “Nothing to see here – I’m just a blackberry!”:

I see youuuuu….

Aligning himself with a stem. ( I bet he was regretting that extra insect at the buffet this morning.)

Until finally he resignedly came out for the shot. It seems like he just gave up in a  “oh alright take the darn shot and plant the shrub already!!” kinda attitude. Tada!!What a cutie! Although looking at him sitting there holding tightly onto his leaf, he may still be just a tiny little bit apprehensive. I put the camera down and quickly (and gently) planted his world.

I am quite fascinated by the industrious way a mud dauber wasp goes about making it’s nest. Yesterday I was working in the garden planting several new plants and then watering them in. Within seconds several mud daubers came along (how did they find the mud so fast???) and immediately started rolling up humungous drops (OK…to him they were huge) of mud. (The mud ball was just a bit smaller than a pea.) They really didn’t care that I was there, and both of us went merrily on with our respective business at hand. I did have to stop however and get the camera, since they were doing some pretty cool stuff.Mud daubers bring these relatively huge balls of mud back to their nest site. This can be anywhere:  A wall inside your garage, on a stationary car (that’s another story), a box filled with possessions you have not touched in some time 😀  ,… etc.  It will build a little tunnel with mud, fill it with live, but paralyzed spiders that have been captured, and lay its eggs inside. Then the mud dauber will seal the tunnel. The larva will hatch, consume the unfortunate spiders, and then metamorphose into adult mud daubers and chew their way out of the nest.Mud daubers are not aggressive by nature, although they will sting if their nest is threatened or they are stepped on. (Understandably!!)

So for that reason, if you should chance upon this industrious wasp in your yard, remember that (if you don’t like spiders) they are helping by reducing the spider population in your immediate vicinity and are pretty beneficial. Give a wasp a chance!