Blooming Dahlias

I wasn't sure if dahlias would grow well here in the low desert climate of Riverside.  They are growing very well.    I have learned a couple things.   The prefer to be planted in the ground rather than a raise bed.  The ones in the raised beds aren't as big and seem to growing slower.
Here are some pictures of the assorted colors that I planted.

Plum Tart Gladiolus

Another variety of gladiolus is blooming.   The variety is Plum tart.   These are the first blooms of this variety.   Its a nice deep purple.

The orchard!

The property I am using has a 2 acre orchard.  There are plum, apricot, apple, fig, nectarine, orange, grapefruit, avocado and some I probably overlooked.    The trees haven't been maintained over the past couple years.   The owner is a widow, her husband died of cancer a couple years ago.   My plans is to include orchard fruit in the CSA boxes in a year.     Here are some of the pictures of the trees.   I am watering them from the pond when the pictures were taken.   Some of the grapefruit trees have 3 years of fruit on them and need picked.  Its hard on the trees to leave all the fruit hanging.  Some also need pruned and some may need to be replaced.  For now I am working on my flowers and setting up the areas to plant my winter vegetables for my CSA endeavor.  

Best Bet Bearded Iris

I planted some Best Bet bearded irises yesterday.   They were really big rhizomes with babies already sprouted off the side.   This is an older variety but the light blue and dark blue are a nice contrast.   I will have rhizomes available to sell next fall.

War Chief Bearded Iris

I planted some War Chief bearded irises today.   They will bloom with a deep rust/red color.   I should have some of these for sale next fall a I am planting my parent stock today.
They were nice healthy rhizomes and since it doesn't freeze here in Southern California, they will grow all winter.   I didn't plant them in one of my raised beds because there are full.   I amended the soil heavily with compost and added bone meal.

Dahlia - Unusual Color

I am not sure what about the name of the variety.   I didn't order any tubers of this color, but here is what is blooming.  It looks like a cactus variety.   Its a decent size, but not the size of a dinner plate dahlia.    It may be vancouver, but not sure.   If anyone can tell me the name, I would appreciate it.

Chickens!

Here are some individual pictures of the chickens that are currently residing at the ranch where my garden is located.

Here is the golden laced wyandotte

Here is the barred rock!

Here is the black australorp!

 Here some of the eggs.  Its been awhile since I have had fresh eggs.  Looking forward to frying them up for breakfast.