The beastly heat of summer is gone for another year. Shorter, more temperate days, signal the plants in the backyard to move from drought-tolerant survival mode to full-blown participants in the stream of desert life. The ruella, pictured above, keeps it green leaves throughout the year. In the summer, it serves as a shady home to geckos and the assorted insects which serve as the prix de fare for gecko gourmands.
each day, Fall through Spring' the ruella serves up dozens of deep dish lavender flowers. The flowers are services by bees and hummingbirds who harvest and transfer the nectar from deep within ruella's treats.

The cell phone camera doesn't give justice to the true color of the flowers. The flowers run from a deep blue to a light blue and all have a subtle finish that contrasts with the still bright, early Fall light.

One of the days, Alice, I'll get myself a worthy camera.