California Natives in Summer
drought deciduous
in dry times leaves retreat
not skeletons, but patient dancers
who wait for winter’s sweet beating
rain drums—who can hold on till then
—Thea Gavin
Originally published in Fire and Rain: Ecopoetry of California
Mirabilis going summer dormant at Sunset Cliffs Natural Park, San Diego.
Annual Gilia tricolor setting seed for next year’s bloom. Ceanothus ‘Point Sierra’ persists through the summer with little water.
Eriogonum fasciculatum, California buckwheat in partial summer dormancy. Sunset Cliffs Natural Park, San Diego.