u/jadewolf42

My greenie is getting so fit and looking so pretty! She's a 5 y/o Arabian/QH cross. Brought her home last November and we're training her for ranch riding and endurance right now, though she's destined to be my all-arounder in multiple disciplines. She got to go to her first off-site events this past month, getting her used to all the buzz and excitement at a horse show in preparation for actually competing this fall. And she's been putting in good miles out on the trail, too. I'm very proud of how she's coming along!

I've got a couple of these that sprang up during the winter, here in the NW Mojave Desert between Death Valley and the Eastern Sierra.

Was clearing out weeds today, but these are kinda pretty and one of the few Surprise Plants that grew this winter that I am not horrendously allergic to. And I like to encourage natives where possible (since nothing else grows well out here and I like to attract birds and pollinators to my yard).

So wanted to see if I could get a positive ID before deciding if it stays or goes.

I have a pretty well established desert willow in my yard. See first two photos. I rent and was given no care instructions for this thing. It is... big and bushy and seems to be extremely healthy. It has multiple trunks around the main one. It's gotten bigger in the past two years since I moved here. The only time I've done any pruning was a few branches that were annoying and getting in the way of my Halloween decor.

But... I see my neighbors down the street all have theirs pruned fairly aggressively (third photo).

So now I'm wondering... am I doing it wrong? Do I need to prune this thing back? Is it too big? Do I need to cut it back? Is it going to overwhelm and eat my whole house?

Our neighborhood is fairly sterile and bare, especially for my tastes, so I like trying to encourage a habitat that can attract birds and other animals (which is why I haven't done much pruning really). It's a very, very hot desert, too. And I embrace whatever natives I can get to grow.

So, if I don't need to make it as brutally sparse as the neighbors', I'd generally prefer that. But I also don't know this plant, so I'm open to a middle ground and any care tips would be appreciated!

A wildfire started behind my town in California today. Got this shot of one of the tankers working the blaze.

Nikon Z8 + NIKKOR Z 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 VR S @ 400mm, ISO 900, 1/1600, f7.1, -0.3

Pre-ordered this as soon as I got back into cell service range when they announced this at Goodsprings last year. Wasn't supposed to ship until June, but arrived today! Pretty happy with it. Quality is good, fits nicely, and loving that you can switch it between FNV and FO3 modes. A little lighter weight than the TV show model, which I think was a heavier die cast metal. But the quality is still spot on. Wand Company has done a great job with it!