Martha Retallick's Monthly Newsletter | February 17, 2026

Mid-Winter Eclecticism

Your friendly neighborhood water harvester is currently experiencing a lack of things to do.

With all the rain we've had, the garden doesn't need much watering and the cistern is full.

And, since our drought-plagued 2025 is receding into history, I'm not hauling buckets of dishwater out to my landscape plants.

Arizona Green

So, I gave myself a photographic assignment. I called it Arizona Green.

The goal? To prove that Arizona's natural color spectrum consists of more than shades of tan and brown.

Since my yard and garden are full of green plants, I decided that they'd work well for this assignment.

Then I started shooting the photos.

Almost immediately, I felt like the all of the other colors were tugging on my sleeve and saying, "Hey, Martha! Don't forget about us!"

Yes, I found Arizona Green. But I also found purple, pink, and yellow.

Without further ado, here's my eclectic mid-winter collection of Arizona Colors.

I hope this Arizona Colors collection is as much fun to view as it was to photograph. The images are available for purchase as prints. For details, simply reply to this email.

And now, let's head back inside for a chemistry experiment. Something's fermenting in the kitchen!

I just started my sixth year as a homebrewer, and it's time to try something different.

Yes, I've brewed beer -- and none of it was good enough to share with others.

Mead? I'm pretty good at traditional mead -- just water, yeast and honey. But it's too cold to make mead.

Hard lemonade? Never brewed that before.

Might be a good way to use some of that abundant lemon harvest I discussed in last month's issue.

Or so I thought.

I taste tested my first batch yesterday...

...and it was atrocious!

Down the drain it went.

But not to worry. I'm brewing a second batch of hard lemonade. I'll let you know how it turns out.

In the meantime, let's catch up with the Water Harvesting 101 Podcast.

Recent episodes have included a look at how water harvesters create beauty from scarcity...

Creating Beauty from Scarcit... Feb 9 · Water Harvesting 101 6:23   ​

A thought experiment on snow in Tucson...

What if it snows? Feb 2 · Water Harvesting 101 5:36   ​

Changing weather patterns and water harvesting...

Changing Weather Patterns Jan 26 · Water Harvesting 101 7:21   ​

And a bit of needed maintenance...

Maintaining a Greywater Harv... Jan 12 · Water Harvesting 101 5:58   ​

Tip: I'm now offering transcripts for each podcast episode. They're available on my blog.

​Kirkus Reviews calls City Nature “A beguiling ramble full of captivatingDIY information and arresting visuals of flora and fauna.” ​ Order the Book

Bonus Birds

This month, there's an urban vibe to the neighborhood avian report. Because when you really want to keep an eye on things, there's nothing like a street light...

Or you could go for that retro look by perching on a rooftop TV antenna from back in the day...

As I've mentioned previously, this utility pole is like a gourmet restaurant. Looks like this hard working Gila woodpecker has found a meal...

Questions? Comments? Let's talk! I'm looking forward to hearing from you! ​ Contact me!

​Coffee Table Book​

​Audiobook​

​Audiobook​

​Weekly Podcast​

​Photographic Prints​

​Martha's Blog​