In article . com,
Jay Honeck wrote:

We've got a couple from Cambria, California with us at the inn this
weekend, and all they can do is walk around with their eyes wide open,
marveling at how GREEN everything is! They say that their area, not
far from Hearst Castle, is just golden brown dead, from a drought.

There is a drought, but it is also the dry season. I'm about 150
miles north of there, and in this part of California, we usually
don't get ANY rain between June and October. Having lived back
east, the seasons here take some getting used to. Everything is
green during the winter, and dead in the summer. Average yearly
rainfall is in the 15-20 inch range.

I have some friends that moved here from Canada during the summer.
They bought a house with an established garden, and were watering
the plants regularly. They couldn't understand why the plants were
all dying. They took some cuttings to the local nursery, and were
told 'those are drought hardy plants'. My friend's comment was "It
doesn't rain for six months, and if you water the plants, they
die!"

John
--
John Clear - http://www.clear-prop.org/