Plant This: Chocolate Chips manfreda
May 21, 2011 Manfreda undulata ‘Chocolate Chips’ is in bloom all over Austin, judging by posts on various local garden blogs. I have two of these striking plants. The more mature one bloomed several weeks ago, but my newest, a passalong from Eleanor, is doing its Dr. Seussian thing now ...
Bloodspot mangave & succulent wall
May 19, 2011 My gardening rule of thumb, frequently broken (the rule, not the thumb), is to stop planting by May 1 in order to avoid having to establish new plants under the Death Star. But I make exceptions for cacti and succulents, which require little supplemental water. Still our ...
Cottage-garden fave purple coneflower thrives in new home
May 18, 2011 My current garden is much less cottagey than my former garden. But some cottage-garden favorites will always have a place in any garden I make, including purple coneflower. I grew this stand from seed collected from the coneflowers in my old garden. They are easy to grow ...
Madame Ganna Walska water lily, pond diva
May 17, 2011 “I’m an enemy of the average,” declared Ganna Walska, a Polish opera singer who went on to create the fantastical garden Lotusland in Santa Barbara, California. It’s high on my bucket list. One day I will visit. Until I make the pilgrimage, I’m enjoying the decidedly above-average ...
Night Magic, my entry for GGW’s photo contest
May 06, 2011 “Night Magic” Seduced by the glimmer of a single open blossom on my Datura metel, I set up my tripod in the night garden and used an upturned flashlight to create a glowing illumination. A screech owl trilled in the trees above. It was a magical moment ...
Plant This: Heartleaf skullcap
April 28, 2011 Heartleaf skullcap (Scutellaria ovata) romps through my garden with greater vigor each year. Belonging to the mint family, it spreads with abandon, and yet it never seems a thug because it’s so easy to pull out and dies back in summer to let other plants have their ...
What looks good with Buff Beauty rose
April 27, 2011 My new ‘Buff Beauty’ rose is knocking me out with its luscious color and sweet fragrance. I’m giving it some support with a low, arched trellis made of cattle panel. Next to it I’ve planted ‘Acapulco Salmon & Pink’ agastache, whose rosy, warm colors should complement ‘Buff ...
Raise a glass to winecup & other spring beauties
April 22, 2011 The winecup (Callirhoe involucrata), one of Texas’ native wildflowers, is quieter in my garden this year, not sprawling as far as in previous springs nor producing as many flowers. And yet a close-up look (convenient since it’s planted atop a retaining wall) in the light of late ...
Prickly pear blossom aglow
April 21, 2011 I’m always amazed by cactus flowers, unfurling with such beauty and rich color from such a seemingly inhospitable plant. For instance, this purple prickly pear (Opuntia macrocentra), with its Mickey Mouse-ear shape and needle-like spines. Each spring, horn-like buds appear… …and blossom into a buttery cup of ...
Plant This: ‘Etoile Violette’ clematis
April 18, 2011 A classic garden beauty, ‘Etoile Violette’ clematis has proven hardy in my garden for the past two years through our blazing summers and unusually nippy winters. Its name means Violet Star in French, and its blossoms are indeed star-shaped, large, and open, unlike our native bell-shaped clematis, ...
Honeybees love aloe blossoms
April 17, 2011 The Aloe saponaria flowers are attracting a busy fan base. Or should I say buzzy? The dangling, coral-red blossoms are alive with honeybees. A quick glance gives no hint of the activity going on inside each tubular flower. But watch carefully and you’ll see bees emerging rump-first ...
Carolina wren nesting on my front porch
April 10, 2011 What a crazy mama wren, to pick a nesting spot so close to our front door, putting her nest in a high-traffic area several times a day. She’s tucked it among the Texas sedges planted in the pot. See the round opening? And here she is, sitting ...
Bluebonnets, ‘Chocolate Chips’ & more in bloom
April 07, 2011 Is this perhaps the prettiest week in central Texas? Or will it be next week? I don’t know, but early April is looking mighty fine in my own garden and I hope in yours as well. Our state flower, the Texas bluebonnet (Lupinus texensis), adorns a miniature ...
Plant This: Gulf Coast penstemon colors the shade garden
April 06, 2011 I’m singing the praises of Gulf Coast penstemon (Penstemon tenuis) today. It’s in peak bloom in my garden and throughout Austin. Spires of lavender, bell-shaped flowers stand about 1 to 1-1/2 feet high in the shade or morning-sun garden and look especially nice underplanted with purple oxalis ...
Spring spring spring! sings the wren
April 05, 2011 ‘Radsunny’ Knock Out rose Full-throated song fills the garden each morning. No, it isn’t me, though spring sings in my heart. We’re serenaded by our resident Carolina wrens, who surely vie with roosters for their “get out of bed, the day’s a-wasting” lung power. And I know ...
Delicacy and strength in the spring garden
March 26, 2011 A golden light shines through the new green leaves of the trees, daytime temperatures are heating to the upper 80s, and the garden is responding as if on fast-forward. Poking around twice a day is not enough to catch all the growth and new blossoms. Some of ...
