Stock tank returns to the Circle Garden - as a planter!

Stock tank returns to the Circle Garden – as a planter!

January 18, 2023 Happy 2023! I’m back from a holiday blogging break, but during the past three weeks I wasn’t just baking, wrapping presents, hanging out with family, and putting away holiday decor. I’ve been outside. A lot. Ripping things up. In fact the cool months are my favorite season ...
New pipe planters create a focal point in front garden

New pipe planters create a focal point in front garden

June 20, 2022 Me and my pipe planters! I have three new pipe planters in my front garden, which I installed last fall (pre-house painting) but never got around to sharing, thanks to all the New England-down-to-Virginia travel posts I slathered on the blog. (My fellow heat-wave sufferers, click the ...
Oakleaf hydrangea blooming but wants acidic soil

Oakleaf hydrangea blooming but wants acidic soil

May 24, 2020 After years of coveting oakleaf hydrangeas (Hydrangea quercifolia) I’d seen in other Austin gardens, I found a shady, relatively moist spot to plant one of my own. Near an air-conditioning unit’s condensate discharge, which directs water toward this bed, and shaded by a large crape myrtle, this ...
The Water-Saving Garden book party and giveaway!

The Water-Saving Garden book party and giveaway!

February 29, 2016 The Water-Saving GardenMy new book, The Water-Saving Garden: How to Grow a Gorgeous Garden with a Lot Less Water, is officially published! To celebrate, I’m throwing a book-release party, and you’re invited! Six garden blogging friends are joining me today to host on our blogs 7 giveaways ...
Dry and Mighty: How to design a dry garden

Dry and Mighty: How to design a dry garden

October 26, 2015 If gravel accented with a few lonely cacti and a cow skull is all that comes to mind when you think of a dry garden, it’s time to update this dusty Old West vision. Drought across the western U.S. and widespread interest in gardening more sustainably, with ...
Read This: The New Southern Living Garden Book

Read This: The New Southern Living Garden Book

May 29, 2015 The New Southern Living Garden Book South by Southwest (SXSW) is not only the name of Austin’s famous music/film/interactive festival, but it also happens to be descriptive of our gardening culture. Here, the South meets the Southwest, with the Balcones Fault roughly delineating the division. Deep clay ...