It’s a spring fling. A brief yet passionate affair. I have a big, orange crush on crossvine ‘Tangerine Beauty’ (Bignonia capreolata ) that lasts for a blissful couple of weeks every spring.

Actually, crossvine is pretty fine all year, with long, evergreen leaves perfect for cloaking a fence or a trellis, and it blooms in full sun or part shade (the more sun, the better the display though). These pictures were taken this afternoon in my old garden at the Unsold House. The crossvine is in peak bloom.

The spiderwort (Tradescantia occidentalis ), which I’ve been photographing in my new garden, is also putting on a pretty show under the cedar elm. Leaning down to admire the blossoms, which stayed open this afternoon under cloudy skies, I enjoyed the color contrast between the blue and purple flowers and the orange crossvine behind them.

Evergreen bamboo muhly (Muhlenbergia dumosa ), one of my favorite clumping grasses, fills out the bed in front of the crossvine-covered fence. This orange crush will run its course in a week or two, but it sure is heart-stopping while it lasts.

Note: My Plant This posts are written primarily for gardeners in central Texas. The plants I recommend are ones I’ve grown myself and have direct experience with. I wish I could provide more information about how these plants might perform in other parts of the country, but gardening knowledge is local. Consider checking your local online gardening forums to see if a particular plant might work in your region.

All material © 2006-2009 by Pam Penick for Digging. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited.

‘Amethyst Flame’ irises have burst into bloom at Green Hall Garden, my old garden that is still for sale, along with our former home in central Austin.

I recently had sod installed in the back yard to replace the mulched area where the kids’ trampoline used to hulk, so I’ve been visiting my old garden every other day to water the new lawn. Spring is here. Buds open to the sunlight and green leaves unfurl before my eyes, seemingly.

Summer snowflake (Leucojum aestivum ). The transition from winter to spring is more dramatic here than in my new garden, where a heavy canopy of live oaks keeps much of the yard in evergreen shade. But where I do have sun, I’ll be working on incorporating some of these sweet flowers that don’t last but that evoke spring so powerfully through ephemeral beauty…

…and unforgettable fragrance, like sweet-scented Carolina jessamine (Gelsemium sempervirens ). Black swallowtail butterflies have been flitting to this evergreen vine covered in buttery yellow flowers for days, although it was too chilly this morning when I took these pictures to see any butterflies on the wing.

Sunny yellow hymenoxys (Tetraneuris scaposa ) picks up the yellow of a variegated American agave, while bluebonnets seeded out from last spring wait in the wings.

On the other side, evergreen Jerusalem sage (Phlomis fruticosa ) unfurls new fuzzy, silvered leaves outlined in white. Soon it will show off tiers of yellow flowers too.

Easy-to-grow spiderwort (Tradescantia occidentalis ) has greened up the woodland garden beneath the cedar elm with daylily-like foliage, and stalks of purple flowers are appearing.

Like a firecracker, ‘Little John’ bottlebrush (Callistemon viminalis ‘Little John’) shows off its first red flower.

Ah, sweet signs of spring.

All material © 2006-2009 by Pam Penick for Digging. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited.