Inside Austin Gardens Tour 2012: Renee Studebaker Garden
October 12, 2012 On our sneak preview of the upcoming Inside Austin Gardens Tour, hosted by the Travis County Master Gardeners, the Austin garden bloggers got to visit the garden of one of our own: Renee Studebaker, formerly blogging for the Austin American-Stateman at Renee’s Roots and now at Renee’s ...
Plant This: Aye, matey, 'Black Pearl' pepper is a real treasure
June 21, 2010 Fellow buccaneers, ‘Black Pearl’ ornamental pepper (Capsicum annuum ‘Black Pearl’) is not a phantom of the garden, dark and mysterious though her leaves be. Nay, she’s a rare treasure worth many pieces of eight—which needs must be paid every year, as she be not winter hardy. Beautiful ...
Texas wildflower Bloom Day
April 15, 2010 For Garden Bloggers Bloom Day in central Texas this month, nothing can outdo Mother Nature’s garden. (My own is shrouded in oak pollen.) So here are more pictures from last Saturday’s drive on RR 1323 and the Willow City Loop through the Hill Country. Above, Indian paintbrush ...
Naples Botanical Garden: Gardens with Latitude
March 22, 2010 Over spring break we drove 3,200 miles (5,149 km) round-trip to Florida, with stops in Orlando, Miami, Everglades National Park, the Keys (all the way to Key West), and finally Naples to see the brand-new botanical garden there. Planted last August and opened to the public in ...
Inside Austin Gardens Tour 2009: Eleanor Pratt's garden
October 26, 2009 My favorite color echo on Saturday’s Inside Austin Gardens tour appeared in Eleanor Pratt’s garden in the Brentwood neighborhood of north-central Austin. Eleanor repeats the red of a Japanese maple red-leaf hibiscus (Hibiscus acetosella) with a swath of bachelor’s buttons. Vivacious! Eleanor also grows the plant I ...
Seeds: The good, the bad & the ugly
September 17, 2008 The Good: This is my favorite seed, that of ‘Duchess of Albany’ clematis. I love the color, the texture, and the shape of these tousled-hair seedheads. Don’t you just want to reach out and ruffle it? The flowers that precede them are pretty, but I believe I ...
Seeds: The good, the bad & the ugly
September 17, 2008 The Good: This is my favorite seed, that of ‘Duchess of Albany’ clematis. I love the color, the texture, and the shape of these tousled-hair seedheads. Don’t you just want to reach out and ruffle it? The flowers that precede them are pretty, but I believe I ...
August 2004
August 17, 2004 Moonflower vine in bloom I’ve grown moonflower vines from seed for several years from an original plant. Every winter I collect dozens of seeds, and come spring I scarify about a dozen and plant them in little pots. I usually get a 25% return on the seeds, ...
