Birds

December 27, 2008 We spent Christmas in the hospital. While I tell you the tale of my husband’s appendicitis, here are the roses that were blooming on December 25th, just as I’d hoped they would be a few weeks ago. My husband woke up on Christmas morning with a stomachache ...

September 28, 2008 I see hummers in my garden every day, and when I have my camera handy I always try to get a shot. They’re skittish, though, and don’t appreciate the paparazzi. I should be more patient and lie in wait, but inevitably a weed will catch my eye, ...

September 04, 2008 A cool north breeze surprised me yesterday and still blows today, bringing us the deliciously dry air and deep blue skies that we’d normally wait until mid-October to enjoy. Don’t get me wrong. We’re still seeing temperatures in the mid- to upper 90s (35.5 Celsius), but it ...

April 25, 2008I know my title is a bit of a tease because I don’t have a photo of the painted bunting to share with you. Oh, how I wish I did. Although neighbor Tom Spencer occasionally reports seeing painted buntings in his garden, I’d never seen one until today ...

March 28, 2008 Wowee, what a flower. I bought this ‘Incense’ passion flower vine * (Passiflora incarnata x cinnicata ‘Incense’) a few days ago at Shoal Creek Nursery (sorry, it was the last one), and just look at that crazy bloom. I planted it on a new metal trellis, painted ...

March 20, 2008 This sparrow and his mate are busy all day feeding their chicks in the bottle birdhouse. I wonder if the same pair returns every spring, or if perhaps one of the chicks hatched here has come home to roost, so to speak. By no means are they ...

March 07, 2008 White potato vine (Solanum laxum , or Solanum jasminoides ) It’s the Friday before spring break. I’m hoping for a week of beautiful weather, as we’ll be hanging out in Austin and hitting the parks and trails and just enjoying a week off at home. SXSW kicks ...

February 28, 2008 Mexican plum (Prunus mexicana ) flowering white against a blue, blue sky. After our up-and-down temperatures earlier in the week, the forecasters promise us perfect spring weather through the weekend, with highs in the low 70s F (low 20s C) and maybe even a sprinkling of rain, ...

November 26, 2007 Photo by Mary R. Vogt, courtesy of morgueFile Now that Thanksgiving is over, and our national obsession with turkey has ended for another year, I thought I’d show you my collection of non-edible birds. I never set out to collect bird ornaments, but somehow I’ve acquired quite ...

October 17, 2007 One of my garden goals is to learn more about Japanese gardens, ideally through a trip to Japan. (Have you noticed that I like to travel?) Last spring I was inspired by Tom Spencer’s beautiful garden photos from Japan. Despite my appreciation for their quiet, reflective beauty, ...

September 12, 2007 This hummingbird seemed to flirt with me yesterday. I saw him (or her) buzzing all around the gardens yesterday, front yard and back, but every time I lifted my camera he rocketed up into the trees. Lurking in the doorway, I finally shot a few pics of ...

September 01, 2007 Night Wing bat sculpture at Congress Avenue and Barton Springs Road I went a little batty this evening. Actually, the whole family did. We dressed up in our batty best (notice the earrings?) and went downtown to the 3rd annual Batfest, a street festival/live-music/bat-watching party held entirely ...

July 15, 2007 Beautiful Sunbird on flowering aloe. Tarangire National Park, Tanzania Carol commented recently that my African animal photos were nice and people photos would be fine too, but what she really wanted to see were photos of flowers from my trip to Tanzania. So here ya go, Carol—a ...

July 13, 2007 My favorite African animal Just now, at midnight, I walked down my dark driveway to drop a bag into the garbage can. The tree shadows and my imagination made it seem a little creepy out there. It reminded me that while visiting the national parks of Tanzania, ...

May 25, 2007 ‘Wilson’s Yellow’ is my showy yellow daylily. Its banana-yellow-and-rusty-red flowers splash pockets of bright color under the cedar elm in the back garden. Yak, yak, yak. Don’t they look like two gossips who haven’t seen each other in a while? ‘Wilson’s Yellow’ complements the low-growing, red-flowering Texas ...

May 25, 2007 ‘Wilson’s Yellow’ is my showy yellow daylily. Its banana-yellow-and-rusty-red flowers splash pockets of bright color under the cedar elm in the back garden. Yak, yak, yak. Don’t they look like two gossips who haven’t seen each other in a while? ‘Wilson’s Yellow’ complements the low-growing, red-flowering Texas ...