Flowering Senna finally does

Last spring, when I undertook this Year of Remodeling in the yard, I planted a lovely Flowering Senna in the front bed. I love the shape of the leaves, and this is a great butterfly attracting tree. It also fits in nicely with my purple and yellow color scheme in the front of the house.

Truthfully, in the record-breaking heat and drought this year, I just wanted it to survive to bloom another day. However, this hardy plant fooled me and showed up anyway! She just started to flower this week, and look at those buds showing me what’s to come!



After a nice feeding, my sweet little Ivy Geranium decided to play along (notice again the purple coloring; this shade shows up a LOT in my yard).

And, I’m really happy about this one. At the same time I planted the Senna, I also planted a Rose of Sharon, aka Althea. I love these shrubs and have been jonesin’ for one for several years. I decided to test out a new bed in the back yard - I didn’t know if she would get enough sun or not. And this is another shrub that I babied through her first year in this Summer of Hell ‘08. She’s covered in buds for the second time this year, and here’s her first flower of the late summer. I guess the one day of overcast skies that I had last week convinced her life was worth living after all. However, this bloom is so interesting. It looks like a double bloom, though her Spring flowers were singles. As she matures, it will be fun to watch to see what kind of blooms she decides upon.

Here’s a couple of shots:

And another angle:

Just to compare, here’s the pic I took in May with her first blooms:

I think these flowers are gorgeous! Here’s hoping she stays happy in her spot that is once again covered inches deep in fresh organic Revitalizer compost and mulch after yesterday’s hard work.

The Flash

I haven’t yet really expounded on one of the loves of my life…The Flash! This guy is one of the most interesting cats I’ve ever been honored to share space with (and I’ve shared space with many, many over the years). He adopted us one day when he was only four months old…walking the streets, looking for a new sucker home. I invited him inside, and he promptly went to the kitchen, where he turned down everything I offered him. Little did I know at the time, this independent guy probably was plenty full from his athletic ability to gather food in any form.

And he IS independent; I have a feeling he abandoned his first home himself because his “owners” wouldn’t let him go outdoors enough. He MUST be outdoors; there’s no such thing as him being an indoor cat. (and please, refrain yourself if you have strong opinions about outdoor cats. This is the first one I’ve ever had like this, and there’s just no changing him). The good thing is, he stays close, in our yard or in a neighbor’s (who adores him), and he has a 10:30 curfew. I do make him sleep inside at night, when he turns into a sweet snuggler.

He got his name because of his amazing, lightning speed. I’ve never seen an animal move as fast as this guy can, whether it is up, sideways, straight ahead or backwards. It seems like magic when he decides to move; first you see him, then you see him elsewhere.

So I snapped a pic today while I was outside trying to get a good pictures of my Ivy Geranium that’s blooming…it’s a little fuzzy, so I’m going to try again tomorrow. And my bottlebrush is looking like it is about to explode with color (that tiny rain we got just made it SO happy), and my Flowering Senna is finally flowering! More pics on the way, but I couldn’t resist the obligatory cat picture on my garden blog.

Way Cool Garden Cart

Lookie what I got! My SO found this on Craigslist and thought I would like it. You betcha! I don’t have a shed or garage or wheelbarrow, so I typically carry things around in a bucket. Invariably, something I need gets left in the wood cabinet in the backyard that holds all my gardening “stuff”. This is a sweet little cart that folds up for storage, and the canvas can be removed for washing. Look at all the pockets! It is lightweight, easily maneuvered, and so far I’m entranced with it. My cart looks almost new - the seller didn’t use it but maybe a time or two. Gotta love a bargain!

I got to use it yesterday, and it is really awesome. Those big wheels actually will go up and down stairs easily, and it is incredibly lighweight. And, it was a gift from my guy! All is good…

Ames SoftSide Cart

ohmigod, IT’S RAINING!!!!!!!

A quiet, sweet gentle rain! As in water falling from the sky! My plants thank you, my cat thanks you, my foundation thanks you, my roof thanks you, my pond thanks you, my trees thank you, my fence thanks you, and my soul thanks you!

Snail Vine from Natural Gardener

This morning I went to the Sunset Valley Farmer’s market. I haven’t been all year, but I was getting hungry for good tomatoes. And I did find just that - the most incredible organic heirloom tomatoes I’ve had in years! They tasted like tomatoes used to taste when I was a kid, and we’ve already eaten half of what I bought this morning. I also got some organic mustard greens and collard greens…mmmm.

I found a beautiful River Fern for $8 that I am going to add to my fern bed, and that put me in the mood to go to a nursery (easy to do). So off I went to Natural Gardener, to see what they have in stock these hot days.  I picked up another little Japanese Painted Fern, and some succulents that were on sale.

But the most interesting purchase of the day is a gorgeous vine - with an extraordinary fragrance. It’s called Snail Vine (Vigna Caracalla), and it is listed as a tender perennial. I’d never seen it before, and the bloom looks like an orchid and smells like honeysuckle - exquisite. But now I’m reading about it, and davesgarden says it is extremely aggressive, so much so that some people hate it.

So before I plant this gorgeous thing, how ’bout some of you gardeners out there tell me of your experience with it. How little sun can I get away with? Can it do a spot with only about 2 hours of sun? Will it take over my yard and cover over other vines beside it? Will my home become a living breathing snail vine that I have to cut my way through to come indoors?

Help please! Here’s this gorgeous plant:

I’m working on my front shade bed, which I’m planning as a fern bed mingled with white flowering plants. So I bought a white Plumbago (tiny - I don’t know if there’s enough sun for it, so it’s a test plant). They were out of White Turk’s Cap, so I’ll get some of that later. I did get a cute white Cat’s Whiskers, and a sweet little  Sambac Jasmine, with a fragrant white flower. They also were out of white Phillipine Violets, which I want to add. That should give me a nice mix of white with ferns that I’ll let fill up that shady bed.

Bloom Day, August 2008

Since my last bloom day post was so pitiful - I was worn out and discouraged from the heat and my garden was reflecting my own dismay - I decided to get in gear and give it some much needed attention, despite the odds. So over the past month, I battled the heat, sweat, mosquitos, water bills, etc and used seaweed on my plants several times. I also babied them a bit, talking to them and encouraging them to hang in there. So things are looking a bit better in the garden, as is my attitude. Oh, it still looks meager - with so many new plants that just couldn’t flourish in the shockingly early heat wave that never left this year.

Fancy Hibiscus, non-native, not winter hardy

So, I guess the Garden Fairies decided to reward my positive attitude and I woke up to find 4 hibiscus flowers open today! Those hibiscus are so delicate, and rarely bloom, and this is only the second bloom of the year for one of the plants. So for me to have multiple in one day, bloom day especially, is an amazing sight for sore eyes.

Plumbago, Esperanza, Canna

Here’s the whole bed. You can see the still empty lattice behind, though the new Tangerine Beauty Crossvines are blooming even while they are tiny. I think they will be gorgeous once they are grown.

The Plumbago makes me happy; I love the color and it cools me off when I look at it. Every evening I get out and just sit for a few minutes and stare at it. As the sun sets, the lavender color seems to glow. I’m definitely going to plant more of that. The Esperanza (Tacoma Stans, yellowbells) is so new that it is just blooming slightly since the seaweed. The Canna, which hasn’t bloomed in a month, also joined in the fun and sent out a bloom this morning to add to the party.

So while it doesn’t look like much to the rest of you with aged gardens, or those of  you who have life-supporting weather, this is a major triumph for me. Not quite at the level of Michael Phelps, but who’s counting?

Aloe Vera with bloom stalk, bloom buds are yellow

My new succulent container garden seems to be doing well. I had no idea that Aloe Vera plants sent up bloom stalks, yet mine has a healthy one! And the hens and chicks is happily blooming away. They love the seaweed, I have to say.

And since the 1/4″ rain we had last week, my Crape Myrtles are finally blooming for real. They just weren’t doing much of anything, but now I’m looking at more lavender-pink colors in the trees. Gotta love that!

My flowering Senna is about to bloom for the first time ever; I planted it early spring, and it seems to be very happy in its new home. I believe next bloom day I can show it off - it’s just covered in buds.

And last but not least, my Bulbine is finally taking off. Some of them aren’t blooming at all , but several of them are really showing up. Sorry for the bad picture; my light was poor and I couldn’t keep the camera from using the flash, which blew out the plants.

Cute Anole Lizard

copyright Damon Leo Photography

I wish I could take credit for this image, but it was taken by my professional photographer Significant Other. (Austin Portrait Photographer) It’s quite amazing, isn’t it? I love that you can see his little toes and ear, and the coloring around his eye. I don’t know if this is the same lizard, but there is one little lizard that passes on my window screen in my office every afternoon. It’s cute; I’ll be working at the computer and the window is straight ahead of me - and here he comes, walking across the 6 foot screen on his daily adventure to a tree on the other side.

Yesterday I found a tiny baby Anole in the house; usually I can gently coax them easily onto a piece of paper and carry them to protective vegetation outside. But apparently, this little guy really liked the A/C! After quite a chase, I finally was able to at least get him to check out the door sill, then he finally decided that the great out-of-doors was where he wanted to be. I want him out there doing his job and eating mosquitos!

Speaking of mosquitos; they haven’t been too bad this year in my yard. At first I attributed it to the Mosquito Fish that I put into the pond, now I’m wondering if it is city-wide. What’s your experience of the Mosquitos this year?

Mystery Vine?

I need your help with a plant identification, please.

When I moved into this home, it was very overgrown with foliage. The original owners in the 80’s were apparently avid gardeners, as there was much greenery, and old overgrown beds, and a large pond. After they departed, however, future owners hadn’t taken care of it, and while it was lush, it was also quite a mess.

In my efforts to redo the landscaping this year, I ended up taking out a vine that has been here for decades, apparently. It had grown up into a lagustrum, and I never saw it do much except put out a few leaves in the summer. Once we took it out, I discovered that WAYYYY up in the lagustrum, the tips of the vine had some beautiful yellow flowers! Had I known this, I would have trimmed it back and retrained it to be out of the way, but alas that isn’t what happened.

Anyway, that picture is the tip of the vine, with leaves and flowers, after I cut it off. It is a decicuous vine, and the vine itself is very thick and ropy, without branching much.

Can you help me identify it? I’ve found nothing in all of my books. I did keep a few clipped ends; can anyone suggest how I might go about rooting them, if it is possible?

Oh, add this one to the mistake book! Yet one more.

The projects never end, do they?

I began this past week with some tree removal.  I had two Photinias removed and one Yaupon that was misshapen, and a big limb off an oak tree that was hanging over the utility lines. This opened up some space to put in more attractive and healthier trees and shrubs, as well as some perennials.

At the end of the week, on friday and saturday I spent 20 hours on those two days completing some incomplete projects and getting ready for fall planting season.I had hired help to dig and do the muscle work, thank goodness.

• I planted a large Loquat tree (I’m so thrilled with it)
  

  Loquat Tree

• Moved about 30 Lariope plants from the dirt area below in the lawn, to create a new bed that will be perfect for daylillies (suggestions for good ones in Austin, anyone?)
• Gathered up limestone scattered throughout the yard and made a “mowing edge” and defined the bed in front of the Lariope, and weeded that new bed area.
• I moved a Bicolor Iris that was planted incorrectly
• Planted 4 Tangerine Beauty Crossvines at the new latticework
• Glued PVC pipe together that was leaking on the pond filter (oops, update, that one needs more work)
• Removed some deck boards and hid the pond pump electrical line under it
• Flattened a corner of the yard to create an area for the Succulent Garden and mulched it

• Purchased new succulents and potted all of them; this one is an Aloe that is beige with white spots! And a fuzzy Aeonium.
  

  Aloe and Aeonium

• This is a Echeveria that grows on branches (I think. Help me if I’m wrong)

This is a Sempervivum (again, I think. Naming succulents is Hard since even the sellers don’t know the names when you buy it)

• 

• Planted a large Sword Fern by the waterfall (gorgeous- pics later)
• Added four more 4×8 lattice to finish creating my privacy fence (need more vines)
• Hand fertilized both front and back Gardens with Seaweed
• Weeded the front bed
• Repotted several other plants that were not happy with their current containers
• Drilled a large hole in the bottom of a new ceramic pitcher that I’m turning into a flower pot (I’m so proud of myself!)
• Planted a Queen’s Tears that was a giveaway from a talk at Zilker Gardens I attended
• Sweated bullets the entire time!

Flash the Wonder Cat

By this time, even my supervisor was all worn out!

I’ve got about two more days worth of work left on hardscape stuff, but it will be a few weeks before I can get to that. Then all that’s left (hah!) is to plant things in the new beds once I figure out the vision for each area.

Oh wait, did I say that’s all that’s left? I meant in the BACK Garden…I want a new sun bed in the Front Yard next…

Speaking of Good Nurseries, Agave is a fun one to check out.

Another nursery story now, with a happier ending than the last post. After reading the book I reviewed last week, Designing with Succulents by Debra Lee Baldwin, I decided I was ready to begin my succulent garden. I headed out to a place I have visited previously, but at that time wasn’t armed with the knowledge I gained from reading that book. I was really able to appreciate this nursery so much more this time around.

Agave Landscape and Nursery specializes in cacti and succulents, with some very cool choices and exotics that I haven’t seen in other nurseries around. (Though I’ve heard that Gardens has some great succulents, but I haven’t  yet gone to see).  Owned and operated by a young couple, its only less than 3 miles south of the Y in Oak Hill, out 290 West. Great service, fun visit, an easy drive.

I’ll be posting pics of my new succulents and the arrangement I did with it as soon as I get them off my camera. I spent 20 hours over the last two days in the Garden, and finally finished some incomplete projects. It feels so good!

WordPress is having photo issues right now, and photos are randomly not displaying. I’ll post my succulent images and new work after they are back up and running.