Gardening With Nature

Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day - February 2012

2012-02-14T21:06:00.000-08:00

Can it really be mid-February already? Where did January go?

Winter here in Southeast Texas, zone 9a since the new USDA hardiness zones map was published, continues to be a relatively mild affair. and now spring is in the air. The birds are already in their courtship phase. The males are trying to entice the females with their spring songs.

Even the male green anole lizards were out in the sun today displaying their colorful throat pouches. This one had picked a spot on my vegetable garden fence to strut his stuff.

A few daffodils have shown their pretty faces in my front yard garden. Truthfully, though, I never get very good results with bulbs, even Southern garden-acclimated ones like this one.

I do have a little better luck with the leucojum. I'm glad because I love these delicate little blossoms.

The trailing purple lantana has been in full bloom since the autumn and continues to attract my winter butterflies.

The Carolina jessamine is at its height of bloom on this Bloom Day.

That's a good thing because the butterflies really love it. A pair of beautiful Pipe-vine Swallowtail butterflies were sharing these blooms today.

In the vegetable garden, the arugula has bolted and started blooming. The bees swarm all over the blooms, but they'll have to find other flowers to sip because the arugula is being pulled out this week to make way for the spring garden.

Purple oxalis thrives in the relatively cool temperatures of winter. It poops out when things start to heat up.

I love antique roses in general. They are mostly the only kinds of roses I grow in my garden, except for some Knockouts. One of my favorites is 'Old Blush.' It is full of blooms now and has been in bloom since mid-January. It will continue to have flushes of bloom sporadically throughout the year. It is never completely out of bloom for very long.

The loropetalum adds its colorful fringy blossoms to the garden scene in February.

February is also the time that the blueberry shrubs start to send out their dainty little blossoms.

Several of the roses, like this 'Ducher' are almost ready to bloom.

On the other hand, the Turk's cap has been in bloom since last summer and hasn't missed a beat in blooming all winter.

By the time Bloom Day rolls around in March, spring will be well under way here, even if it hasn't officially arrived, and my garden should be a much more colorful place. In the meantime, for more color, don't forget to visit our hostess Carol at May Dreams Gardens and check out the list of all the gardens participating this month. Thank you for visiting my garden today.

*~*~*~*

P.S. This upcoming four day weekend, February 17 through February 20, is the time for the Great Backyard Bird Count. All across North America and in the state of Hawaii gardeners and birders and people who just like birds will be counting the birds that they see and reporting them on the GBBC website. I hope you will join me in participating in the event. It's fun, it's free, and it's easy. Just go to the website and get your instructions, register your site and get ready to count. Happy GBBC/Presidents Day weekend!

One of the birds I'll surely be counting this weekend is the beautiful Pine Warbler, a frequent visitor to my feeders.

Well, we have to have SOMETHING to complain about!

2012-02-13T13:23:00.000-08:00

Another rainy day and more on the way this week, I understand. So, is the drought over yet?

I've gotten about half an inch of rain out of this particular weather system so far. The soil in my garden has been well-saturated for days now.

I wonder when we gardeners will get truly grumpy and start complaining about too much rain. It'll happen, I have no doubt, because there's really no way to make gardeners happy with the weather. It will always be either too hot or too cold, too wet or too dry, too much sun or too many clouds. Pity the poor weatherman! (But not too much.)

This week in the garden - #3

2012-02-10T20:06:00.000-08:00

Sweetly fragrant Carolina jessamine is at its peak of bloom in the garden this week.

Here we are at the tenth day of February, not even halfway through the month, and already this month we have received more than twice as much rain as we did in the whole month of February last year. So far this month my backyard rain gauge has measured 2.24 inches. Last year for the entire month we had .67 of an inch. What a difference a year makes!

Thanks to all that rain and to the mild temperatures we have had, everything looks lush and green, especially the weeds. It is quite unlike the gray and brown landscape that we normally see in early February.

The rain has left the ground completely saturated and not conducive to many of my normal gardening tasks, but at least I was able to continue with my pruning. I got most of the rest of the roses pruned this week, including the 'Radazz' Knockouts which grow along my neighbor's fence that extends along part of my front yard. Those shrub roses had grown rampantly last year when they got only minimal pruning. Knockouts don't really have to be pruned except for shaping, but these were out of control and needed to be reined in a bit. It was difficult to cut them back though because they were full of fat buds that were just about ready to burst into bloom. Nevertheless, I steeled myself and made my cuts. I expect it will benefit the plants in the long term.

I still have a few more roses and a few more shrubs to prune and shape. My Felcos are my most useful garden tool these days. By the end of next week, I hope to have this particular task completed.

As I was walking around the garden today, I noticed this sweet little dianthus in bloom. It had been beaten up by the rain but still offered a splash of fuchsia amid the green.

Elsewhere, 'Old Blush' has been in bloom since mid-January. Very little daunts this old rose.

I am sorely tempted to start planting some of my spring veggies in the garden, but I keep reminding myself that there are five more weeks of winter left and we may still have some freezing temperatures. I'm not sure how much longer I'm going to be able to hold myself in check. I am longing to get those vegetables growing!

The amazing kumquat

2012-02-09T16:22:00.000-08:00

My little kumquat tree that I purchased and planted last spring has been producing a steady supply of these wonderful fruits since last summer.

Only one year ago I had never tasted a kumquat. Then, in the spring, I was looking for some citrus trees to add to my yard. I wanted a lime, but the nursery was sold out. Then I saw the little kumquat tree. It looked healthy and perky and I thought it might be interesting to grow something with which I was totally unfamiliar. So I took the tree home with me and planted it in a big pot. A few months later, it started producing these little fruits that look like miniature oranges. A few weeks after that, as the first fruits turned a shiny yellow-orange, I plucked one from the tree and popped it into my mouth. Wow! I will not be without a kumquat tree in my garden again.

Many, probably most, botanists do classify the kumquat as a citrus although others put it in its own genus, Fortunella. The plant does look like a citrus and the fruit has a somewhat citrusy taste. It combines sweet and sour. The edible rind is mildly sweet and contrasts nicely with the flesh of the fruit which can be tart and sour. It's a nice taste sensation.

The fruits have tiny seeds which can be removed if the fruit is sliced, but I usually just eat them whole, seeds and all, or sometimes, if the seeds seem especially big, I'll spit them out.

Kumquats can be kept at room temperature after picking for a few days, or you can place them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. You can also leave them on the tree for a good long time and just pick them when you need them, which is essentially what I do.

These little fruits are said to make wonderful marmalades and jams. Although I haven't actually tried it yet, I can certainly imagine that that would be true. They are also used in chutneys and relishes and as a complement to savory dishes, as well as in salads.

Here's a recipe for chutney which sound delicious to me and which I hope to make soon.

Kumquat and Dried Cherry Chutney

1/2 tsp. mustard seeds
1/2 tsp. aniseed
1 1/2 cups sliced, de-seeded kumquats (about 7-8 ounces)
1 1/2 cups freshly squeezed navel orange juice (Prepared juice can be substituted.)
1/2 cup dried cherries
1 T. plus 1 tsp. minced fresh ginger
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon

In a dry skillet over medium heat, toast mustard seeds and aniseed. Gently shake the pan in a back-and-forth motion until seeds are aromatic and lightly toasted, about 1 to 2 minutes. Transfer to a heavy, small saucepan with remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil, stirring often. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until the chutney thickens and the kumquats become translucent, about 10 to 15 minutes.

Transfer chutney to a bowl and let cool before serving. Chutney can be stored in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. Bring to room temperature or reheat on the stovetop before serving.

Makes about two cups.

The kumquat really is an amazing fruit; moreover, it is not at all difficult to grow in our area, zone 8b to 9a. Why don't you consider adding one of these small trees to your garden?

Hummingbirds fly in the time of the Snow Moon

2012-02-07T15:32:00.000-08:00

Not this month's full moon, this is actually last year's Harvest Moon, but I'm betting that tonight's moon will look much like this!

Tonight we welcome this month's full moon. According to the nomenclature of the Native Americans, this full moon will be the Snow Moon. It was so called because this is the time of year when the heaviest snows of the year often fall in the northern hemisphere. No snow for us though. Not this year.

It's been a strangely mild winter so far and there doesn't appear to be any really cold or wintry type weather in the offing. Instead, we have relatively warm days and somewhat cool nights. It's quite a contrast to our winters of the last couple of years.

It may be as a result of the mild winter that there have been so many reports of overwintering hummingbirds in our area. For several years now, there have been sporadic reports of Rufous Hummingbirds that spent the winter here. These hummers are built to take somewhat colder temperatures than some of the more tropical varieties, but this winter there have been reports of Ruby-throated, Allen's, and even a tiny Calliope that have chosen to spend this season in Southeast Texas. For the first time (at least to my knowledge), my own garden has been host to hummingbirds in winter! I've had at least two Rufous Hummingbirds in the yard.

Here, one of the birds sits on a budding fruit tree limb.

Once I realized I had a hummingbird in residence, I filled one of my feeders and hung it outside. It didn't take her long to find it.

So, all in all, it's a very unusual winter that the Snow Moon will be shining down on tonight. The ground is saturated from recent rains, everything in the yard has "greened up" already, and there are hummingbirds here. An unusual winter but definitely a relief from our recent past.

This week in the garden - #2

2012-02-03T19:50:00.000-08:00

The loropetalum has been covered in these fringy blossoms this week.

This week in the garden has been a wet one. We've had intermittent rain all week and I treasure every drop.

There is a down side, however. The wetness has meant it has been hard to get much done in the garden and, frankly, there is a lot that needs doing.

Right now the weeds are getting WAY ahead of me. If the rain clears out this weekend, I'll have my hands full trying to catch up. Also, I still have a few more perennials that need to be moved, including some crinums that have become much too crowded. And I still have more pruning to do.

I did manage to do some pruning in between showers. I cut back the flame acanthus which had grown rampantly all last summer. I usually trim it back some in summer but I was reluctant to touch it last year; consequently, the hedge along the veggie garden had grown almost as high as my head.

I also got the hamelias cut back. In most winters, these shrubs die all the way back to the ground, but this winter they all had some stems that were still alive and leafy.

There are still a few more roses and other shrubs to prune and I need to make my way to the fruit tree sales to pick up a couple of things.

Things are progressing in the garden, with or without my presence, and whether in the direction I would choose or not. Maybe next week will be a better one for gardening and I can begin to get a handle on things.

Nah. Not likely.

Did the groundhog see his shadow?

2012-02-02T16:29:00.000-08:00

Well, Punxsutawney Phil has spoken and it seems we will have six more weeks of winter. The sleepy rodent was pulled out of his burrow by his official keepers today, saw his shadow and went right back inside. According to his interpreters, that means six more weeks of winter.

Of course, the dirty little secret is that no matter what Phil says, we will have six more weeks of official winter until Earth makes enough of a circuit of the sun to bring it to its vernal equinox on March 20, just over six weeks from now.

But that's only the official date for spring. In my yard, virtual spring has already sprung and my personal groundhog did not see his shadow today because of heavy cloud cover and intermittent rain. In fact, nobody saw his shadow in my yard today.

Personally, I think we may be putting too much responsibility on Punxsutawney Phil's sloping shoulders. This guy agrees with me:

Maybe next year we should let ol' Phil sleep in!

The rainy month of January

2012-01-31T13:15:00.000-08:00

Tuesday again and it's raining again. This is the third Tuesday in a row that we've had rain. Is this a new trend? I could live with that!

So far today we've gotten at least 1.2 inches which puts us close to 6 inches for the month. Our average in a normal year is around 4 inches, but, of course, we didn't get that in a single month last year. I'm liking this year a lot better!

The combination of the rain and the mild winter weather has brought spring peeping over the windowsill in my garden. Everything is greening up nicely. I've already started pruning my roses even though the usual time to do that is still a couple of weeks away. It seems silly to wait though when they are already putting on new leaves and even new flower buds.

I also did the initial pruning on the muscadine grape vines over the weekend, although I still need to go back and prune even closer. The vines do grow rampantly during the summer.

Yesterday, we visited our local feed store and picked up some red potatoes for planting. I got them into the ground yesterday, before the rains started, so they've been well watered today, as have the radish seeds I planted.

On Sunday, we had carrots from the garden for our lunch. They are tender and sweet, some of the best I've ever grown, I think. I prepared them using a glazed carrot recipe, but they hardly even need the glazing. Nevertheless, here's the recipe:

1 lb. of carrots
1/4 cup of orange juice
3 T. of brown sugar
2 T. of butter
Salt to taste

Cook the carrots in a pan with water on top of the stove until fully tender. Drain the water. Add the other ingredients and cook on top of the stove for a few minutes. Five minutes did it for me. Serve and enjoy.

Carrots may be my favorite vegetable to eat - if not #1, they are certainly high in the top 10 - and one of my favorites to grow. I almost never have a failure with them.

In addition to the potatoes and radishes that I planted yesterday, I also planted a few dill seeds in my seed starter tray under the grow light. Most of the seeds that I've planted there have sprouted and are doing well and I'm going to have a lot of new plants for the garden in a few weeks.

The dill is mostly for the black swallowtail butterfly. I had a good number of them in the yard last year, one of the few types of butterflies that were relatively plentiful in the garden in that drought year. They do love dill, as well as parsley, carrots and other members of the parsley family. I saw one in the garden again only yesterday. Tomorrow, rainy January will be a pleasant memory and it will be February. Time to get ready for the coming of the butterflies.

Black swallowtail caterpillar on fennel, another favorite of their host plants.

NWF says bye, bye to ScottsMiracle-Gro

2012-01-29T17:09:00.000-08:00

Well, that partnership sure didn't last long. Last week the National Wildlife Federation had announced a partnership with ScottsMiracle-Gro on a project to get kids outdoors and enjoying the world of Nature and gardens. (I blogged about it here.) The garden blogging world went nuts over the news, accusing NWF of selling out by partnering with a non-organic garden products company. Now NWF has announced that the partnership is being terminated. Here is their joint statement:

The National Wildlife Federation has worked together with ScottsMiracle-Gro over the past two years on programs to educate gardeners about global warming, connect children to the outdoors and help restore habitat following the Gulf oil disaster. Both parties recently announced plans for an even broader partnership that was based on our common interests.

Since that time, Scotts announced a pending legal settlement related to events in 2008 that predate our partnership, which has made it clear that the partnership is not viable. Therefore, NWF and Scotts will work together to end the partnership in a friendly and mutually beneficial way.

The "pending legal settlement" referred to is a lawsuit against Scotts for selling bird seed that had a chemical added to prevent insects from eating it. The problem was that the chemical was toxic to birds. Did they not see that that might be a problem? And did NWF truly not know about this before? What happened to due diligence?

Anyway, partnership terminated. Maybe all those bloggers' knickers can get untwisted now, but I suspect there may be more announcements forthcoming from NWF. Resignations, anyone?

This week in the garden

2012-01-27T20:23:00.000-08:00

Running hither and thither for appointments and meetings this week left me little time to actually spend in the garden. And then, of course, there was our rain day.

On Tuesday, we got 2.7 inches of rain which puts us now officially above our monthly average rainfall for the first time in recent memory. The earth got a good soaking and all of the ponds in the area are now full of water. It is a wonderful thing to see.

Around the garden, spring is beginning to creep in already. We've not had very much winter at all yet and plants that have died back to the ground in the last two winters are beginning to put out green shoots. The fruit trees, too, are convinced that spring is just around the corner.

The pomegranate tree that I planted this winter is already full of these tender buds.

My blueberries suffered terribly in last summer's drought and lost several limbs, but the limbs that remain are beginning to show some buds. I don't think my blueberry crop this year will be anywhere near as bountiful as it has in recent years, but it seems that there will be a few berries for my morning cereal.

The cheerful blossoms of the Carolina jessamine are beginning to open.

And the orange bulbine that has bloomed all winter continues to bloom.

My bulbs never seem to do very well, but in the front yard, a few of the daffodils are sending forth some pretty, little blossoms.

The signs of spring around my yard came as the USDA released its brand-spanking new 2012 hardiness zone map. When I went to their website and entered my zip code, I found that my garden had moved! My yard used to be in zone 8b, but with the new map, it is now in zone 9a (20 - 25F degrees for the low temperature). So without lifting a finger or packing a moving crate, I've moved to a more tropical zone. In fact, all across the country, gardeners are now finding that they are in a warmer zone. Thus does global climate change affect us all.

National Wildlife Federation and Scotts Miracle-Gro: A green partnership or a sell-out?

2012-01-24T17:09:00.001-08:00

The National Wildlife Federation, sponsor of the backyard habitat program, has agreed to a partnership with Scotts, makers of Miracle-Gro, the non-organic plant food, and the most popular herbicide, Roundup. This has caused utter consternation among many in the organic gardening movement who have previously been supporters of NWF.

The supposed aim of the partnership is a campaign to get kids outside and enjoying the real world of Nature and gardens, rather than being sedentary technoholics tied to their cell phones and video games. That certainly seems a worthy goal and Scotts is rich enough to provide money to back the campaign, but those in the organic movement see it as a marriage made in hell and accuse Scotts of trying to "greenwash" itself and its products by its association with what has been until now a respected conservation organization. NWF has received an angry and vociferous backlash from those who feel essentially that they have sold their soul to the devil with this partnership.

I feel conflicted by this news. I am an NWF member and I proudly display my backyard habitat certification from them. Although I try to be as organic in my gardening practices as I can, I'm not pure as the driven snow in this regard. I have used Scotts' products in the past and I can't honestly guarantee that I won't ever use them again. When I have used them before, I've tried to use them sparingly and should I ever feel the need to use them again, it will again be only as much as I need to do the job. So perhaps this means that I've sold my soul to the devil right along with NWF and that I have no right to criticize them.

In a perfect world, I would certainly prefer that my conservation organizations be unfettered by any doubtful associations. In the real world, I understand that it takes money as well as good intentions to do good. This is the compromise that NWF has made, trying to balance the good with the bad. It's a difficult line to walk and they have my sympathy.

Happy Squirrel Appreciation Day!

2012-01-21T11:28:00.000-08:00

Squirrels tend to get a bad rap from some gardeners. They often dig where we don't want them to dig, nibble at our fruits and veggies when we'd prefer they didn't, dig up our bulbs, and eat the food that we'd intended for the birds.

On the plus side, they can be quite entertaining with their acrobatic antics and some of us actually find them endearing. One such appreciator of squirrels is Christy Hargrove, a wildlife rehabilitator in North Carolina. Last year, she established the first Squirrel Appreciation Day on January 21. So, today, we celebrate the second annual Squirrel Appreciation Day.

To get you in the mood, here's a link to a few pictures of some of the more than 200 species of squirrels in the world.

The squirrel species that shares my yard is the fox squirrel and here are a few pictures of some of my lodgers.

The post on the muscadine trellis makes a nice perch from which to view the backyard.

Squirrels enjoy the big pines trees in my neighborhood, many of which are now dead and some of which have already been removed.

The old apple tree used to be a favorite place for a squirrel's afternoon nap on a hot summer day. The tree is gone now so he'll have to find another limb this summer.

The area under the bird feeders always has plenty of sunflower seeds for a squirrel's snack.

Always alert! A squirrel has to be if he hopes to be long in this world.

When a squirrel has an itch, a squirrel has to scratch!

And when a squirrel's got a thirst, a squirrel's got to drink.

Take a moment to appreciate the squirrels in your yard today. Or if you can't bring yourself to appreciate them, at least tolerate them!

Wordless Wednesday: New life

2012-01-18T13:11:00.000-08:00

How long does it take to ship a packet of seeds?

2012-01-17T16:46:00.000-08:00

Most of the seed companies that I deal with online are models of efficiency. When I place my order, I receive an email acknowledgement of it, usually within minutes. Within 24 hours, there will generally be another email either telling me that the item has been shipped or when it will be shipped, and I normally receive whatever I've ordered within a very few days.

On January 4, I placed two online orders, one with Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds and one with Henry Field's. I received prompt acknowledgement of my orders from both places, and within five days I had received my entire order of 18 packets of seeds from Baker Creek. Around the same time I received an email from Henry Field's informing that the seeds and most of the other items I had orders would be delivered on January 13. The Jerusalem artichokes and strawberry plants I had ordered would not be shipped until March 3.

It is now January 17, four days after I was told to expect delivery and I have received nothing from Henry Field's. According to the tracking, the shipment has been turned over to the postal service in Conroe for delivery and has sat there now for four days. Conroe is about 30 minutes from my house.

I am extremely displeased with the service I have received which you can be assured I will make known to the company in question. There is nothing in my order that should have taken two weeks to reach me, and, needless to say, I will not be ordering from this supplier again.

One good thing about the incident is that it just makes me appreciate even more those suppliers like Baker Creek who are efficient and timely in filling and shipping their orders.

Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day - January 2012

2012-01-14T22:13:00.000-08:00

Well into winter now, my garden has seen three episodes of freezing weather. Each episode has lasted two days and has had temperatures of just below freezing. All in all, a very mild winter so far. Perhaps Mother Nature has taken pity on us after the horrendous weather she's given us over the last two years.

Of course, there are still a couple of months of winter ahead and we may yet have more unfriendly weather, but so far, so good. January's Bloom Day finds my Southeast Texas garden basking in sunshine and relishing the moisture from recent rains. A gardener could not wish for more. Well, unless you actually want blooms.

Truth to tell, blooms are still scarce here. Those who dally in bulbs are beginning to see their rewards in winter blooms, but I have few bulbs in my garden because I have little luck with them. The ones that I do have have yet to reward me with blossoms.

So what blooms do I have to show you this month?

There's the 'Star of Bethlehem' that I was given for Christmas. It's past its prime now but is still brightening my dining room with its pretty white blossoms.

Outside, the shrimp plant, too, is past its prime. It has been in bloom for months now and still hangs onto its distinctive blooms, although they have dried a bit.

The hardy purple lantana has been undaunted by our cold spells and continues to be a boon for visiting winter butterflies.

In the vegetable garden, a few of the veggies that have been in the ground since early fall have bolted and started blooming. The bees are very grateful for these broccoli blooms.

In a nearby bed, a few of the arugula plants are about to join the bloom parade.

Can you guess what these dainty little blossoms are? They are radish blooms! They remind me of some of the flowers of scented geraniums.

Along the south-facing brick wall of the house, the 'Big Momma' Turk's cap is still blooming.

Orange bulbine is another tough little plant that can take extremes in cold or heat and still send out some blooms each month.

This ornamental zebra grass bloom has dried into a seed head.

The purple oxalis likes cooler weather and sends out its delicate little pink blossoms in winter.

Solanum jasminoides, the variegated potato vine, is said to be a spring bloomer, but in my zone 8b garden it has proved to be a year-round bloomer.

Leatherleaf mahonia is as tough as its name but in winter it covers itself with these pretty yellow, very long-lasting blooms. These blossoms will likely be present for the next couple of Bloom Days as well.

In January, I'll even count a bloom from a weed, like this sunny yellow thistle blossom.

And in January - and every month - in my habitat garden, it's not just about the blooms. It's also about the wildlife that visits. This month, the star of the show is this female Rufous Hummingbird. Hummingbirds in winter are still rare enough to cause a bit of a stir here, but if mild winters continue, they may become more common in the future.

I hope January is treating you and your garden well and that you are enjoying a very happy Bloom Day. Thank you for visiting.

Don't forget to check in at the May Dreams Gardens blog where Carol, our wonderful Bloom Day hostess resides.

The garden week

2012-01-13T20:22:00.000-08:00

It's been a great week in the garden, starting with 3.3 inches of rain on Monday. Since then, we've had mostly beautiful days, although the last two have been quite cold.

I've marked several chores off my to-do list this week. I made major inroads on the weeding, got most of the frost-bitten plants cut back, moved several of the perennials to new beds, and started some seeds under lights. All in all, a productive week.

What I need most right now are a few more weeks just like this one, including the rain. Then, my garden would be in good shape and ready for spring.

Spring is just around the corner, you know. And then comes summer. In Southeast Texas, summer is never far away.

Wordless Wednesday: Tools of the trade

2012-01-11T09:28:00.000-08:00

I am resolved...

2012-01-09T14:33:00.000-08:00

It's a great day for ducks and for drought-tortured plants outside. So far, my rain gauge stands at 3.1 inches and the sky is still dripping a bit.

While the ducks and plants might enjoy the raindrops, it's a good day for humans to be inside. A good day for getting those chores done that I've been neglecting while I worked in the garden. A good day for settling in my favorite chair with a good book. A good day for thinking about my goals for my life as a gardener this year.

I don't have a great track record with making and keeping resolutions. Like so many people, every year I resolve to lose weight, get more exercise, adhere to a healthier diet and every year I soon stray from the straight and narrow. But gardening goals should be easier to keep, shouldn't they? After all, as I think about the resolutions that I might make, most of them would seem to make my life as a gardener easier and/or more interesting.

So, here goes! In 2012, I do hereby resolve to:

1. Start more plants from seed. I'm well on my way, having already received a good supply of seeds from my catalog orders. Many of these are varieties that I would never be able to find locally, so they should make my garden a more interesting place this year. I've got my light table set up in the garage. It only remains for me to get started.

2. Get a jump on the season. This actually is a corollary of #1. Starting plants from seeds will allow me to get them into the ground earlier before the sweltering summer heat hits. But getting the jump on the season also means being prepared to protect tender plants from late frosts, something I haven't always done. I'm a bit better prepared this year. Never let it be said that I haven't learned anything from the last two harsh winters we've had!

3. Be more prudent in my use of water. I don't have a sprinkler system, so I have to depend on hoses to deliver water to my plants when they need it. I would love to get a rain barrel system - just as soon as I can work that into my gardening budget. (Just think of how many barrels I could have filled today!) One thing I can easily do is invest in more soaker hoses, a much more efficient way of delivering water to the plants than sprinklers. I can also be more prudent in when I do my watering and I can lay on more mulch to help hold moisture in and keep the plants' roots cooler so they don't cook.

4. Spend more quality time in the garden. Although at some times of the year, it seems like I spend all my waking hours in the garden, I could organize my time more efficiently. For example, I am a notorious late starter in the morning. My most productive time of day is the late afternoon or after the sun goes down - not really the best circadian rhythm for a gardener, but perhaps I can reorder my days a bit and get more done in the morning hours. Then, maybe I could spend more time in the afternoons just sitting and enjoying my garden. That's important, too.

5. Use natural solutions to manage pests. Actually, I already do this for the most part. I do admit to an occasional use of Round Up, but perhaps I can even forego that chemical in my garden this year.

6. Do more to welcome wildlife. Of course, I already do this, too, as a habitat gardener and, again, this is a corollary to the previous resolution for wildlife are among the natural solutions for managing pests. But I'm always looking for more ways to make wildlife at home here. For example, there are other host plants for butterflies that I could plant and I'm sure I can find more ways to provide homes and hiding places for small reptiles and amphibians. They are all the gardener's friends, so it is in my interest to make them welcome.

7. Be more diligent about composting kitchen scraps. I was given a kitchen composting bucket as a gift last year and I used it for a while. Then we got an infestation of fruit flies that were swarming around the bucket, so I took it outside and never brought it back in. But I should be able to solve that problem and make more efficient use of kitchen waste.

8. Make better use of homegrown food. A certain amount of vegetables that I grow tends to go to waste through my laziness and neglect. Actually, that's not true. Nothing ever really goes to waste in a garden. SOMETHING uses it but sometimes it isn't me or my family. I resolve to try to do better this year and cut the losses.

9. Get more blooms into the garden. Nearly all my plants are perennials. I make little use of annuals, but these provide some of the most beautiful blooms available to a gardener and nothing welcomes a visitor to the garden more than colorful blooms. So, I resolve to plant some annuals among my perennials this year and to surround myself with blooms.

10. Be still and listen to Nature's wisdom and let it rejuvenate my spirit. It's amazing what one can see and learn just by being still, watching, and listening. The garden is my place of the spirit. I must not lose sight of that and I must be willing to hear what it is saying to me and to learn what it can teach me.

I think 2012 is going to be a very good year!

Design ideas galore!

2012-01-07T17:05:00.000-08:00

While at my local Tractor Supply store today replenishing my supply of bird food, I picked up the latest issue of Fine Gardening magazine. Austin garden blogger Pam Penick had mentioned in her blog recently that she had an article published in this month's magazine and I wanted to read it.

After I got the magazine home and read Pam's article - which didn't take long since it is very short - I found that this particular issue is packed with design ideas that I can adapt and apply to my situation.

Pam's bit, for example, details how one can go about systematically reducing the size of one's lawn. This is an idea whose time has come. More and more gardeners are digging out the grass and putting in planting beds with perennials, shrubs, grasses, even vegetables, so this article is very timely. Pam's main tip is to start reducing the lawn from the edges of your garden in, rather than doing island beds throughout the yard. Making long and wide curved beds on the perimeters of your yard is much more pleasing to the eye than chopping out a bed here and there throughout the garden.

Other articles of importance to me in this issue of FG included a piece on designing with curved terraces, using chartreuse foliage to illuminate dark corners, and growing food in the shade.

Another article of particular interest was about seed-starting myths and avoiding common mistakes when starting seeds. Since I hope to be starting a whole bunch of seeds within the next few days, I read this article twice!

Did I mention that I got a shipment of eighteen packets of seeds from Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds in the mail today? It was Christmas all over again when I opened that package! I can't wait to get planting.

Man vs. Tree

2012-01-06T17:12:00.000-08:00

I've written here several times in the last few months about my distress over all of the millions of dead trees that resulted from the exceptional drought we have suffered. Last month, I reported that some of the dead trees in my neighborhood were being removed. As much as one hates to see trees taken down, this was a very good thing, because if these mammoth trees fell in a storm, they could do a lot of damage.

The tree that was of particular concern to me was not removed in December, however. It was the pine tree that was perhaps 120 feet tall and stood on the other side of our back fence in our neighbors' backyard. It was very close to the neighbors' house so removing it would be a delicate operation. Today that operation took place.

At this point, the man with the chainsaw is over 100 feet in the air, held in place by his safety belt and spiked boots. He had removed all the lower branches of the tree as he climbed and now he is ready to take down the top section.

The top of the tree is beginning to sway.

He gives the tree a push and...

Down it goes!

Even though the top was down, there was still a lot of tree to be removed. It took the chainsaw man and his crew on the ground the entire afternoon to take the big tree down. As I worked in my backyard and watched him at his work, my heart was in my throat much of the time, but he obviously was very competent and knew what he was doing. That tree didn't have a chance.

The tree had been a part of my life and a part of my view for all the years that I have lived here. I will miss it. My backyard will be sunnier on summer afternoons now, which is not really a good thing. But I expect my neighbors will rest easier knowing that the threat of that tree falling no longer looms over their house and I'm glad to know that it will no longer threaten my garden shed and vegetable garden. The man with the chainsaw has relieved our minds of that particular worry.

Wordless Wednesday: Blooming broccoli beloved by bees!

2012-01-04T10:24:00.000-08:00

Welcome 2012

2012-01-03T16:15:00.000-08:00

The New Year has started in very pleasant fashion for gardeners and gardens here in Southeast Texas. Our soil is moist from all the rains we had in December. The temperatures are cool but moderate and so far the sunshine has been plentiful. It's been quite a contrast to the starts that we've had to the last couple of years. Let us hope this pleasant trend continues.

As the old year ended, my mailbox was being daily flooded by seed catalogs. Recently, I've spent a lot of time poring over them, trying to make the difficult choices of what to plant this year. I'm thinking particularly about the vegetable garden just now. I've decided to get some new seed starter trays with heated pads to get seeds started in my unheated garage. But which seeds to purchase?

Tomatoes have been problematic in my garden the last couple of years. They just haven't done well at all. I'm looking to try something different this year. I have my eye on four heirloom varieties: 'Black Krim,' 'Rutgers,' 'Mortgage Lifter,' and 'Cherokee Purple.' None of them are varieties I'm likely to find in nurseries here, but if I start my own seeds, they should be ready to go into the garden by early March. True, I may have to give them extra protection from late frosts, but the sooner I get them growing the more likely they will be able to produce fruit for me before the REALLY hot weather gets here. That has been my problem in recent years. It just gets too hot too early. Once the temperatures are above 90 degrees on a daily basis, the plants shut down and stop producing.

The heat is less of a problem for eggplants and peppers, but I want to get some of those plants started early as well, along with summer squash.

Elsewhere in the garden, I need a blueberry bush to replace one that didn't make it through the heat and drought of last year. I also want to plant some strawberries and find spots for other small fruit trees in the yard.

In addition, there are a few more perennials and shrubs that need to be moved and then it is time to start pruning and cleaning up the frost-killed plants. Truly, a gardener's work is never done, but on such beautiful winter days as today, it all at least seems possible. Even the weeding.

Welcome 2012. Please be gentle with us.

2011: The year in review

2011-12-31T10:19:00.000-08:00

It's the last day of 2011, the time of looking back and looking forward. Today I'm looking back by reviewing my first blog entry for each month of this almost finished year.

January: "It's not just honeybees that are in trouble" was a post that I wrote about how pollinators in general, not just honeybees, are threatened by modern gardening and farming practices that make extensive use of chemicals.

A large carpenter bee, one of the wonderful native bees that is endangered by the use of pesticides, visits yellow bells blossoms in my garden.

February: We were getting ready for another stretch of very cold weather and I wrote "The best way to prepare for a freeze? Know your zone and respect it." I proposed that one of the main keys to success in the garden was reading plant labels and believing what they say and not planting things in your garden that are not meant for your zone.

March: The first post was "Wordless Wednesday: Spring" and featured this picture:

A beautiful male Northern Cardinal sits in a blooming blueberry bush.

April: In "The generalist," I wrote about my visit to Arbor Gate to hear a lecture by Dr. David Creech of Stephen F. Austin University. Dr. Creech is a Texas treasure and one of the most knowledgeable horticulturists around.

May: I wrote about my experiment with planting a few heirloom cotton seeds in my garden in honor of my father who was a cotton farmer. The post was entitled "The cotton is planted" and, in fact, several of the plants grew well and did produce cotton.

June: The first post for June was on a Wednesday, and it was entitled "Wordless Wednesday: Red star, white star."

Red 'Texas Star' hibiscus.

White 'Texas Star' hibiscus.

July: My first post of the month was "Happy birthday, America!" to wish everyone a happy Fourth of July weekend.

August: "Don't just do something. Stand there!" was all about the happy trend of more natural landscaping and letting Mother Nature have her way in our gardens. The message was that we shouldn't fight Nature but we should make it our partner. In fact, that's what "Gardening With Nature" is all about!

September: I celebrated the beginning of the month with a wonderful poem about Nature and gardens by Helen Hunt Jackson. The poem and the post were called "September."

October: I did a riff on my fellow blogger Carol of May Dreams Gardens "Twelve secrets of happiness in the garden." I always learn something when I read Carol's blog.

November: I reported on my visit to Denver Botanic Gardens in "Denver Botanic Gardens - Part 1."

One of the many beautiful orchids that bloomed gloriously in the Botanic Gardens. This one is one of the slipper orchids.

December: The year was quickly winding down and our first killing frost was just a few days away. In "A gardener's week," I wrote about what I had been doing in my garden to get ready and I walked through the garden to record in pictures some of my last blooms of the year.

This 'Ducher' rose was still full of these luscious blooms when the frost hit a few days later.

So that's a review of what I was thinking and writing about in 2011. Interestingly, not one of those first-of-the-month entries was strictly about the drought, although that was the topic that dominated conversations among Texas gardeners both in person and online this year. We can only hope that the dominant topic of 2012 will be a more pleasant one.

Happy New Year and happy gardening!

Wordless Wednesday: Bright leaves, bright winter sky

2011-12-28T08:51:00.000-08:00

Winter surprises

2011-12-27T17:01:00.000-08:00

There are always surprises around the garden, mostly pleasant but sometimes not so pleasant. Puttering around the yard today, all I found were pleasant surprises.

I'm always surprised to see butterflies in the garden in winter, but there were actually several out today, enjoying the brilliant sunshine. I saw a few Cloudless Sulphurs, at least one Gulf Fritillary and several smaller butterflies that were too quick for me to identify, but my favorite was this beautiful Red Admiral.

The Red Admiral was enjoying what remains of the purple lantana after our frosts of a couple of weeks ago.

Another surprise that I had not noticed before was this limb of the Esperanza that had escaped the frost by snuggling up to the warm brick wall. Today a large carpenter bee was enjoying its blossoms.

A Christmas surprise was this small bamboo fountain which my brother-in-law gave me in our gift exchange. My old fountain had suffered a broken arm and this replaces it. Charlie, my backyard cat, and all the animals that frequent the backyard, are very happy with it!

The blossoms of the shrimp plant are always a surprise to me. I continue to be fascinated by them. (That fuzzy brown thing in the middle of the blossom is a cluster of sycamore seeds, fallen from the tree that towers over the shrimp plant.)

As the days of this trying year of 2011 dwindle down to a precious few, I wonder what other delightful surprises await me in my garden before we ring in that new year.

Star of Bethlehem

2011-12-26T12:37:00.000-08:00

My daughter brought me this lovely plant for Christmas. Its popular name is Star of Bethlehem. Officially, it is called Ornithogalum umbellatum and is member of the lily family.

I had never grown the plant and didn't really know anything about it but Dear Daughter said that the tag had indicated it would grow outside in zone 8. It really is quite a beautiful plant with its dainty, pristine white blossoms.

Pretty! You can see why it would be called Star of Bethlehem.

I decided to do a bit of research on the plant, since I was unfamiliar with it, and what I found is that this introduced perennial can be a bit of a thug in the garden. In some areas, it is highly invasive and the unfortunate gardeners who planted it have spent years trying to rid their gardens of it! So, its sweet, innocent-looking flowers mask an aggressive nature.

In addition to its invasiveness in the garden, the plant can be toxic to animals (including cats) if ingested. This is an important fact for me to know because I have two very inquisitive half-grown kittens in my house who are prone to chew on my plants.

This is such an attractive plant and it was sweet of my daughter to bring it to me. I probably will plant it in my garden after it stops blooming, but now that I know more about its nature, I will definitely be careful where I plant it and if it shows a tendency to spread in places where it is not wanted, I will rip it out!

This just brings home to me the importance of knowing one's plants. I have plants in my garden now that I would not have planted if I had bothered to find out more about them before planting. If Star of Bethlehem proves to be a problem, I can't say that I wasn't forewarned.

Happy holidays from my house to yours

2011-12-21T11:25:00.000-08:00

Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day - December 2011

2011-12-15T11:55:00.000-08:00

Here in my Zone 8 garden just northwest of Houston, we got our killing frost right on schedule this year. Two of them in fact. For two nights in a row early last week, the temperatures dipped to a few degrees below freezing and that was the signal to most of my plants: "Time to pull the covers over our heads and go to sleep."

The result is that most of my garden now looks a lot like this, a blackened Hamelia patens that was still in full bloom at the time of the frost. These shrubs die back to their roots in winter but always return in the spring.

Knowing that the heavy frost was on its way and that I probably wouldn't have any blooms for you on Bloom Day, I surveyed the garden on December 3, took pictures of most of the plants that were blooming then and posted them here. Viewing those pictures will give you an idea of what Jack Frost took.

The frost took a paint brush to the sycamore trees which had continued to hold on to their leaves. Almost overnight the leaves began to turn fall colors.

A few days later, the leaves started falling. Now my backyard is covered in a colorful patchwork of leaves.

To be sure, a few plants still hold onto their blossoms, like this shrimp plant (Justicia brandegeana). This is the first year that I've grown it so I'm not sure how long it will keep these interesting shrimp-shaped blooms. The plant description said that it might bloom into December. So far, so true.

A few of the roses, including the Knockouts, 'Old Blush,' 'Dortmund,' and 'Caldwell Pink' still carry a few blooms, as well.

And on the back porch, the purslane which lives in a protected spot, continues putting out these pretty little blooms.

But that's about it. A poor showing indeed for December.

Now, if you want to see some real bloomers, visit our hostess Carol at May Dreams Gardens and see the list of this month's Garden Blogger Bloom Day's participants. Those gardens are sure to have some blossoms for you.

Thank you for visiting my garden today and I wish you happy end-of-the-year holidays and a healthy and happy New Year. May your garden prosper in 2012.

Wordless Wednesday: Sycamore leaves are falling

2011-12-14T09:58:00.000-08:00

Change has come to the garden

2011-12-11T13:04:00.000-08:00

We had two nights of killing frosts in the garden this past week and suddenly things look very wintry. All the shrubs and perennials that are affected by frost now have blackened leaves and they've gone to sleep for the winter. Walking through the garden this afternoon, on a gorgeous late fall day, I had to reflect on the great difference that just one week can make at this time of year. A week ago the garden was still full of blooms. Now, just about all of them are gone.

The 'Radazz' Knockout roses, as well as the other Knockouts to a lesser extent, are still blooming. Some of the other roses still have a few blooms as well.

Where it hugs the southern brick wall of the house, the Turk's cap is still in bloom, and is still providing nourishment to the few butterflies passing by - mostly Sulphurs and Fritillaries.

But other than a few salvias that are still hanging on, that's about it for blooms in my garden this beautiful Sunday. It's not a sad change though. My garden has struggled through a long eighteen months of severe drought and several months of stifling heat. It deserves a respite. Finally, it is receiving a bit of that with the recent rains and now, having been touched by frost, it has settled down for a long winter's nap. My wish for it is that it will drink deep and sleep long and then come back to me refreshed in March and April.

As for me, no sleep for the gardener! I've got plenty to keep me busy until the garden wakes again.

Falling trees

2011-12-08T11:49:00.000-08:00

Trees are falling all over my neighborhood this week. The dead trees that have dotted the landscape these last several weeks are coming down one by one as the tree removal people do their work.

Most of the trees that are falling are the huge pines that grew in this area long before the subdivisions intruded. As the houses were built, many - most - of the yards retained one or more of the native pines. For whatever reason, it seems that those trees were hit hardest - at least in our neighborhood - by the drought. I don't know how many hundreds or thousands of gallons of water a day that it takes to sustain life in one of these gigantic trees, but when we went months with little or no rain, it was too much for them. Even their long taproots probing the earth could not find enough water to keep them alive. And now, slowly and carefully, their brown carcasses are being removed,

Much care is needed and I certainly don't envy the workers their task. One of the dead trees will serve to illustrate the problem. It is just on the other side of our back fence in our neighbor's yard. The tree is well over a hundred feet tall. If it falls to the east, it will take out our fence and our garden shed, not to mention damaging our veggie garden and perhaps a tree in our yard. If it falls to the north, it would take out the neighbor's tool shed and/or house. There are other big trees to the south and west of it, so it will be a very tricky maneuver to remove it.

I must say though that these guys seem to know what they are doing and they have some serious equipment to help them do the job. Maybe our falling trees are in good hands.

Wordless Wednesday: Eye candy

2011-12-07T07:27:00.000-08:00

A gardener's week

2011-12-03T16:14:00.000-08:00

It's been a busy week in the garden. I actually did get several of the tasks that I had set for myself completed. Many plants have been moved to new spots where I hope they will be happier - among them volunteer 'Laura Bush' petunia seedlings. blue plumbago, autumn sage, several volunteer flame acanthus plants, a Hamelia... Well, the list is quite long. I also got a bit of weeding done, the dead apple tree has been removed, and the pomegranate tree planted. All in all, a productive week.

More could have been done but today was not a good day for working outside. The temperature was fine, but that wind! It blew continuously and hard all day long, making any attempt to work outside rather unpleasant. I finally settled for walking around the garden to document what was still in bloom here in the first week of December. We had a couple of light frosts earlier this week and, according to the weatherman, we should have a hard freeze with temperatures in the high 20s at the middle of next week. By the time December's Bloom Day rolls around on the 15th, I may not have any blooms to show you, but here is a sample of what is still blooming today.

For a couple of weeks now, the 'Ducher' rose bush has been covered in these luscious white blossoms.

This morning glory has done really well for me this year. Since it is in a somewhat protected place, it survived this week's frosts and is still sending out blooms. If it gets as cold as anticipated next week though, it will be gone.

Likewise the purslane which has bloomed and bloomed in its pot on the back porch.

The Copper Canyon daisies, seen here with some milkweed, have bloomed gloriously for a few weeks now but their blooms will not survive a heavy frost.

The Hamelia patens was nipped by this week's frost but is still blooming. It, too, will go to sleep for the winter when the heavy frost comes.

And so will the 'Calico' Dutchman's pipe vine, but it will be back next year.

Most of the roses in the garden are enjoying a "second spring" just now and that includes the miniature 'Red Cascade.' I love these tiny velvety red blossoms.

And, yes, in case you wondered, the yellow cestrum is still going strong after eight continuous months of blooming.

These lovely blossoms of 'Old Blush' are a special end-of-the-year treat.

The creeping purple lantana has never been prettier or more floriferous.

The toad lilies continue to reward me for all those months of waiting and wondering, "Will they or won't they?" They would and did!

The 'Radsunny' yellow Knockouts suffered more than any of my roses in the heat and drought of summer. I even lost a couple of them, but those that survived are putting on a show here at the end of the year.

The cuphea cigar plant continues its blooming ways.

And so, of course, does the dependable 'Caldwell Pink' rose.

This bicolor lantana is blooming as though there is no tomorrow.

And let us not forget the vegetable garden where several of the crops are doing very well indeed. That includes the broccoli which has a few heads ready for harvest. It's on the Sunday lunch menu.

And it won't be long before these sugar snap pea blossoms become crisp, tasty peas.

Not quite in bloom yet but this leatherleaf mahonia soon will be and once it does bloom the blossom will last all winter long.

Another long-lasting blossom is this succulent, a member of the aeonium family. It has been blooming for several weeks now and shows no sign of fading.

In addition to these blooms, one of the Esperanzas escaped the first frost and is still going strong, as are the Turk's caps, the various salvias, and the 'Radazz' and pink Knockouts. The garden is enjoying these pleasant days of late autumn and it is showing it with flowers.

Wordless Wednesday: 'Belinda's Dream'

2011-11-30T09:05:00.000-08:00

The frost is on the pumpkin!

2011-11-29T17:09:00.000-08:00

We've had light frost for the past two nights as temperatures dipped into the lower 30s. I thought at first that the frost really had not done much damage but as I walked through the garden this afternoon, it was clear that all the tenderest of the plants are gone. Banana tree - gone. Cannas - gone. Porterweed - gone. Tithonia - gone. Several other plants, such as Hamelia patens, got nipped but still have some green leaves.

This was the first warning to plants to get ready for colder weather and many of them that had not already started the process will be shutting down now. By this time next month, the garden will be a very different place.

I welcome the change. Winter is coming and it will be a needed respite for both garden and gardener, a time to gather our energies for the busy seasons to come. A time when the major activity in the garden will switch from actual gardening to watching the birds and making sure their feeders are kept full. There's always something to do in the garden - even if it isn't strictly speaking gardening.

Rainy day pleasures

2011-11-26T11:00:00.000-08:00

This is shaping up as a truly memorable day in the recent history of my garden. It has been raining steadily at least since early morning. It began sometime while I was still asnooze in my bed. I got my binoculars and looked through the window out to my rain gauge which is set up in the vegetable garden and discovered that as of noon today we had gotten 1.8 inches of precipitation. Wonderful! As I look out the window, I can see my plants fairly dancing in the rain.

So, there'll be no working outside today as the rain continues to fall. It's a good day for curling up with a book. For me, that is Janet Evanovich's latest in her Stephanie Plum series, Explosive Eighteen. Evanovich is always a fun read.

But I plan to spend some time thinking about gardening. It's time - past time really - to get the garden ready for winter, and there are a lot of things that I need to accomplish over the next two to three weeks.

1. Remove the dead apple tree. This is the most urgent thing on my list. I have a pomegranate tree that has been stuck in a black plastic pot for too long now waiting for that tree to be removed so that I can plant it. With just a little bit of luck, I might be able to do that next week. The old apple tree will make some wonderful-smelling wood for the fireplace this winter.

2. Get the weeds out. Every bed in the garden needs to be weeded before being tucked in for winter. This is another task that I really hope to get completed within the next week.

3. Move a few plants to better locations. This is the never-ending story of my gardening life. Moving plants around. I always find that I have misplaced some of my plants in their initial locations and so I have to pull up roots and move them. This is generally the best time of year to do that. There's less stress for the plant when the weather is cooler and there is some moisture about, and they have a chance to get their roots well-established before they have to face the long ordeal of a Texas summer. I've already started this task, but I still have a few more to do.

4. Get the new planting bed set up. I'm planning a new bed to go around the little fish pond and I want to get it all set up and at least some of the plants installed before Christmas.

5. Apply extra mulch. Most of the beds are already pretty heavily mulched, but there are some that need extra and in other places the mulch just needs to be fluffed up a bit and pulled around the plants to make a nice blanket for them.

6. And speaking of blankets, I need to get some frost cloth before we start having colder weather. Most of my plants are of the tough variety but there are a few that have suffered greatly in the extreme cold stretches that we've had during the last two winters. For the most part, they did come back eventually, but it would be nice if I could offer them some protection so that they didn't have to start over from the ground every spring.

7. Get some winter color. I really need something bright and blooming in my front yard beds for the winter. Pansies? Snapdragons? Cyclamen? Decisions, decisions.

8. Pick the citrus. My Mandarin and 'Meyer' lemon tree are full of ripe fruit that needs to be picked. The kumquat, too, has some ripe fruit, although it is still full of green fruit also. I've been waiting to be very sure that everything is ripe before I plucked it. I tried one of the Mandarins the other day. Ripe and juicy. It's time.

9. Just before frost is expected, there are a few plants that live in pots outside that I need to drag into the garage. Again, most of them have actually spent winters outside before and survived, but it is hard on them and I can make their lives a little easier by providing some protection.

10. Lastly, I need to set up my light table in the garage. Some of the smaller pots can benefit from being under the grow lights and, a little later, I can start some seeds for the spring garden under those lights.

Well, there you have it - my to-do list for December. It's pleasant to think about doing all those chores and just how good the yard will look once they are all done, but for right now, it's still raining. Back to Evanovich/Plum and all those kooky New Jersey characters.

Wordless Wednesday: Toad lilies (Tricytis hirta)

2011-11-23T14:50:00.000-08:00

Reasons for thanks

2011-11-22T11:59:00.000-08:00

I awoke this morning to the sound of rain on the roof, a sound that has been mostly absent for the past seventeen months. Later, I checked the rain gauge and found that we had received .8 inch of the wonderful wet stuff. This, in addition to the .8 inch that we received last week, promises a respite for our long-suffering plants, as well as a respite for my bank account from paying high water bills every month.

In short, the garden is looking much happier these days. The temperatures have moderated. We're receiving the occasional rain. The tough plants that have made it through the long seventeen-month-long drought are being rewarded for their toughness, and the gardener is finding another reason to be thankful during this Thanksgiving season.

Thanksgiving has long been my favorite holiday of the year. In fact, I am thankful for Thanksgiving! But while looking through my Google Reader today, I found a post at Garden Rant about some of the things that gardeners are thankful for and found that I could second most of them.

Even in this difficult year of gardening in Texas, there is much for which to be thankful. Above all, I am thankful for Nature. I garden with it and I appreciate it every day of the year - all the critters with which I share my garden, the insects (mostly helpful and some quite beautiful), the reptiles and amphibians, the small mammals (even though they sometimes dig holes, uproot things or otherwise make a mess in my garden), and, of course, the birds. I'm thankful for the wild landscape that is visible from my garden, especially the trees that have managed to survive. So many trees didn't make it and it saddens me whenever I look at their brown skeletons still standing there, but many are still living and breathing and I can only imagine what the early morning rain must mean to them.

I am thankful for the horticultural experts who give so generously of their time to share their expertise with us non-expert gardeners and I'm thankful for all those plant researchers and breeders who keep working to provide us with new and improved plants every year. Gardeners today are very fortunate to live in a time when gardening know-how is so easily available through local nurseries, gardening publications including a whole stream of wonderful gardening books, and, yes, garden blogs! I am especially thankful to the talented writers and gardeners whose blogs I follow. I learn so much from them and I gain inspiration from their gardens.

I am thankful for the trend in gardening toward the use of native plants and especially plants that are drought-friendly, toward the reduction of the boring expanses of mowed grass in the yard, toward the conservation and wise use of water, and especially toward the popularity of habitat gardens, creating gardens that are friendly to the critters with which we share an environment.

I am thankful for fellow gardeners who so generously share seeds, plants, and cuttings. I am thankful for tough plants that make me look good - like I know what I'm doing as a gardener. I'm thankful to live in a place that, despite its shortcomings in some aspects of my life, allows me to garden twelve months of the year. And I'm thankful for my wonderful readers who keep coming back, and especially those who occasionally provide feedback.

All things considered, I find myself happy and hopeful, and, yes, very thankful as I prepare for this Thanksgiving with my family. In spite of setbacks, there is much about which to be optimistic. I hope that your Thanksgiving finds you in a similarly upbeat mood.

Bloom Day addendum

2011-11-17T09:54:00.000-08:00

Here are a few more pictures from the fall garden that didn't make it into my Bloom Day post.

Well, this didn't make it because it wasn't quite a bloom yet. I've been waiting for days for these buds to open, but succulents take their own sweet time about showing their colors. My little collection of succulents has done really well this year.

This one didn't make it because I thought you'd probably be bored to see another yellow cestrum picture. This plant has been in constant bloom now since April and I've showed it to you many times, often with butterflies sitting on the blossoms. It is still going strong and will be blooming until frost.

The little cigar plant is not very showy but I like these tiny blooms. Butterflies do, too.

This is another one I've shown you many times - the 'Lucifer' canna. It has bloomed repeatedly throughout summer. Will this be its last bloom?

'Mystic Spires' salvia is full of blooms these days.

I did have the yellow bells in my Bloom Day post but here's a closer view of its luscious blossoms.

Here's another close-up of the interesting flowers of the shrimp plant.

This one didn't make it into the BD post because I just hadn't noticed that it was blooming! How could I have overlooked it? It is, of course, the Dutchman's pipe vine, variety 'Calico.'

I love these unusual blossoms. I've had many Pipevine Swallowtail butterflies in the garden this year. In fact, they may be the most numerous of any of the butterflies that have visited the garden, but I haven't noticed that any of them have taken advantage of this their favorite host plant.

Finally, here's another view of the brugmansia, with enough trumpets for a whole band of angels.

Just a few more weeks and most of these blooms will be only a memory, but while they last they are glorious and they remind us of the pleasures of fall gardening.

Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day - November 2011

2011-11-15T06:05:00.000-08:00

Before December's Bloom Day rolls around, we may get our first frost here in Southeast Texas. It normally comes around the tenth of December, although for the last couple of years it has come a bit earlier than that. This November Bloom Day, then, could be our last opportunity for a while to celebrate the blooms in our garden, so let's get right to it!

Autumn's moderating temperatures and a few rainfalls have given new life to many of the roses in my garden, including 'Old Blush.'

'Peace' was a birthday gift this year which means it came to me in August at the height of the drought and heat. It has struggled, but now is putting on a few new blossoms.

The pink Knockouts refused to give in to the harsh weather conditions. They bloomed all summer long.

So did 'Radazz,' the red Knockouts.

'Graham Thomas' rested through the summer, but he's always at his best in autumn and this year is no exception.

Out in the citrus area of the garden, the little kumquat tree, added this year, is full of fruits of all sizes, many of which are ripening.

The same is true of the Meyer lemon tree.

And of the Mandarin orange.

Only a good frost will stop 'Big Momma' Turk's cap from blooming.

The purple trailing lantana is at its best in autumn and that's when many little skipper butterflies, like this Fiery Skipper, arrive to enjoy it.

Nearby, this old bush lantana is full of blooms, too.

The shrimp plant's blossoms last a long, long time. I showed you these same blooms on last month's Bloom Day.

Another bloomer that is in its glory in autumn is the Cape honeysuckle.

What can I possibly say that I haven't said many times before about this wonderful plant, Esperanza or yellow bells?

The tropical milkweed continues blooming profusely and continues to get a few Monarch butterflies dropping in to sip its nectar. I'm seeing one or two of the beautiful butterflies on most days but so far I haven't found any eggs or caterpillars on the milkweed, a disappointment to be sure.

Purple porterweed - I have certainly enjoyed this plant with its strange little blossoms.

All summer I wondered if the brugmansias would ever find the energy to bloom this year. Now it's November and I have my answer!

I never had to wonder about these old cannas. They have bloomed all spring, summer, and fall.

Bulbine was another plant that didn't do much for me during summer but now that fall is here, it is attempting to make it all up to me.

Copper Canyon daisies have their glory days of bloom now. They'll bloom until first frost.

Even some of the gerberas are getting in on the blooming action once again.

The Hamelia patens' major customers, the hummingbirds, have mostly moved on now, but I often find their new clients, the sulphur butterflies, hanging from their blossoms.

Even the 'Rouge Cardinal' clematis has found new life and continues to put out a few of these wonderful blooms.

As we wind down this year in the garden, I continue to be amazed that so many of my plants have done well in a very difficult 2011. I'm just happy to have any blooms to show you this month, and I look forward to visiting gardens around the world to see what is blooming on this Bloom Day. Check out Carol's May Dreams Gardens where you can find a list of all of them, and thank you for visiting my garden this month.

The 'Dortmund's' year

2011-11-13T16:36:00.000-08:00

The 'Dortmund' rose is a special favorite of mine. I love its simple single blossom, its dark green leaves, and the pretty orange hips that it develops in the fall. Plus, it's an old rose, unfussy in its requirements and tough enough to take most anything that Mother Nature throws at it.

Even so, the 'Dortmunds' in my garden have struggled this year. They never really put on the big flush of blooms that they normally have in spring. They bloomed but the blooms were a bit sparse. And throughout the long summer, when normally they would have at least a few blossoms, no new blooms came. But finally, now that we are having slightly cooler weather and even an occasional rain, the roses are beginning to perk up a bit.

The plants are full of orange hips from the earlier blooms, but I noticed today that the first bloom of autumn had appeared and it looks like more are on the way.

The 'Dortmund's' rose hips are very colorful and decorative. They could be used in fall decorations or to make up a tasty batch of rose hip jelly. Or one could just leave them on the bushes, as I do, to be devoured by wildlife this winter.

My 'Dortmunds' were not the only ones that suffered in this summer of drought. The Arbor Gate, my favorite local nursery, has 'Dortmunds' climbing its entry gate and I couldn't help noticing when I visited throughout the summer that those plants were not doing extremely well either. So, I take comfort that my roses' less than stellar year was probably not due to anything I did or didn't do. Instead, it was the awful weather, the heat and the drought. Even a tough old rose is likely to need to rest under those conditions. Let's hope that 2012 will be a better year for roses and for the gardeners who love them.

Veterans Day

2011-11-11T13:02:00.000-08:00

Veterans Day is that one day of the year that we set aside to remember the service and sacrifice of those have served in our armed forces as well as those who are still serving. In fact, we should remember that every day of the year, because every day that we remain safe and free is a tribute to the dedication of those who guard our freedom. But on this very special day, we especially honor them and their families and we pledge that we will never forget the sacrifice that they have made for all of us.

Happy Veterans Day.

Not really Wordless Wednesday: Heritage Gardening TV pilot

2011-11-09T07:01:00.000-08:00

Heritage Gardening TV Pilot from Casey O'Quinn on Vimeo.

I hope one day we'll be seeing this show on our own television screens.

Reflecting on the year in the garden

2011-11-07T09:56:00.000-08:00

The autumn of one's life is a time for reflection and autumn in the life of a garden is a time for reflection, too. Whenever I look back over my life, I find that I tend to dwell more on mistakes that I've made and regrets that I have than on any paltry successes. It's the same with my life as a gardener. This year, in particular, there are plenty of failures to reflect upon and to dissect, but at least this year, unlike many years, a lot of those failures were beyond my control.

The vegetable garden, just to give one example, was pretty much a bust this year. Some of the crops, like green beans and squash, still did well and the multiplying onions still multiplied, but most of the plants struggled and finally just couldn't cope with the heat and the drought, even though I was providing supplemental water. The corn dried up before it ever produced mature ears. The tomatoes bloomed but never gave me more than a few usable fruits. Even the heat-loving peppers struggled. It was not a good year for plants living in full-sun conditions in Southeast Texas.

I've documented here before how many of my plants suffered through our interminable summer and how some of them did not make it through to fall, so I won't belabor that point again. I think we are all tired of hearing and reading about (and I know I'm tired of writing about) the drought. The point now is to review what lessons we've learned and think about how we can apply them in the future to make better gardeners of ourselves.

One lesson learned is that my use of water is unsustainable. Our water bills were astronomical during the summer as I tried to keep my plants going until the rains came. We are not rich people. We must live on a budget and so I can't continue to spend so much on water. I need to find a way to conserve and use the free water that comes in the form of rain - when it comes - and to use it wisely and economically. I also need to find better ways of delivering the water that I must pay for so that it gets to the roots of plants that need it without evaporating or being wasted. Perhaps most importantly, as I add plants in the future, I must give prime consideration to their water needs and plant only those plants that are water-wise and drought tolerant. I think it is very likely that drought is the new norm for our area, so we have to learn to live with it and accommodate ourselves to it if we want to be successful gardeners.

Thinking ahead to the changes that I want to make this winter, there's a dead apple tree to be removed and possibly a couple of trees in the front yard that could reduce water consumption there and leave more of the precious liquid for the other trees. I've been forced to concede that we probably do have too many trees in our front yard, although the concept of "too many trees" is something totally foreign to me.

There's also a new bed that I want to put in around my little pond. My long-term goal still is to have a yard completely filled with planting beds with little or no lawn and every new bed that I can put in is a step in that direction. Unfortunately, I can't do it all in one fell swoop but have to do it as time, energy, and money will permit.

And, as always, there are a few plants, although not as many as in past years, that are misplaced and need to be moved to more propitious locations.

The fall/winter vegetable garden is thriving so far and I just need to finish planting it. I have three empty beds that could provide lots of good eating through our short winter and spring, but I need to get those seeds into the ground, probably this week.

There are plenty of things to regret about this year in the garden, but I have to remind myself that there have been successes, too, and that, in fact, most of my plants have come through with flying colors. That is just the encouragement that I need as I plan my activities for this fall and winter in the garden.

Denver Botanic Gardens - Part 3: One last look

2011-11-03T11:01:00.000-07:00

We got enough pictures at the Denver Botanic Gardens to do several more blog entries, but I feel the need to get back to writing about my own garden and what's happening here, so let me wrap up my visit there with this one last look.

I was distressed that many of the plants whose names I wanted to know did not have name tags, but then there were some places where there were plenty of tags - as here in the alpine garden - but the plants were not visible because they were covered with snow. We visited on Saturday, four days after the snowfall, but in shaded areas of the garden, the snow still lingered.

The snow still clinging to the evergreen trees and shrubs made a pretty, wintry scene.

In some parts of the garden, shrubs and vines retained their leaves which were very colorful.

At times the colorful shrubs were still surrounded by patches of snow.

A wonderful feature of the garden was the sculptures by the Native American (Apache) artist Allan Houser which were integrated throughout. This one is called Spirit Dancer.

What's better than one Spirit Dancer? How about two?

This sculpture at the entrance to the ornamental grasses garden was by another artist, not Houser, and I failed to make note of the name. But I know that the name of the sculpture was My Children. I found it very affecting.

I loved the colors and textures of the ornamental grasses. I've become a big fan because they are so resilient and drought tolerant and I'm trying to add more to my own garden.

One that I do have in my garden is Mexican feather grass. Sad to say, mine does not look as healthy as these clumps.

Grasses and snow - a nice combination.

Grasses and sculpture - another nice combination.

Allan Houser drew upon his Native American heritage in his art, but he was also influenced by other sculptors, namely the English sculptor Henry Moore. This Houser piece could easily be mistaken for Moore's work.

The Moore influence showed in many of the pieces on display.

Including this one.

Many of the plants also had a sculptural quality, like this wonderful staghorn sumac, which I absolutely loved. I would like to grow it in my garden but I'm not sure that it would do well here. I need to research what kinds of sumac I might be able to grow. They are terrific plants for wildlife.

Another thing which I found very interesting in DBG was the use of water features. I particularly liked this fountain with the water bubbling out of and spilling over the rock. I wish I could have brought it home with me. The birds in my backyard would love it!

Another one that I liked very much was this fountain. It might be a little big for my yard though.

This sculpture at the entry of a walkway was a show-stopper.

So was this one which shows the other strong influence in Houser's work, his Apache heritage.

And there I am, your intrepid reporter, looking for plants but also hoping to see birds - thus the binoculars around the neck. The birder's motto: Be prepared! You never know when something wonderful might fly by.

Not too many wonderful birds were about on this day, but the chickadees were well-represented. This Black-capped Chickadee peeped at me through some colorful crabapple leaves and we'll let him have the honor of being the last image from Denver Botanic Gardens.

When you are in the Denver area, by all means, make time for a visit to the gardens. We saw them not at their best, but I am certain that the place is worth a visit at any season of the year.

Denver Botanic Gardens - Part 2: Scenes from the Japanese Garden

2011-11-02T00:01:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite gardens to visit at the Denver Botanic Gardens was the Japanese Garden. I loved the use of rocks and water features and the sculptural quality of the trees all of which imparted a sense of peace, order, and timelessness to the space.

In this section of the gardens, there was still quite a bit of snow present five days after the storm.

This peaceful little pond made one want to linger here.

The various bonsai pine trees were like living sculptures.

More bonsai, rocks and water with a colorful tree in the background.

I looked for a label to tell me the name of this wonderful tree with the weeping limbs but I didn't find it.

Several shrubs and trees in this area added vibrant color to the garden.

Yet another peaceful vista from this garden.

Snowy shrubs and rocks reflected in the pool.

Still more bonsai pines surrounding the pool.

I could have spent all day in this part of the garden but there was much, much more to see. Coming up in part 3!

Denver Botanic Gardens - Part 1

2011-11-01T13:42:00.000-07:00

One place high on my list of sites I wanted to visit on our trip to Colorado was the Denver Botanic Gardens. We passed on visiting the gardens when we first arrived in Denver and planned to visit on our way back home. Of course, in the intervening days, Denver had its first snowstorm of the year and several inches of the white stuff were dumped all over the gardens. Consequently, by the time we made it there, the gardens were definitely not at their best. Even so, they were beautiful.

Our first stop at the gardens was at the conservatory where the more tropical plants are kept. No snow there!

They had a lovely collection of orchids, shown growing in natural settings. One nit that I had to pick with the DBG was a woeful lack of labeling on too many of the plants. That was true of the orchids, also.

Whatever this beauty's name, its blooms were spectacular.

I loved the color of this slipper orchid.

Another beauty.

This one certainly stood out amidst the greenery.

This one was quite small but you could hardly miss it.

The orchids existed in a jungle-like environment that featured several waterfalls.

The environment also had a large collection of a diversity of tropical plants, some of which were familiar to me and some not.

Several of the tropical plants showed fantastic blooms.

I was surprised to see this huge morning glory vine climbing a rock in the enclosure. It's the same one I'm growing in my garden this year! I have to admit, though, that theirs looks a bit more healthy than mine.

The orangery was adjacent to the tropical plant space and, in addition to the citrus trees there, it featured an extensive collection of succulents. I was delighted to see them. I've become a big fan of succulents this year.

Some of these looked very similar to the ones I have in my garden.

I especially loved the use of other plants with the succulents, like this pretty variegated geranium.

The most fantastic sight in the orangery was this fruit of the Buddha's hand citrus. I wonder what the fruit tastes like. Have you ever tasted one?

This was only the beginning of our visit to the Denver Botanic Gardens. More to come!

Christmas trees

2011-10-27T08:43:00.000-07:00

On Tuesday night, we got 14 to 16 inches of snow in Estes Park, Colorado where we are now. It has turned this place into a Christmas postcard scene.

This tree near the front of our motel looks like the tree on any number of cards I have sent out over the years.

The trees and deep snow in front of the local library.

And more snowy trees.

There are snowy mountains behind those trees but you can't see them for the fog and snow.

There are plenty of snowbirds - Dark-eyed Juncos - around.

They're not reindeer but there are plenty of these guys hanging around, too.

It amazes me that they are not at all skittish around people and they wander freely around the town. Hunting is prohibited in Rocky Mountain National Park and Estes Park exists primarily to serve visitors to the big park, one of the most popular destinations among the national parks.

Whenever you see a herd of elk, there will always be at least one of these big fellows with them, especially at this time of year which is their rutting season.

All of these pictures were taken yesterday. It is a gorgeous day today. The sun is out and the temperature is supposed to climb above freezing this afternoon. We're off to the park to enjoy a day with Nature and view more Christmas postcard scenes.

Wordless Wednesday: Garden of the Gods - Colorado Springs, Colorado

2011-10-26T00:01:00.000-07:00

The gardens of Colorado

2011-10-21T20:47:00.000-07:00

Early tomorrow morning, we are heading out to Colorado for about ten days. I'm really looking forward to seeing mountains, snow, maybe some new birds, and especially some of the wonderful gardens I've heard about. The famous Denver Botanical Garden is high on my list of "must see" sights. I don't expect to be doing a lot of blogging on this trip, but no doubt I'll find time for occasional entries here, so stay tuned!

The week of the Monarchs

2011-10-20T11:26:00.000-07:00

Finally this week, after bemoaning the absence of Monarch butterflies for most of the year, I've had a steady stream of the beauties in my garden. Perhaps the change in the weather has brought them this way. Who knows? I'm just glad they are here and giving me a chance to record their visits with my camera.

Finally, there are visitors who are making good use of my lush stand of milkweed!

There were two of the butterflies present on this particular occasion, one male and one female. This one is the male. You can tell he's a male because he has those two small black dots, one on each of his hindwings on either side of his body.

This is the female. She is slightly larger with longer wings than the male.

Here are the two of them together sharing a milkweed blossom. The male is out front and the female slightly behind him.

The pair spent a good long period together among the milkweed, sipping nectar and resting with the wings outspread on the leaves. I hope that the female might have left me a present behind in the form of her eggs.

In addition to the milkweed, there are still plenty of other blossoms around to tempt the Monarchs and the other butterflies that are slowly showing up in the garden.

This purple trailing lantana is full of blossoms now and it is favored by various butterflies. I often see them visiting.

The blossoms of the abelia is favored more by the bees, but I do see butterflies stopping by the shrub occasionally.

The red-orange blossoms of the Cape honeysuckle attract the few hummingbirds that are still passing through, but butterflies stop to sip, too.

I've noticed that the 4 o'clocks seem to be a favorite of various skippers and of the sulphurs. Monarchs will stop by, as well.

Yes, it has been a down year for butterflies in general and that continues to be true, but their absence is not in any way related to a lack of host or nectaring plants. The cafeteria is well-stocked for any that find their way to my yard and the welcome mat is out.

Wordless Wednesday: October visitor

2011-10-19T00:01:00.000-07:00

Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day - October 2011

2011-10-15T09:37:00.000-07:00

Let it be duly noted in the record that October 2011 was the month when Southeast Texas finally began to get some relief from our long drought and our interminable summer. The temperatures began to moderate ever so slightly and, last weekend, my yard got a total of 3.3 inches of rain! That was more than we had had in the six previous months.

The long-suffering plants in my garden have responded to these pleasant conditions with a new flush of bloom and a perkiness of spirit to make a gardener's heart glad! Let me show you what I mean.

The tropical milkweed is one of those plants that never missed a beat all summer long. It has been in constant bloom. Unfortunately, there haven't been many butterflies to take advantage of those blooms or of its leaves that feed the caterpillars of Monarch and Queen butterflies. There have been a few Monarch migrants straggling through recently.

The brugmansias have suffered severely from the drought but they are finally blooming. However, their bell-shaped blossoms are only about half their normal size.

The name of this Buddleia davidii is 'Royal red.' I would have named it 'Royal purple,' but that's just me.

Several hibiscus in the garden have done surprisingly well this year, especially this sunny yellow one that has put out bloom after bloom all summer and fall.

And it has been matched bloom for bloom by this sorbet pink hibiscus.

'Graham Thomas' has pouted a bit during the long drought, but has now caught its second wind and is blessing me with its wonderful squashy blossoms.

The 'Radazz' Knockouts continued to struggle to produce a constant blush of bloom throughout the season. Often the blossoms were smaller than usual but they were ever constant.

I am entranced by the delicate violet-like blossoms of the chocolate plant.

No survey of blooms in the garden would be complete without mentioning the yellow bells of Esperanza.

Almond verbena. Wonderful plant. Wonderful highly-scented blossoms. Bees absolutely love it. So do hummingbirds and butterflies.

The prairie asters are beginning to put on their annual show.

Autumn sage blooms pretty much constantly throughout the year but is definitely at its best in autumn.

The Blackfoot daisies are responding to the more moderate weather with a new flush of blooms.

And so are the pavonias. (The dirt and dust on the leaves were kicked up by our recent rains.)

The shrimp plant's blossoms really do look like one of those large, succulent Gulf treats. The plant is covered in these blooms.

Low-growing 'Katie' ruellia is not as invasive as some of the ruellias and it does have lots of these wonderful blue blossoms.

It just wouldn't be my garden without plenty of tithonia, Mexican sunflowers.

This tradescantia is blooming its 'Purple Heart' out.

The confused white loropetalum has been sending out a few of its fringy blossoms lately, although it normally blooms in spring. It's just celebrating the change in the weather, I think.

This purple porterweed doesn't seem to care about the weather. It just keeps on blooming.

The same can be said of Turk's cap which has been even more full than usual of its red turban-shaped flowers.

The 'Rouge cardinal' clematis bloomed beautifully in the spring and now is giving me its second flush of these wonderful blooms.

Even the old 'Barbara Karst' bougainvillea is getting into the act.

The pretty little blossoms of the Evolvulus glomeratus, 'Blue Daze,' are a sweet sight for a tired gardener's eyes.

A glory of the morning garden is this morning glory which always makes me smile to see it. The vine is raggedy and is wilted through much of the day, but it is always completely covered in these gorgeous flowers.

Autumn is really the best time of year to be a gardener in Southeast Texas. This year, I'm happy to say, is no different. Happy autumn - or spring, as the case may be where you are - and happy Bloom Day!

Don't forget to visit our gracious hostess Carol at May Dreams Gardens and see a list of the other Bloom Day participants.

Taking stock: Winners

2011-10-13T17:13:00.000-07:00

By any yardstick one cares to use, this year has fallen well shy of the mark for gardeners. In fact, it has been the most challenging year to be a gardener in Texas that most of us can, or care to, remember.

A lot of good plants were lost during the long, hot, dry summer. I told you about some of my losses here. But I don't want to leave you with the impression that the year has been a total wash-out. Along with the losers, there were plenty of winners.

Nearly all the plants that were lost in my garden had been planted there within the last couple of years and so they had never experienced anything but harsh weather, either hot or cold. They had never really had a chance to get established. But most of the plants in my yard have been here a lot longer than two years and are well-established, and, even though they may have suffered, they came through all the trials provided by the weather and they are still standing.

Most of my "winners" will be very familiar to regular readers of the blog. Here are just a few of them.

Hamelia patens, sometimes called firebush or hummingbird bush, has never been as floriferous as it has this year. These shrubs never get the water or the care that some other parts of the garden get, but it doesn't faze them.

Anisacanthus wrighiti, flame acanthus, is another that has completely outdone itself in blooming this year. It started blooming early and has hardly taken a pause all summer and now into the fall. It just keeps on sending out masses of these little orange, flame-shaped blossoms. These shrubs, too, get very little care or water, but they seem to thrive on my neglect.

Likewise, all the crape myrtles in the yard, like this oldest and largest of the lot, have bloomed continually since late spring and even now are full of blossoms.

The old-fashioned 4 o'clocks have scarcely been bothered by the severe weather.

In the herb garden, the African blue basil has provided a banquet for bees since the spring and is still going strong.

Much of the spring/summer vegetable garden was a bust, but the green beans were a huge success. The same was true of the summer squash. Both the zucchini and the yellow straight-necked squash kept on producing until we were well and truly sick of squash!

I have many different kinds of salvia in the garden and almost all of the plants, like this 'Otahal', have thrived and continue to put out blooms.

On the whole, it's not been the best year for roses, although, except for two yellow Knockouts, they have all survived. But there's one rose that I always know I can count on, come drought, flood, heat or cold. It's the 'Caldwell Pink.' If there's anything that can stop this rose, I haven't met it yet and I hope I never do.

I have often sung the praises of this plant, the yellow cestrum, and no doubt I will again. It has not been out of bloom since April and the bees and butterflies absolutely love it.

Well, I could go on, but you get the idea. My garden is really not the vast wasteland that, in my despairing moments, I may give the impression that it is. In addition to these winners, there are almond verbena, 'Cuban gold' duranta, 'Montrose purple' vitex, oakleaf hydrangea, cannas, Turk's cap, Esperanza, porterweed, buddleias, hibiscus, abelia, potato vine, Texas sage, muscadine, loropetalum, tradescantia, leatherleaf mahonia, just to name a few that have laughed at adversity and kept on growing and producing. Check back in a couple of days when I do my Bloom Day post and you'll see even more of them!

Wordless Wednesday: Fiery Skipper on lantana

2011-10-12T08:55:00.000-07:00

Rainy day joy! Etc. (With update)

2011-10-09T10:17:00.000-07:00

Raindrops are falling on my almond verbena and I'm loving it!

It actually started yesterday. We had a brief, intense shower in the early afternoon. It yielded only 1/10 of an inch of rain, but it was much appreciated. It meant that I didn't have to water my little seedlings in the vegetable garden. And now, today is looking very promising indeed. We've had slow, steady rain off and on all morning. If only it will continue for a while...

Just before our teaser shower yesterday, I had trekked over to Arbor Gate to do some shopping. I had decided that I had been in a gardening funk long enough and it was time to replace some of my lost plants as well as adding some others to the landscape. Specifically, I wanted to get some herbs for the fall garden.

Visiting Arbor Gate is always an adventure for me because, of course, I always find more than I went for and often I find new plants or plants that I find I suddenly must have! Yesterday it was a beautiful variegated abelia and a cassia totally covered in wonderful yellow blossoms. I resisted temptation and didn't buy either, but I'm contemplating where I might be able to use them in my garden. And, after all, Arbor Gate is only a few minutes away...

What I did purchase were several herbs and a couple of grayleaf cotoneasters. As I noted in my last post here, I lost quite a few plants in the herb garden when I basically stopped watering that area for an extended period to concentrate on some other parts of the garden during the hottest part of summer. Consequently, there are blank spots to fill.

I bought a Mexican oregano and bronze fennel (Foeniculum vulgare nigra) to replace the ones that were lost. Others that I couldn't pass up were catnip ( Nepeta cataria), fernleaf cilantro (Coriandrum sativum 'Delfino'), Italian giant parsley, salad burnet (Poterium sanguisorba), lemon thyme (Thymus x citriodorus), creeping sweet marjoram (Origanum humile Creeping Marjoram), and something that I've never grown before called pineapple verbena 'Moujean Tea'. It's described as being a small shrub with pale yellow flowers and small orange fruit. It sounded interesting and should be quite a nice addition to the garden.

The grayleaf cotoneasters were planted yesterday, but the tray of herb plants is now sitting under a magnolia tree and being watered by Mother Nature. Now if only it will stop raining so I can go plant them...

Ach! Shut my mouth!!! Come on, rain!

UPDATE 10/10/11: A total of 3.2 inches of rain fell on my yard yesterday. Along with the .1 we got the day before, that makes a grand total of 3.3 inches. More than we had received during the previous six months. It was wonderful to see some of the ponds around the neighborhood actually having water in them again today!

Taking stock

2011-10-06T16:17:00.000-07:00

Now that we are well into October, it's time to take stock of things in the garden and see what's been lost during this interminable summer. To that end, I took a stroll through the yard to list the plants that have died due to the heat and drought. Some of them were a surprise.

Wax Myrtle: I lost both a standard southern wax myrtle and a dwarf wax myrtle. Truthfully, the standard was not a great surprise. It just never looked that healthy after I planted it last year and it never thrived. The dwarf, on the other hand, seemed fine, and then I went to water it one day and found it turning brown. A few days later it was dead. Its mate, on the opposite side of the bed, is still with me, though it has lost a couple of limbs, too.

'Spring Bouquet' Viburnum: Two of these that had been planted last year in spring on the advice of my friends at Arbor Gate didn't make it through the summer. Like the standard wax myrtle, they just never seemed to thrive, and since both were planted in the same bed, I'm highly suspicious of the soil there. I'm working on improving the quality of that soil and I hope that the next thing I plant there will fare better.

'Radsunny' Yellow Knockout Rose: Two of these perished which was a bit of a surprise. The other Knockouts in the garden held up well and continued to bloom throughout the harsh season, but all of the 'Radsunny' bushes suffered more than their pink or red cousins.

Buddleia: A pink buddleia that I planted two years ago and moved to a new bed last winter perished within the last month. It had bloomed well through much of the season but then it collapsed and died within a week to ten days. The accumulated stress was finally too much.

Gerbera Daisies: The coral gerberas that I planted in spring have all succumbed within the last month, after barely hanging on all summer. My other gerberas (red and yellow) are fine, but they have been in the ground for years and are better established.

Blueberry: The 'Tifblue' blueberry that I planted last winter has died. Two other blueberries that I planted at the same time have suffered terribly and lost limbs, but they are hanging on and seem to be rallying now. I'm trying to give them a little extra TLC. Same for my old blueberry bush that has been in the ground for over 20 years. It has suffered this summer as never before, losing a few limbs to the drought, but it survives and looks as though it is going to make it.

Autumn sage: Surprisingly, several autumn sage plants around the yard have died back to the roots. They may just be resting and waiting for a more propitious time to send out new growth. It's really hard to kill these plants.

Cuphea 'Cigar Plant': When we went out of town for several days in June, I left instructions about watering plants in the yard, but somehow my poor 'Cigar Plant' that was absolutely full of blooms got overlooked. By the time I got home, it was too late for it.

Hydrangea: The old hydrangea that I had dug from my Aunt Marcelle's garden in Mississippi and brought back to Texas a couple of years ago was unable to make it through the summer. This may be my saddest loss.

Herbs: In the herb garden, the fennel, lemon balm, one of my rue plants, and the Mexican oregano(!) have all died. They suffered from being in an area that, at some point, when I was doing triage on the yard and trying to reduce my use of water, just didn't get watered for long periods of time. A month of above 100 degree days in August was more than they could stand.

In addition to these plants that have gone on to that Great Garden in the Sky where there's always plenty of rain, other plants have suffered mightily.

One of my brugmansias has not bloomed at all, its growth is stunted, and it has lost most of its leaves. My other brugmansia has bloomed, but its blooms are just about half the size that they normally are.

My coral honeysuckle vine died back to its roots but it is now putting out new growth from the roots and the lower parts of the vine.

Many other plants have simply "hunkered down," not really growing, not blooming, just hanging on and waiting for rain. The banana trees are about two-thirds their normal height and show no signs of blooming. My butterfly gingers have not bloomed at all and I don't expect them to. A couple of the split-leaf philodendrons have as many brown as green leaves.

Reading this, you might think that my garden is a complete brown disaster area, but, in fact, there are many plants that have survived and thrived in spite of everything that Nature and an inexpert gardener could throw at them. Next time, I'll tell you about some of them.

Wordless Wednesday: Chili pequin

2011-10-05T10:51:00.000-07:00

Twelve secrets of happiness in the garden

2011-10-04T10:00:00.000-07:00

I enjoy reading other garden blogs, and one that I never miss when there is a new post up is Carol's May Dreams Gardens. Carol gardens in Indiana, in a zone 5 garden that is very different from my experience near the Gulf Coast here in zone 8b, but, as well as being a talented gardener, she is an imaginative and creative writer and her posts almost always contain something of universal appeal - something that can be applied to any garden anywhere.

Recently, Carol has been writing about achieving happiness in the garden. She has (so far) discovered twelve secrets to happiness in garden. These secrets have been revealed to her by her garden familiars, fairies, rabbits, and the like.

I have been meditating on Carol's secrets and thinking how they apply to me in this very challenging time in my garden. Is it even possible to achieve happiness in the garden in these severe drought conditions with trees and other plants dying of thirst all around me and meteorologists periodically predicting that this may be a multi-year drought? Do the secrets of achieving happiness have something to teach me about thriving in these conditions? Let's consider each of the twelve.

Grow the plants you love. This seems so obvious. Why would you ever plant something you didn't love? But people sometimes do, for all kinds of reasons. They plant without really considering the qualities or the needs of the plants and then both the gardener and the plant wind up miserable. Better to spend some time getting to know the plant and only plant those things which you absolutely know you are going to love and be willing to care for. Both you and the plant will be happier.

Size the garden for the resources you have. One of the biggest mistakes made by new gardeners is trying to do too much at first. Start small and don't take on more than you have the time, energy, and financial resources to care for. You can always expand. And you probably will, because you will be so happy with your success in a small plot that you will want more.

Buy good tools. Cheap tools are seldom a bargain. "You get what you pay for" is never more true than in regard to garden tools. Spend a little more and get the very best you can afford. You won't be sorry. These tools are your friends and allies in creating your garden. You want them to be dependable.

Respect Mother Nature. Always. Be aware and knowledgeable of the environment in which your garden exists and do nothing - nothing! - to harm it. Get to know and make friends with the creatures that inhabit your garden. Respect the cycles of the seasons and the climate. If Nature sends you drought, or flood, or wind, heat or cold, adjust your plans accordingly. Bend yourself to Nature's ways; don't attempt to bend Nature to yours.

Share your garden. There is no greater pleasure for a gardener than to have others appreciate one's efforts, either through an actual visit to the garden or a virtual visit by way of one's blog. And, of course, best of all is being able to share plants with other gardeners. Passalong plants are the ultimate in sharing!

Plan your garden. Here's where a lot of gardeners, including myself, fail. Over the 20+ years that I have lived in this house and garden, the garden has grown a bit like Topsy, without much planning at all. For most of those years, I was working full-time and raising a family and the garden was an afterthought. It didn't get my best efforts. I just didn't have much energy left for it. It's only in recent years that I've been able to devote myself to it. If I had it all to do over again - and had all the money in the world - I would do better. As it is, to achieve happiness, I just have to forgive myself for the past, realizing that I did the best I could do at the time, and try to plan better in the future.

Feed your soil. After all, it's the basis of everything. An unhappy soil makes for an unhappy garden and an unsuccessful gardener.

Strive for balance. Balance in the garden is an important concept. A garden that "fits" in the greater habitat of which it is a part is one that blends perfectly with the elements of Nature. It balances between the wild world and the cultivated world of humans and offers a seamless transition between the two.

Ask for help. Don't be shy about seeking assistance, whether it is advice or strong muscles that are needed.

Change your garden if you don't like it. This is an important one and one that I sometimes struggle with. I tend to leave things much too long because I once thought they were a good idea and I feel guilty about moving or removing them. Don't be that gardener! Rip them out! A plant or a garden feature that is not pleasing to you needs to go. Life is too short to live with something that gives you heartburn every time you look at it.

Try new plants. They might not work, but if you love them, or think you do, give them a chance. They might just turn out to be the great love of your life.

Plant for the future. I find that I'm thinking more and more about the future. I want my garden to still be here when I'm gone. I want it to be an easy-care garden that no one will be tempted to rip out. Most of all, I want there to be plenty of trees. As I look around my neighborhood at all the dying trees here, I have this irresistible urge to plant more trees. True, our lot already has many big trees because one of the first things we did when we moved here was to plant trees to give us shade on the burning hot, bare yard. But surely there are still spots around the yard where I can tuck in another small understory tree. I've already bought a pomegranate to plant this fall and I'm thinking about other small fruit or flowering trees for which I might be able to find space. Trees, after all, are the future.

Yes, I think Carol has done it again. She has given us universal truths that are as applicable in Southeast Texas, or indeed Southeast Asia, as in Indianapolis. If I could only keep these twelve truths in mind and apply them, I think it might finally be possible to achieve perfect happiness in my garden. Thank you, Carol!

The amazing growing pumpkin

2011-09-29T00:01:00.000-07:00

A gardener named Ken Desrosier in Connecticut has grown a 1487 pound pumpkin! It is officially the largest pumpkin in the history of his state. It took only two and a half months to grow. That must be some fine soil that Ken has.

Not only did he grow this champion pumpkin, though, he recorded its growth with time-lapse photography. This is just the most amazing thing I have seen lately.

I wonder what Charlie Brown would think of this.

Wordless Wednesday: 'Coral Nymph' salvia

2011-09-28T00:01:00.000-07:00

The color of autumn

2011-09-26T15:53:00.000-07:00

Driving around the Texas countryside this autumn is a rather depressing activity. All along the roadways one sees dried up ponds and dead trees. Hundreds of dead trees. Thousands of dead trees.

Even when I look out my back door, I see dead trees. My old apple tree, which I've reported on here before, now appears to be completely dead. It was badly diseased and a large section of the tree - one-half of the divided trunk - broke away and fell to the ground earlier this year. The other half was still alive at the time and we made the decision to leave the rest of it standing until winter. It's a favorite perching place for the birds, and the woodpeckers, especially the little Downies, are constantly scouring its bark for goodies. I would simply leave it there for the wildlife, but I'm afraid at some point it will become unstable and, in a strong wind, it could fall on the fence between us and the neighbors.

The apple tree is not the only dead tree I see when I look across my yard. True, the apple tree is the only one in my yard that has died, and that, I think, was more due to disease than to drought. But beyond my backyard fence, the big pine trees in the bit of woods that still exist there are suffering badly. I would estimate that at least half of them are already dead and others are looking extremely stressed.

For all of these trees, the autumn rains, if they come, will be too late. It is the same with thousands of trees around the area. At the end of this drought, whenever it comes, we will be looking out on a very changed landscape, and this year, the color of our autumn is brown.

Score another one for front-yard vegetable gardening!

2011-09-24T15:46:00.000-07:00

It was the same old story we've read and heard about several times this summer but with a slightly different twist. Adam Guerrero, a high school math teacher in Memphis, used his front yard to grow vegetables. But he didn't stop there. He had beehives in the backyard. He had a set-up for producing biodiesel and for making soap in his garage. He was working on having a self-sustaining and self-sufficient food growing operation on his small urban lot. Not only that but he was using the garden and the other operations as a way of teaching some of his students. After all, a concept of math is essential to gardening as it is to many activities in life, so what better way to learn than through the practical application of math principles?

Everything was going swimmingly and then someone complained.

It turns out that in Memphis, and perhaps other places as well, all it takes is one complaint for a person's yard to be labeled a "neighborhood nuisance" and the owner receives a citation from the city and has to defend himself. In Guerrero's case, he was cited for failing to maintain his yard in a clean and sanitary condition free from rubbish or garbage. When the complaint became public and local journalists went out to take a look, they failed to find any rubbish or garbage. All they found was a neat, well-groomed vegetable garden. Growing in the front-yard.

Kitchen Gardens International took up Mr. Guerrero's cause and publicized it. They generated petitions and thousands of emails, letters and phone calls to the Memphis City Council on Guerrero's behalf and yesterday the whole brouhaha ended happily. The authorities found that there was no basis for the complaint and ended up offering to help Mr. Guerrero find space to start a community garden where others in the area can begin to grow their own food.

And so another blow was struck for the freedom of homeowners to be able to use their front-yards to grow food to help sustain themselves and their families. What could be more basic and more commonsense than that?

End of summer

2011-09-22T15:54:00.000-07:00

It is the last full day of what has been a horrendous season. Summer 2011 has been the most brutal in my memory. I would hope to never see another like it, and yet I fear it may be an omen of summers to come in our changing climate.

But that is for the future. For now, thinking about the end of summer reminded me of a poem I came across several weeks ago and I decided to look it up again today and share it with you.

End of Summer

By Stanley Kunitz (1905–2006)

An agitation of the air,

A perturbation of the light

Admonished me the unloved year

Would turn on its hinge that night.

I stood in the disenchanted field

Amid the stubble and the stones,

Amazed, while a small worm lisped to me

The song of my marrow-bones.

Blue poured into summer blue,

A hawk broke from his cloudless tower,

The roof of the silo blazed, and I knew

That part of my life was over.

Already the iron door of the north

Clangs open: birds, leaves, snows

Order their populations forth,

And a cruel wind blows.

The changing of the seasons always has something of the bittersweet about it as we realize "That part of my life was over," but the change from summer to fall seems more sweet than bitter for me. The sweet welcoming breath of autumn is refreshing beyond words after the heat of summer.

The "iron door of the north" has long since clanged open. The migration of the birds and of the Monarch butterflies has been under way for weeks now and, in the case of the hummingbirds and some of the shorebirds, for months. Their populations have been ordered forth ahead of the "cruel winds" of winter and they have heeded the call.

And now, I, too, heed the call as I make preparations to get my fall vegetable garden planted in time to benefit from any autumn rains that may fall. (Fingers crossed!) Goodbye and good riddance, Summer. Welcome, sweet Autumn.

Wordless Wednesday: Late summer succulent blossoms

2011-09-21T15:56:00.000-07:00

The pleasures of onion planting

2011-09-20T15:59:00.000-07:00

We finally got some rain over the last couple of days. I awoke Sunday morning to the sound of rain on the roof and against the window next to our bed. I rolled over and went back to sleep. The same thing happened Monday morning. I could not believe my ears. Rain! Two days in a row.

On Sunday, we got just over three-tenths of an inch, and yesterday, we got seven-tenths, so, in total, we got just over an inch of rain. Although it is nowhere near what we need, it was a nice down payment and the yard looked fresher for it.

I decided that yesterday would be a good time to work in the vegetable garden. The soil was still damp and easily worked after the rain and I had some onions that needed planting.

They were multiplying onions that I had planted in the spring, and they had lived up to their name. They had multiplied. They had just about filled the space where they had been planted, so I planned to move them to a larger space.

I dug the bulbs and divided them, ending up with about 150 bulbs or sets. Then I prepared an empty 8' x 4' raised bed to receive them, dug my holes and replanted them. The entire process took perhaps two hours with a break in the middle.

What a joy it was to be working in the vegetable garden again, to feel the soil between my fingers as I pushed the bulbs in. What a pleasure to see dirt under my nails once again! There is really nothing like the intimate contact with the soil to make us feel connected to Mother Earth again.

It's a feeling I have missed during much of this long, hot summer when working in the garden in triple digit temperatures, except for the minimum necessary, has just been too unpleasant to contemplate. But here we are at the end of that summer, just a few days from the Autumnal Equinox, and slowly - much too slowly - conditions are getting a bit better, and the prospect of actually getting a fall vegetable garden planted and watching it grow is enough to make me grin from ear to ear with pleasure.

The chocolate plant

2011-09-18T18:21:00.000-07:00

I love it when I get to know a new plant. Here's another one with which I was previously unfamiliar.

Last fall I attended a meet-up and plant swap with some of my fellow garden bloggers and gardeners. I came away from that gathering much richer in plants. One of my acquisitions was something called a "chocolate plant." Admittedly, I was not acquainted with it, but it was a small cutting with pretty leaves. I took it home with me, and, looking around for some place to plant it, my eyes fell upon my Ficus benjamina which was in a large pot with plenty of room. I stuck the little plant into the big pot with the medium-sized tree and sort of forgot it. When the winter turned cold, the pot got pulled into my unheated garage. By that time there was nothing showing but the ficus. When the weather turned warm again, I returned the pot to the backyard and one day I noticed there was something besides the tree growing there. It seemed to be a ground cover of some kind and I had to scratch my head to remember what it was. Then the light bulb went off - chocolate plant!

I did a little research and learned that the chocolate plant is properly called Pseuderanthemum alatum. It is a low-growing (about 10 inches tall) herb native to Mexico and Central America. It is grown primarily for the beauty of its leaves which are coppery-brown with silver blotches. The leaves can get pretty big, up to 6 inches long by 4.5 inches wide. My instinct upon seeing it growing in my ficus pot was correct; it is often used as a ground cover.

When my new plant continued to grow this spring and threatened to take over the ficus pot, I lifted it and put it in a 12-inch pot of its own. It now fills that pot and in the last couple of weeks it has started to put up some bloom spikes.

Here's an overview of the plant that now makes its home in its pot in my little front entry sitting area. You can see why it is grown for its leaves. They are quite showy.

A side view of the plant shows how it has completely filled its pot.

Here's a close-up of one of the bloom spikes. These racemes can get to be about 18 inches tall and the blooms open in turn from the bottom to the top. There don't happen to be any blossoms open today but you can see that a couple of the buds are about to pop open. When they do open, the flowers look much like African violets. They are very pretty.

I have found, more or less through trial and error, that the plant seems happiest when it is in partial shade and it likes to be kept moist but not soggy. The plant did die back completely during last winter, but perhaps that was because it was in a rather cold place. If I had brought it into the house, it might well have stayed leafy and beautiful all winter. Some articles I've read indicate that the plants reseed readily. We'll see about that. They are mainly propagated by cuttings.

I've enjoyed getting to know this beautiful plant over the last year. I think it is a keeper, and I look forward to a long-term relationship with it.

Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day - September 2011

2011-09-15T10:25:00.000-07:00

Boring. That, I am afraid, is the theme of this Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day in my zone 8B garden here outside of Houston. Same boring heat. Same boring drought. And pretty much the same boring blossoms I've been showing you all summer.

What, indeed, could be more boring than Hamelia patens? It is boringly predictable and dependable. Starts blooming in late spring and blooms all the way to the first frost - usually in December. Nothing exciting at all, except when the hummingbirds are in town. Then it is a hive of activity and a smile a minute.

The almond verbena has been every bit as predictable as the Hamelia, with the added frisson of that heavenly scent that wafts through its section of the garden, especially late in the day.

Tithonia has proven itself again this summer as a true SUNflower. Yes, it does wilt badly in the middle of the day, but that is just a ploy. It is undaunted by the heat and the drought.

'Montrose Purple' Vitex has had several flushes of bloom throughout spring and summer. I've lost track of the number, but they are always welcome.

And, of course, there are always the yellow bells of Esperanza. I'm afraid we just take it for granted here.

What would our late summer gardens be without the wonderful salvias?

Well, here's something that is not exactly boring. It is the chocolate plant, Pseuderanthemum alatum. As you can see, it has sent up two small bloom spikes, although the blooms are not quite there yet. It may be cheating just a little bit to include it here, but, my blog, my rules!

The yellow cestrum has been in bloom continually - no exaggeration! - since early spring. This plant has not missed a beat and it has been a constant magnet for butterflies and bees.

I'm fascinated by the weird blossoms of the purple porterweed. So, too, are any butterflies that happen to be in the area.

Jatropha has been another faithful - boringly faithful - bloomer this summer. It seems to thrive on the heat and the drought.

'Pride of Barbados' features the hot colors of summer.

Finally, a hint, perhaps, that autumn is actually on the way. The garlic chives are in bloom. Strangely, or perhaps not so strangely, they, too, are great favorites with the butterflies.

In just over a week, autumn will actually be here. That long-awaited and longed-for season, the favorite of so many gardeners, including myself. We can only hope that September 23 does in fact bring an end to this interminable summer not just on the calendar and that we finally get some relief from our heat and drought. And I hope that in October I will have something to show you that is not at all boring!

Don't forget to visit our wonderful hostess Carol at May Dreams Gardens and see the list of other very non-boring gardens that are participating in this Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day.

Thank you for visiting my garden. Happy Bloom Day!

Wordless Wednesday: Late summer garden visitor

2011-09-14T07:49:00.000-07:00

Dreaming of autumn planting

2011-09-12T10:42:00.000-07:00

Tonight the beautiful Harvest Moon will be hanging like a Christmas ornament in our cloudless black velvet sky. It is the traditional symbol of a time of plenty, the time of harvest after a bountiful growing season. But things are topsy-turvy this year and it hasn't been a very bountiful growing season. Most of my spring and summer vegetable garden burned up in the early and intense heat and never reached its potential. But now autumn is almost here and the itch to plant is with me again.

My husband keeps urging me to wait. Wait until the rains come because we can't continue to run up big budget-busting water bills every month. But I don't have any confidence that the rains will come. That witch La Nina seems to be on the prowl again, threatening to steal our fall and winter moisture. So, I'm looking around for vegetables that might survive in low moisture conditions and still produce for me. At least they won't have to deal with triple digit temperatures. Or will they?

Anyway, it is time to plant an autumn vegetable garden. That big moon in the sky tells me so, and regardless of heat or drought and perhaps the prospects of another unusually cold winter, I feel the need to get those seeds in the ground.

I can start small. I have some multiplying onions that need to be divided and reset and I have one small 8' x 4' raised bed that is ready for planting - the perfect match! Vegetables that grow underground don't necessarily like a lot of water anyway, because it can rot them, so perhaps the onions will not mind the dry conditions. They've survived this summer, and that's a good sign.

Next, I've been perusing my Wood Prairie Farm catalog, a source for organic seed potatoes. I have another bed, 16' x 4' that is ready for planting. I had one of my few successful crops, green beans, there in spring and summer, so I think it should be in good shape to grow some potatoes now. Again, potatoes don't like wet conditions so they should love this bed with the little moisture I'll be able to provide them.

All the other beds in my vegetable garden will require some preparation before I can plant, but I have recruited some help and, soon enough, they should be ready for broccoli, collards, kale, carrots, lettuce, sugar snap peas. Ummm... my mouth waters just thinking about it!

The gardener's spirit is undaunted and undauntable. A new season coming is a new reason to hope - to hope that things will be different this time. After all, those temperatures will be moderating, however slowly, and the harsh summer that we've had has had at least one positive effect. The insect pests have been knocked back by it. I hardly saw any leaf-footed stinkbugs, my insect nemesis, all spring and summer.

So I will plant my fall vegetable garden and water it when I can and hope for the best. When the full Harvest Moon shines overhead, it renews my faith that all things are possible.

A first for the season

2011-09-09T15:20:00.000-07:00

The change in the weather this week has brought a flurry of migrants to my garden. Most of them have had feathers like this female Rufous Hummingbird, a first for my yard who has brought quite a lot of excitement for one backyard birder.

Female Rufous Hummingbird at 'Texas Star' hibiscus.

But finally today, I had my first migrant of the season of quite another kind. At about the middle of the day, the very first Monarch butterfly of the fall migration came to rest on a garlic chive blossom in my backyard. He sat there sipping for some time as I watched. Then I headed into the house to get the camera to try to record the event. Of course, by the time I got back outside, he had moved on, but I was finally able to chase him down.

You can tell he's a male by the two black spots in the middle of his hindwings.

Since he's a male, there won't be any eggs left behind from this visitor, but I'm hoping he is the harbinger of more of the brightly-colored fliers to come. Soon, perhaps, there will be a female who will be happy for all the milkweed that is growing rampantly in my garden. And I will be happy to welcome her and any eggs she chooses to leave with me.

Meantime, today's visitor did not tarry long. Soon, I saw him winging south once again, determined to make his way to the mountains of Mexico. Fair weather and safe travel to him and all the millions of his brothers and sisters to come.

Flies as pollinators

2011-09-08T17:19:00.000-07:00

Last week I showed you the first bloom of my Stapelia gigantea plant and I mentioned that these plants are supposedly pollinated by flies. The blooms allegedly can have a rather putrid odor which attracts the flies, although the first bloom on my plant did not seem to have a terribly objectionable odor. That could have been because the plant was growing outside. If it had been in a closed space, the scent might have been more noticeable.

I watched for flies to find that first bloom, but as far as I know, they never did. I never saw a single fly on the plant.

This week, though, the second and third blooms have opened on the plant and it is a whole different story. The flies were out in force today.

There is one fly visible in the center of this bloom.

There are three flies investigating the blossom here.

They headed right into the center of the bloom, which is just what the plant wants.

These confused flies may be wondering, "Where is the yummy carrion?"

When they head back out again, they will be carrying a nice load of Stapelia pollen.

I watched as a steady stream of flies visited the plant today. I still could not detect any really bad odor from the bloom, but apparently the scent was powerful enough to have wafted its calling card around the yard. Even if I couldn't detect it, obviously the flies could.

Wordless Wednesday: 'Peace' bud

2011-09-06T20:06:00.000-07:00

Lee is a bust

2011-09-04T08:58:00.000-07:00

All day long yesterday, I watched the weather radar as Tropical Storm Lee slowly, ever so slowly, moved in my direction. It was dumping huge amounts of rain all over the Gulf Coast area and it appeared that this might be our best chance in months to actually get rain that amounted to something.

Yesterday was one of our regular watering days on the restricted watering schedule. Saturday is the day that I usually give a deep soaking to the big live oak trees in our front yard, but yesterday I decided not to water because it looked like Nature would actually do it for me. And so I waited.

And waited.

And waited.

Nothing.

By the time I went to bed last night, I was sending silent apologies to my trees. I knew it wasn't going to rain. Again.

The tropical storm system pushed across Louisiana, into Texas, and right up to my front doorstep and then it just - poof! - vanished. As far as I know, we didn't get a drop of moisture.

Stapelia gigantea

2011-09-02T16:55:00.000-07:00

Last year, at a plant swap, my friend Ursula gave me a stem cutting from her Stapelia gigantea. She called it her "stinky."

This plant is sometimes commonly known as "carrion flower" or "toad plant." Corpse flowers had been much in the news in Houston last summer because of Lois, the giant corpse flower that was in bloom at the Houston Museum of Natural Science. Stapelia gigantea is not the same plant, but it does bear the same common name and for the same reason. Its blossoms are said to smell like carrion and they are pollinated by flies.

I was curious to see how my new stem cutting would grow. It looks a bit like a cactus, a four-sided, spineless cactus, and so I treated it like one. After letting it callous over for a few days, I stuck it in a pot with another plant and then I sort of forgot about it for a while. One day weeks later I happened to glance its way and found that it had rooted and had begun growing a new section. I took it up and put it in its own pot.

Since then, it has grown several new limbs and looks very healthy, and over the last couple of weeks, I've noticed that it appeared to be developing buds. Over the last several days, the growth of the buds has really taken off.

Several buds are visible here, in various stages of development.

Then, just this week, one of the buds swelled to enormous proportions.

How big would it get, I wondered, before it began to open?

I didn't have to wonder long! Yesterday when I went outside, the big bud had popped open. According to the plant's description, its flowers can be as much as 10-16 inches across, but this one is more like 8 inches.

Inside the blossom is this circular fleshy disk, which, if you squint, looks a little like a fly. Perhaps this is meant to help entice flies to come inside? The blossom has a bit of a musty smell but isn't really very carrion-like.

This fascinating plant is native to South Africa. It needs well-drained soil and moderate water and full sun during the growing season. It can withstand extreme heat, as my plant has proved by living on a table in my backyard where it gets the full brunt of the afternoon sun all this extremely hot season. The plant will appreciate a cool, dry place to rest in winter. It spent last winter in my garage and did just fine, so I expect to put it back there this winter. The plant's normal bloom time is September so this one is right on schedule. It is full of many more buds of all sizes so I should be able to enjoy its unusual blooms for many weeks.

Stapelia gigantea really is such an interesting plant and brings back lovely memories of a nice day with gardening friends. As I always say, passalong plants are the very best kind of plants.

September

2011-09-01T16:11:00.000-07:00

The beginning of September, a glimpse of autumn just over the horizon, makes us all feel a bit poetic, I think. Not surprisingly, it has the same effect on actual poets. Here's Helen Hunt Jackson's ode to the month.

SEPTEMBER
by: Helen Hunt Jackson (1830-1885)

HE golden-rod is yellow;
The corn is turning brown;
The trees in apple orchards
With fruit are bending down.

The gentian's bluest fringes
Are curling in the sun;
In dusty pods the milkweed
Its hidden silk has spun.

The sedges flaunt their harvest,
In every meadow nook;
And asters by the brook-side
Make asters in the brook.

From dewy lanes at morning
The grapes' sweet odors rise;
At noon the roads all flutter
With yellow butterflies.

By all these lovely tokens
September days are here,
With summer's best of weather,
And autumn's best of cheer.

But none of all this beauty
Which floods the earth and air
Is unto me the secret
Which makes September fair.

'T is a thing which I remember;
To name it thrills me yet:
One day of one September
I never can forget.

"September" is reprinted from Poems. Helen Jackson. Boston: Roberts Brothers, 1892.

Let us hope that, before this month is too old, our yards will "flutter with yellow butterflies" and that we will have "the summer's best of weather" and "autumn's best of cheer." I'm ready for the September change.

Wordless Wednesday: Evergreen wisteria

2011-08-31T09:59:00.000-07:00

Gardening, climate change, and sustainability

2011-08-30T13:19:00.000-07:00

I've discovered a wonderful new book for gardeners called The New American Landscape: Leading Voices on the Future of Sustainable Gardening. This book features chapters written by a diverse group of knowledgeable horticulturists and gardeners on a variety of subjects such as the new American meadow garden, balancing natives and exotics in the garden, landscapes that welcome wildlife, the sustainable edible garden, gardening sustainably in a changing climate, and on and on. There are eleven chapters in all, edited and introduced by Thomas Christopher, who has been reporting on gardening and environmental issues for more than twenty-five years. The thing that ties all these various chapters together is that they feature a sustainable approach to gardening.

The subjects that are covered affect gardeners everywhere and the writers' commonsense step-by-step approach demonstrates how gardeners' sustainable practices positively shape our environment. Gardeners, after all, are on the front line of defense as we struggle to deal with problems like loss of habitat, water shortages, shrinking biodiversity, and, the biggie, global climate change, and how we garden in our own backyard can have an impact for good or ill on each of those important issues.

Some of the suggestions here for improving our sustainable gardening practices include the following:

1. Plant a tree. If you can only do one thing, this may be the very best thing you can do to help the environment. Trees take up CO2 and reduce emissions from air conditioning. Furthermore, they help to cool our yards and houses - another reason that we here in Texas need to do everything within our power to save trees during this drought.

2. Recycle and reduce use of disposable products. For example, do not use non-biodegradable mulches such as those made of plastic. Use natural, organic mulches.

3. Improve nitrogen fertilizer use efficiency. One of the writers suggests, for example, using clover/grass mixes for your lawn. Clover fixes nitrogen in the soil.

4. Reduce fossil fuel usage. Use tools that do not require fossil fuels whenever possible and use the ones that do require fossil fuel as sparingly as possible.

5. Increase soil carbon sequestration. One way to do this is to employ a no-till, no-dig method of gardening known as lasagna gardening. It involves layering rather than tilling and has become increasingly popular among organic gardeners.

6. Use renewable energy sources whenever possible.

These suggestions and this book work for gardeners with a wide range of experience. Both the veteran gardener and the newbie can learn a lot here. This is an impressive and thought-provoking book, one that belongs on the shelf of every gardener who is concerned about the environment and the future of the planet. That, I think, is every gardener.

(An Advance Review Copy of this book was provided to me at no cost by the publisher, Timber Press, for the purposes of this review.)

Silent Sunday: The first oxblood lily

2011-08-28T08:54:00.000-07:00

Reporting on migrating Monarchs

2011-08-26T18:39:00.000-07:00

The Monarch butterfly migration is under way and Journey South, the citizen science project that tracks them, wants you to report your sightings. Your observations can help the scientists get a more complete picture of how the migration is proceeding. You can sign up and sign in at the link above and start sending them your information.

The Journey South people urge us to make a report at least once a week as long as Monarchs are present. You can report anytime you see a Monarch. I don't personally have any confirmed sightings of one of the butterflies yet, although I thought I might have seen one today. We were on State Highway 249 headed north and I saw a butterfly high above the traffic, as migrating Monarchs typically fly, and it was headed southeast. But I couldn't see it well enough to be sure that is what it was, so I won't report it.

The Journey South site has several maps which help to illustrate and track the migration. It is very interesting to check in on them once or twice a week just to see the progress of the fliers.

I'm not really expecting much from this year's migration. I'll be happy just to encounter a few of the beauties in my yard. If they do visit me, they will find plenty of milkweed on which to feed and to lay their eggs. I'm hoping I'll have some of that action to report along the way.

If you haven't already signed on to Journey South, I encourage you to do so and take part in this important project. The bits of information which you can provide may be just what the scientists are looking for.

Native prairie grasses - the dry garden's salvation?

2011-08-25T15:28:00.000-07:00

The drought in Texas has gone on so long and become so severe that it is actually capturing attention in the national press. In this week's New York Times online, for example, there is a long article about the use of prairie grasses in gardens around Austin where they have already had more than seventy days of 100 degree weather this summer and just about as little rain (or maybe less) as we have had. It's a well-written, well-documented piece and it may hold some of the answers for the future of gardening in an increasingly dry and hot environment as the planet continues to heat up.

I was interested to read in the piece about the bison which escaped from its pasture and high-tailed it over to the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center where it was able to munch on the stands of prairie grasses that grow there. I'd say that was one smart bison!

There was also a comment in the story about how "shallow-rooted crape myrtles" were suffering in the drought. I have to say that hasn't really been my experience with the crape myrtles in my yard. They have withstood the drought very well, but perhaps it is because of the difference between the soils of Austin as opposed to Southeast Texas.

There can be little doubt, however, that the plants that thrive best in our current trying conditions are the native plants that have acclimated to the area through millennia of evolution. And among those tough plants, some of the very toughest are the prairie grasses. We could do worse than to find a place for them in our gardens.

Wordless Wednesday: Backyard critters in August

2011-08-24T10:11:00.000-07:00

Time of the butterflies

2011-08-21T08:25:00.000-07:00

As the interminable drought of 2010-11 has dragged on, one of the things that has been most distressing to habitat gardeners has been the paucity of butterflies. Normally, in my area, from spring through autumn, we are treated to a constant but ever-changing kaleidoscope of colors from the bright wings of these most beautiful of insects. This year, not so much.

It seems evident that the drought and the increasing and unrelenting heat have impacted the insects' ability to successfully reproduce. I would guess that the eggs are being dried out and the embryos damaged and destroyed before they can hatch.

Whatever the cause, the absence of butterflies, particularly at this time of year when they are usually most plentiful, has been very noticeable. It's like missing an old friend. Moreover, unlike birds or other small critters that visit our gardens, there is not a lot that we can do to help butterflies, other than providing their food and host plants and a source of moisture for them, but if the insects simply aren't present, providing those things cannot increase their numbers.

With all of that as a background, it was with some delight that, during the past week, I noticed a definite increase in the number and variety of butterflies in my garden. On Wordless Wednesday, I showed you a Pipevine Swallowtail that was visiting the yard. Here are some others that have been present during the week.

The beauteous Gulf Fritillaries have returned, not in their usual abundance, but in twos, threes, and fours. Not a day went by last week when I didn't encounter them in the garden.

Fritillaries, like most butterflies, love tithonia.

Gulf Fritillary with partially open wings.

A Fritillary among the flame acanthus, another butterfly favorite.

If I had an actual favorite butterfly, it might be this one, the Giant Swallowtail. There have been one or two around the garden in the last few days and they always visit the citrus trees.

Also, I've had several of these Spicebush Swallowtails visiting. They are especially fond of the flame acanthus. Notice the double row of orange dots on the hind wing and contrast that with...

...the Pipevine Swallowtail which has only one row of the large orange dots.

Soon, the migrating Monarch butterflies should be passing through here and, often, at this time of year, we also get their cousins, the Queens, so we have much to look forward to and to look out for in coming weeks. I would expect the Monarchs' migration to have greatly reduced numbers this year, but when they arrive in my yard, they will find lush stands of butterfly weed that have had nothing to nibble on them since the ladybugs destroyed the last of the aphid hordes earlier this summer. If they need a place to deposit their eggs, the milkweed is waiting!

And the gardener is waiting and hoping. Let the time of the butterflies begin.

Wordless Wednesday: Pipevine Swallowtail and tithonia

2011-08-17T00:01:00.000-07:00

Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day - August 2011

2011-08-15T11:14:00.000-07:00

I look out at my garden as our long Texas drought grinds on and I think that I really have nothing to show you on this Bloom Day, but I dutifully take my camera in hand and head out to see what I can find. Come along with me out my back door and I'll show you the results of my search.

Just out the back door on the porch, yellow purslane brightens the space.

Nearby, the ancient abelia that I brought from my Aunt Marcelle's garden a few years ago is full of these dainty, creamy blooms.

The Mexican firebush (Hamelia patens) does appear to be spouting flames in the summer heat.

The crocosmias have been especially floriferous this summer, but now they are near the end of their run.

No blooms here, but a small collection of succulents on a backyard table is enjoying our dry summer.

As is a nearby planter filled with a variety of succulents.

The old canna that I always think of as the "Mrs. Lui" because it was she who gave me the first roots of the plant years ago blooms continually throughout the summer, in memory of that sweet neighbor.

And, of course, nothing stops the Turk's cap blooms, for which the hummingbirds are grateful.

The purple berries of the native beautyberry are ripening.

In another part of the garden, the berries of the white beautyberry glow in the shade.

My "cotton crop" is ripening, too. The white blossoms turn red as they age.

The tiny red blossoms of the cypress vine brighten one corner of the vegetable garden fence.

And the 'Mystic Spires' salvia, like most of the other salvias in the yard, blooms on in spite of the weather.

The canna 'Lucifer' has bloomed again and again since spring.

The odd blossoms of the porterweed attract bees and butterflies by the veggie garden fence.

And across the garden path from the porterweed, the bright fuchsia bracts of the bougainvillea are beginning to show their stuff.

Butterfly weed continues to bloom profusely but finds few butterflies to visit. The bees, though, love it.

The yellow bells of Esperanza shine in front of the leathery leaves of loquat.

Flame acanthus, undaunted bloomer, blooms when it rains and blooms when it doesn't. It will bloom until first frost.

The 'Pride of Barbados' has been a winner for me during the drought.

And I can always depend upon Tithonia, Mexican sunflower, to bring its fiery orange blooms to my summer garden.

Even though my garden is dry and is in survival mode, dropping leaves, wilting, receding before the scorching sun, in nearly every part of it, something blooms to keep hope alive.

Thank you for visiting my garden and don't forget to check out May Dreams Gardens for a list of all of this Bloom Day's participants. Happy Bloom Day to all!

The Green Corn Moon

2011-08-13T17:59:00.000-07:00

It's my favorite time of month once again - the time of the full moon.

For the last couple of nights, I've been out walking in the garden at night and looking up at the growing moon. It never fails to astonish me just how lovely it is and how lovely it makes everything here below appear in its soft white light. In the moonlight, even my parched garden looks lush as the leaves bask in an altogether friendly light that does not burn and dry.

This month's moon is really the first of three "harvest moons." In some areas of the country, harvest is under way in August. The traditional name for this month's full moon is the Green Corn Moon or the Grain Moon, in recognition of the beginning of the grain harvest. Some Native American tribes, those living around the Great Lakes and along the great rivers, had another name for it - the Sturgeon Moon. This was the month when that giant fish was most easily caught.

But whatever name it is known by, the full moon marks the passage of time. That seems especially poignant and bittersweet to me since I marked my birthday just a few days ago. How many of these Sturgeon/Grain/Green Corns Moons have I looked upon? I'm not telling! More than I care to count.

Each full moon marks another step through the year and through the seasons. We'll have one more full moon in summer and then we'll be marking the autumnal equinox. We can only hope that by then this terrible summer of weather will be in our rear view mirror, but there are no guarantees. Sometimes our summers pay no attention to the calendar and extend right into October. The way things have gone this year, I would fully expect this to be one of those years when that happens.

But never mind that now. The sun has dipped below the horizon and in a little while the Green Corn Moon will be rising. Even though the corn harvest in Texas this year has been mostly nonexistent, under the light of the moon tonight, we can forget all that for a little while. Forget the drought and the heat and the crop failures. Forget the inevitable birthdays. Look up and smile and for a while, just enjoy BEING.

Wordless Wednesday: Balance

2011-08-10T06:48:00.000-07:00

Critters and the drought

2011-08-08T17:45:00.000-07:00

In my own yard, my drought has been going on for over a year now. June 2010 was the last month in which we had normal rainfall, and the drought combined with triple digit temperatures day after day is putting a lot of pressure on the animals which live in and around my yard.

Lately, we see raccoons regularly during daylight hours. These normally nocturnal visitors evidently are not able to find sufficient food at night and are having to venture out during the day. There was a litter of four baby raccoons that were born and grew to juvenile status around our yard. For a while, I continued to see all four of them together. Then there were two that were still foraging in the yard. Now there is only one left. The other three have either moved on to other territories or something unfortunate has happened to them. The one that is left is the smallest one of the litter and is still only about half grown. He takes refuge under our garden shed and comes out to cadge dry cat food or other scraps that I leave out for him. (I don't really approve of feeding raccoons and I don't recommend it. This one just looked so thin and pathetic I couldn't help myself. He does look healthier now and I'll have to wean him soon.)

Turtles are another matter. I don't have any qualms about providing tidbits of food for them. Long-time readers of the blog may remember Sam Box, the female box turtle that lived in our backyard for over 20 years and often visited our little back porch/patio to get treats.

Sam Box in the summer of 2009, the last summer that we saw her.

Sam never turned up last year and hasn't been seen this year either. I must assume that she no longer walks among us. Box turtles are highly territorial so it is inconceivable that she would have wandered away. I think she had probably reached the end of her long lifespan. But she did not leave us turtle-less. Last summer, a tiny baby box turtle turned up in the yard and followed the same routine as Sam, coming to the back porch for handouts. I dubbed him "Son of Sam," later shortened to Samson, and this summer he has returned. When I am late getting up, as I was this morning, I will often find him already on the back porch waiting for his treat.

Samson - Little Sammy.

Of course, the great majority of critters that visit my yard have feathers, and we've definitely seen more of them than we usually do this summer. Normally, during summer the birdfeeders are fairly quiet. Not this year. I refill the feeders every couple of days and the birdbaths every day and the seeds and water disappear as if by magic. One of my birdfeeders is available to squirrels as well and that feeder empties in a day, sometimes in a few hours.

The drought does not seem to have hampered the lizard, toad, and frog populations. I see plenty of them - of all sizes - every day as I go about my tasks. However, I think it has definitely affected the butterfly population. Usually, by this time of summer, the yard would be full of their fluttering wings. This year, not so much, which is why I was so happy to see this beauty today.

Spicebush Swallowtail butterfly feeding on tithonia, Mexican sunflower, today.

Perhaps she is a harbinger of more to come.

The drought and the heat have been very hard on our gardens and very hard on us, but it has definitely taken a toll on wildlife as well. While I tend to be in the camp of those who advise non-interference with the processes of Nature, this is an exceptional time and I don't yet have it in me to be able to watch an animal starve when I might be able to help it. So, I'll continue for at least a while longer to leave scraps around for the hungry raccoon under my garden shed and I'll keep filling the birdfeeders as often as they empty and turn a blind eye to the thievery of the squirrels. And, of course, I'll make sure Little Sammy has his treats and that all the critters have plenty of fresh, clean water every day.

It's tough out there and just now going the extra mile to help our fellow creatures who share our yards seems the right thing to do.

Weeds: The plants we love to hate

2011-08-06T10:31:00.000-07:00

Richard Mabey loves weeds. He admires their tenacity, exuberance, and ingenuity, their ability to lodge themselves in the most unlikely places (Ever seen a dandelion growing in a crack in the sidewalk pavement?) and to thrive there. Weeds are survivors and if we can get past our prejudices, Mabey thinks we might just learn a lot from them.

To help us in the process of that learning, he has written a book, Weeds: In Defense of Nature's Most Unloved Plants. Since Mabey is billed as "Britain's foremost nature writer," maybe we should listen to him.

The book is a comprehensive survey of the biological and cultural history of weeds in art, folklore, literature, and medicine. As Mabey points out, when land is stripped and shattered by natural or man-made disasters, the first colonizers to return are weeds. They stabilize the soil and curb water loss. They also provide shelter for other plants, as well as food and shelter for animals. Mabey says that after the end of World War II, a survey was done of bomb craters in London and 126 different plant species were found growing in them, stabilizing the damaged soil and preventing the runoff of water.

Of course, throughout history, weeds have served as food, fuel, medicine, dyes, and building materials for humans, and, also, for a variety of other animals including insects, birds, and mammals. Weed seeds have been spread around the world by human activity and many weeds have evolved to mimic the size, shape, height, and coloring of plants favored by humans for food, thus enhancing their chances of avoiding the hoe or the scythe or the gardener's fingers.

No matter how much gardeners and farmers may gnash their teeth and wring their hands over the presence of weeds in their plots, the plain truth is that weeds are indomitable. They are here to stay, and perhaps we would do well to adjust our perspective of them. They may be considered invaders in our petunia bed, but they are, in fact, a part of the heritage and legacy of a place, and surely they deserve some respect for that.

And if you are still unimpressed, here is a philosophical take that Mabey has on his subject: Pulling weeds from the earth builds human character! Even in their removal and death, they possess the Zen-like ability to slow us down, give us time to meditate, and, in short, to improve human nature. The next time I'm struggling to remove those damnable pepper vines that grow everywhere in my yard, I'll try to remember that I'm being "improved" by the process.

My Nicky

2011-08-04T08:49:00.000-07:00

Nicholas

2001 - 2011

Ten years was much too brief a time.

Best of cats.

My baby.

R.I.P.