Point of view - September edition

I looked at the calendar today and realized that September was ending and I had failed to give you my monthly "point of view" shots. I've been doing this series since January, with the exception of June when I was out of town, by pointing my camera in the same direction from basically the same spot each month, just to document how the garden changes through the year.

To see the views from previous months, just click on the links:

January

February

March

April

May

June (skipped)

July 

August 

And finally, here's what September looks like.

 Things still look fairly green here at the end of September.

 Just a slightly different angle, looking straight down the path.

 And walking a little ways down the path. By this time next month the Copper Canyon daisy on the left should be in bloom.

 A little farther down the path, you can see that the Hamelia patens in the distance is still in full bloom and that there are a few leaves on the ground that have fallen from the sycamore tree on the right.

Pointing the camera toward the right, you can see that the flame acanthus hedge has completely regenerated from the shearing I gave it a couple of months ago and it is in full bloom again. The lemon grass dominates the plantings by the little pond, and the leaves of the magnolia tree and the redbud tree obscure the view of the house.

Walking closer to the patio, you can see the Hamelia more clearly and also that the 'Tropicannas' are still in bloom.

The leaves on the deciduous trees are beginning to turn yellow and brown and a few have fallen. We usually don't get intense fall colors here. We just look up one day and the leaves have turned brown and fallen to the ground.

The next few weeks will see more noticeable changes in the garden as autumn's grip becomes firmer and as we get ready for what passes for winter here.

Point of view - August edition

I realize that I have been a very negligent garden blogger recently. Frankly, it seems that I have often been too busy gardening to find time to write about it. It has been a remarkably busy season.

But one thing that I have been trying to do consistently this year is show you my garden each month from a particular point of view, in order to illustrate how the garden changes and evolves through the year. The point that I chose to aim my camera from is just in front of my garden shed and looking back toward my house and my neighbor's backyard. If you click on each month below (except for June which I skipped), you can follow the changes to this part of my garden this year.

January

February

March

April

May

June - I didn't do a POV post since I was out of town.

July

And now, here's how this space looks in August.

The first thing you might notice is Bubba the garden cat who always wants to get into these shots. The second thing you might notice if you compare this to previous months is that the grass and some of the shrubs are beginning to look a bit yellow. The grass in particular is suffering from lack of water. Even the beds have not been watered as much as they would have liked. You might also be able to tell that some of the shrubs have been cut back severely. They had become overgrown and, also, this helps to encourage fall blooms.

A slightly different angle. Oh, you might also be able to see that the mulch has been renewed in the beds in the last month.

Walking down the path a bit farther. Oops, I just noticed I forgot to put away my tools before I began taking pictures. Oh, well, this is a working garden and if you walked into it any day you would probably see the garden cart, shovel, hoe, and hose out in plain view.

Pointing my camera to the right toward the pond, the magnolia tree and the house in the distance. Can you tell that the Anisacanthus wrightii hedge on the right has been cut back by about a third since last month? The shrubs were sprawling all over the place so as soon as they completed their cycle of bloom, I cut them 'way back. This was about three weeks ago and they've already grown since then. Soon they will be full of blooms again - more blooms than they would have had without the whacking they got.

Walking farther down the path, you can see some of the orange blooms of the 'Pride of Barbados' on the left. Orange is certainly the color of August in my garden. In the distance, just beyond the garden cart is the orange of the Hamelia patens or Mexican firebush which truly appears to be on fire with its many blossoms. Also, next to the patio, you can see the orange blooms of the 'Tropicannas.'

And just a bit closer, you can see the orange even better and Charlie the garden cat enjoying the shade of the sycamore tree on the right.

The lush growth period of the garden is over now and it has begun its slow decline into fall and winter. Some mornings when I step outside now the air feels almost fresh and brisk, with just a hint that autumn truly may be on its way. It can't come too soon for the garden or for me.

Point of view - July edition

Regular readers will remember that I started this project back in January. I was going to do pictures from a certain spot in the garden - I chose an area just in front of my garden shed - each month and post them here to show how the garden changes through the year.

I managed to take my pictures and post them every month up until June. In June, I was out of town in the middle of the month when I normally do this post and so just never got to do it. But now it's July and here I am again!

To remind yourself of what this area looked like in previous months, here are the links.

January

February

March

April

May

And now, here's July:

Standing in front of the garden shed and shooting down the path toward the house. These pictures were taken at mid-day today and so there are strong shadows and bright sunshine.

Same general area - just a slightly different angle.

Turning the camera to the right and shooting toward the house, you can see the lush growth of the plants around the pond on the left and the RAMPANT growth of the Anisacanthus wrightii (flame acanthus) hedge on the right. What you can't see is that the flame acanthus is full of various kinds of bees and butterflies and a couple of hummingbirds, all of which love those tiny orange flowers.

In the distance, you see crape myrtles in bloom.

Walking a bit closer to the house, you get a view of the patio and the plants around it.

Even though we are in a drought and I'm having to employ the sprinklers and the hose and watering can to keep plants from completely drying out, all of the plants that are well-established, the ones that have been in place for years, are growing like crazy and blooming like crazy. They are mostly very tough plants that can take the heat and drought, not to mention the humidity. I only wish the gardener were as well adapted!

Point of view - May edition

It's that time of month again - the time when I show you the view from a particular perspective in my garden. It happens to begin at a point about fifteen feet in front of my garden shed. I've been showing you this view each month, beginning in January, the idea being to show how the garden evolves over a year's time. To see the views from previous months, click on the name of the month you want to see.

January

February

March

April

Now, without further ado, here is the garden in May.

This is the long view, greener and lusher as you can see, and the old crape myrtle tree on the left is completely leafed out now and casts shade over the area. Both garden cats, Bubba in front and Charlie behind, managed to get into this shot.

Walking a bit closer, again, if you compare this to any of the previous months, you see much more vegetative growth.

 The big mounding shrub on the left with the tiny yellow blooms is Copper Canyon daisy. Charlie managed to get into the picture again, the camera hog!

 Closer still to the patio, you can tell that the new plants in the beds around the patio are growing and filling in.

Turning to the right and pointing the camera toward the house which is now almost obscured by vegetation, you can see one or two of the white blossoms on the old magnolia tree. The shrubbery at right is Anisacanthus wrightii, flame acanthus, which lives along my vegetable garden fence. It will soon be full of the orange tubular blossoms that hummingbirds and butterflies love so much.

That's what it looks like in May. I wonder what June will bring.

Point of view - April edition

Each month this year I have been showing you a particular view from a designated spot in my garden. It's the view that the camera sees from just in front of the garden shed, looking back toward the house. The idea is to show how the garden changes over a year's time, and I do plan to continue showing this view around this time each month throughout the year.

To see what the view looked like in January, click here; for February, click here; for March, click here. And now, here's the view for April.

The big changes you might notice here are the moss rock edging that has been added to the beds. The rocks give the beds and the garden as a whole more definition and interest, I think (and hope). Also, the old galvanized tub planters that were in front of the beds have been moved to another area of the garden and two large pots containing citrus trees have been put in their place. The pot on the left contains a Mexican thornless lime and the one on the right has a kumquat. The trees share their pots with some begonias for added color.

Walking a bit farther down the path toward the house, you can see that there has been considerable growth in the plants over the last month, and the yellow cestrum on the left is now in full bloom.

Turning the camera a bit to the right in the direction of the house shows more of the growth that has taken place in the last month.

Walking even closer to the house, you can see how the new patio and the beds around it have begun to evolve. Since I showed you Charlie the garden cat last month, it's only fair that Bubba, garden cat #2, gets into the shot this month.

Perhaps by May's "POV," the daylilies might be in bloom.

Point of view, March edition

Time again for a look at my backyard garden from a defined "point of view" as I have shown you in January and February. If you look back at last month's post, you can see how the view looked in both months. And here's what it looks like this month.

Greener still, as I think you can see, and some of the shrubby plants are bushier. Also, Charlie the garden cat decided to get into the picture.

The clear blue sky is typical of March.

When I walk down the path a bit, you get a view of the new patio. That pile of rocks that you see just this side of it marks the new fountain. I'll give you closer views of that later.

For a slightly different "point of view" from the same spot, if I point my camera to the right , you see the magnolia tree and the house, as well as the little pond and birdbath in the distance.

And, if the camera looks left, you see the wild hedge along the back fence and the bottle tree bed with its agaves, Mexican feather grass and Texas sage.

If we move in for a close up view of some of the plants along the path, you can see that the autumn sage is in bloom.

The Copper Canyon daisy that I pruned back severely in January is full of new growth.

The daylilies are sending up new leaves. Some of them will begin blooming as early as April.

'Pride of Barbados' dies back to its roots each winter and puts out new growth in spring. That's what's happening here. By summer it will be as tall as my head and full of orange blooms.

The yellow cestrum is just beginning to open its blooms. By next month, it will be full of these butterfly attractants.

And speaking of butterflies, the milkweed plants along the bed are putting out green shoots and will be open for business from the Monarchs in a few weeks, but, in the meantime, I do plan to get a few fully grown plants from the nursery to tide the butterflies over.

The new leaves shooting up from the amaryllis bulbs are well-grown and some already have flower buds. By next month, for sure, they will be in bloom.

Yes, April should provide more diverse colors than just various shades of green for our "point of view."

Point of view, February edition

After two days of rain, mist, and fog, finally today we are rewarded with a day of brilliant golden sunshine. And so, I am out in my backyard, two days late, to offer you my "point of view" shots for February. I think you'll see that not a lot has changed since January, but, trust me, big changes are coming!

Just as a reminder, I'll give you the January shots, too, for comparison.

 Looking at the backyard from my garden shed in January.

And in February. Well, the sun is shining - that's different. And you may be able to tell that much of the cleanup has been done on the two parallel beds that form the center of the picture, but there's not been a lot of growth yet. The grass is slightly greener. That's about all.

 January's view looking straight down the middle of the beds.

And February's view. Again, not much change can be seen.

January - standing between the two beds and looking back toward my house and my next-door neighbor's yard.

And February - standing in almost the same spot. Maybe a couple of feet closer to the house. I think you can see that the dead tops of the cannas around the little sycamore tree on the right have been cut down, but other than that, there are no drastic changes.

As I said, big changes are coming to the backyard. We're getting a new patio put in, which I'll be showing you when it's done, and that will have a ripple effect throughout the yard. Plus, even though you can't really see it in this month's shots, things are beginning to green up. I think March's "point of view" should look quite a bit different.