Some new plants for the front bed

My mom was in town, and as we both love gardening, we picked up some new plants for the front bed.  She is from the Northeast, so many of the plants that she adores, just don't grow down here... but I am always willing to give them a try.  Maybe one day one of her favorites will actually take root and live.  Then again, maybe not.  Philadelphia is a lot different than Texas ;o)

Probably her favorite plant is Delphinium. She has given me Delphinium seeds before (nothing grew). But we were walking through Home Depot, and saw a potted plant. Now, everything I read says this little guy needs more water than we get here, but she really loves it, and it really is a gorgeous shade of blue. It may not make it through the summer, but I will enjoy it until then!

She also recommended Portulaca, which apparently reseeds each year in her garden.  No one at the Natural Gardener had ever heard of it reseeding here in Texas, but again, I think it will look nice for a year.  So we bought three small plants. I will look at it and remember her visit here.

Those were her choices.

My choices - all native or at least well-adapted for Texas.  Non-native plants just take more care and time then I seem to give.

I picked up two one-gallon Bamboo Muhlys that I have been wanting for awhile (the 5 gallon pots available last year were more work and dollars than I wanted to spend) as well as two tiny Mexican Feather Grass. My first Feather Grass actually came hidden in a pot with a different plant (that I have long since killed). 

And then last year, I transplanted a small off-shoot from that original hider.  I really love the look of these plants, so when I saw two very small pots of them, I took both.

My mom also wanted me to spread some Alyssum seeds.  Now, I have a hard enough time keeping plants alive -- but I have NEVER managed to grow anything from seeds (okay - some vegetables, but no flowering plants) But hey - I'll give anything a try.

We also found three unusual looking dianthus called Amazon Neon Duo Dianthus.  They had much larger leaves than I am used to.  We picked up three of them, and will see how they do.