This week in my Garden - August 17

Ripe Persimmons (sort of)

I have been watching my newly discovered Persimmon tree on a daily basis. And yesterday saw a black fruit that was sort of squishy. I thought I'd try my luck and wait just one more day! I came back today, and it had disappeared. Not surprising, as their is not much fruit available to our wildlife this time of year. But, I did learn online that Texas Persimmons will ripen off the tree. So I picked three mostly black but still hard persimmons, and put them on my inside windowsill. Since I am the only one in the household who has ever eaten a persimmon, I want the first time to be a sweet experience. So hopefully in a few days, they can give them a try, and will like them!

More Sweet Everlasting?

I have seen a few of these growing in the back lot, but wasn't sure what they were. Seek didn't provide any answers, but google thinks they might be Sweet Everlasting. Given the large number of Sweet Everlasting plants in the back, i am guessing that is correct. This Wikipedia article indicates the plant is a biennial, so next year it will shoot up. Seem believable, as compared to the biennial Standing Cypress I have grown. I will keep a watch over time to see if it shoots up.

I can't find much else about this plant online. But did find this site that says " The plant also gives off a wonderful maple syrup smell, making it a nice addition to any garden." Not something i noticed, even when taking cuttings from it (all of which failed)

This week in my garden - August 11

Smallflower Groundcherry
I have been watching my newly discovered Smallflower Groundcherry every time I go walk in the back wood. After coming back from vacation for two weeks, I was excited to see a small bloom on it.

And just a few days later, the bloom seems to be turning into, maybe, a small fruit?

I'll keep an eye on it over the next few weeks to see what develops!

The flower hangs upside down on the plant

And here is a nice article about groundcherries: https://www.backyardnature.net/n/h/physalis.htm

Gulf Coast Toads

We have been hearing a lot of frog song from my tiny pond recently. When I checked in on them this morning, I found two toads (Gulf Coast Toads, according to iNat). But, upon closer inspection, realized that there were actually three toads. 

The larger toad had a smaller toad on its back. A quick google search informed me that the smaller toad is the male, waiting for the larger female toad to release her eggs, so he can fertilize them externally. So, I am guessing that I might soon have some more tad poles in the pond :)

Flame Leaf Sumac

Our flame leaf sumac is in bloom. Hopefully that is a sign that summer is coming to an end, and fall will soon be here. 

Rain

An unexpected rain shower in August in Texas is a glorious thing!!

We had an unexpected thunderstorm yesterday afternoon. We had some thunder, and even lost power for a bit. This was a very localized cell. I always feel like we are under a rain dome, with the storms hitting all around us. But yesterday, we were the beneficiary. I don't think we got the 1.77 inches that someone in Oak Hill reported, but I believe we got half an inch!  Everything looks very happy right now.