An irruption of finches

 

I learned a new word this week :)

FlameLeaf Sumac in the fall!

 

Not Maximillian Sunflowers -- Plateau Goldeneye

Learned today they are Plateau Golden Eye 10.28.2024

 What I had thought were Maximillian Sunflowers, turn out to be Cowpen Daisies (Verbesina encelioides). Not a very exciting name, but I do love their mid October blooms!

Plateau Goldeneye  

Viguiera dentata

Toad Lily

This was a plant I picked up on clearance this spring.  I honestly didn't even know what it was, but I really loved its variegated leaves.  How awesome it is, when a plant you pick up for its foliage, also turns out to have a beautiful flower!

Glorious Fall

Fall is certainly a wonderful time for a Texas gardener.  And this Fall seems even better than  most. 

The heat left earlier than normal; we had a September full of rain, and while October proposes to be dry and clear with the cooler temps, watering is a manageable feat.  

And *everything* is in bloom!

When we first moved here, Dave threw a bunch of wildflower seeds on the ground. I honestly don't remember much coming up that first year, but now, every fall, for about two weeks, the whole area outside the fence explodes in yellow. I believe these are Maximilian Sunflowers.  For most fo the year, they are a sort of ugly weed, but ahhhh come October...

And the roses which have valiantly fought the heat all summer, are now showing their glory in the cooler temps!  Three weeks ago, this rose looks 95% dead, with only a few leaves left. 

Last fall, I planted this small little Lantana.  I honestly don't even remember where I got it from. It may have been the one that popped up in my asparagus bed that I transplanted.  It might have been one that I bought on clearance at Lowe's.  Where ever I got it from,  I know it was only a couple of inches tall.  

I planted it in an attempt to cover up a dead grass patch.  I added some Mexican feather grass and an Esperanza and then this spring added some Russian sage I had gotten on clearance.  Well, this Lantana has gotten *gigantic*.  It has swallowed the Esperanza and Feathergrass (I will need to transplant them further away next spring).  And it adds this great pop of color to what was a brown patch of dead grass.  Not to mention a wonderful home for lizards and feast for pollinators.

One of my favorite flowers this time of year is the Lion's Tail, they burst forth with firework-like orange bursts in the mid-fall. I have been working on this area for awhile.  I started with one bush, realized I wanted more for an impact, and have since purchased a number of others... that have all died.  Now, the one on the left is in its second (maybe third) year, and seems pretty established.  Last year, however, I had a white mist flower in front of it, and you couldn't even see the Lion Tail blooms.  So this spring, I moved the mist flower to a different bed, which gives these a lot more visibility.  Now I want to add some low flowers in front, to hide the stalky bottoms of this gorgeous bush... and I still want to add one more Lion's Tail next spring.  But for now, I am just happy to see the orange blooms!

View from my porch

Okay, so it is true, the morning glory has taken over, and i seriously need to get it under control, and ideally move it away from the garden.  But for now, i really love how it is climbing the light post.  The back porch has a very verdant feel, with the huge fire bush, even larger Esperanza and wall of leaning morning glory. A great place to enjoy the cool mornings!

And then there is, of course, my plumbago.  This is my all-time favorite plant. The one I have only been able to grow in this one spot. The dozen or so other plumbagos planted elsewhere have either perished in the hot summers, or frozen over the winter. But every fall, this guy shows his stuff.  My heart...

New Garden Bed

I planted a new garden bed where the old sandbox used to be.  I had some extra plants, and this area was another eye sore in the back yard. It isn't much to look at now, but I put the photo in, so I can compare how it grows over time.

It has some New Zealand flax, a Dwarf Pomegranate that I grew from a cutting, a Coralberry that I bought from Natural Gardener... a plant I have been wanting for awhile, some ruellia that had seeded in my asparagus garden, a Mexican bush sage cutting, a Rock Rose that I found on clearance and some lantana cuttings.  Not much to look at now, but all things start small :) I have the tomato cage on the Coralberry, because this sandy area was a favorite place for Domino to dig, and since the Coralberry is the one full price plant in the bed, I didn't want it to be dug up.

Obedient plant

Obedient Plant is this year's new love for me. I am not sure exactly when I bought this plant, but I know that it was prior to 2012.  So I have had it for a good long while.  And I must admit, I have never loved it. Or even really liked it, if I am to be honest.

The first year, I am sure, I had only one of them. And this is a plant that really needs a mass planting.  One Obedient Plant looks ridiculous - standing tall and alone with one little bloom on top. But, after the first year, I had many more. This plant seems to take over where ever I plant it, sometimes killing the nearby plants. Its roots are insidious,  lurking an inch below the ground, and spiraling out everywhere.

It looks stalky and ugly until late summer when it blooms.  But usually by that time, I am so exasperated by it that I have quit watering it, so it doesn't even really bloom.

Okay, and this is a bit absurd, but its full name is "Fall Obedient Plant"... and so when it starts blooming in August, I have always felt a little nervous:  but wait, you shouldn't be blooming now.  Silly, I know.

I remember telling my mom that I bought this new plant and her one comment was, "That plant is not very obedient."  And I quickly learned what she meant.

I have moved it from my front porch bed, to my backyard shade bed (where it never did well - apparently its one requirement is sun), and then I put some in my front bed.  And I have always regretted planting it in its new location.

Well, this year, when I planted my solar garden, I filled it with the plants I knew I couldn't kill, the ones that lived despite my mistakes. To be honest, I was sort of filling up holes with plants I already had.

So, I dug up a bunch of these and planted them in this bed.  Since I was just starting this bed, the plants in it have received a lot of care and water... and this plant has just flourished.  We are now in mid-July, and I have fallen in love with its tall purple spires.  I have a number of yellow summer heat-loving plants, but not a whole lot of other colors, and I find this plant as a color contrast to what I already have.

Now, truly, in a year, I may be writing that I regret putting this plant in the solar bed, as it has taken over the whole bed... But for now, I will enjoy its beauty :)

July Flowers

The start of hell season in Texas, I thought I'd capture some of the flowers that are glowing this morning, before the 100 degree temps really hit.

The South back side of my front garden always shines this time of year.  Both the Brazilian and regular Rock Roses are in full bloom, as is the purple skullcap.

And nothing says summer quite as well as a Pride of Barbados in bloom!

Gregg's Mist flower has its misty little flower in bloom as well.

My coneflowers are always late to bloom, for some reason.  But that just means they look fantastic up against the blooming Esperanza :)

And this little verbena that I transplanted from the nearby grass also adds some color.

And the Englemann daisies that were also late to bloom, are still adding their pop of yellow.

My new Mutablis rose is still small, and somewhat overshadowed by the wild Evening Primrose that I decided to keep in the bed.  But I know this beautiful rose will soon grow much larger, leaving the primroses to glow it its feet :)

Of all the gardens I have built, this new solar garden has grown up and given me joy earlier than any other bed.  I am not sure why, but this garden is filled with flowers in just the first few months.  i love looking over the yard, to an area that was always a brown eyesore, and instead seeing all of these glowing colors!