A few weeks ago the weather finally made its exit from the long, hot (seemingly) interminable Texas summer to a most welcome and agreeable autumn. As part of that climate morph, rain chances increase and native plants give thanks, opening their hearts with blooms galore. None do this with more flowery pizazz than Cenizo, Leucophyllum frutescens, also called Texas Barometer Bush. The purple blooms grace gardens throughout Texas and natural landscapes in West and Southwest Texas.
Some years ago, having always wanted this glorious shrub in my garden, I planted a Cenizo in the one spot that, in my otherwise too shady space, I thought would work for this sun lover. The shrub has done well, providing lush evergreen foliage where birds take cover and hunt for insects, and showy purple blooms–when weather conditions are amenable–for pollinators’ delights.
These outer limbs are covered with clusters of pinky-purply, bell-shaped goodness and appear to reach for the cool, blue sky!
For most of a week, my honeybees were all in for the nectar and pollen of the flowers.
I watched this little gal hang on to the bloom for several minutes.
I’m guessing she was just starting her bee work, as there was no pollen packed in her corbiculae, or pollen baskets, or (as I like to call them) pollen pantaloons. I moved on with my day and I’m sure that day she filled her pantaloons.
My Cenizo is a cultivar and I don’t recall its name. The true native grows silver foliage, along with the signature purple flowers. This plant, true native and cultivar, is a hardy grower, needing little water and providing for wildlife. Of course I wanted it in my garden!
I heard them late in the afternoon, recognizing the territorial we’re here, this is our space calls of the resident pair of Red-Shouldered Hawks, Buteo lineatus.
The male is the smaller of the two, beak wide open proudly and loudly proclaiming his ownership of the back neighbor’s tree.
The hawks never actually left the neighborhood after last season’s chicks fledged late in summer. I’ve seen them winging through the trees and soaring overhead, but that they’re poised together in a show solidarity as a mated pair suggests that they plan to stick around and raise another family. I’m wishing them good hunting and safe nesting, with a gentle plead that they leave alone the over-wintering songbirds and native resident birds. They are welcome to snatch any European Starlings, European House Sparrows, and rats for their meals.
Also back, though only passing through, are migrating Monarch Butterflies, Danaus plexippus.
I’ve seen a few individuals recently as they waft over the garden. Today several are spending time in my garden, refueling for their travels.
I hope to see more Monarchs (and other butterflies!) as these remarkable insects travel to their wintering grounds in Mexico. There is plenty, the garden abloom with pollinators’ delights, the Texas second spring having arrived.
To mark the 17th year of celebrating native plants of Texas each third week of October, I thought I’d profile a few of my favorites. That’s a bit of a joke, as at one time or another, I’ve designated all of the plants I grow in my garden as one of my favorite plants!
Turk’s Cap, Malvaviscus arboreusBlue Curls or Caterpillars, Phacelia congesta
I’m not a purest, I grow a number of plants that aren’t native to Texas and they really are some of my favorites. But Texas is a big place with a huge variety of flora and fauna and our native plants are–like all native plants everywhere–lovely, resilient, and special to this particular place on the Earth.
Rock Rose, Pavonia lasiopetalaRock Rose and Zexmenia, Wedelia acapulcensis var. hispida
I live in Central Texas, straddling two ecological regions: westward resides the Edwards Plateau, eastward sits the Blackland Prairie. My own garden profiles plants comfortable growing in both regions, though plants evolved in the Edwards Plateau generally need good drainage and full sun.
Spiderwort, TradescantiaLeft to right: Four Nerve Daisy, Tetraneuris scaposa, Engelmann’s Daisy, Engelmannia peristenia, Mexican Feathergrass, Nassella tenuissima
My garden’s soil is richer and deeper than in other parts of Austin, for which I’m grateful. I don’t augment my soil for trees, perennials, shrubs, or annuals: I dig, plant, sometimes toss a dab of compost over the dig site, then mulch and irrigate. From early in this gardening adventure I desired hardy plants which thrive in the native soil, with little fuss or bother.
I water sparingly. I don’t have a sprinkler system, but only a network of soaker hoses which “sweat” water to the root system of the plants. I hand water when I transplant, but only for the initial period of a few days or weeks, depending on the season. For established gardens, I irrigate only during the mid-to-latter part of summer. My back shady gardens receive only what nature delivers.
Gregg’s Mistflower, ConocliniumdissectumBeautyberry, Callicarpa americana
I plant for diversity, for wildlife, and for what can survive and thrive without constant care.
Hill Country Penstemon, Penstemon triflorusMealy Blue Sage or Henry Duelberg Sage, Salvia farinacea
For this post, I profiled perennials and shrubs. There exists a whole world of shade trees, smaller understory trees, and annual wildflowers which deserve their own story. Perhaps another time…
I view my gardens as separate communities, each growing with different combinations and textures, and exposure to sunlight. I allow those that re-seed to have their way–to a point–but take control when plant chaos threatens. After all, native plants are survivors and they reproduce prolifically for the future!
Native grasses, left to right: Big Muhly, Muhlenbergia lindheimeri, Gulf Muhly, Muhlenbergia capillaris, Little Bluestem, Schizachyrium scoparium
I plant what I find beautiful, but also requires little effort. I plant to support critter life: birds, insects, mammals, reptiles. I plant to limit water use. I plant for what brings me joy and a sense of place. Native plants fulfill all those requirements.
