An Easy Task

Posted on March 15, 2017 by Tina

It’s a simple chore, this business of observing the growing season’s debut, a chore that requires only looking out the window or strolling along the pathway. Each day brings new life in the form of opening blooms, wafting tree catkins, and emerging wildlife ready for their pollinating, nesting, and procreating work.

Golden groundsel, Packera obovata, brightens March with full-of-sunshine-beauty.

A variety of small pollinators are attracted to these sweet flowers. A tiny Miner(?) bee and her bee buddies are all over the shocking yellow blooms each day, this spring.

It looks like there might be a spider nearby–watch out little bees!

Crossvine, Bignonia capreolata, flush with terra cotta petals, beckon swiftly flying native metallic bees into alluring yellow throats.

The bees were too fast for me to photograph competently, but the blooms held their position. Crossvine is one of Central Texas’ earliest blossoming vines.

Thanks to spring breezes, the Crimson flowers of the Old Gay Hill rose are accompanied by the downed catkins of a neighboring Red Oak tree.

Pink is the true color of the Purple coneflower, Echinacea purpurea, just entering a long, glorious bloom cycle.

Another spring pink is the native to Central Texas, Hill Country penstemon, Penstemon triflorus.

The tubular flowers typically align along tall bloom spikes, though this spring, the whole apparatus of this particular specimen nestles close to the ground. The one currently in bloom waits for action from native bees, its stripes serving as a runway to a luscious nectar and pollen-filled destination.

Autumn sage, Salvia greggii, blooms in a variety of colors.

This coral beauty is a reliable spring and fall bloomer, taking a break during our toasty summers, though it maintains a tidy, evergreen form in the heat. Like so many other plants in my garden, the shrub is currently decorated with Red Oak. The troop of Horsefly-like Carpenter bees, Xylocopa tabaniformis, who reside in my garden have no trouble finding the sweet spot(s) of these lovely blooms.

Another blooming vine, the Coral honeysuckle, Lonicera sempervirens, is also a bee magnet.

Fortunately, this gorgeous bee (Sweat bee, Augochloropsis metallica ?) rested between forays into the flowers, allowing for its capture in photo form.

Blooms are boss and for a look at a spring-flowering festival, check out Carol’s May Dreams Gardens celebrating all things blooming this March.

Early Days

Posted on March 6, 2017 by Tina

Firmly ensconced in the early days of spring, the garden is flush with new foliage and floral growth, birds (and bees!) are building nests, and gardeners are keen for emerging possibilities. Here in Central Texas, we’ve forgotten that winter was a bust, with only two hard freezes for gardens and gardeners to endure. Now in March, it’s all flourish and blooming, hope and planning.

Central Texans love to talk weather and this year many are commenting that everything is early! But in my garden, things are mostly prompt in their materialization and that’s especially true of the native plants I grow. Evolved along with the capriciousness of Texas weather patterns, these hardy ones are right on schedule. Yes, the Mountain laurels bloomed somewhat early, in Austin anyhow. Those purple, drooping clusters are fading rapidly, their nectar and pollen contributions to bees and butterflies, and their gift of beauty and fragrance to human admirers, now concluded. It’s time for other spring flowers to enjoy their time in the sun.

The first columbines have opened in my garden. This is a hybrid between the native Yellow columbine, Aquilegia chrysantha and its cousin the Wild red columbine, A. canadensis.

When these two columbine kinds are planted in close proximity over a few years and with thanks to pollinators and probably, the wind, yellow flowers with a blush of red, results.

I don’t mind.

Blasts of sunny glee define these clusters of cheery Golden groundsel, Packera obovata.

My little stand has grown and expanded from two small plants to a nice carpet of evergreen, topped with spring-bright sunshine.

In autumn, I’ll pull some of these up and deliver them to a new home.

A garden is always better for more of these hardy native Texas perennials and the tiny native bees are also enthralled at their bounty.

Possibly a Ceratina sp., a small carpenter bee

Giant spiderwort, Tradescantia gigantea, pose in a range of purples.

A prolific bloomer, as well as re-seeder, I cull some of these (okay, lots of these) each spring, as well as gift as many as I can manage to unsuspecting, spiderwort-neophyte gardeners.

Astrud the Cat, seemingly unimpressed with the photographer, also contributes to spring color as she wears her lively collared accessory–her Birds be safe collar.

She’s mostly an indoor kitty, but likes to hang out with me and supervise my work in the garden. The theory behind these silly collars is that cats, who are efficient predators, are better seen by their prey–those birds we want in our gardens–if the cats have a spot of brilliant color to them. Cats’ fur doesn’t provide that bright coloration, but the patterned collars certainly oblige. Apparently, birds see colors well, even in dim light, so the collar (which fits easily over a regular bell collar) is an ideal warning that there is something hinky and possibly dangerous in the verge. We do want to protect the little foraging warblers and finches, don’t we? Of course, the best thing to do–for the safety of cats and their potential prey–is to keep cats indoors. Neither of my cats are birders, though they’ve both been guilty of catching the occasional lizard, for which they are verbally admonished, accompanied with wagging finger. Naughty kitties!

The collars flash brightness, they seem to work (insofar as the birds are concerned), and it’s also fun to laugh at the kitty wearing the clown collar.

Be it collar color or flower color, enjoy your garden: its birds, bees, and pets–and spring joy!

The Green of Spring

Posted on February 22, 2017 by Tina

Spring is springing here in Austin, Texas–and how! After a mild winter, punctuated by a few days and nights of low 20sF/-6 to -16C, fresh greens are poking out and peeking through, heralding a new year of plant growth and garden possibilities. It’s only the beginning of the Central Texas season of verdancy, but notable for its altering of the tawny and gray palette that is the Texas winter landscape.

Possumhaw holly, Ilex decidua, is flushing out new yellow-green foliage growth.

Buds of the tiny white flowers are developing at the base of the leaves.

Bark of this attractive small tree serves as elegant white scaffolding in an emerging sea of green, popped here and there by luscious red berries which haven’t yet been gobbled up by various wild critters.

The Possumhaw’s garden neighbor, an Almond verbena, Aloysia virgata, was an impulse buy for me some years ago and one I don’t regret. No berries on this small tree, but after each rainfall during the growing season, fragrant white blooms materialize and are friends to the pollinators. For now, its foliage blushes new, transforming to solid green when ready.

Another small native tree with multicolored foliage is my Texas smoke tree, Cotinus obovatus.

This one is a couple of years old and growing well, with foliage color year-round and sprigs of blossoms coming soon.

The Goldenball leadtree, Leucaena retusa, has sprouted its new greens against the clear blue sky.

Additionally, its koosh-like blooms will be ready for interested pollinators in the next month.

Budding blooms keep new foliage company.

Not as tall as the aforementioned wildlife-friendly trees is the shrub White mistflower, Ageratina havanensis, a semi-evergreen, sometime spring, and always fall bloomer, whose blooms are beloved by butterflies and bees alike.

Some leaves remained on my shrub after our hard freezes, but fresh foliage is quickly appearing to fill in the bare-limbed gaps.

Closer to the ground are the evergreen serrated leaves of the wildflower Golden groundsel, Packera obovata.

The oval leaves lend year-round groundcover beauty, but the lance-like and dramatically serrated leaves announce the pedicels that host cheery yellow blooms which will mature in the next month or so.

Turk’s cap, Malvaviscus arboreus, is awakening from its winter slumber, as well. It’s hard to imagine that this plant’s stems will grow to 5 or 6 feet by May.

This set of Turk’s cap leaves share space with a Giant spiderwort (Tradescantia gigantea).

A close-up shot shows a slight fuzz, which is part (only part!) of the reason that Turk’s cap is such a water-wise perennial.

I’m awaiting the vibrant blooms of the Red poppy, a reseeding annual, world-wide garden favorite and welcomed spring flower. Its foliage is beautiful,

…a gray-green, ruffly wonder in the unfolding spring garden, and in this case, hosting a green stink bug. Do you see it?

Whatever foliage you grow–bugs, or not–please check out Christina’s lovely Creating my own garden of the Hesperides Garden Bloggers’ Foliage Day. See interesting foliage from many gardens and many places, and then share your own leafy loveliness.

Additionally, many thanks to howtostartagarden.org for honoring ‘mygardenersays’ with a ‘Top Southwest Garden Blogs’ recognition. I’m honored and humbled.