It's a Cool, Cool Summer! GBBD

It's been awhile since I posted and it's not because I've been busy working in my garden. No, I haven't been doing much outside at all. This most amazing Texas summer (so far...knock on wood) has been taking care of my yard for me. Regular rain along with cloudy, breezy days makes me feel like I'm on vacation. The barometer bush, seen below seems to have been in constant purplidge (I think I just made that up.)

Leucophyllum frutescens, Texas Sage, Texas Ranger, Silver Leaf, Barometer Bush, Purple Sage, Silverado, Cenzio has more common names than 2222.

Two of my Cenzio's do this, the others just bloom a light lavender color, sometime after the rains. According to what I've read the trigger is either humidity level or soil moisture...and it seems to be true either way.

The mound is becoming less visible as the ground covers continue to spread. I've got purslane, fernleaf verbena and Santolina along with various grasses and the Ocotillo, which is shy this year...lots of leaves, no blooms.


Thryallis, Golden Shower

Mexican Petunia, ruellia gets a bad rap for being invasive, and it is...but knowing that nothing can kill it makes it a favorite around here. This 'pink island' will be waist high by October...guaranteed.

Canna Lily

Tobasco pepper, Capsicum frutescens

Gregg's Mistflower, Conoclinium greggi

Birdii dorkus
So, this is what has become of my homestead TV. Common sense drove me indoors, away from the mosquitoes and air thick enough to swim in. We were blessed to have my brother take my girls for a month and we happened upon a wonderful carpenter so years of planning took shape. The window seat I'm sitting on was one of 3 built-in projects that gobbled up the better part of June. The former "studio" which has been re-named "The Bird Blind Bar" has become our favorite roost.

And here is the West Wall, the actual 'bar.' 7 years ago my beloved husband built the studio out of the existing screened in porch...the window bar, favoring the little coffee bar in Amsterdam where we decided to marry was planned that long ago. The window seat was an obvious need.
Check out my carpenter Bryan Thomas' new blog: btcountry.wordpress.com

And here she is, Ursala, our little Black Chinned Hummingbird that has stolen our heart!

Last Sunday we spent 6 hours drinking Peach Margarita's and documenting her comings and goings. My teen aged daughters were mortified, proclaimed us 'the biggest dorks EVER.' I've been called worse. She goes from the back feeder, over the house to the front and I believe she's built a nest in the American Elm...though until winter, when the foliage is gone, I won't be sure.

Turks Cap, Malvaviscus arboreus is one of Ursula's favorites

To date, I've yet to put out the sprinkler. After the loss of our Sycamore, I decided to let the grass go...it's St. Augustine, shade grass. It's mid-calf now and due to the rain and clouds shows no signs of stress, if not for the chiggers I'd be rolling in it.

And the Green Goddess has decided to don a lovely dress rather than give up! It looks like a crazy Carnival Tango get-up!

There seems to be a lot going on here, but what I'm showing is the height of the bronze fennel, nearly 5 ft tall!

My neighbor feeds the doves sunflower seeds, spreading the joy throughout the hood!

Red Yucca, another hummingbird favorite!

The most profuse tomato in my garden is Early Girl, she's got a dozen or so green ones holding on. The first to stop putting on fruit were the heirlooms, Purple Cherokee and Oaxacan Stripe. But this one, Green Stripe is still going. It's very flavorful and the skin pulls off at the slightest tug, but she's suffering seam splits along her color changes. All of them have this brown scarring.

Great year for eggplant!

Tickseed, Coreopsis Lanceolata found her way into my yard via neighbors.

I'm going to guess that this is a Julia Heliconian caterpillar, let me know if I'm wrong! It's near the Passionflower Vine, its host. This is one of the shy Silverado bushes that waits for wet feet to bloom. The Crape Myrtle's are still going strong!

Butterfly Weed, Tropical Milkweed Asclepias curassavica

We took a drive out to Fredericksburg this past Saturday and stopped in at Wildseed Farms
to pick up a hummingbird/butterfly mix and upon reading the label realized that there were just a few plants I was missing...according to them. So, I bought the mix and will put them out come October...we'll see how that goes. If you haven't been there, put it on your list. The hummingbirds were busy and butterflies amazing. They have a butterfly house, but we didn't drop the change to see what it was all about because the air was thick with them anyway.

I put in 3 bronze fennel plants last fall, this spring I ended up with 11. This one plant is the view outside my computer desk! I've been watching the swallowtails for nearly 2 months!

Passionflower Vine, host plant to the Gulf Fritillary finally bloomed. Randy gave me 3 babies last summer and I didn't think they'd make it. They not only made it, but they are popping up all over! The 'pillars have made skeletons out of several of the vines, but a few have survived into bloomage!

That's the update...there are lots more blooming things though:

Lavender

Hymenoxis

all of the Sage and Fennel

Indian Blanket

Skullcap

Buddleia

Plumbago

Second round of blooms on the Pride of Barbados

Rock Rose

Lambs Ear

Katrina Rose

Knock Out Rose

Belinda's Dream

Parsley

Oregano, and Mexican Oregano

Thyme

Society Garlic

Trailing Lantana

Chaste Tree

OOPS...forgot these:

Yarrow

coreopsis

Patrick's Abutilon

Curry

Cuphea (not the bat faced, but the "David" one...?)

Almond Verbena

New Golden Lantana

Next months Bloom Day will find me in the Davis Mountains counting hummingbirds with a group of Naturalists! I'm finding that my gardening interests are leaning farther toward sustenance and ecology and away from 'pretty plant' mindedness. I looove a gorgeous bloom but it's ever more precious when I learn how she fits into the greater web and I'm more impressed with strength and flexibility than ever.

Thank you Carol of May Dreams Gardens for hosting bloggers around the world! Check out her sight to see what's blooming anyplace on earth! And always,

Happy Gardening!

Putzing Around in the Rain

I got out to see what wonders the rain brought this morning and discovered about an inch and a half in the gauge.

The lichen on the old umbrella is gorgeous with the saturated light...unfortunately the photo doesn't do it justice.
Yes!

Full to the top! It's been empty for a few weeks now. The weekend forecast is calling for 102-104 degrees so who knows how long this will last, thank goodness I have 5 others.

Lonesome Dove out on the arm of the Sycamore.

Bird baths magically full...

And blooming fungi overnight!

Note to self...find out the name of this stuff that comes yearly...

The girls are going to Vienna and Cannes this summer for a month to see family, and I've spent the past week making my summer project list...this fence is getting more flowers and cacti. They represent the children on our block.

Friggin' squash vine borer! Fun-spoiler...dag-gum pain in the arse! Okay, I'm fine now.

I had to bolster up the tomatoes that have outgrown their cages with bamboo.

The peppers look lovely in the rain!

The 'pillars are out on the parsley, fennel and passion vine in hoards!

I love the delicate flowers of bronze fennel.

I quick transplanted a few things to the mound. Lambs ear had come up in the path out front along with some prairie verbena...I hope they like their new home.

The bean clinging to the corn stalk.

This is a measurement of two things...The size of the baby Redbud and also the height of the Mexican Petunia. It was nearly 3ft in the fall and it froze to the ground...first time in 3 years.

I had to rush in because it started raining again and I found BobCat and Persephone crashed out on the fainting couch enjoying a rainy day as I plan to!

Happy Gardening!