Early December garden update

The first two weeks of December have been dramatic. We have had warm humid sunny days, then cold, then warm, then back to cold and wet. Plants that grow well in Houston are tough!

Today I checked the Giant Granadilla to see how it was holding up. After all, we have had freezing temperatures and this is a tropical plant. There are 11 buds, 4 of which have actually opened! This is the first time the vine has flowered since its first year back in 2003. I doubt we will have fruit, but it is fun to see these giant flowers.

On our walk this morning, we discovered a treasure trove of discarded dianthus plants. The landscaper for the nearby office complex dumped a pile of plants in the empty field. By the time I spotted the pile, the marigolds had died. But there was an entire colony of pink and red dianthus thriving! So we hauled about 15 plants home and tucked them into the damp earth of the back garden. Dianthus are pretty hardy, and I have several plants that have survived for years. They suffer during the heat but if they are in a somewhat shaded location they will stumble through and then are in glory for the fall and winter months. Butterflies depend on their cheerful flowers for nectar, and I depend on them for a little color!

One of my crepe myrtles has gorgeous yellow leaves - a nice surprise. Houston isn't known for fall colors, and there is nothing else in the yard with color.

Tomorrow will be another humid day. Then we expect a cold front on Wednesday. I'm hoping for a freeze, to knock down the mosquito population! On the other hand, the giant granadilla will probably freeze back.

November in Houston - garden update

November in Houston is usually wonderful - the temps can range from warm to mild to cool, and we usually get some rain. Today is a warmish, humid day with sun peeking through the clouds and the promise of thunderstorms this afternoon.

I spent an hour pulling weeds in the garden (this time of year is the only time it's possible to get ahead of them) and noticed that my giant passionflower vine has quite a few buds! A nice surprise. Giant Granadilla source and photos

The fig tree is bravely producing fruit but the chances of it ripening are slim. We have had one ripe fruit from the fall flush.

The pineapple guava trees had LOTS of fruit this year, but they have all fallen off. Perhaps it was too cold, or too dry? Or maybe they needed some fertilizer. I've been lax in that department this year.

Most of the plants and trees have recovered from the hurricane damage they suffered during Ike. The crepe myrtles look less lush because all their leaves blew off and the time for growing leaves had pretty much passed. I still need to work on the climbing rose - it was severely blown around by the winds. That is a prickly job though, and I haven't taken the time to do it.

Inside the house I completed a second batch of limoncino. We should definitely have enough for years to come, now! Sometime in late December I will bottle the first batch and let it mellow. Now I am on the hunt for a good coffee liqueur recipe to use up the leftover vodka and grain alcohol. :)

our early summer garden

The Rangoon Creeper is the most spectacular plant in my garden right now - and will be for several weeks. I was introduced to this vine by the landscape designer that I hired to keep me from making very bad mistakes. It was definitely one of his two best suggestions (the other was the miniature agapanthus). The best thing about this vine is the way the color changes, from white in the morning to the bright rosy red that is in the picture below. In the evening, its strong sweet fragrance permeates the garden.

I've trained it over an arch in the back yard. In the photo below, the arch is spotlighted by the setting sun. On the other side is a pot planted with bronze fennel and a Giant Passion Flower vine given to me by my brother. The bronze fennel is a favorite with butterflies. I'm looking forward to seeing the giant passion flowers... there are 4 buds coming!

Early summer is of course the best time of year for many gardens, and that is certainly true of ours. As you can see, we have lots of blooming things, and this photo shows about half of the back garden. In our part of Houston we are in Zone 9, a semi-tropical zone. Which means that the passion flower stays out all year, as well as our orchids (not visible). The bougainvillea is nice this year (far left of photo) - I've finally wired it to the fence.

In the back right corner, we have a large Celeste fig tree, which has yielded one ripe fig so far (on May 10) this year. But it is completely loaded with ripening fruit. My goal is to get more than half harvested before the critters get to it.

You will notice the large green tree on the other side of our back fence. This is a pecan tree, source of much nourishment for the neighborhood squirrels. It has been heavily hacked by the guys who keep the electrical lines clear of interference, so the shape is a bit strange. I believe it is a native pecan, since it rarely seems to have trouble with worms or blight. Our neighbors to the east (on the right of this photo) also have a young pecan, but often it has those problems so it's probably a hybrid.

In the foreground, there is one of several crepe myrtles. This particular one is only 4 years old! It has gorgeous white papery flowers, exfoliating bark, and will eventually be almost 30 feet tall. Around its feet are Indian Blankets, Rudbeckia, miniature agapanthus, daylilies, a tiny fragrant pink rose from my friend Ev, and rosemary. There are also 2 strawberry guava trees which may someday actual ripen fruit. Meanwhile their powderpuff blossoms in spring are pretty.

These garden beds are only 4 years old, so I'm happy with our progress. I am not the most attentive gardener - weeding is something that gets done at odd times in the early morning cool or late evening dusk, all the while fighting off mosquitos. Watering is a pleasurable task, always done by hand. We water the grass in times of drought and certainly never fertilize it. The lawn has its share of bugs and patchiness, but St. Augustine grass is very hardy and can usually manage to outgrow anything. Our goal is a garden that more-or-less takes care of itself - and we are getting there!