August and I were out in the yard chatting with our neighbor when we witnessed a large group of crows in pursuit of a larger bird which looked to us like an owl. Could it be?
Brandon heard the commotion, ran outside, jumped into his jeep to follow them where they appeared to have flown a few streets over, verifying the barn owl sighting.
Hooray for spontaneous early morning events!
Turk's cap (Malvaviscus drummondii 'Pam Puryear') was one of the first items I planted at our house when we moved in around this time last year.
Many Texans are familiar with the red version, but the pink flowers provide a lovely contrast to our house's blue-green trim.
Blooming happily through summer and fall, it tolerates the morning shade and the scorching afternoon sun that this location dictates.
Through our living room window, we enjoyed watching hummingbirds visit the flowers during the miserable summer when we spent much of our time indoors.
Since it works so well in difficult locations like I described, I somewhat randomly added another on the side of the house in spring.
With my background in art, I'm ashamed at how long it takes for me to grasp and utilize basic design concepts, such as repetition.
This fall, finally realizing that the lovely effects of this plant would have more impact if repeated all along the front of the house, I added another in this bed, one on the other side and one near a window in back.
In another design blunder, I had orignally placed this Chinese fringe flower (Loropetulum chinense 'Plum Delight') on the other side of the walk where I immediately feared it getting too large.
It's possible that it would've never occured to me to move it to the giant gap on this side unless my dear husband hadn't suggested it! Thank you, Brandon.
Our large Abelia shrubs have provided nectar to migrating monarchs.
At one time, I counted up to seven butterflies.
Since the spring, the large old-fashioned Abelia has lured bees, hummingbirds and butterflies to our yard.
With almost no effort, my first batch of compost is ready!
Using my lazy method it took about a year. I simply dump yard debris and kitchen scraps as they accumulate. Last fall, I saved two large brown paper bags of leaves so I layer them over mushy kitchen scraps to keep a decent carbon/nitrogen ratio.
This pile was turned just once when I moved my first bin farther back in the yard, but otherwise it has broken down on it's own. I added a second bin so I could leave one alone to rot. The lazy process would be somewhat faster if I could keep the pile moist. I occasionally leave a sprinkler on the bins, but they are generally out of sight, out of mind.
In all my flower beds around the yard, I dumped about six buckets of mostly finshed compost. At one point, I noticed an anole lizard on the wall of the house watching me as I spread. He jumped down twice and gobbled small beetles that were mixed in with the other organic matter. To make plants and other creatures happy with what once was unwanted debris is very satisfying indeed!
This random coleus did beautifully this summer.
A couple of other ones I planted squinted in the sun for a few weeks, then died. This one got more shade and thrived.
Even though it looks unbalanced I can't pull it up.
This is my horrible looking post-summer garden.
Though I showed some annuals that looked ok all summer in close up photos, the big picture is rather ugly.
Drought stressed new plantings...
chlorotic foliage...
rotten flower buds...
fungal spots, rot...
more drought stress...
lawn issues...
thriving weeds...
and faded blooms. Overall, not a pretty picture.
But there are now signs of recovery: Lantana is blooming again.
My Julia Child rose, whose blooms were faded all summer, now have a lovely rich color.
New Salvia guarantica 'Black and Blue' planted to replace the gorgeous Centaurea that croaked in that spot. After deadheading, S. Mystic Spires' is pretty once again.
