Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day

GBBD was yesterday, but I wanted to join in anyhow.



The daffodil and saucer magnolia blooms have already peaked, so I won't embarass myself with pics of their sad appearance; however, other plants - like the ranunculus asiaticus, Spanish lavender and euphorbia shown above - are just gettin' started.


Oh, and the dandelions are of course flowering like crazy. My tortoise can't eat all the ones I pluck and bring in to him.

Ready to Graduate

Next weekend, all of my little veggie seedlings will graduate to the garden. The varieties I had to restart have come along well.

Even though I usually avoid annuals like the plague (I always think of the Plant Delights t-shirt: "Friends don't let friends buy annuals"), I did start some annual flower seeds, including Calendula 'Oktoberfest' and Gentian Sage 'Cambridge Blue'.

The tomatoes are ready for planting too. This year, I'm trying a couple of hybrids for hotter climates: Orange King and Sun Leaper, plus returning to some old favorites: Early Girl, Black Pearl, and Red Lightning.

Fit for a Toad

I knew there were open pockets deep inside my compost bin, but I guess they were a little bigger and more cave-like than I thought...

After opening one of the ground-level sidedoors of the bin and scraping out some finished compost, I noticed several odd, white shapes deep in the hole. Sticking my shovel inside and knocking it around produced several of these gorgeous, portbello-sized mushrooms.

They sure looked tasty, but I wouldn't dare take that risk. So back into the bin they went.

The weather forecast finally allowed me to plant the four heirloom roses that have been languishing in containers in my sunroom all winter. They started leafing out weeks ago (I know, I know...not good), so I had to keep them inside until temperatures improved. Hopefully we'll be done with this snow stuff until next year.

The four roses, ordered from Heirloom Roses, were:

Midnight Blue

Julia's Rose

Remember Me

Scentimental

Kinda Purty

Ok, so, by Northern U.S. standards, it was a fairly pathetic dusting of snow that "crippled" the DFW metroplex last night. The snowfall was very pretty to watch as it came down, though.

I was worried about my lettuce sprouts in a container on the patio, but they seem to have bounced right back after the snow melted today.

Back On Track

Okay, back on track after another extended lull.

I must say, after a year of experiencing some personal stresses and tragedies, it's good to have the gardening bug back again. And man, I've got it back in a big way.

I'm writing for Dave's Garden on a regular basis, have adopted a second plot in our local community garden and have been planting in, and starting seeds for, my own garden at a crazy pace.

That last venture hasn't been so successful, unfortunately. While Mother Nature treated us to an unusually mild winter this year in North Central Texas (I don't think we ever got below 25°, which is uncommon), I did manage to misfire on the timing of planting some broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage sprouts.

After starting and nurturing them from seed in early February, my beautiful, robust little transplants went in the ground at the community garden last Saturday. I carefully mulched around them, and covered them with hoops and frost cloth. Monday came and brought with it 40mph winds and freezing temperatures - a double whammy that both blew off the frost cloth and froze my babies to the ground.

So, time to start again. I'll be a bit behind, but will graciously and politely ask Mother Nature for spring weather on the cool side. Let's see if she listens.

Still Here...

Good gosh, has it really been over two months since I posted here? Apparently so.

The Year of Weird Weather continues in North Central Texas. Flowers are still in bloom, and leaves remain on many of the trees. Some areas had a few snowflakes on Thanksgiving, but that's been it for the cold weather. To borrow the McDonald's tagline: I'm lovin' it.

I did find a great (and organic) landscaper to do the "big stuff" mentioned in an earlier post. It's been wonderful to have a new holes to fill and, of course, I've been doing just that. A gorgeous purple smoke tree now stands where the ugly mean yuccas once were. My bearded iris -- all 60+ of them, dug up and divided from the original 14 I'd planted three short years ago -- are now back in the ground and rebounding nicely around the new smoke tree. The Hakonechloa macra Beni Kaze is/was in the spot previously occupied by a large holly bush, but sadly it has since been munched to the ground by rabbits and/or rats.

I was worried that ripping out so many dense shrubs would discourage my winter bird friends from returning, but I've seen nearly all of them so far. The ruby-crowned kinglet has been enjoying the suet, plus a pair of chickadees and a white-throated sparrow are all back from last year. Haven't seen the downy woodpecker couple yet, but I'm sure they're just as mystified as us humans about the balmy weather.

I Know An Old Lady...

"I know an old lady who swallowed a fly;
I don't know why she swallowed a fly!
I guess she'll die!"

A lot of children still read Rose Bonne's story "I Know An Old Lady" -- surely one of the grimmest children's poems in existance. It's been cutesy-fied and cleaned up, of course. But a couple of years ago, my brother presented me with a fabulous gift: the 1961 hardback version that we had in our childhood, a book filled with the strange, abstract and wonderfully grotesque illustrations of Abner Graboff.

I look back on things like this and wonder how they influenced my life today, especially in my appreciation for creatures that so-called normal people find abhorrent.

For instance: I love spiders. Currently, we have a fabulous, gigantic cross spider on the outside of our kitchen window that I could watch for hours. I've dubbed her Shelob for her intimidating size (although she's only about 3" at full stretch and doesn't seem to have a taste for Hobbits).

It kind of breaks my heart to think of all the people who are scared enough by spiders to instantly squash or gas them at first site. These are incredibly beneficial insects...not to mention fascinating, strong and gifted. I think lately there are many times I would like to have eight appendages and eyes. And a pair of venomous fangs. heh.

But I digress. I have carried on to the point of boredom about how great spiders are. For you guys, it's like singing to the choir, right?

I am less loving of house flies, for sure. But that hasn't stopped me from stealing from the nasty pests for my Halloween costume this year; my husband and I are going to a party as the two morphed characters of the classic 1958 movie The Fly: the lab-coat wearing, claw-flashing, fly-headed creature (me, probably), and the fly-bodied man-headed being (hubby).



Believe it or not, I got the idea about a year ago after stripping off my black bra, tossing it toward my husband, and watching it land on and straddle his head like - you guessed it - a pair of fly's eyes.

Inspiration comes from the strangest places, doesn't it?

Recent Orders

While I obviously haven't been doing much gardening blogging lately, (too busy fretting about whether a certain mortgage lending company I now work for is going to stay afloat), it doesn't mean I haven't been thinking about gardening. And having a regular paycheck means I can buy plants again...woohoo!

Here's a look at some orders I've placed lately:

Dutch Gardens - I know...I am a bigtime sucker for ordering from these guys yet again...
Fire Of Love Tulip
Ginger Ale Heuchera
Coconut Lime Coneflower
Sumatra Amaryllis

Bluestone Perennials - The Centranthus aka Jupiter's Beard isn't available until Spring, which I'm really bummed about.
CentranthusRuber
Agastache Apricot Sprite
Nepeta Subsessillis
Achillea Terra Cotta
Achillea Walter Funke
Digitalis Obscura
Kniphofia uvaria Flamenco
Salvia East Friesland
Muscari Golden Fragrance
Gaura Corrie's Gold

White Flower Farm - I've never ordered from WFF before; they're a little pricey, but I had to have both of these coneflowers.
Echinacea purpurea Green Envy
Echinacea Tiki Torch
Grass Hakonechloa macra Beni Kaze
Festuca glauca Boulder Blue

Garden Crossings - The current special is great: free shipping on orders $75 and up. I like this company a lot anyway - their plants are always large and healthy and their website is simple but efficient.
Origanum Kent Beauty
Clematis Avante-Garde
Viola Black Magic
Echinacea Summer Sky
Itea Little Henry
Hosta Hanky Panky
Campanula Pink Octopus

It should be a busy fall. I've decided to go ahead and have some "big things" done in the yard around November 1. Namely, the removal of all of the remaining yuccas by the swimming pool, the holly bushes in the front, and a fairly large but nasty garbage-tree that got a horrendous case of bagworms. The bagworms were a pretty common problem around Dallas this year, but this particular tree has been the bane of both my neighbor's (it's apparently blocking his dish reception) and my existance for some time. So out it goes.

I'm not looking forward to the bill for any of this, but... *sucking in a deep breath*...it needs done.

On Dasher, On Skimmer, On Darner...uh...Blitzen?

Reading aloud the names of several common dragonflies sounds kind of like an Insect Santa calling his reindeer. All he needs is Rudolph, the Neon Skimmer to lead his pack...

This little fella -- a Blue Dasher, I believe -- was perched in the backyard and let me get close enough for this great shot:



I got this book as a gift a couple of years ago and really love it. Check it out, if you're a Southern gardener and a fan of dragonflies.

Jungle Fever

Yeah, I'm in Texas.

For awhile there, I was in doubt. Now...no. It's been 100° for a week, and we've got at least another week more to go.

That's all right, though. Everybody was expecting the heat to come. Sure as Karl Rove's resignation, we knew it would happen eventually.

Ok, here's a picture that begs a question similar to "do these pants make my butt look big?"

I'm wondering: does my backyard look jungle-y? I think it kind of does. (Although it's still not as obnoxious as it was a couple of years ago.)



The crossvine has gone crazy. The coleus are out of control. And I went a little nuts when I saw Home Depot finally got their Plumerias in.

Again, I'm pretty much fine with it. The drought is officially over in North Texas and I seriously doubt we will experience this kind of lush growth again for awhile. So, jungle-looking backyard? C'mon down.

New Nepenthes

Well, I might actually get some gardening in today...once the rain stops. Yes, more showers graced the Northern areas of the Dallas metroplex this morning. Temperatures had started creeping into the more August-like 90's lately, making for a bit of wilting among the smaller container plants, so a little drink from Mother Nature was welcome.

Since I start my new bigtime high-paying job on Monday (yey!), I allowed myself to splurge on this magnificent Nepenthes 'Miranda' that I spotted in Calloways. Actually, $26 wasn't a bad price for such a big specimen.



I always see the 'Alata' pitcher plants in stores and, being me, I wanted something a little different, especially after visiting Dotty Woodson's greenhouses recently and seeing her absolutely HUGE pitcher plants dangling spookily from the roof.

My Texas Star Hibiscus is doing pretty well despite being in a big pot. Once it's done blooming, I think it'll need to go in the ground. A few things in the Front Yard Garden Project have perished due to...wait for it...too much rain. Can you believe that? My 3'x3' rosemary bush is now a crisp brown. Two artemisias, an echinops and a kniphofia are gone too. Dang.



Of course, next year we'll probably return to our regularly scheduled drought and triple digit temps. But for now, I'm thinking swamp plants like the hibiscus might be appropriate.



Speaking of hibiscus, I have neglected to publicly thank my friend and fellow gardener Larry in NC (aka 'Daturapod') for sending me some lovely tropical and perennial hibiscus cuttings back in June. Larry was most generous in sharing these with me. I've got a cutting of that Hurricane Lily Hibiscus going for you now, Lar!

Sweet Potato, Sweet Boy

Here's a nice shot of my sweet potato vines and my second best boy...Alf the collie.

Air Traffic Control

Bumblebee Moth Hemaris diffinis

The air is abuzz with life these days. I sit on our patio and watch the activity in rapt fascination...until the mosquitoes find me.

Because of all the rain, the dragonflies are out in record numbers. So, it seems, are the butterflies and moths. The cicadas have started their chainsaw song, which brings the gigantic cicada killers out, swooping through the air with macho aplomb.

We have a particularly precocious hummingbird coming to the backyard this year. If you're anywhere near the feeder, she will hover for a moment, then slowly edge toward you, as if to say "Hello! How are ya? I'm getting a drink, is that ok?"

Miss Hummer and my old collie were practically nose-to-nose this morning as she said her hello's. Oh, what I wouldn't give for a camera in moments like that.

Cinnamon Basil Muffins

I am growing some cinnamon basil this year, but frankly, when it started thriving I wasn't sure what to do with it. Well, here's a recipe I found online. These muffins rock.

Cinnamon Basil Muffins

1/4 cup fresh cinnamon basil leaves
1/3 cup canola oil
1/2 cup sugar
1 egg
1 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 cup sour cream
1/4 cup milk
1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans

Puree cinnamon basil leaves with oil in blender. Combine with sugar and egg. Sift together flour and baking powder and add to oil mixture, then fold in remaining ingredients.

Bake at 400°F for 12-14 minutes or until lightly browned. Makes 12 regular sized muffins or six large muffins.

Courting Controversy...Well, Just a Little

I've been on an incredible Syd Barrett music binge lately...not sure why. The founding member of Pink Floyd died a little over a year ago at the age of 60.

Before a combination of drugs, psychosis and other illnesses took their toll, Syd Barrett was an accomplished painter and innovative musician. He was also something of a babe.

Syd still painted in his later, reclusive years. Turns out he enjoyed gardening too. (There are reports that Syd briefly held a job as a landscaper for an English estate. Apparently, a sudden thunderstorm caused him to throw down his tools, stomp off in a huff and never return. Buddy, I can relate to that feeling.)

When Syd Barrett's remaining belongings were auctioned off in the U.K. late last year, this hand-painted metal wheelbarrow was among them.

Were I rich and frivolous, I probably would have bid on it. There's something about the jaunty green body and red wheel that carries the same childlike but melancholy whimsy many of Syd's songs once did.

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Like many organic gardeners, when I saw RubberStuff® - the rubber mulch made from scrap tires - I automatically raised an eyebrow.

Last week, I bought two bags of it. Now, allow me to explain.



I am fortunate to have a beautiful atrium/sunroom in my house. Palms and dracaenas stretch 15 feet into the air. I overwinter my tropicals in the sunroom too.

Thing is, the plants come up right out of the ground; the border around the tiled floor is pure soil. I rarely have to water these plants (especially lately). However, the organic mulch I had was presenting a problem.

As organic materials are supposed to do, the mulch was breaking down. It was also holding in a lot of moisture, as it supposed to...but with that came some really moldy and musty smells.

For outside, that's fine. You want the organic breakdown to occur. But for my indoor sunroom, I found that rubber mulch was just the ticket.

The manufacturer - American Rubber Technologies (ART) - claims RubberStuff is non-toxic and 99% wire-free. It doesn't smell and it looks great. And if I ever need to remove it, I imagine the job will be a heckuva lot easier than it was to scrape off the old moldy bark mulch. Yuck.

We'll see how things go. If all of my plants die, you'll hear about it...and so will ART.

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Does anyone know if Raid has discontinued its Earth Options product line? I don't see any of them on their Web site anymore.

The products were supposed to be "plant-based" i.e. derived from clove oil. I was, and still remain, skeptical.

Two things I did come across on the Raid site which I found completely disgusting: the use of the phrase "Family of Products" - as in, gosh, we're family-friendly!

Even more appalling: The "Raid® Fun" page. Games and wallpapers for the kids to enjoy while Dad's busy poisoning the environment. Woo-hoo!

A Hearty Breakfast

I'm sure this isn't the biggest tomato you've ever seen, but it's probably the biggest one I've ever grown.

During my Master Gardener training a couple of years ago, our guest speaker on growing veggies suggested 'Kellogg's Breakfast' - a large, vigorous orange tomato. I tried them last year with little success, but this summer...wow!

I'm sure our constant rainfall has helped. No cracking and not much catfacing, conditions both caused by irregular watering.

The taste and texture of 'Kellogg's Breakfast' is marvelous too - sweet and firm. Yummy.

I haven't been down to the Community Garden in several weeks. The truck-sized mosquitoes scared me too much last time. I imagine my plot is a jungle by now...

Bite Me

The mosquitoes are horrible around DFW at the moment. Heavy, continuous rains have saturated the ground, thus creating the perfect environment for the little beasts.

I have been diligent in putting BT dunks in the birdbaths and emptying plant trays. I even sprinkled some BT crystals around the foundation of our house, where the skeeters really seem to congregate. But the BT takes awhile to work, and I want these bastards gone now.

I'm surprised the organic business hasn't come up with more to kill adult mosquitoes. Most are just repellents, like the awful-smelling garlic spray. I like the clove oil mixture, but it can hurt beneficial insects.

Bioganic is offering a peppermint oil-based flying insect spray at select Wal-Marts...but I imagine it is toxic to beneficials as well.

Tomato Gratin

Your tomatoes are ripening faster than you can eat 'em, right? Here's a great recipe (recently printed in The Dallas Morning News) that will help deplete your rapidly expanding crop. Be sure to use fresh basil from the herb garden too. I increased the cheese recommendation because I seem to be part mouse.

Tomato Gratin

9 or 10 tomatoes, any variety (red, green, etc.)
1/4 cup chicken-flavored stuffing mix
1/2 cup diced red onion or sliced green onions
10 leaves fresh basil, snipped with scissors
salt and pepper
1/3 stick butter, melted
3/4 cup 2% milk Kraft Italian cheese

Preheat oven to 350°F.
Rinse and core tomatoes, then cut into medium-sized slices.
Butter or spray an 8- or 9-inch square Pyrex dish, and arrange a layer of tomatoes in the pan. Sprinkle each layer with dry stuffing mix, onions, basil, salt and pepper. Repeat layers until you've used all the tomatoes. Drizzle with melted butter and top with dry stuffing mix and cheese.
Bake about 20 minutes or until hot. If using all green tomatoes, bake about 45 minutes.
Makes 4-6 servings

Bean Soup

This is a great recipe I adapted just slightly from The Menopause Diet; it's also good for all you low-carb dieters out there. Very high in fiber and pretty high in lean protein. Substitute cubed chicken for pork, or leave the meat out entirely, and it's probably still really good.

3 cans of different beans (butter, black, kidney, etc.)
2 celery stalks, chopped
1 can 14-1/2 oz. chicken broth
1-1/2 cups water
1 cup cubed cooked lean ham
2 or 3 average-sized tomatoes, chopped
1 large leek, chopped
1 tbl. fresh basil, chopped (or 1 tsp. dry basil leaves)
Black pepper, to taste

Drain and rinse the beans in a strainer. Put beans and all remaining ingredients in a large pot and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat and allow to simmer uncovered for about 30 minutes. Add more water if necessary.

Veggie Notes: I used my first harvest of fresh tomatoes for this recipe. I also had a couple of leftover leeks from my spring harvest (they keep quite a long time in the fridge) and they were excellent in this soup as an alternative to the usual onion-and-garlic combo.

Of course, you could also use your own homegrown beans, basil, and if you're really talented, celery.

Lamenting the First Generation of Indoor Children

This is just sad. And I think it's safe to assume there's a link between the facts in this story and the rising statistics of child obesity...

Getting Lost in the Great Outdoors
- Washington Post (may require registration)