Do or Do Not - You Can Always Try

I have discovered over the years that many gardening rules can be broken... or at least you try. It might cost you a plant or a few plants but one of the appealing parts of gardening is that it's a living palette and you, as the artist, can move the plants around as much as you like.

I often read that you are only supposed to transplant plants at certain times. Well, I've moved irises around in the spring, summer and fall. And when I bought my first [and so far only] home five years ago, I dug up every bulb I could in my rental cottage to take with me. And boy am I glad I did. The four feet tall magenta asiatic lilies bloomed that summer and I have never found these again in the big box stores. I also haunt the clearance racks of Lowe's regular and have gotten such great deals that I didn't care what month it was when I had to plant it. For example, I got a lovely white rose standard for 75% off at the end of last october and planted it immediately afterwards... and it's doing just fine as the central focal point in the center bed. Can't wait to see it bloom for the first time this spring!

Pictured below: Transplanted lilies and larkspur. All doing just fine in their new homes. Got dirt? Will fill!

If you don't succeed, try, try again.... this circular bed dug two years ago was supposed to be a herb circle. Well, I learned that first year that I can kill more herbs than I can grow. So year two daylilies, gaillardia, and shasta daisies were inserted into the bed along with the parsley, dill and cilantro - the herbs I did succeed in growing. Now it's just the circle bed and this year the dill and parsley are already coming back in full force. The cilantro I've had to reseed. And a beautiful rose bush that I scored for $2.50 from Lowe's along with that rose standard mentioned above made it through winter just fine. Course, we really had a mild winter so I probably just got lucky with this one. 

That plant I saw and wanted... then couldn't find. My co-worker bought a new house right before me and I discovered what looked like striped miniature hollyhocks in her backyard. Before I could make it back over to dig it up - since they were cleaning out this overgrown bed - her hubby had run over it with the mower. No more plant, wah! Two years later I found it at a local nursery and eagerly bought it and planted it along the back fence. This was a pricy plant for me, though I'm sure most folks would find the price reasonable. Anyway, it died by winter, 5 months later. Then I discovered that the nursery on the Texas Tech campus had this plant - the Zebrina mallow - growing in their strolling beds and collected a few seeds. Got nada. In case you're wondering why I didn't order the plant from a nursery the reason is simple - I kill over 50% of all plants I've ever ordered. The odds are just not in my favor. So I try to buy my plants from local nurseries and big box stores, which I know get a bad rap but for a gardener with a small wallet they really are great options for plant buying.

Finally find the mallow seeds at Sutherlands's two falls ago. Plants came up last spring but died down almost to the ground due to the drought. But this year might be my lucky year. Several healthy little plants are growing and I am excited to finally get some purple striped blossoms this summer. Some plants are worth the wait. [I am wondering when they'll finally get taller though. The seed packet said they'd get 3-4 feet tall. So far not even breaking 1 foot.]

Ever wonder why when you scatter seeds that nothing ever comes up or your plants don't reseed like they're supposed to? Maybe it's because you're using mulch. For three years I regularly mulched my beds to keep them clean looking and to keep down the weeds. Last year I didn't get around to it fast enough and bingo! suddenly I have tons of baby plants coming up in the fall and early spring. Pictured below are about 1/3 of the tall coreopsis plants that have reseeded themselves from last fall.

No more heavy mulching of the beds for me! I want my freebies for next year's garden. And I've discovered some plants reseed themselved several feet from their mother plants. For instance, today I dug up 5 purple salvias, 1 maroon scabiosa, and 1 gaillardia babies from the grass walkways and transplanted them into the various flower beds. The salvias particularly are really good about putting out offshoots or babies. More free plants, wahoo!

And sometimes the plant just win. I have tried to dig up this large hollyhock for two summers. The tap root is so deep I can't get it out. So I've decided to just let it flower this year and then try killing it again... and dig out all the reseeded plugs that will obviously result. Meanwhile I guess I'll need to transplant the two pincushion plants being overshadowed by this monster. Seriously, this thing is 3 feet x 3 feet, the widest hollyhock I've grown so far. This is growing around the small patio and this variety of hollyhock has reseeded itself around three sides of the patrio. The seeds get between the concrete and the grass and the tap roots are impossible to pull out. So I'll just go with the flow and enjoy the flowers in the summer... while I quietly plot it's death in the fall.

A few other quips of gardening wisdom. Bermuda grass is evil and always will be. It is next to impossible to remove when I'm creating a new flower bed and then sneaks back in before the season is out. Like coachroaches, you cannot truly kill Bermuda unless you pave over it. So I just have to continue to curse it regularly as I putter around in the beds.

True gardeners are plant collectors. We can't help it. We have to have as much as we can cram in the ground. Got a bare spot to fill? I'll cram a daylily, rose or salvia in it as soon as possible. Course, it will probably involve shoving the garden cat, Penny the Pill, out of the way as I'm doing it because as far as she's concerned a bare spot is grounds for rolling in the dirt... before she waddles over to roll on top of my plants. A fluffy bed of larkspur? Penny finds it to be a very comfortable place for a nap. Funnily enough, she can't stand the catnip which is running amuck in three of my beds. I only planted it in one!

And if you see a plant with the words "The plant you can't kill" written on it just spit on it and keep walking. It's only teasing you. For example, I've killed marigolds more times than I care to admit. I simply cannot grow this plant. And yes, the stupid plants did have that written across the pot. The only reason I want to grow it is that it reminds me of my late granny. She had a green thumb like nobody's business. I've inherited my semi-green thumb from her. So each spring I buy a marigold and hope that this is the year I can get granny's signature plant to grow... but deep down I know I'm going to kill it within 7 weeks. I guess I'm an ever hopefuly optimistic pessimist?

 And last, but not least, you should always wear either sunscreen or a hat while working in the spring/summer garden. A rule I'm constantly guilty of not doing. Yesterday it reached 82 degrees with a soft breeze. It didn't feel hot enough to get a sunburn but my lobster reflection in the mirror says otherwise. I so need some shade in the backyard! Even Penny wanted inside to take her afternoon nap.

Garden update

Wow, I did not realize how much time had passed since my last garden post.  Texas is still in pretty bad shape water-wise. According to the weather channel the state is about 73% in drought. There's even talk of one town reclaiming their sewage water for recycling for human use [Ewwww! Thank goodness it's not here.]  Many of our playa lakes have dried up or are on the verge of drying up. It's quite sad to drive by and see the birds scratching around searching for water. The two bird baths in my back garden are quite popular. I've had to place a large rock inside one to keep the larger birds from splash out half of the water as they bath themselves. Grackles are particulary messy and loud visitors. We finally received rain this past Thursday. Around 2-3 inches within an hour. We had only received 1.25 inches of the 12 inches we normally received by August when this latest ran occured. Talk about a god send! Now if only we could get more. My uncle in Florida offered to send some our way but unfortunately it doesn't work that way.

Another large problem that the drought has caused is the insurgence of the ant population. They're everywhere, in swarms, to the point where you can't walk with them all over the ground. Many people have had problems with them invading their homes in search of water. The organic ant bait I put out worked for about two days. The strong mint smell brought tears to my eyes but barely effected the ants. Go figure. Two weeks later I put out a ton of heavy duty ant/bug bait. That worked for about two weeks. The ants have bounced back so I guess I'll be baiting again soon. I estimate that about 80% of the "drought tolerant" plants I put in this spring have died. The picture below shows one bed's decline in July. Most of the daylilies have died. Thankfully others in more shaded spots are still hanging on so I should have some to transplant in the fall when the temperatures get below the 100s.

Despite the drought there have been some plants that are still blooming and charging on. This plant came up beside one of the Veronicas. I have no idea what it is and I'm hoping it's from one of the wildflower seed packets I scattered this spring and not some noxious weed taking hold of a flower bed.

I planted a ton of gladiolas this spring. Not even 10 have bloomed. Most of them had dried up before a bloom could appear. This peach one was lovely, pity the rest didn't make it.

I received twenty Costco mixed lily bulbs from one of my best friends. About half bloomed. The other half dried up before the stalks could really form strong leaves. Two of the ones pictured below made it and looked really nice mixed in with the Larkspur and Veronica. Hopefully they'll come back next year as lilies are my favorite flower.

Just about every herb I've planted I've killed. Whether I ignore it or baby it, I generally kill herbs. This oregano plant tucked underneath the plants above actually seems happy with it's location. It's spread over the edge of the pavers and has produced delicate little pink flowers that stand out underneath the taller plants.

Verbena is another plant that doesn't live more than two months in my garden, so I was quite happy to discover this little section had reseeded itself and bloomed just to the left of the oregano. This whole bed is in shade in the late afternoon and I suspect that's part of why several of the plants have done well during this miserable summer.

Behind the oregano is this Veronica Speedwell which has come back from last year. It's done quite well this summer and I've got to remember to buy more of these next time I go to the nursery. The chartreuse green and vivid purple make a very striking combination. The Larkspur has been hands down the best performer this spring through summer. I scattered the seeds all around so hopefully some will return next year.

Some of the dayliles bloomed well in June and mid-July. After that several died completely to the roots. The ones below are still hanging on. "Grape Magic's" large colorful blooms stand out across the yard.

However, I think my favorite this year is the "Romantic Rose" daylilies I planted this spring. I'd really like to spread these around the yard in the future. It's such a soft rose color that blends well with other colors.

The majority of the "Grape Magic" blooms are washed out due to the intense heat and sunglight of this summer.

The "Ditch Lilies" are probably the best performers of the dayliles in the garden. They've stood up to strong winds, intense heat and drought... and this one large plant has four babies coming up behind it. Now this is a plant worth growing in the garden.

Lastly, two of the three Rose of Sharon plants finally started to bloom at the end of July, despite the bushes dropping many of their leaves.

Morning Glory continues to reseed and grow no matter how much I pull them out. Love the flowers but hate the way the vines choke everything around them.

Fertilizer Friday - June 10, 2011

Today was an awesome day. By 5 pm the skies were dark, rolling thunder could be heard and then... it rained! The rain was thorough enough to give the ground a good soaking. It lasted less than half an hour but this was the most rain my garden has seen since October. I'd say it was at least a 1/3 of an inch that fell. Now if only we can get this at least once a week for the rest of the summer. Temperatures have been over the 100 mark numerous times in the past two weeks.

The strolling garden has been struggling under the intense heat and strong winds. I can't recall a spring/summer that has been this bad in the years that I've lived in West Texas. The rain today might be enough to prevent us from breaking the long standing record for drought here.

Below are some photos of the lilies that have bloomed in the last two weeks. This lemony-yellow Asiatic Lily is a lot lighter in person but I had to wait until dusk or early morning to snap the images due to the strong sunlight the rest of the time.

Sadly this lovely lily got some dirt splashed up on the petals during a very brief "mud storm" we received. A mud storm involves a lot of flying dirt, strong winds and very little rain. 

The lily above and this pink one with creamy centers were part of a summer lily packet one of my best friends sent me from Costco. The ones that have bloomed so far are wonderful. The winds have caused the pollen to stain most of the petals so I was not able to get really good blossom shots, unfortuantely. Also, several of the lilies have fried on the stalks so I don't know what they would have looked like. I'm hoping the bulbs of those can survive and rebloom next year. But without the stalks to photosynthesize the bulbs that's probably not going to happen.  :[

I think this might be one of the "Romantic Rose" daylilies I planted two months ago. It's kind of fried in this image but the petals should be more flat and lighter pink.

I can't remember the name of this daylily, which was waving so much in the wind I couldn't get a clear shot of it. Poor thing also really got hit with the pollen.

This daylily also got the pollen treatment. This one was bought at Home Depot and the tag was wrong because the one pictured was a bright pink with a picoteed center. So I don't know the correct name of it. However, it's a fabulous plant. It has a nice soft fragrance if you lean down close to it and it's a repeat bloomer. I think I read once that only maybe 10 percent of daylilies have a fragrance and are rebloomers. I was able to make divisions after the first year and hope to do some more this fall.

I'm not sure where I got this one from. Maybe from a colleague. Small blossom but fun punch of color.

This Asiatic Lily might be from the Costco packet. I don't recall seeing it before. Deep maroon color.

This beautiful deep orange-red Asiatic Lily is definately from the Costco packet. It's color would beckon me to come across the yard to get a closer look.

This one should be a darker maron color. The drying winds have stripped it of its color and petals. As this is the tallest of my asiatic lilies, not one of them a blossom that was able to keep all it petals long enough for me to photograph it. None of them grew as tall as previous years either, staying at least six inches under their normal 4 ft height.

The wind also ripped off several stalks of the "Ditch Lilies" in the spring and I wasn't sure I'd get any blossoms this year. Luckily several stalks shot up and replaced the ones I had to remove. These are the tallest of my daylilies and were given by a friend. She said these were called "Ditch Lilies" in the south because they grew wild in ditches along the side of roads. Hope to make some divisions of these in the fall.

After the much welcomed rain ceased, albeit way too soon, a promising rainbow shone in the sky.

Visit Tootsie Time to see who else is participating in "Fertilizer Friday" and showing off what's blooming in their gardens.

Drought

The three-day Memorial weekend was a waste for this gardener. It's been three days of 100+ temperatures and starting last night through today we've had strong winds whipping around, draining moisture from everything. I was able to deadhead and do some handwatering for about 2 hours early in the morning but that's about it. Even at 8 at night the high temperatures are holding so I've not been able to sit in the cottage bench with a cold iced tea and enjoy the view. Heck, even the birds seem to be hiding from the heat. I have been diligent in filling up the bird baths for the poor things.

Strolling by the beds I realized that the intense, non-stop heat has really done a number on my garden. Several of the Asiatic Lilies, most of which were planted this spring, have burns on the upper leaves. Less than half of these damaged lilies have been able to complete the flowering process. Only one flower bud survived on this stem. These two have afternoon shade and still they baked. 

In the ten years I've gardened in West Texas I've never had this difficult of a time with my plants. Several plants have already croaked, despite hand watering in the late evenings. About half the seeds I planted never took. The 15-25 cilantro and parsley seedlings were doing good then just turned brown and died this weekend. On the roses several of the leaves are turning into a crisp. The miniature rose above has the most incredible pink roses and I've been babying it in the hopes it will survive. It's twin is down to two stems and hardly any leaves. Wah! 

 A large patch of dayliles are suffering too. The buds are turning brown, drying out and falling off. The leaves are also turning yellow. Never had this happen before and I don't know if it's because of lack of water or the lack of rainwater - there's a difference because our water is hard. Rainwater is important because it doesn't have all the salt. And with barely an inch in almost 8 months the garden has been relying almost solely on our groundwater.
The buds on these Shasta Daisies are not doing so well either. They were divided last year to make two clumps. The other clump, which is literally maybe three feet from this clump is doing great. Both are getting handwater but I don't know why the first clump is not doing so well. At least it's leaves and stems are healthy. These plants are really important to the garden. They add height, coming in around three feet tall, add brightness in the evenings, and the butterflies love to land on the blossoms. So far there is definately a lack of butterflies compared to previous years. My dill plant actually matured and bloomed because there were no large groups of caterpillars munching on it. Love that the plant is doing well but I sure do miss the butterflies.

The holleyhocks are all shorter than previous years. None have gotten more than 4 feet tall. Normally the stalks and their flowers can be seen over the top of the 6 feet tall fence. A few of the stalks also split and collapsed this weekend, probably from the deadly combination of heat, wind and no rain.

On the upside, there's a 20% chance of rain tonight through tomorrow evening. That's huge around here. So, fingers crossed for a good, long shower with no hail. Life requires water... and a healthy garden requires life. Butterflies, bees and bird bring a garden to life. So, bring on the rain... PLEASE!

Bloomin' Wednesday

A little mid-week recap on what's bloomin' in the strolling garden:

 This lovely asiatic lily is new to the garden. I THINK it was one of 20 mixed lily bulbs my best friend sent me as a surprise gift following my shoulder surgery. Seated and very slowly planting with one hand while trying not to move the wrong way with the recovering shoulder was an interesting experience. It will totally be worth it to see all the different lilies blooming this year.

This very short asiatic lily was planted a month ago. It should come back taller and bigger each year. It was the first one to bloom this spring and the color popped from across the yard.

Three blossoms have opened up on the Bird of Paradise Bush. It'll be covered with blossoms for the next 4 weeks or so. The bees love this plant so if you're allergic to bees don't plant it anywhere near places you occupy often.

 I planted quite a few seeds this year and amazingly many of them took root. Only problem is I can't remember what the heck this plant is. Every day I stop by to see if it's bloomed but no luck so far. It looks a little like a gaillardia but I don't recall planting any of those. Oh well, something fun to look forward to!

And on a sad note, when I left for work this morning this tall stalk held up 7 small flower heads that would have been gorgeous pink daylilies. Bought this fragrant variety of reblooming daylily from Home Depot two years ago and already divided and replanted some this past fall. This clump was one of those divisions. Came home to a headless stalk, thanks to the strong winds today. So that's 7 blooms I won't see this year. As I do not own a wind turbine nor lease out my land for one I can honestly say that the wind sucks and I wish it would bug off... at least for a while. Sheesh! My lawn is covered with rose petals that have been ripped off the plants. You'd think there'd been a wedding under the three-legged gazebo.

Bloom Day for March, 2011

There's not much color yet in the garden to film for Garden Bloggers’ Bloom Day right now. Mostly everything's just green, which is much welcome after a winter that seems to have gone on forever. We're having summer-like weather this week in West Texas and the plants seem to be responding by doubling each day. The blue Scabiosas did so well in the small bed last year that I've already dug several up and planted them in the other beds. The only pink one I had died within the first two months.

A few of the Dianthus survived and this little one is the first to bloom.

About two-thirds of the Snapdragons croaked it seems.  This one plant is full of buds though so it will interesting to see if there's more colors than yellow on the plant.

 Candytuft is a plant I've never been successful in keeping alive to long. This one was planted two weeks ago. Hopefully it will still be alive a month from now. White is the main color I want to increase in the garden this year.

Finally got a decent shot of the yellow mini-rose I planted yesterday. Such a cheerful little thing.

The Daffodils are going to town in the garden. It was a bit hard to shoot them due to the breeze again.

There are lot of plants coming up everywhere that are announcing spring is here. The lilies are breaking through the ground and reaching for the sun. The Asiatics particularly are growing like weeds. I left a small portion of their stalks last year so that I wouldn't make the mistake of accidently digging up the bulbs again this year. In the background, the Irises and Daylilies are perking up too.

The Veronicas are leafing up and mounded up into small bushes now. Everyone should have these!

And the Morden Pinks (at least I think that's what it is, I have to find the tag for it) is coming up too.

And I know this isn't a plant but artwork adds color and fun to the garden. This piece caught my eye at Hobby Lobby and I plan to go back and pick up a few more of these metal flowers.

For more Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day, go to http://www.maydreamsgardens.com/