What's blooming April 2014

That cool and occasionally moist winter sure has been kind to my garden, and it is coming into its full bloom;  maybe I should call that "fullest bloom" because there is something blooming every day of the year here, but this appears to be maximum number and intensity.  Here's an overall view:

The majority bloomer is the pale pink, whitish "buttercup" or "evening primrose", Latin name oenothera.  Better yet, its a Texas native and entirely a volunteer - I simply let the seedlings sprout and live where they are.  No planting by me and they seem to get more intense every year although I do nothing to multiply them. They are also covering up the milkweed that was "found" by the first major wave of migrating monarchs, whose stripey larvae have eaten them down to bare stalks.

Here's a more closeup view of the oenothera:

Here's a recent transplant (last fall).  This poor daylily was growing in fairly deep shade under the neighbor's orange tree overhanging my yard and amazing how it has responded to more light and less root competition.  Nice contrast to the yellow rose Nacogdoches whose intensity is a bit subdued in the photo even in the cloudy overcast when I took the photo.

 

Next rose up is Jane Bullock, a little later blooming than the others.  I like its foliage/bushy habit best of the roses here.  Its pale pink blooms fade to pink as they age, a really nice little rose.

 

 I believe this yellow bloom is a leonotis or a close relative.  Better look that one up so I can correctly identify it.  It's holding its own.

When it comes to fragrance, the white rose Jean d'Arc is my absolute favorite.  Its fragrance perfumes the entire front yard, and there's hardly a month when it doesn't have at least some blooms on it.  It's pretty well covered in blooms right now.

 The yellow lantana is just opening up.  I realized after I was looking at the photo that I also got, in the upper left corner, the succulent plant's 5-petal
star blooms as well.

Mexican salvia is just starting to bloom.  It's really grown over the winter, should be pretty spectacular when it too hits full stride.  Hummingbirds are coming through in increasing numbers, I'm sure this will be abuzz with them soon, as will several other hummingbird-attracting plants in the garden.

 Here's another self-seeding native:  Gulf coast penstemon.  It also chooses where and when it will grow;  this is peak blooming period and it will go more dormant as the heat comes on here in Texas.  Sigh, we know it's coming, makes the lovely temperatures right now so much better.  But that goes with the turf.
















Climbing rose "Old Blush climbing" is doing its thing too.  I'm still learning on climbers and how to manage them so it's still a bit wild looking but I'm trying to train it to those wires in front of my house.  I can't figure out why the bush seems so insistent about going through and behind the storm shutters in front of my window.  ????

Think Spring! Mid-February in Galveston

For my northeastern friends who are watching the snow fall, grow deeper and deeper, and prepare to drift, here's what's going on down here in Galveston today.

The orange harvest is nearing an end; as you can see, the competition for the last of the oranges is heating up between the critters and me;  this one the critters got before me, leaving only the empty shell.  Sorry to say, there are quite a few empty shells both on the ground and some still attached to the tree. 

There seems to be some disagreement between the thermometers;  under the tree it's reading 38;  the metal thermometer on the deck says it's 34.  Or maybe they are both right and there's that much of a difference between the two.

There are always some flowers blooming here;  how about the blue rosemary, the orange violas, and the more standard variety of narcissus now coming on full bore.

 The vegetable garden has some cold-tolerant goodies coming on too, here are my sugar peas just coming into full production.  Yum, the bigger pods will be part of lunch today:

Zootie and the birds have their own issues.  Here she is staunchly defending the bird feeders;  and you can see the birds staring back from the safety of the neighbor's orange tree or giving her some taunting chatter from the telephone wire 20' above her head.

 Doesn't take long after Zoot comes back inside for the birds to come back in droves, the smaller birds kicking seeds out of the feeders and the bigger ones, the pigeons and doves, to take up pecking on the ground. Squirrels participate too, it's a wild place I live in.  ????



And one more for you shivering folks, here are Ellen and Zootie taking in the Mardi Gras parade (Krewe of Barkus and Meoux) in 2011.  Ahhh, think of a warm day in the sun with the Gulf of Mexico in the background.  And that was February also.

Fall coming on to the garden

Finally cold fronts are beginning to arrive and the garden is having a burst of fall color, many of the plants resuscitating themselves from the summer heat and putting on quite a bloom.  The vegetable garden is going in;  second planting includes newly formed ratproof (I hope!) surroundings.  Here's what's blooming and growing right now:

Morning glories at their height at the end of October

As the weather cools the morning glories decline, and after several hours of work, they are removed so that cool weather plants, hopefully the sweet peas I just planted, will take their place on the trellis.

 Here is succession for the migrating monarchs.  They sure love the asclepias (milkweed) and there are always many of them flitting about.  If you look closely below the adult, you'll see the little green larva that will shortly become a butterfly itself.  When they are growing rapidly, the stalks of the milkweed are stripped to only their stems.

Fresh planted hanging basket

 Gotta look up the name of this shrub.  I can't resist occasionally purchasing plants I know little about just to see if they will grow and thrive.  This one has and as you can see, is blooming very nicely for me this time of year.

First paperwhite narcissus of the season!  I'm still amazed to see these plants blooming this time of year.  Growing up in Pennsylvania, the daffodils and narcissus sure weren't blooming much before April.

Red pentas

These justicias really surprised me with their size - and blooming in a high-sun area.  Thought they were supposed to be shade lovers

The yellow salvia madrensis just beginning to bloom, you can see the red lantanas and blue mistflower, white zinnias, still blooming.

 Two different blooms on the Rothschild lily.  Do they come in male/female blooms?  Why do they look so different?

Monarch butterfly on milkweed.  Note the green seedpod to the right.

 Battered butterfly on the yellow lantana just coming into its own.

RATS!  The devils ate all of my first planting of broccoli, cauliflower etc. so here is my attempt at keeping them OUT of the vegetable beds.  I wonder how big the plants will have to get to be left alone, but I fear not for a long time if at all.  Interestingly enough, they have not bothered the lettuce or the sugar peas that (so far) have made it up about 6".  The fig tree in the background is losing its leaves.

Satsumas coming on!  This bunch is on the tree in my backyard.  I've been taste testing the more-advanced ones on my neighbor's tree.  Still a bit tart but so much better than store bought.

morning garden report. 

sorry for 1 handed typing, arm in sling for several more weeks with shoulder surgery, but finally feeling well enough to go out and enjoy my garden.

the recently planted petunia is growing and blooming

oranges ripening on the tree

 love these sweet and fragrant stocks

where protected by wire, veggies are coming along;  parsley, cabbage, bok choy.  how long until scent of fresh grown produce is too much for rats/squirrels and they overcome defenses?  i hope never

 morning light on unprotected lettuce.  not enough calories to interest rodents?  the devils ate all germinating radishes.  love the red lettuce

 tail end of the eggplants.  will the tomatoes produce this fall, make it thru the winter?  basil hiding under the fragipani.  grow boxes can go inside if it gets frosty here.  no frost on the island last year

 supervisors.