Author: tim

Reasons to sign up for the Wildflower Email

Bluestem Pricklypoppy

On the way to the bus on Monday I took a photo of this super-cool wildflower. The flower is amazing, even if the stem is a bit too baroque for my taste. I was going to ask my gardening friends about it, but I just got an email from the Wildflower Center highlighting it with “What’s in Bloom Now”.

The stem is very blue, and that yellow puffball in the center is very dramatic.

It’s called Bluestem Pricklypoppy. So now that you know too, you should consider heading over to the Wildflower Center and joining if you haven’t already.

Dividing a Yucca

On Facebook Robin of Getting Grounded asked for everyone’s favorite shade perennials. Pam of Digging suggested Pale Leaf Yucca. After looking at her plants and my plants I’m not sure what exactly I have. I got it from my parent-in-law’s land and planted it years ago. But in any case I got motivated to go out and thin that yucca out.

I ended up with four plants where I previously had one.

And seven rather substantial ones to give away. Clearly it needed thinning.

I ended up also cleaning out my lower garden. I think it looks fairly nice at this time of year.

As does the main part of the front yard. I really value having so much structure and color at this time of year, and there’s so much wildlife using the shrubs for cover and picking off seeds.

Bloom Day – January 2018

So here we are on a very bizarre Bloom Day. First off – the blooms!

We had a couple Bluebonnets.

And I found a lone verbena.

But the fear of tomorrows high in the 20s couldn’t keep us inside on this lovely day in the high 60s. So off to the Ladybird Wildflower Center we went.

We improperly operate exercise machines.

Found a sculpture that in other seasons is hidden in tall grass, much like the birds it portrays .

Built a shelter of dubious quality.

And sat on a bench trying to decide where in our yard could accommodate this lovely tree (or three).

The school hasn’t called yet, but it’s looking like we’ll be stuck inside for at least a day this week. But it was nice to get out while we can.

 

Christmas at Big Bend

We had a fantastic opportunity drop into our lap. A friend had 3 days reserved at the Chisos Mountain Lodge. So off to Big Bend we went for Christmas. I, of course, drove my family a bit batty taking pictures of plants. It was an amazing trip and I was shocked by the amount of variety. The Pine Woods and Guadalupe River were so different from the more expected desert areas.

I’ve labeled most of what I can. If you know a plant or I’ve mislabeled please leave me a comment!

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Build a Plant Bench

This year I actually remembered to bring in my plants. It’s a Christmas miracle!

Etta and I worked together and built this bench. Our friendly elf liked it so much she had to join in on the fun.

Here are the instructions if you’d like to build one of your own.

I already had:

  • a hand saw
  • a drill
  • a large-ish drill bit
  • a star drive bit for the lag screws

So at Lowes I purchased:

  • 1 6x6x8′ pressure treated beam
  • 4 of these bolts
  • 4 of these washers
  • 1 package of these legs

Once you get it home figure out how long you actually want the beam. Probably not eight feet. We went with about 65 inches. Mark where you want to cut it and then cut with a hand saw. Tedious, but it works.

Mark where you want the legs to sit and mark the holes with a sharpie. These legs are made to attach to a skateboard, but really two bolts on each side is all you need. I did them diagonally, two bolts on each side. Drill pilot holes with a fairly large drill bit, then screw in the bolts with the washer on the outside of the leg.

That’s it!