Pages

Sunday, January 7, 2018

(Belated) September successes!

[Posts two days in a row, who am I??] Back in June I did a post here about the front garden overhaul, which was facilitated by the neighbor's realtor deciding to cut down a large tree overhanging my yard.

I took follow-up pictures in September but was too busy to post then. I looked at them yesterday and got excited all over again, because (knock on wood) I didn't lose any of them and they really came through!

Not only did things NOT die, a few were superstars! To end the suspense, those were:

Here are some June/September comparisons, as well as general highlights.

View from the front door (which we never use)

Agave gypsophila 'Blue Wave' with Salvia officinalis 'Berggarten'

My Agave gypsophila 'Blue Wave' is a prolific producer of pups! It's presently in the garage: I won't risk losing it. (That pot was a BEAST to move in there, in no small part because our stupid hand cart has a flat tire.)

View walking up to the house from the driveway.

The Salvia guaranitica 'Black & Bloom' got pretty big! The only bummer was the deer occasionally trampling them to sample something tastier (like the Hibiscus, which survived).

Pennisetum in June (left) vs. September (right)

The Pennisetum LOVES the sun. Loves it.


Nothing really new here, I still just love all of this. Strangely, my Passion Vine (on the brick behind the yucca) never bloomed this fall, nor was it consumed by caterpillars. That made me really sad; it seems like a bad sign. I didn't use any pesticides or chemicals, but someone must have.


Look how the Datura took over!!

June (left) vs. September (right)

It's hard to tell unless you know what to look for in the collage above, but the Datura has filled in a lot of gaps both in the foreground and the background.

A side note: the deer enjoyed snacking on my Merlot Majik Mimosa, and I couldn't get the blasted sprayer to work on my deer repellent. I'm going to fix that for the spring, and hopefully it will grow tall enough fast enough that they won't be able to reach it.


Another favorite combo that keeps betting better with time, AND with the addition of 'Ruby Crystals' grass. I think the fine texture really complements the others. 

Every winter with that Bismark palm may be my last....

June (left) vs. September (right)
The Pennisetum 'Prince' got HYYYUGE! It was even huge-er than that before our snow event, and then it got all splayed out. You also get a sense for how much the Datura and Artemesia grew in that short timeframe.


A closeup. The English Lavender did better than I expected (it's the gray-green plant in front of the round planter).


This might be my favorite picture ever.  I can only hope it looks this good this year.

Here's a ghetto panorama-ish collage:


And keepin' it real, here's today:




It all looks sepia-toned, doesn't it? No special filters or effects, everything is just bleached & crispy from the freeze, compounded by an overcast day.

4 comments:

  1. Looking really good out front, Wendy. And even amid the sepia of mid-winter, it's still got plenty of interest. Your 'Prince' may be even bigger than my 'Vertigo', although maybe it's because you have more sun.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks so much! That Prince definitely turned into a monster, but no complaints here! It will be a different story when I try to clean it up in the spring and am covered in thousands of tiny paper cuts! :-)

      Delete
  2. Your landscape looks great. Ornamental grasses add winter interest. I quit covering my Bismark palms last year. Lost one last year and looks like the other made it through the first freeze this year. Yours is against the house so it has some protection. Love the wavy agave but I can't add any more that need to come inside.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Shirley! This past year I really chose my battles with the things I have to haul in. I can't give up my Agave gypsophila, though. One of my Pachypodiums is getting too tall to bring in, so I will probably have to devise something clever in the back patio area to enclose it instead.

      I covered the base of my Bismark palm with a frost blanket this past week during the cold snap, but didn't do Christmas lights on it this year like I have in the past. Rolling the dice! #gardeningismygambling

      Delete