It’s hard to predict because of the seemingly endless droughts and freezes, but the Texas bluebonnets are blooming early and it looks like it will be a big wildflower year.
Monte has been grooming our front yard bluebonnet patch for years. Looking good! More photos to follow.
The sunlight from the first sunrise of Summer illuminates a bunch of Monte’s pretty zinnies.
After the prolonged deep freeze we experienced in February, our giant sago palm appeared to be dead. Until about a month ago, I saw no signs of life. I’m very happy to report that now it is teeming with new growth. Yay, Nature!
It’s been raining since the end of April in Central Texas. A weird happening. It’s so humid and WET outside. The plants are loving it though.
Life is good on the ranch.
Pics of last night’s bounty, using homemade dough, homemade sauce, and home grown basil.
Savory margherita:
Freaking awesome prosciutto with onion, mushroom, and kalamata olive:
Luscious toasted parmesan on pizza crust:
I loves me those leftovers!
Today’s morning sun illuminates the blooms on my Pride of Barbados (Caesalpinia pulcherrima) also known as Red Bird of Paradise. Whichever, it’s gorgeous.
Yardwork done. Frosé in the glass. Pork tenderloin on the grill. Life is good.
My pollinator garden is in its 4th or 5th year, and though it takes work to keep ahead of all the weeds and Liveoak seedlings that grow as well as the perennial flowers in this patch, I truly enjoy it. The purple coneflower, which I originally grew from seed, is back for the third year, and it makes me so happy to see all its blooms.
I noticed a new volunteer perennial in my pollinator patch a few months ago. It stayed green and alive through our mild winter. I didn’t know what it was. A few weeks ago it started blooming and is thriving amongst the returning salvia, sage, purple coneflower, vinca, and scabiosa. I finally took a good look and did some research and was tickled purple to find out that they are winecups (Callirhoe involucrata)! I love winecups but find them very elusive in the sprawling fields of Central Texas wildflowers. I’m glad they volunteered here in my garden.
The one small plant has exploded with 3 or so long branches that are creeping out through the garden, low to the ground. The blooms roll up every night and reopen in the morning. :) The bees enjoy them, too.
My cedar sage (salvia roemeriana) is starting to bloom in the yard. It is one of my favorite native perennials. It likes the shade. And I love its shade of red.
The societal and financial market upheaval caused by the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic is mounting at a feverish pitch (pardon the pun). It is incredible to watch it unfold.
To get away from it, I retreated to the outdoors for some much-needed weeding and gardening. About 3 years ago I started a small bed in the backyard intended for butterflies, bees, and birds. Yesterday, I rummaged through it a square foot at a time, removing unwanted weeds, leaving the perennials that I want to see bloom again. The bed is mostly sage, salvia, purple coneflower, scabiosa, and a few volunteers that I will have to wait a bit to correctly identify. It doesn’t look like much today, but soon it will be filled again with blooms and flying fauna.
I planted this impatiens last spring. I typically lose my annuals over the winter and just plant new ones in the spring. I babied this one through our warm winter and it has rewarded me with these beautiful late-winter blooms.
Some stats from yesterday:
The Subaru turned 100,000 miles.
And we loaded another 1,000 lbs of rock into the trailer. It’s much nicer to do in the winter than in the dead of summer. We’re getting closer to our goal of removing the river rock from the beds around the house.
Susanne is visiting us this week and she has been a big help as we knock off some of our yard projects.
I truly enjoy the trees in our yard. But, there are many of them, and they collectively drop billions and gazillions of leaves every year. Over the last day or two, we raked and scooped up 5 or more trailer-loads of those bad boys – a good workout. Our new pile-o-leaves (and future garden soil):
I can’t complain though. It has been lovely outside. Today the temps were close to 70 degrees F. Thankfully, cedar pollen levels are below the threshold that triggers my allergies. As I sit here, sore and tired, I’m sipping a glass of wine listening to the news guys report on the cold and snowy weather up north. Yeah, I’ll take yard work in the winter in Austin over that any day.
Sheila365 