Tag: wildflower

Garden surprise.

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.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAThe 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.

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Wildflower fix.

On the drive home today we stopped to smell the flowers.   The roadsides along Hwy 71 seem to be hoarding all the wildflowers this year.   I just haven’t seen much of them in Austin.  They’re so pretty!

Indian paintbrush & bluebonnet.
Indian paintbrush & bluebonnet.
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A bee in my (blue)bonnet.

This one was not grown in the wild, but was in a pot on the deck at the lake house we were visiting.   It’s an african iris (aka fortnight lily), or dietes iridioides.   According to google, the blooms last only a day, but they have a long blooming period, through the summer.  Between bloom bursts, plants take a two-week, or fortnight’s, rest before blooming again.

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Ok, this one’s not wild, but pretty!

 

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