One of the first plants to respond to the rain is the rain lily.
And this spider zinnia, Zinnia tenuifolia, suddenly has bright red blooms again. It isn't in quite the right place alongside the vegetable beds but thats where it seeded. Already seeds had formed and I am hoping they will sprout in a better place.
The little native cosmos can be relied upon to bloom now through the late fall. It will just keep on coming wherever the seeds fall.
Of course, the morning glories are popping up everywhere. This one is threatening to strangle the life out of a native persimmon tree, which is itself a seed sown by a bird alongside the potting shed.
The other morning a hummingbird came to these flowers even though I was standing but a few feet away.
I am now becoming concerned that the little snapdragon vine, Maurandya antirrhiniflora, will take over the garden.
One day lily is still in flower. This one grew from seed. The flowers are much smaller than the parent plants around it. Perfect for the front of the bed.There is no substitute for a good rain.
Yes, nice results from that rain! Not to mention how you mix dryland accents / succulents with the wildflowers. Still far too many people here go out of their way to leave out the bolder plants. A good mix and would be great to watch it all from those chairs!
ReplyDeleteSuch a beautiful place!
ReplyDeleteMy son lives in Mesa-I keep telling him it's possible to do so much beyond a gravel yard. Your use of succulents and flowers is stunning---I'm passing along your site to him so he can see. Beautiful!
Isn't the rain wonderful!! We finally got rain Mon. night and again on Tuesday. Looks like more is coming today. Maybe the rainy season (Florida) is here.
ReplyDeleteDesert dweller- Yes, it didn't seem to matter how much water I put on there it wasn't the same as a rain. I am thinking of adding more succulents and agaves. Trying to cut dow on the work.
ReplyDeleteSue-I do like to mix them up. Many annuals do well in among the cactus and agaves. One of my sons lives in Phoenix and I see gardens there with all kinds of flowers. They do need a bit of shade.Thanks for dropping by.
Siesta sister-I am hoping we may get some more out of this gulf system that is spinning around down there. We may be just too far from the coast though. Rain really makes an amazing difference.
Everything looks so pretty. Amazing what a little rain can do. Noticed so many things here responding as well. As always, your garden is beautiful!
ReplyDeleteNothing like rain to make the garden come alive! Glad you got some!
ReplyDeleteSo true! We're already looking a bit dry though and am really hoping for a tropical depression parking itself over us sometime soon...
ReplyDeleteThe red salvias are the main hummer flower in my garden from now (or soon as a few more of my zillions of plants start blooming) until the end of the growing season.
ReplyDeleteDo you have any of the ones that have the black calyxes? Those are my favorite. I can provide seed if you're interested. (Email me through the contact page of my blog, or through blotanical)
oh, what a grand difference a meager bit of rain makes to these tough plants. It looks fabulous now; just imagine if it had gotten the missing 14" of rain that we didn't get this year?
ReplyDeleteI spent the weekend up by Lake Michigan and saw the effects of rain in the lush gardens I saw up there. Unfortunately, the rain we had last week didn't do much for my garden. Yours is looking beautiful.
ReplyDeleteThe little garden at the top looks lovely. Never heard of a snapdragon vine might have to get some.
ReplyDeleteI had a beautiful, vigorous snapdragon vine (on the dovecote that now resides in your garden) in my former garden. But I haven't had success with it in my new garden, though I've tried twice in two different locations. Odd, isn't it?
ReplyDeletekacky- i really wish the effects of the rain would last longer. A week later and everything is dried up again.
ReplyDeleteHolley garden- It was very nice but I wish we could get some more.
Cat- Please keep those on praying for that to happen.
Alan- I don't. Do you have photos? They sound wonderful and I would like some seeds. Will drop you a line.
Get grounded- This is really turning out to be a terrible struggle this year, isn't it? Pity the poor wildlife.
Jayne- Glad you enjoyed your trip to the cooler parts of this country. I know what you mean about their gardens.
Randy- It really is a pretty little vine and it seems to like our hot summers.
Pam- Yours really was a beauty. I remember seeing it and taking a few seeds but they didn't grow. I bought a 6" pot a couple of years ago and it is now looking pretty bushy. It needs a good trim. I would love to have a vine climbing up the dove cote. The wire is still in place-Next year maybe.
Your garden is so lovely always that it takes my breath away. Today I was thinking about you and wished I'd half your talent in one thumb!
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