ARE WE THINKING SPRING YET?

Of course we are. It doesn't matter where you live I guarantee that every gardener among us is busy making plans for the new gardening year. I'm expecting to see a few of these popping up in the next week or so. Wild anemones, Anemone caroliniana,  are usually the first of our native flowers in the spring.

In northern climes first blooms may be a few months away but the ordering of seeds and plants will be well under way. I am recalling my own time spent in Eastern Canada where an old door would be erected on boxes in the sunniest spot in the house ready for seed sowing.
Things haven't changed much today. Yes, I have a greenhouse but it is full to bursting with overwintering plants. No room for seed starting in there. That has moved to my laundry room which has been a seed collection room for the last year or two. Now, with the arrival yesterday of a grow light system it is also the seed starting area.

Stay-n-grow system seen in the GS catalogue

I am wondering to myself why I never invested in grow lights before. Maybe it had to do with the cost as these systems are not cheap. But this year was made easier by using a gift card from Gardeners' Supply. I purchased a starter kit which is the lower part of the system with a plan to add on to it if I find it works well. Grow Light System.

Yesterday morning I opened the box and carefully began the construction on the living room floor. I read a lot of the comments on the website before I made the purchase and almost all of them were positive. I think there was only one negative comment and it had to do with the flimsy nature of construction. Not true at all. The product is well made and instructions are very clear on how to build.  Directions are written in good English because the product comes from England. That was a surprise. But I was not so careful taking it into the laundry room and one of the bulbs fell out and smashed!!!! Oh! careless me. Not an easy bulb to find in Austin so I am ordering on line and fingers crossed it is the right one.

My only complaint is that there is some additional expense required to add trays (shown above) on which to put your seeds starting trays, because the tray beds are perforated. GS does sell products that would work here or you can source on your own. Being a collector of anything useful that comes into the house I will reuse polystyrene meat trays to prevent water spills.

I am thrilled with the product and already well ahead on starting seeds. I also have heat mats on which to put the trays until the seeds germinate. And I plan to add the next level to the system.

When it goes dark the bulb puts out a tremendous amount of light so much so that it lights up the garden through the window. I have decided to turn it off when I go to bed.

The start of the New Year adds another year onto my age and with the realization that I cannot do quite as much in the garden as I used to do I added a piece of power equipment to make a few of my jobs a little easier. A hedge trimmer. I am not a lover of power gardening tools but this one is small, quiet and easy for me to handle.

It's main purpose will be to trim the fig ivy walls, a job that takes hours of my time. I haven't tried it yet because it is too early to be trimming off the winter kill but I did take it out for a trial run yesterday. The object was the Salvia leucantha outside the walls. I trimmed the large stems by hand and then finished off with the hedge trimmer. I was thrilled with its performance.

Who would think that this pile of sticks would look like this within a few months?

Salvia leucantha May1 2017

At the same time I cut back the miscanthus grass growing alongside the greenhouse. I wouldn't normally cut back this grass so early but it is ready to be moved to another location. I am waiting on the lemon grass growing in the corner. It survived out here last winter and I am hoping for a repeat performance. It was never watered at all last year and still grew well in the decomposed granite. If it doesn't survive I have several shoots potted up in the greenhouse and will replace in this spot. This is a big grass and needs lots of room.There is no flower but it produces masses of fresh shoots for my Thai recipes.

Lemon grass

The area outside the walls is a transition area between wall and septic field. It is planted with waif and strays from the garden, lantana, salvias, prickly pear, Mexican mint marigold, blue mist flower a crape myrtle and pomegranate ; all deer proof plants. It is now tidied up and mulched waiting for spring to arrive. 

It feels good to have made a start on winter clean up.

BRRR!

What do I, as a gardener, dread most of all? When the weather forecaster says that the temperatures will drop below freezing. Living as I do in zone 8b it is just too tempting to grow plants that do well in Zone 9 and 10. Further more we live just west of the city, where temperatures are frequently about 5 º colder due to fewer roads and buildings. And we live on the slope of a hill where frost rolls down into a frost pocket. It doesn't deter!

I think we all knew we were in for a cold blast last night but the precipitation was a surprise. The chatter of my gardening friends on Facebook was as though no-one had ever seen snow before. It's pretty, yes, but listening to our pool pump at 4 pm really did have me worried and rightly so. This morning there was solid ice on the birdbath. Or at least one of the 4 that are positioned in different spots around the garden.

A weather event like this is a good time to take a walk around the garden and make a note of different microclimates. All the other birdbaths had ice on them but just a thin layer, easily broken with the tap of my finger. Those areas of the garden don't get quite as cold. One is closer to the house and another, even in a place that gets no sun, is sheltered by a high wall. These are places to plant marginal plants for your zone. I risk some marginal plants in these areas-the rest have to be protected in some way.
Most of the snow had melted by the time I got out there this morning.

The greenhouse, potting shed and garage are packed to to the gills. I added a shelf this year when I came across the 4 supports for the spare window box. They were easy to attach to the wall and a piece of wood, painted makes for a sturdy shelf-and more room for plants. In the greenhouse the sides are ringed with gallon jugs of water. A small heater keeps the temperatures above freezing.

More tender plants go in the potting shed. All the citrus are in there.

Brugmansias, plumerias and various cactus and agaves are in the garage.

And something is out in the cold. It's been a long time since we had to run a car to get the ice off the windscreen. The snow, falling on warm surfaces and then freezing made for an icy sheet.

And a few came into the house. They were the ones that were on the patio near to the doors.

Lots of blankets and blankets covering outdoor plants. Last year I purchased these from Gardeners' Supply using them in the early spring.  I am really happy with them. They fold flat for storage and seem to be quite sturdy. An early planing of peas were covered with one last night. They come on packs of three and you can browse their season extenders here.

The top on this model unzip for flat folding.

I have a multitude of covers, all picked up at garage sales, from packing blankets to the real thing. Most of them were out last night.

One of the things I didn't think about was the two small fish and water lily ponds. Both were iced this morning. I am concerned about the fish in there. I boiled up some water and added hoping the fish would come to life so zi can see if they survived. Later this afternoon I will empty the containers and transfer the fish to the large tank which has a fountain. I hope I won't be starting a war.

Another 2 nights until we are in the clear but at least the sun is shining today. Some damage takes a few days to show up so I will be out checking over the next couple of days and recovering again tonight.

But what are a few frozen plants when so many have last everything they own. I am thinking of all those folks in the fire-stricken areas of California. So sad for the residents, birds, animals and plants. Hopefully the winds will die down and the firefighters will manage to control a further spread.

GARDENERS' SUPPLY PAY A RETURN VISIT

I was delighted to host the crew from Gardeners' Supply last week. They were in Austin filming their new products, in local gardens, for the whole week. And what a week it was weatherwise. It started out quite nicely but then by Wednesday it turned really cold and that was the first day they were filming in my garden. At least the sun was shining.

Glass balls are now a part of my garden decor

The one bonus for them was the fact that we had removed all pots from the garden in readiness for freezing temperatures. The garden was empty save for the plants growing in the ground and that's just how they like it. They don't want any of my decorative garden art in the pictures when filming their decorative garden art. It is quite an experience to watch them at work and they certainly filmed in some most unexpected places.

I'm glad they brought their Vermont clothes with them because despite the sun on Wednesday morning it was cooooold out there. They brought their equipment in two vans and started to set up on the driveway.

The best spot for filming on the Wednesday was in the sunken garden where there was still quite a bit of color. Plus it was the warmest spot in the garden.  A mealy blue sage, Salvia farinacea, acts as a backdrop for this metal birdbath.

I didn't actually see them filming most of their items as I was gone quite a bit but you would be surprised how long it takes them to get the perfect shot. I remember seeing a little fox with a butterfly on its nose in among the flowers in the potager. It was really a sweet little garden ornament and perfect in among the narrow leaf zinnias. Look out for him in the catalogue.

On the Friday they filmed outside the walls using the trailing rosemary as a backdrop to film a row of Easter bunnies. Who would have thought they would use a spot like this. You can see they are using some potted asparagus fern in front to hide the edge of the path.

Then it was back into the sunken garden to film pots on the steps. I wonder if I dare use that brightly colored pot in my garden? It was another one of the things they left for me including the trellis.

Despite the miserable cold I often heard laughter coming from the garden, a clear sign that they all enjoy their jobs. Stephanie, Jada, Lenny, Alex and Geoff, the photographer, posed for me in the front garden before they left.

Thanks for the gift items and the plants you left behind. I hope y'all will come back again next year--when the weather is better.

GARDENERS SUPPLY

I have been eagerly awaiting the arrival of the spring Gardeners Supply catalogue. Last fall the team came to film their products in my garden for the spring catalogue. They spent two days here, placing their merchandise around the garden. What an interesting and fun process to watch them at work, perfecting every shot. Here are just a few of the products they photographed. I found at least 11 shots of my garden in the current catalogue.

A GARDEN PHOTO SHOOT

There is more to taking photos for a catalogue than meets the eye.

Meet the team from Gardener's Supply Co. From left to right Susan Romanoff, creative director, Lizzy Williams, producer and photo stylist, Geoffrey Fosbrook, photographer,Lenny Christopher, photo assistant and Rod Cain, horticultural stylist. They spent the last two days in our garden filming new products for the upcoming catalogue.

Having decided where to place the bench, soon to be available in their catalogue, the work began.

There must be no shadows on the product. Lenny brings out the silk screen and climbs up onto the wall to get into just the right position.

First Susan checks the shot.

Then Lizzie, before the final photos are taken.

When it came to the colorful butterfly chairs the sun was even higher in the sky. The problem was solved with the large silk screen. The wind would swirl from north to south, the screen acting like a huge sail. Strong arms were needed to keep it under control.

And now the sun cast a shadow on the rocks so Susan had to use the small screen. Notice my bird bath has been removed. All they need are my flowers. No agaves, cactus. This has to look like a setting you might find in any garden throughout the country.

Meanwhile Rod was in the temporary nursery on the driveway building planters.

These self watering planters were to be positioned on the steps leading up to the English garden.

Oooh! I love the combination of plants in this one.

Setting up for the bistro shoot.

Can't wait to see their photo.

Cheers!
A different take on the usual blue bottle tree we see in Texas. Can you believe there is a store in Austin which sells empty wine bottles?

And finally this frog couple. I think I can find a place for them in the garden.

This morning all is quiet in the garden. The mockingbird has the garden back to himself. It's time for me to get back out working. What a wonderful day I had. A big thank you to the team for tolerating my hanging around, asking questions etc. You were a delight to have. Thanks to Geoff for giving me some photography hints.

I KNEW IT WAS GOING TO BE A GREAT DAY

Saturday morning dawned with a beautiful sky heralding a great day for two gardening events.

One of the reasons we were up so early, it being rather difficult to wake up with these dark mornings, was the pending arrival of the team from Gardeners Supply. They were here to shoot their products in our garden. At the same time it was the Garden Conservancy Garden Tour and apart from visiting the gardens ourselves, we were working a shift on the entry table at East Side Patch.

The first members of the crew arrived at 7:45am. After a quick walk around the garden they began unloading the truck onto the driveway. They were going to get a lot of exercise walking all their products around to the back of the house. This was going to be their main shooting location among all the flowers.

Work began on putting together furniture. Then it was time to leave Lizzie, Susan, Geoff, Lenny and Rod to their day in the garden and for us to head to the Patch. The crew was going to be back tomorrow so I would have ample opportunity to see them at work.

Philip and Leah have created a garden in which both adults children and wildlife are at home. I never cease to get a kick out of the antics their children get up to in the garden.

Even the next door's cat, with its amazingly wild cat coat was not phased by the large numbers of people who were enjoying the wonders of the garden. You might think that he was eyeing the fish in the tank/pond.

He was really just finishing a long cool drink of water.


All who visit Philip's blog know what a great eye he has for photography. Some of his photographs on the side wall of the house. I saw one family pick out a lovely photo of a ladybug for their toddler's room.

At 12 we left to tour the rest of the gardens. First stop, just a few miles away at the Utility Research Garden.

David Cater is primarily a grower of both ornamental and edible bamboo as well as palms and agaves. I was interested to know how long it had taken for these A. ovatifolia to grow to this size. I was hoping he would say 100years. He said 5. I am now worried about the ones I have planted in my entry courtyard.

Of course what Airstream owner wouldn't note the 1970s model at the side of the property. We even had a little tour of the place David stays when he is in town. More information on David and his business can be found at Utilityresearchgarden.com

The next garden took up straight from Texas to Louisiana. The house in the style of New Orleans with intricate wrought ironwork, was described as a courtyard garden.

Such a lush setting in this nook alongside the entryway. You would never guess this was hot dry Texas. Monkey grass, ferns and crotons under a airy Japanese maple.

My eye is always drawn to hardscape. I love this kind of pathway.

The next garden has what I would describe as having French elements.

Formal hedging, around a bird bath separates the house from this massive limestone table. One could just imagine alfresco dining under the twinkling lights which adorn the allee.

We stood around this water feature discussing the possibility of adding one of these to our side entry area, which is due for refurbishment. I think Bob at Draco had come up with a similar idea at our Garden a Go Go. It would be perfect but the concern is that it would involve quite a bit of work to create well. Maybe a tank would be easier.

I forgot to take photos of the allee of pleached trees. My feeling is that it has now become a little overwhelming for the size of the garden.

From French informal to French formal. The house itself reminiscent of a French chateau and the gardens to match. Fabulous views of Austin from the patio at the front of the house and also from the swimming pool.

These were the areas that caught my eye as I walked around.

The last garden of the day was that of well known landscape architect James David. This is my 5th visit to the garden.

One of my favorite parts of his garden is by the front door.

I love the way he combines pots and plants of all kinds.

At the back of the house this waterspout which pours into a stone tank and then on down the rill in the center of the massive stone steps to the lower garden.

Clusters of fossils stones on the edge of the pool. You can see that I love stone in all its forms!

One of the new ponds held these water lilies with beautiful striped leaves. Always a joy to visit his garden.

Thank you to all who opened their gardens for us to visit today. We had a great time.

Arriving home we found that shooting was over for the day and that Lizzie, Susan, Geoff, Lenny and Rob were busy packing up for the day. As they walked around the corner of the garage one of them exclaimed"Look at this big lizard!"

I just happened to have my camera to hand and snapped a photo of the Texas alligator lizard. He didn't even mind at all having his photo taken.

Stay tuned for day 2 of the Gardeners' Supply photo shoot. I will be home all day.