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Hardscapes can make backyard more livable

txaas_mastheadFlagstone pavers and beautiful winter groundcover

In designing your landscape, form should follow function.

Was your patio too small for entertaining this summer?  Did you, or your dogs, wear a dirty path in the grass to get from area to area?   Or do you just want to remove some grass, water a little less or solve a drainage problem with a dry creek?

With those thoughts fresh on your mind, it’s time to make a list of the structural hardscape projects you’d like to complete before the garden beckons in the spring with plant fever.

Now what?

Ask yourself some preliminary questions.  First, consider your personal style – are you traditional, natural or contemporary?  Think about the existing area – do you want to use the same material as your house or other structures, or do you want something different? Identify whether you’d prefer creating a color contrast color or seamless hues of a single color.

Consider the type of material best suited to your project.  Stone is sold by the ton — decomposed granite by the yard — your local landscape supply yards can help you determine how much you’ll need based on your measurements.  Here are some of the choices that are commonly used for hardscape projects.

Flagstone – Can be used for a variety of landscaping projects, from paths to patios and walls.  It can be mortared into place or simply set in decomposed granite or gravel so it remains permeable.  Wondering what to do with the sidewalk strip in front of your house where the grass is perpetually dying?  Consider some attractive flagstone set in decomposed granite.  If you want a softer look, add a few Mexican feather grasses or a few small agaves or a boulder or two for interest.

River Rock – Available in a variety of size ranges, river rock is smooth and comes in a blend of colors.  It can be used to create a meandering dry stream through your landscape or to solve drainage issues.  You also can replace grass with an attractive contrast of natural material in your yard.  It can be used to puddle below a water feature or a birdbath.  Always be sure to vary the size of the rock in a dry creek, scattering in a few larger rocks before you put down the smaller size for a more natural look.

Pavers – Manmade pavers come in every imaginable color and size.  The most commonly used are made of concrete and can be used for patios and porches, paths and even walls.  They can be laid on a bed of sand, placed close together for a more manicured look, or can be laid with spacing to allow for either grass or pretty little groundcovers to grow between.  Pavers create a more manicured, formal style in outdoor rooms.

Decomposed or crushed granite – Weathered granite that has broken down into small pieces and particles of silt, decomposed granite is commonly used in patios, paths and even beds with arid plants.  It’s versatile as a filler for many different projects – just be careful not to use it on a steep hill – our periodic gully washers can wreak havoc with it.  You’ll want to make sure to use some sort of edging – metal or stone – to keep the granite in place and separated from grass or beds adjacent to it.

Gravel – Available in many different colors and sizes, gravel is a great material.  It can work wonders to help with small drainage issues and it adds texture and contrast to the garden.  Because it is larger, when used in a path, it is less likely to wash away than decomposed granite.

Chopped block – Most stone can be purchased as a rough-hewn brick-like shape that is more natural in form.  These are used to build retaining walls, benches, planting beds or pathway borders.

Local Landscape Designer and Garden Coach Diana Kirby provides landscaping tips at http:/www.dianasdesignsaustin.com and writes a garden blog at https://www.dianasdesignsaustin.com

By |2017-11-29T23:27:13-06:00September 30th, 2013|Articles|Comments Off on Hardscapes can make backyard more livable
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Gardening for the senses

txaas_mastheadCIMG6004Sensory gardening is designed to stimulate all of our senses and enable us to not only see, in the garden, but also to touch, smell, hear and taste our natural surroundings.

Beauty isn’t just in the eye of the beholder; it can surround us in the garden, titillating our other four senses as well.

Close your eyes, and consider all the elements you can take in throughout your landscape.

Scent

Roses might be the first plant that comes to mind when you think of creating a garden space that focuses on scents.  Old-fashioned roses have infused gardens with their heady aromas for generations.  Many other plants can also perfume your garden – to envelop you while sitting with a book in a garden room, or to waft up as you pass down a garden path.  I love it when my dogs have been romping around in the rosemary – it’s so much more pleasant than when they just smell like dog.

If you like to entertain in the evenings, datura, a night-blooming plant also commonly known as angel’s trumpet, releases a sweet scent at dusk as it begins to open its flowers.  Also fragrant at night are nicotiana, or tobacco plant and moonflower.

Many other trees, shrubs, perennials and annuals like those listed below can bring beautiful scents into your landscape.

  • Mock orange
  • Sweet almond verbena
  • Lavender
  • Artemesia
  • Santolina
  • Texas mountain laurel
  • Clematis, honeysuckle, wisteria & star jasmine vines
  • Sweetpea
  • Chocolate cosmos
  • Sweet Alyssum
  • Herbs, Lemon and mint varieties in particular
  • Rosemary

Small fragrant herbs like creeping thyme or chamomile can serve as groundcovers along paths or between pavers or flagstones.  Strolling along the stones will release the plant scents as you go.

And don’t forget to consider scent when planting in pots around the patio and your other outdoor living and entertaining areas.  Plants like small like citrus trees and tropical plumeria are excellent aromatic choices to frame your rooms.

Sound

We don’t normally think of plants as noisemakers, but they can grace our gardens with movement and sound and help enhance our mood.

Ornamental grasses, bamboos and weeping trees billowing in the breeze can make a lovely rustling sound, particularly when they are going dormant.

Many plants like those below produce seed pods that will rattle with the wind as they are drying and preparing to open and release their seeds.

  • Moy Grande hibiscus
  • Blackberry lilies
  • Love in a Mist
  • Rattlebox
  • Blue Wild Indigo
  • Inland sea oats

Other elements of sound in the garden also include natural elements other than plants like birds, bees, squirrels and moving water.

Touch

When I wander through gardens, I often find myself with my hands loose at my sides, reaching down to run my fingers along the delicate fronds of wispy plants, feeling the textures of coarse or waxy leaves and caressing the soft, velvety petals of flowers like roses or hibiscus.  Turning purple in my garden right now, the shiny clustered seeds of the American beautyberry just call to me to touch their smooth surface.

Plants with scintillating textures for incorporating into your garden include:

  • Lamb’s ear
  • Wooly thyme
  • Pussy willow
  • Little Gem Magnolia blooms
  • Amaranth
  • Scented geranium leaves
  • Plumes of fountain grasses
  • Crape Myrtle or Lace Bark Elm bark
  • Sea holly, erynglum
  • Succulents

Taste

Tempting your tastebuds in the garden is simple. We know that herbs, fruits and vegetables stimulate your sense of taste in the garden.  Some more unusual plants worth nibbling on also include:

  • Nasturtium flowers
  • Chives
  • Marigold
  • Peppermint
  • Wild strawberry
  • Honeysuckle
  • Pansies

A well-designed sensory garden can be stimulating or relaxing.  Herbs like mint or rosemary can stimulate your senses while lavender and chamomile are soothing and restful.

When planning your garden, consider bloom times to ensure that the sensory effects continue evolving throughout the seasons.

Placing the plants within reach or smell of sitting or living spaces will ensure that you get to enjoy them regularly and take the prevailing wind direction into consideration. Then sit back, close your eyes and enjoy your garden.

By |2017-11-29T23:27:14-06:00August 24th, 2013|Articles|Comments Off on Gardening for the senses
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Your local grocer can provide you a place to garden

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Potato Bag Container Garden

Many would-be vegetable gardeners are thwarted by a lack of space, impenetrable rocky soil or clay, or a shortage of sunshine. With limited space on a balcony or patio, too much shade or landscape conditions that aren’t conducive to vegetable gardening, what’s a wannabe green thumb to do?

The burgeoning gardening movement and the increasing national interest in growing vegetables at home has fueled the creation of many alternatives to a patch of rich soil in the ground.

Alternative growing containers are the latest trend, making vegetable gardening easier than ever, even for those who have been limited in the past. To go along with the increasing desire for small space alternatives, there are also more container-sized vegetable varieties now than ever before.

Patio gardens and garden container alternatives can be grown with just 5 or 6 hours of sun each day. Don’t forget about vertical spaces, too. Hanging baskets can be used for lightweight greens and herbs and some fruits or vegetables will even grow in upside-down hanging planters. Some of the more popular container options include:

Grow Bags

Most vegetables, potatoes and tomatoes in particular, can be grown in a whole host of containers. From boring plastic pots to specially designed potato grow bags, trash bags, compost bags or even some of those plastic-coated grocery bags we all seem to be accumulating, bags are in.

Still adjusting to the new Austin disposable plastic bag ban, I’ve had to buy more reusable bags and now bags seem to be the latest freebie giveaway of choice for marketing items. I now have enough to cart home groceries for a year, so I might as well put some of those extras to good use in growing my own groceries.

Simply cut drainage holes in the container to allow the water to run out and fill the bag with four to six inches of good soil and compost. Roll the sides of the bag down a little so the young plants get enough sunlight when they are small – you can add more soil later and roll the sides up as the plant grows up. Keep a close eye on the moisture needs of the plant though – remember, containers dry out faster than soil in the ground. It will be time for fall tomatoes and potatoes in just a few weeks, so now would be a great time to start planning for your creative alternative garden.

Many garden supply companies and local independent nurseries also sell grow bags designed specifically for growing vegetables, if you don’t want to do it yourself.

Straw bales

So, maybe you have a yard, but your yard is full of limestone or only has a few very small sunny spots. Straw bales are another alternative to the traditional in-ground vegetable bed. Individual bales can be placed together, to make one big bed that doesn’t require any digging (an absolute plus), or bales can be strategically placed to make the best use of limited sunny spaces by scattering them around.

Just soak the straw for a few days before you plant – it will make it easier to dig a hole in the straw and it starts the decomposition process that adds nutrients to the soil. Then scoop out a hole and fill it with compost and you’re ready to plant. A standard straw bale can usually accommodate 2-3 tomato plants, depending on whether they are determinate or indeterminate. (Determinate tomatoes grow to be medium to large-sized plants; indeterminates are, well, monsters, so plan accordingly based on the plant label.) Plant deep into the straw to give the roots room to grow.

Earth boxes

Earth boxes are another gardening space alternative growing in popularity. Earth boxes are self-watering containers with built-in water reservoirs that can keep the plants watered for several days. There might be excess evaporation exceptions for 107 degrees days, though. The boxes also have a built-in fertilizer band to help feed the plants on an ongoing basis. These containers can be purchased ready to plant or you can make one yourself. With a plastic bin, some PVC pipe, a few tools and a Saturday afternoon, you can create a unique vegetable garden that requires less maintenance and is a great solution for a deck or patio.

For step-by-step information about how to build your own box, check out this tutorial from Texas A&M.

There are many other container options for inexpensive and moveable mini-gardens, too. Consider large 5-gallon plastic buckets, leftover from house projects, bird seed, or containers being discarded by restaurants or grocery stores. Other options include wooden barrels, galvanized tubs, even bushel baskets. Just make sure the container has adequate drainage by poking holes in the bottom. And, if you’d rather not look at a white plastic pickle bucket housing your tomatoes, you can spray paint your container to match any garden decor.

Local Landscape Designer and Garden Coach Diana Kirby provides landscaping tips at http:/www.dianasdesignsaustin.com and writes a garden blog at https://www.dianasdesignsaustin.com

 

 

By |2019-07-15T19:14:41-05:00July 27th, 2013|Articles|1 Comment
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Vines give gardens vertical interest

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Vines

Gripping and twirling their tendrils upward, searching for the sky, vines decorate our fences, pergolas and walls, adding vertical interest to our gardens.

Vines provide screening, shade, and color and they also attract birds, butterflies and bees to the garden. There are many beautiful annual and perennial vines for gardeners to choose from here in Central Texas.

Vines adhere themselves to various surfaces by either twining, grasping tendrils or adhesive disks.

Twining vines wrap themselves around a plant or support and grow upward in a spiral form, making them great for columns, trellises or obelisks. Honeysuckle, crossvine and wisteria all twine.

Plants with grasping tendrils wrap themselves around trellises and support structures. They do less damage and are less powerful than twining vines. Passionflower, morning glories and clematis have tendrils.

Plants that use disk-like features like suction cups are able to climb up walls and fences without the use or trellises or wire. They are able to attach themselves to textured surfaces but can do a great deal of damage over time. Boston ivy, Trumpet vine and Virginia creeper climb in this manner.

Annual vines

Morning glory vine

These staples – vestiges from Grandma’s cottage garden — come in a rainbow of colors and open with aplomb in the morning sun. Best sown in about April after the danger of frost has passed, my favorite variety is Grandpa Ott’s, a deep bluish-purple color that provides a rich and unique color in the garden.

Cypress vine

A relative of the morning glory, Cypress vine couldn’t be more different. Lacy, fern-like foliage weaves a delicate but invasive web adorned with endless tiny red trumpet-shaped blooms that will cover any surface in record speed. And then come back with thousands of seedlings for years thereafter. This vine is great for an area where it’s easy to manage the errant seedlings and you look forward to seeing it come back year after year. The seedlings are simple to pull out or mow over as they are very delicate, unlike some vine volunteers.

Hyacinth bean vine

Covered with bright purple bean pods and delicate lavender and purple blooms in midsummer, this vine is drought tolerant and a fast grower. It is almost always an annual here, so save the purple pods and their seeds to replant in the spring after the danger of frost has passed.

Perennial Vines

Trumpet vine

Not for the faint of heart, trumpet vine is an aggressive, fast-growing climber that not only grows upward and outward, but also sends out adventitious roots, or runners that can take over your garden. It grows by grasping and burrowing into textured surfaces and can be difficult to remove. Best planted on a strong structure with plenty of space to expand, trumpet vine has dramatic, trumpet shaped blooms that attract hummingbirds and bees and its woody stems provide an interesting structural element to the garden. A less aggressive form of trumpet vine is ‘madame galen.’ It will grow in sun or part shade and can be found in shades of yellow-gold to peach to orange.

Confederate Jasmine

Also called Star Jasmine, this dense vine makes an excellent screen and is covered in small, fragrant white blooms throughout the spring. Its beautiful scent will fill your garden. It is drought tolerant and will do well in sun to part shade.

Wisteria

Known for its old-world charm and ability to embrace even the largest pergolas and gazebos, wisteria’s gently-arching lavender blooms attract pollinators and infuse the garden with the scent of spring. While the two Asian species can be invasive, American, or Texas, wisteria is an excellent non-invasive native variety.

Passionflower vine

Likes full sun or dappled shade and is estimated to come in between 400 to 500 different varieties with 9 of them native to the U.S. Be forewarned – the leaves are a favorite food source for many butterflies and moths and they can take a real bite out of your plant if it’s young. With a more established, larger plant, it’s usually ok to share it with the caterpillars in exchange for the beautiful butterflies and moths they will produce. Many are very invasive, requiring an open or easily maintained space where new vines can be left to come up from the roots or can easily be removed.

Evergreen vines

Crossvine

A tendril climber that can reach amazing heights, crossvine can most often be found in tangerine, yellow and red. Tangerine Beauty is a common variety grown in Central Texas. Mine has not only scaled our wrought iron fence, but has found its way to the top of the oak next to it. It makes for a stunning display in the spring when it bursts into bloom. It can grow in sun or shade. It is semi-evergreen, meaning mine holds onto about ½ of its leaves in the winter.

Texas coral honeysuckle

This drought-tolerant vine will do well in part sun to part shade. Its coral blooms attract hummingbirds. This variety is not invasive like the common yellow honeysuckle. It’s also deer resistant.

Local Landscape Designer and Garden Coach Diana Kirby provides landscaping tips at http:/www.dianasdesignsaustin.com and writes a garden blog at https://www.dianasdesignsaustin.com

 

By |2017-11-29T23:27:14-06:00June 22nd, 2013|Articles|1 Comment
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Add color via contrasting foliage

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Contrasting Foliage

What do I see as I drive around town these days? Green. Not green-with-envy-green, but rather the everyone’s-garden-is-green, too, green. It’s a beautiful sight.

Recent rains have enriched our gardens and encouraged plants to bloom and to leaf out, drawing my eye to all the contrasting new foliage making a statement in the garden.

Most gardeners are drawn to blooms when planning their landscapes – bright, tubular blooms that attract hummingbirds, butterflies and bees, the proper formality of traditional roses, or the wispy ephemeral blooms of plants like Mexican bird of paradise or desert willow.

Neglected and left sitting on the sidelines, foliage is too often an afterthought in gardening, pushed aside by the drive for endless flowers.

But foliage – with its myriad contributions that enhance, brighten, and add movement and structure to the landscape – should play a starring role in designing a garden. It is the fundamental element that brings the design together.

When blooms fade in winter or in the death throes of a scorching summer, foliage maintains the unity in the garden – creating harmony in the landscape. And seasonal foliage color can transform a fall and winter garden when traditionally green leaves turn brilliant hues of gold and red.

Foliage adds its own color year-round as well. Endless hues of green – forest green, grass green, blue green, gray green, lime green, partner with black, purple and silvery leaves to make vibrant pallets.

Variegated and color-splattered leaves like Aztec grass, coleus and caladiums put on their own show.

From the brilliant burgundy of loropetalum or purple heart to golden Japanese maples to the delicate lime green of many ferns – the contrast of foliage in the garden adds interest and sophistication to the landscape. In shady beds, light colors and variegated foliage brighten dark areas with a pop of light.

Foliage with different or unusual textures also provides dimension to the garden. Beds with rows of shrubs with roughly the same leaf color, size and texture is one-dimensional and uninteresting. It all looks the same. Imagine such an area with contrasting foliage, some with glossy green leaves, some with fuzzy, sage-colored leaves and some variegated grasses. Each element allows the other to shine through and stand out. Add a special plant with very structural foliage and you now have a focal point.

The smooth, structural simplicity of a franzosini agaves provides a contrasting backdrop that enhances the display of the plant in front of it.

The shapes and textures of plant foliage also provide the blueprint for crafting a variety of garden styles.

Pairing a broad range of plant textures creates contrast. Coarse textures with large irregular leaves, thick veins, rough bark, medium textures with mid-size leaves, smoother shape and simple lines, and fine textures with small or thin, strappy leaves like grasses, wispy and lacy foliage can all make striking combinations.

To emulate a tropical garden style, for example, choose foliage with large, glossy leaves, contrasting lime, yellow and burgundy colors and very course, textured plants. Examples would include palms, gingers, cannas, sagos, esperanzas, and potato vine — plants we can grow here in Central Texas.

Conversely, a cottage garden typically includes smaller, more delicate leaves and wispy forms of foliage like lacy lavender, flowing Artemesia, delicate columbine and the fine tufts of dianthus.

Foliage also adds rhythm to the garden. Soft grasses and billowing foliage create the illusion of movement. They draw the eye into the landscape to see what lies beyond their beckoning leaves.

Plants with strong structural foliage beg to be focal points in the garden – providing interest, a place for the eye to rest, and definition in landscape. Agaves, acanthus and aralia all bring dynamic form to design.

I’m as fond of blooms as any gardener, but the next time you head to your local independent nursery, take stock of your shrubs, foundation plants and flowers and go find yourself some fabulous foliage to bring new life to your garden.

A Landscape Designer and Garden Coach, Diana Kirby provides landscaping tips at http:/www.dianasdesignsaustin.com and writes a garden blog at https://www.dianasdesignsaustin.com

 

 

By |2017-11-29T23:27:14-06:00May 25th, 2013|Articles|0 Comments
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Succulents ensure gardening success in tough conditions

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Succulents

By now, gardeners are busily planning and planting — trying to get their gardens established before the heat of summer strikes. Our current Central Texas drought status remains an alarming D2 (severe) to D4 (exceptional — the worst category). So Central Texans are still looking for ways to make their landscapes more xeric, eliminate more lawn, and reduce their water usage. By August, even watering potted plants every single day starts to get old.

Some of the most drought tolerant plants available to help us achieve those goals are succulent plants. Succulents are plants that store water in their leaves, stems and/or roots and can tolerate extreme drought and heat. They generally have few insect pests or problems with disease. Many also retain water by transpiration with their waxy leaves or stringy hairs. As an added bonus, they also do well in poor soil.

Succulents are also ideal for gardeners with limited space and limited time. They are easy-care free plants requiring almost no maintenance.

Their thick, juicy stems add interesting structure, texture, variety and color to a landscape. Beware, though, they are also delicious and juicy appetizers for deer.

Not all succulents like full sun. Many of them actually prefer partial shade with bright, but not direct sunlight.

According to Casey Limerick, of East Austin Succulents, “the biggest mistakes people make with succulents is giving them too much water and too much sun.”

While succulents are low maintenance, they are prone to rot if overwatered, a common occurrence when gardeners water them on the same schedule as their other plants.

The correct soil is important, too. “We make our own soil blend here,” said Limerick.

Limerick recommends planting succulents in a fast-draining soil mixed with a little bit of sand (not much) and a little decomposed granite.

More than 50 plant families are considered succulents. Agaves, aloes, euphorbias, sedums and yuccas are just a few of the categories of succulents.

Not all agaves turn into 6-foot-tall monsters that want to eat your entire landscape and spread their pups. There are many much smaller and manageable species that can be used as structural focal points in the landscape and beautiful potted plant arrangements. Some of the smaller agaves suitable for small gardens and containers that do well here include the squid agave, quadricolor agave, Parry’s agave and the regal Queen Victoria agave.

Yuccas are part of the genus of succulent plants and are also within the Agavacea family. While some yuccas may not look particularly succulent, their blooms look like supersized versions of smaller succulents and are often a delicious and juicy appetizer for deer.

Aloes have long been a popular succulent used as houseplants or outdoors. They also have medicinal uses and can relieve burns, treat many skin conditions, reduce bruises and be used in juices to treat indigestion.

Delosperma, also known as ice plant, makes an excellent groundcover and can survive both our heat and our average winters. It is hardy from USDA zones 5-11. It is perfect for xeriscaping and rock gardens or paths.

The euphorbia family includes a range of plants, including poinsettias and cacti. Their milky sap can irritate skin and eyes, and should be planted away from areas used by children and pets. One of the most popular varieties is euphorbia rigida, also called gopher plant, which grows to about 2 feet tall and has vivid yellow blooms in the spring.

Sedum, sempervivum and echeveria are all in the same family. Their starry clusters of flowers come in array of colors, ranging from red to pink, yellow and white. One of the most common sedums is Autumn Joy, which has a more upright growth habit.

Many gardeners will remember their mother or grandmother growing Hen and Chicks — These interesting and hardy plants come in a variety of colors ranging from pink, red, purple and green. They form a rosette (hen) that produces new offsets (chicks) and these clumps will spread and create a low growing and dense groundcover. Interestingly, they are often planted in strawberry pots.

Diana Kirby is a local Landscape Designer and Garden Coach and can be reached at http:/www.dianasdesignsaustin.com. She writes a garden blog at https://www.dianasdesignsaustin.com.

 

By |2017-11-29T23:27:14-06:00April 26th, 2013|Articles|0 Comments
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Escape in the garden

Gardening to destress or grow food has never been more important. Get my FREE Five Quick Container Tips to start your own restorative gardening project today. Hook me up now!

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