Blog Archives | Diana's Designs Austin

Puget Sound Gardeners Fling – People, Plants, and More

Last month 100 garden social media influencers met in Puget Sound WA to tour gardens, share meals, and make new friends. This was the 15th such annual gathering, called the Gardeners Fling. We meet in a different city each year (except for 2 Covid-fraught summers) and the host city gardeners plan a 4-5 day outstanding garden experience.

Our time in Puget Sound was magical. Each garden, private and public, wowed in so many different ways.

I’ll start my virtual tour with the garden of one of our hosts, Camille Paulsen, @tahomaflora .

She has crafted her space to frame and enhance the many gorgeous views of Mount Tahoma, also known as Mount Rainier. The mountain enjoys almost mystical status around Seattle and Tacoma. The days start with an assessment about the visibility of the mountain and end on the same note. How fortunate her family is to have this National Geographic-worthy sight from their deck, their paths, their hills, and so many other vantage points.

We were there on a clear day, and the mountain was glorious.

This little secret seating area on the edge of the hillside had a special view, too.

I can imagine sneaking away to to escape here.

Several paths wind through the property, all of them welcoming and interesting. And many of them with an eye to the view.

On the back deck, a bit of whimsy highlights the distance of treks to similar mountain hot spots.

The light was striking as it poured in between the leaves of a collection of Japanese maples and other wispy trees.

Camille’s artistic flair extends beyond the curating of plants to include an interesting assortment of art in the garden. Various carefully crafted vignettes were tucked throughout.

Sharing the adventure with so many long-time and new gardeners was as fun as discovering the garden itself.

So many unique details caught my eye.

Sweet spaces scattered everywhere.

The pool area was a lovely gathering spot filled with interesting pots and plants.

Tucked down the hill in the forest, koi languished in a beautiful pond, suprised by all their guests.

Enjoying some pats, Camille’s cat seemed unfazed by all the garden gawkers.

Thanks, Camille, for a great tour of your lovingly created garden.

Another post to come soon highlighting other beautiful sights from the 2024 Puget Sound Gardeners Fling.

By Diana C. Kirby|2024-08-18T09:27:49-05:00August 18th, 2024|2024 Garden Bloggers Fling, 2024 Gardeners Fling, 2024 Puget Sound Fling, Blog, bloggers, blogging, cedar tree, Crocosmia, cypress trees, decor, Fairy, ferns, Fling, focal point, foliage, Garden, garden bloggers, garden bloggers fling, garden decor, garden photography, garden statues, garden tour 2024, garden travel, garden visit, garden whimsy, hanging pots, Japanese garden, japanese maple, landscape design, leaves, Mount Ranier, Mount Tahoma, path, paths, pathway, patio, people, photography, plant, pond, pool, rock wall, Sharing Nature's Garden, statuary, statue, succulents, Tacoma, tour, travel, Uncategorized, water feature, water features|9 Comments

Contemporary landscape creates comfort at Garden Bloggers Fling garden

Combining contemporary style with cool comfort, landscape designer, B. Jane, opened her garden up to the Garden Bloggers Fling held in Austin last summer. Her straightforward lines and thoughtful plantings evoke a sense of calm and simplicity.

She uses a stone wall and steps to define the entrance.

Entertaining space is punctuated by brightly colored blooms and neon children’s balls floating in the pool.

Brisket, the official greeter, welcomed us to his backyard. He didn’t seem to mind having company and sharing his oasis with us.

When Pam and I scouted the garden in 2017 as we developed our itinerary for the Fling, we had the pleasure of meeting Brisket’s siblings as well. Brisket clearly knows how to cool off on a hot summer day.

B. Jane designed a variety of seating vignettes throughout the garden.

Foregoing the formal seating options, a group of bloggers enjoyed the shady view from this wall running along one side of the garden.

With cooling concrete walls and a canopy of shade. this was a perfect spot for bloggers to take a rest and enjoy the garden view.

By Diana C. Kirby|2019-02-25T08:34:57-06:00February 25th, 2019|Agave, Blog, contemporary garden, Fling, Garden Bloggers Fling Austin 2018, path, pool, Sharing Nature's Garden, succulents|2 Comments

Why do we blog?

The social media explosion forever changed electronic communication around the globe. The advent of web blogs brought a new, dynamic opportunity for gardeners to communicate with other gardeners.

Suddenly, as more and more gardeners entered the blogging realm, the could read blogs to get real-life information about what works and doesn’t work in their gardens.

They were able to share the highs, lows, quirky stories, and unique experiences and Gardeners embraced this new realm.

Even at the very first Garden Bloggers Fling held here in Austin a decade ago, we had breakout sessions to discuss the future of blogging. Carol Michel of May Dreams Gardens spoke about the evolving social aspects of blogging. Kathy Purdy of Cold ClimateGardening discussed the emerging technical issues of maintaining a blog. Bloggers shared their experiences with Blogger and Word Press programs, monetizing blogs, and the future of blogging. Even a decade ago, this issue was a burning question.

As the next waves of social media washed over the internet, bloggers expanded their reach, adding Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest to expand their outreach repertoire. Families, jobs, and even gardening, got in the way of publishing detailed and let’s face it, time-consuming posts.

It’s so simple now – throw up140 characters, a great photo, and a snippet of information, and voila, you’re done. More people see these condensed, tiny bytes of information. It only takes a few minutes out of your day.

Does this mean that the world of blogging is quietly slipping into the dark of night, a light soon to be extinguished by the new rush to post as fast as you can in real time?

I’d argue no. While some bloggers find other social media channels more to their liking, others prefer to continue blogging, using those tools to promote their longer, detailed posts.

I’m in the latter camp, and I’m not alone. Blogging gives me something that none of the other outlets do.

It allows me to express my passion for gardening and to share it with others. My posts provide information, tips, lots of photos and the story that is continually evolving in my garden. In return, I’m grateful to have the perspective of others from around the world to expand my horizons with the same cornucopia of detailed information.

The blogging world may have lost a few gardeners to a faster medium that better suits their needs, but I would argue that there will always be a yearning for all that nitty gritty information we dive into on our respective blogs. We trial plants for each other, we share tips, we experiment, and we celebrate our successes and commiserate over our losses.

There will always be a thirst for knowledge and a demand for detail. Nothing will replace a blogs ongoing personal perspective that readers can’t always find on a newsstand or in a book. This fulfilling electronic connection cultivates a loyal readership and friendships that span the globe. It’s why we blog and it’s why we garden bloggers gather each year for the Garden Bloggers Fling.

And, I feel privileged to be among this special group of garden bloggers. We’ll celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Fling May3-6. See you all in Austin in 97 days!

By Diana C. Kirby|2018-01-27T17:30:47-06:00January 27th, 2018|Blog, bloggers, Fling, Sharing Nature's Garden|3 Comments

Spring has sprung in the garden…

It feels like spring here in Central Texas, with sunny, 85-degree days dotting our early February weeks. That might sound more like summer to gardeners far north of here, but it’s heavenly spring for us.

The Japanese Quince has been blooming since the cooler, late-fall days, drawing butterflies to the sole flowers in the winter garden. I’ve had a few white cemetery irises bloom and the peach irises opened up this week. When I checked early this morning, I did detect the faintest sweet scent in the peach ones.

A few daffodils have opened. A labeling failure two years ago is to blame for my not knowing each variety, since I do collect new ones each year. But I recognize the Tete-a-Tetes and they’re starting to open in different parts of the garden.

Then yesterday, the Mountain Laurels burst forth. I’d been eyeing the buds for several days, and trying to catch a whiff of the grape Kool-Aid aroma they dust on the breeze.

I banned myself from Facebook this morning because it’s been eating my mornings. So, what do I do then? I take the scissors outside and look for blooms to bring indoors! I tried to put a peach iris with this little posie, but it was too big and didn’t work with these delicate little flowers, so I put it in its own vase.

Now, spring has sprung in my kitchen and it smells delicious — just like grape Kool-Aid!

By Diana C. Kirby|2017-11-29T23:26:54-06:00February 16th, 2017|Blog, cut flowers, daffodils, japanese quince, Sharing Nature's Garden, spring, spring bloomers, Texas Mountain Laurel, Uncategorized|0 Comments

Plants that shine in the winter garden…

After a few days and nights at 21 degrees, my Central Texas garden took a serious hit last month. But, we were due. Last year it didn’t freeze at all in my garden, so you can imagine how huge some of our perennials were by the end of 8 seasons of growth!

Our typical winter includes a few freezes, but the temperature dips to around freezing for a few hours and then climbs right back up during the day. Not so this year.

I’m leaving the last of the fall leaves in the beds to help protect the plants and provide habitat for bees, so you are going to see the good, the bad and the very ugly. It’s an all-exposed tour. Viewer discretion is advised — you may need to avert your eyes in some parts!

While the ferns and the bletilla striata are dormant, he dry creek pathway is lined with hellebores, a few sedges, a few cephalotaxus prostrata. Mostly out of view on the left are two leatherleaf mahonias.

The brilliant yellow berries on the mahonias add great color to the garden on gray winter days.

In drought years, the foliage of the hellebores disappears in the summer garden, and reappears in fall and through the spring. I have a collection of different varieties. Below is a winter photo of my favorite – ‘Phoebe,’ from several years ago when we had snow.

Isn’t that a gorgeous bloom?

Where the path diverges, a few more sedges and a standard Japanese aralia and a variegated Japanese aralia add a pop of green. The squid agave in the Artemis statue head was unfazed by the cold. Farther back, a small clump of cast iron plant draws the eye.

I’ve had this aralia for a long time. It’s been through drought and covered in ice in bad winters, but nothing seems to slow it down.

This fall I planted another aralia variety – a variegated one. I was a little concerned that it might be more tender than the other, but it has held up beautifully.

In the front bed, the one we jokingly call the hideous bed, natives and other well-adapted plants are hanging on. Catmint, skullcap, Mexican feather grass, a whale’s tongue agave, salvias, Mexican sabal palms and a Spanish dagger yucca are all going strong.

Across the driveway, more xeric plants are showing off, like the Jerusalem sage, a Texas sotol, a sago palm, and some salvia Greggii.

You’ll find Jerusalem sage in many parts of my garden. It’s unusual color makes an intriguing contrast — and its fuzzy leaves make it completely deer-resistant.

Another variegated fatsia Japonica is keeping a squid agave and a mountain Laurel company. Sadly, the dianella in the background looks like it’s toast. I’m hopping it was established enough to come back from the roots quickly, once spring arrives.

A bright edge yucca, several more hellebores and a few almost hidden heucherellas are peaking out of the carpet of leaves.

Bright edge definitely earns its name!

I added a few new compact shrubs to the front beds last year. These ‘Flirt’ nandinas make a beautiful middle-layer, evergreen addition and their added burgundy tips coordinate well with the larger loropetalum.

One of my favorite plants for winter/spring interest is Japanese quince. It’s sculptural and almost-bare branches are sporting a flush of gorgeous, salmony-pink blooms.

The butterflies are so thankful that at least something is blooming out there!

And no matter what the plants are doing in the garden, we can always count on at least a few cardinals on our many feeders in the wooded area.

While these aren’t the prettiest pictures of my garden, they allow me to see the true bones of the landscape, and evaluate the beds to determine what projects I’ll want to undertake in the spring.

By Diana C. Kirby|2017-11-29T23:26:54-06:00January 24th, 2017|aralia, birds, Blog, bones, bright edge yucca, evergreen color, freeze, Hellebore, Japanese aralia, japanese quince, leatherleaf mahonia, Nandina, Sharing Nature's Garden|5 Comments

Enchanting Lyndale and Como Park gardens at the 2016 Fling

As is always the case, there is much to see at a Garden Bloggers Fling, and our 2016 adventure kept us going at a fast pace.

I fell in love with the explosion of color where this beautiful beehive beckoned in the Lyndale Park Garden. I waited quite a while to get a solo shot of this amazing sculpture in the garden, as all the other flingers were as enthralled with it as I was. (You can see I didn’t quite let the last person get out of the frame. Tag yourself if that’s your elbow!)

This garden was a creative combination of formal beds with this refreshing fountain, and some unique displays of a wide variety of pollinator plants.

I was smitten by this display of Verbena bonariensis as the focal point in the midst of this checkerboard of annuals. I know this took a great deal of work to achieve, because my Verbena bonariensis is like a naughty child in the garden — it never stays put where I’ve planted it!

It was interesting to see so many plants thriving here that we can grow back in our gardens in Zone 8b in Austin, Texas, like the catmint and lamb’s ears and rudbeckia.

Blue can be elusive in the garden, so I was drawn to this monochromatic display filled with so many of the plants I love, like salvias.

This is the perfect example of how repetition in garden design packs a powerful punch.

And then I found the pink bed! Between the hot sun bearing down on us and the profusion of pink and lime color contrasts in this display, it wasn’t easy to get a great photo. But the Zinnias, Hibiscus, Fountain grass, Cannas and Cleomes were begging to have their photos taken. I had to oblige them!

Oh, and now I see that they were joined by Guara as well.

I grow cleome in my garden as well, although it gets a little weary of the heat about this time of year.

We also visited the Como Park Conservatory and gardens, where I have visited many times, as I lived in the Minneapolis – St. Paul area for four years, from 1988 to 1992. Conservatories always capture my fancy.

I first visited the Conservatory’s Sunken Gardens in the Spring of 1989, when snow still blanketed the grounds outside but bulbs brought spring indoors. This picture of my son was taken when he was 5.